Gaza Strip (MNN) — Egypt’s President calls on the global community to help the rebuilding efforts in the Gaza Strip. Speaking at a panel of the World Youth Forum, he said recovery from last year’s 11-day war between Hamas and Israel requires far more than the $500 million his country already gave.
The underground Church is struggling. “Most of the people we work with in Gaza only have electricity for half an hour [to] an hour a day,” Tom Doyle of Uncharted Ministries says.
“A friend of ours sent a picture of her hair falling out in clumps, and we know it’s from stress and the constant threat of war.”
These believers won’t give up, though. They’re clinging to hope and strength that comes only from Christ, and it’s leading to Gospel opportunities.
“The fruit of the Spirit is something that the world can see, and it’s magnetic; that’s attractive to people,” Doyle says.
“[People say,] ‘Why would you even smile? You live in Gaza; why do you have hope?’ And they’re (believers) able to share the Gospel.”
One new believer came to the Lord only a few months ago, yet “he’s in deep (spiritual) waters already,” Doyle says.
“He said, ‘I have four new friends that I spend time with every day: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. I’m in the Scriptures; I’m falling deeper in love with Jesus every day.’ He’s not focusing on the depravity of the situation and horrific conditions; he’s focusing on Jesus, and that’s why he has joy and passion and cares about others.”
Still, it’s not easy to live in Gaza, and these believers need your prayers. Pray for endurance, and ask the Lord to give them comfort. Pray they’ll connect with people who are searching for answers.
“We have some relationships that go back about 20 years there in Gaza. The(spiritual) ground [used to be] so hard; but within the last decade, there’s been a breakthrough and an opening to the Gospel,” Doyle says.
“Out of that desperation, people are calling on the name of the Lord. They have turned their back on religion; Islam was not providing answers or hope.”
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of Chuttersnap/Unsplash.
