It is very strange in Jerusalem these days

I have lived in California where wildfires wipe out communities and cause evacuations. One would watch the news coverage, pray for the winds, pack the trunk with essentials, and hope that it was controlled before needing to flee. Once, our area was evacuated and another time we were ready to go, but did not need to leave.

I have lived in Florida where hurricanes bring destruction and prompt evacuation, even today. Again, essentials would be packed, and we would watch the news and pray for the course to change and the winds to die.

Now, in Israel, we are waiting for bombs and rockets to arrive from Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas, and Yemen. We do not know when the bulk of the attack will occur, but do expect to see a concentrated attack. We are told it might occur today or tomorrow, or in 8 days on the Jewish day of mourning Tisha B'Av. Of course, this is all speculation based upon “intelligence.”

We have lived through October 7 and the subsequent weeks when rockets were frequent from Gaza which mostly affected the South and coastal areas. On October 7 and 8 we needed to visit our safe room. We have lived through rockets and explosive drones from Lebanon, which mostly impact the North. In April we lived through the Iranian attack that resulted in the East and Jerusalem seeing some rocket fire and twice visited the safe room. But most of that attack was interrupted by defenses from Israel and her allies.

Now, we do not know what to expect. We have heard that Hezbollah in Lebanon has 150,000 weapons to send our way – surely more than the iron dome could handle – many of which are precision guided, Israel is scrambling GPS signals to protect against them. (Our daughter lives about a mile from us, but three times in the past month her phone locator app showed her to be in Egypt for periods of time.) We have heard of Iran’s large supply of powerful, and perhaps even nuclear weapons. Perhaps we were falsely confident after their attack on April 13 was largely spoiled. Hopefully not. Hopefully they did not hold back and we were able to be protected.

Flights of almost every airline into and out of Israel have been cancelled. Yet, in Jerusalem, life goes on. Construction continues. Stores are open. Protests occur. Camps are being held. Traffic may be lighter than usual due to the absence of tourists, but driving and parking are still no treat. Cafes and coffee houses remain open and busy. And yet, in a moment, that will all likely change.

It is a challenge to make plans. We are invited out tomorrow in Jerusalem, and if there are no rockets, will go. Same thing on Thursday. But, it sure is tempting to stay close to home, make sure there is water, cooked food, and supplies for the cats. Next week we are invited to speak about 60 miles from here, with rocket range of Gaza. That may be a different story. Our daughter works in a hospital in Jerusalem where protection from rockets is provided by standing in a stairwell, assuming that she can leave her patients’ rooms.

I sleep with my phone on, something I never do, awaiting the air raid warning signal.

The new reports are often contradictory, and rarely encouraging. It is not an easy way to live. Israelis are used to it, but not necessarily immigrants from the West. Sadly, immigrants from Ukraine are too familiar with it.

Two things do encourage me. First, God established and re-established this nation here, on this spot, for His plans and purposes. He will not allow it to be destroyed. Secondly, the resilient nature of the Israeli people is so profound that it instills confidence. They will not allow themselves to be brought down, even as they are being terrorized by their enemies. It really is a feature we do not see in the West in my opinion.

So, we sit, wait, pray, hope, and live. After all, what is the alternative?