Most of you know that I've been meeting with a friend from school weekly to pray together. It has been such a blessing to get to know Elizabeth better and to have someone to share concerns with as well as to pray for the students in our class together.

This past week, Elizabeth shared that some of the students were going to go to Haifa to help out at an organization that provides "Sunday School" type classes for kids in the neighborhood and she asked me if I would like to go. What an opportunity. I can't tell you all the blessings that came from this trip. It was so encouraging to get away and to do something that didn't have to do with school. We went to serve and we were so blessed. The organization is called House of Light. They are in an Arab city called Shafaram about 20 minutes north of Haifa. We rode the train up on Thursday and arrived about 11 p.m. that evening. The folks at the house greeted us with sandwiches and hot drinks. It has been really cold here lately - even snowed last week in Jerusalem. Do I need to mention how unusual that is? So, the warm drinks were much appreciated.

Friday at 4:45 a.m. for the first time in many years, I was awakened by the Muslim call to prayer. I haven't heard that since being in Tanzania. It's such a great reminder that we need to pray for our brothers and sisters who are searching for answers in many different places.

Then later, after a huge breakfast, we went over the things we were going to do that day. The House of Light is part of an organization called King's Kids. They provide weekly lessons for kids of every age. We were there to help with the lessons for kids from 4-12 years old. Currently they are learning about the fruits of the spirit and are also learning about different countries and praying for the kids in these other countries every week.

This week, they learned about Finland. It was a lot of fun. We made little flags to put in snacks, helped create a Finland page in their King's Kids passports, and generally helped out with setting things up. Elizabeth and Connie taught the kids to play "bata, bata, waze" (duck, duck, goose) and we all taught them a song called "There's No One Like Jesus" in Arabic. The kids were great. I have to confess, when Raja, the lady in charge told us there would be about 60 kids, my heart sank. Now, I enjoy kids but 60 kids is a little overwhelming to me. But these kids were amazing. The teachers were amazing. God is using these people! Many of these kids have no other exposure to church or God than thru these wonderful people who are working so hard to show them the light of Jesus. House of Light is run by a family. Anis and Nawal are the parents. They are working in prisons all over the country and before starting the children's ministry began to feel a burden for the children of the prisoners they were visiting. This is how King's Kids in Shafaram began. Now, their adult children are organizing and running the Kings' Kids programs and their grandchildren are joining in. What a blessing to see so many people working together to bring God's light to a tiny corner of Israel.

When I came to Israel, I was full of excitement and expectations. To be in the "Holy Land", the place where Jesus walked. It was such a surprise and shock to realize that so many people here do not know about Jesus and do not want to know about him. I am learning the meaning of God's comments about "stiff-necked" people. I am also seeing that I too have a "stiff-neck" in many ways. This weekend was a refreshing reminder of why I am here. It's not just to go to medical school - God has called each of us to serve where He places us. That might mean working an 8-5 job and witnessing to those around you, raising your kids to walk in His ways, working night shift in a nursing home, or going to medical school. It doesn't matter where God puts us, we are here to worship Him and point others to Him. Even though it is against the law to proselytize in Israel, I need to live in such a way that others will see Him - no matter where I am or what I'm doing. The other thing I'm learning is that I can't do that without your prayer support and encouragement. Thank you all so much. It is such a blessing to know that when I am struggling with life's ups and downs, you all are there praying me along. There are no words to express what a blessing you all are.