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War Update Once again we find ourselves writing to you on the other side of a difficult season, and we want to begin by saying thank you. This past March brought another war, and as many of you know, the US and Israel joined in a joint operation against Iran, and Iran retaliated. We have walked through several of these now, however for this one life was frozen far longer than in any of the previous rounds. Airlines were closed, and we worked from home, close to our shelter. T

War Update It has been a while since we have sent out an update, and we apologize for the large gap. So much has been happening this year, and it’s hard to keep up with getting the information out to you. First, we thank God for the recent ceasefire in the war, where we were able to see the release of 20 living hostages back to Israel. It’s a real relief for us, and we are hoping this leads to the end of Hamas, the rebuilding of Gaza, and the opening the doors for the gospel

“Let There Be Light” Holiday Outreach Event Merry Christmas As we near the Christmas season, we want to say a special thank you to everyone that has prayed for us and supported us in 2024. It’s hard to believe that our family has been in Israel for the past 5 years now. The time goes so quickly! Without your help, we wouldn’t be free to do what we do here in central Israel, so we thank you for making it possible to serve God’s people in the Holy Land. Our son being baptized i

Darkness and Light As we continue to live in a time of war, threats from all sides, and a critical time and place in history, we also see God doing some powerful and amazing things here in Israel. As I write this newsletter, we are under immediate threat of attacks from Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon and Israel’s people and government are severely divided. However, through war, we believe we see God doing a sovereign work in Israel among the Jewish people. We have seen at leas

Challenges and Refreshing As the war in Israel rages on, this season has been challenging with some seasons of refreshing. We thank God that we have been privileged to pastor in this land during such a difficult time. Some people think we are crazy to be here with our children, but we thank you for the prayers and encouragement that have sustained us during these months. As we enter into the Muslim month of Ramadan (when historically there has been a lot of unrest), please ke

WAR We apologize for our slowness in getting an update out. As the world knows, Israel is engaged in a war with the terrorist organization Hamas after the Oct 7 attacks which left 1400 Israelis dead and over 200 abducted. Since the breakout of this war, we have been providing aide and the love of Yeshua to those who have been affected by this tragedy. Thousands of civilians have had to flee their homes, and many have been left without essential items. Thousands of army reserv

Matthew and Daniela being ordained and installed as executive pastor Ordination Much has happened since our last update and we want to take the time to fill you in on what has been happening with us in Israel. The congregation is growing and we are seeing God doing a wonderful work brining us deeper in his word and in fellowship with one another. In February, we were blessed to spend time with some representatives from our US supporting churches, MaCayla and Alex, and show th

Daniela on stage with Israel President Herzog, U.S. Ambassador Nides, and Israeli PM Bennett Much to Celebrate Hello Friends! You are receiving this update in the middle of the high Holy Days of the Jewish Calendar. Many Israelis observe by taking time to fast, repent, and then celebrate God’s past and future deliverance and presence among us. We have had a very busy summer and autumn so far! In July, Daniela was honored to sing the U.S. National Anthem for the Embassy Indepe

Holidays There is almost too much to tell from the last few months that God has been doing here in Israel. We passed the spring Jewish Holidays (Purim, Passover, and Shavuot) with some amazing events. Passover (or Pesach) was an exceptional time – one of the most important days of the the Jewish calendar. For our Saturday service, we invited families – believers and nonbelievers – together for a special Passover Seder (a dinner retelling the Hebrew Exodus from Egypt) while hi

Young Adults trip to the Galilee Winter Updates Hello friends! This newsletter has been a bit delayed as we had a few challenges this winter. In late January, our entire family contracted COVID-19, and thought the symptoms were not severe, its effects on our minds and bodies persisted with fatigue, sporadic sicknesses, and brain fog. It seems we are coming out if it now, and much of our congregation had, in turn, been infected and recovered in the past 2 months. Despite this,

Looking Back with Gratefulness The year 2021 is almost over and we look back with gratefulness in what God has done in Israel this year. Through war and shifting governments God remains faithful. I want to mention a few of our answered prayers for this year: Through turmoil in the nation this spring, he has kept us safe. We were able to pay for the production of Daniela’s first worship album, hoping to launch by Spring 2022. We asked you to pray for our 1st grade son, who has

War As most of the global community is aware, this spring in Israel was marked by easing of (almost) all restrictions from the coronavirus pandemic, along with the challenges of an 11 day war between the Hamas terrorist organization and Israel. As thousands of rockets poured in from Gaza, sirens sounded several times in our area warning us to take shelter in our underground safe room. We heard rockets exploding relatively nearby, shaking our building. We learned practically h

America and Back Again After 6 weeks touring Texas, we are finally back home in Israel and back in the saddle of God’s work here in Herzliya. We have had a fruitful time in the U.S., and we were blown away by God’s faithfulness. We had the opportunity to spend time with our immediate families and have a little “down time,” which was very needed. We also had the opportunity to visit and speak in churches in Dallas, Austin, and our home church in Killeen, and share about what G

Restrictions Lifting As of writing this newsletter, it is approximately one year since the pandemic hit Israel in full force. Now, a year later, it seems we may finally start seeing some light! Because of the restrictions in place, our congregation was not able to meet in our facility. We have been meeting in a public park in the open air, focusing on our home groups, one-on-one discipleship, and at times online-only meeting. But now, after about a year, restrictions are roll

Hello friends! We are settling in to life in Israel once again. We flew in on August 26 and found our home in Herzliya, Israel. Much of these last three weeks have been spent getting over jet lag, finding some essentials for our shared house, and meeting the members of the Herzliya King of Kings Congregation. The congregation is a diverse mix of local and international believers from various denominational backgrounds, all worshiping the same Yeshua together. What a picture o