Thanks to your faithful support, Kathy and I are blessed to have friends and ministry colleagues in different parts of the world. Many of these relationships exist because our paths crossed in Brussels.
You may remember a couple of emails that we’ve shared with you from our friends and ministry colleagues Nolan and Hannah Tarantino who are serving in Tel Aviv, Israel.
For the last 17 years, I’ve worked closely with Nolan on a number of ministry communications projects including our ministry websites as well as the sites for the Fellowship of European International Churches and the Global International Church Network.
He and Hannah have been a blessing to us and many others over the years as they’ve served in missions in Denmark, Belgium, France and now Israel.
The Tarantinos have lived through a lot the past couple of years including the October 7 Hamas attack, the first bombing attacks by Iran on Israel, and the current war with Iran.
Last week, Nolan shared a text with us about their current situation. We asked Nolan if we could share this with you to give you an update on what it’s like to live through these difficult days in Israel.
Tuesday, April 7th. Just after 11
Dear Friends,
Waking up rested today. Easter and any Christian holiday that falls on a Sunday is always a strange one here. In Israel, Sunday is the first day of the week. Everyone is back at it. We carry the weight of tradition and what this day is supposed to look and feel like. But living in a context where that rhythm doesn’t exist naturally creates something unique.
What we have learned over the years is this. The beauty of being overseas, especially outside of western influence, is that the larger Christian holidays get simplified down to their most basic, fundamental truths. Traditions get stripped away. And our prayer is that our kids will truly embrace the biblical understanding of what these moments mean.
We had an impromptu Easter dinner with six families. One family that had never been to our home before. Somehow an Easter egg hunt broke out, kids running through every corner of the house. It was a blast.
Passover is being observed all around us, so no yeast anywhere. We did a big cookout. Hamburgers without buns. Grilled everything we could. It was a really wonderful evening.
The night brought rockets. Neither Hannah nor I slept. Yesterday was rough. The kind of tired that feels like the worst jet lag you have ever had.
God gave us a full night of rest last night.
This morning Hannah went to the gym. Sirens went off as she arrived. This was the first missile to hit close to our home. Iran is using cluster bombs right now, designed to cause civilian destruction across a wide area. This one landed 50 yards from where Hannah was working out. We felt it in the house. The shelter felt it differently.
It is moments like these where you realize. That was one. Single. Piece of ammunition. I cannot imagine what anything larger would sound like.
Everyone is home. Everyone is safe.
Colton is up at the Sea of Galilee with other families at a prayer retreat. A lot of kids his age. We are really glad he is there.
They are talking about sending kids back to school Sunday. We are all unsure what that means exactly. Does it signal something winding down? Do they feel enough is under control? We will be learning over the coming days.
We start every day asking God for daily bread. This morning we were reminded of something simple. We don’t want to wait for a calmer world, a quieter street, a morning without sirens before we experience God.
Today is real life. The rockets, the sleepless night, the cookout without buns, the kids chasing eggs through the house. All of it. God is in the middle of it. Not one moment is wasted by Him. That is what we are holding onto today.
With love and faith,
Nolan & Hannah
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