On a recent trip to Northern Israel I was introduced to a group of men who left their homeland of Southern Lebanon and fled to Northern Israel for safety from Hezbollah. These Lebanese men supported the Israeli army during the war and now many of their children serve the Israeli army. One man I met has turned what seemed to be misfortunes into a thriving business in Israel. When I spoke to him he told me how thankful he was to Israel, which he says has helped him finance his business and assist him in getting a home. “You can’t live with Hezbollah!,” he exclaimed.

I am overwhelmed with thoughts as I hear about all that is happening in America and even in my own home town area, where protesters say that Israeli’s are terrorists, and urge people to boycott Jewish owned businesses. The foolishness of people!

I have toured this northern region and met with people who have escaped Hezbollah and those who have served the Israeli army. One of my guides is a Lieutenant in the Israeli army and he has even received some training by our U.S. Marines. He told me the story of a father and son who worked at a farming facility that had buildings separated by a few hundred feet of each other and was literally across the street from Lebanon. One day a group of Hezbollah soldiers hiding in the bushes began shooting rockets and then guns at the people as they tried to flee.

The father was working on one side and his son was working on the other side of the facility. The son ran to see where his father was only to find that he had been shot. As the son tried to get to the other side, the snipers would should at him in order to prevent him from reaching his severely wounded father. The young man huddled into a corner of bushes for protection. It was 30 minutes before the shots ceased and he could reach his father.

The question I had for the Lieutenant was “Why?”. Did Israel do something to Lebanon? His answer was simply, “No, everyone was peacefully working away when this happened”. He explained that these soldiers aren’t like Israel’s or America’s, they don’t think on their own. These soldiers simply take orders from their leaders who are in Syria, whether it makes sense or not! The Lebanese Christians left in Southern Lebanon live in fear of what Hezbollah will do to them as they watch what they do to Israel.

I highly recommend you read Brigitte Gabriel’s book Because They Hate, as she is one of these Lebanese Christians who was brutally removed from her home in Southern Lebanon. I am so very thankful to these wonderful people who took a stand against a torturous regime and supported Israel and I’m grateful to the Israeli people and government for supporting those who fled from Lebanon.

May the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob bless you all!