Shalom from the AMI Center.
We had a wonderful group of Christians from California come to Israel on February 24th. They first visited Joppa where Peter had a vision from the Lord which opened the door to the gentiles being accepted into the church. They then traveled to Caesarea, Mt. Carmel, and many places in Galilee including Capernaum, Mt of the Beatitudes, stayed at a Kibbutz, and finally went on a special boat ride on the Sea of Galilee.
The next day they went to Masada, Ein Geddi, and Qumran where the Dead Sea scrolls were discovered. That evening, they came to Jerusalem and spent the next several days there during the beginning of the war with Iran. They enjoyed being in the holy city of Jerusalem and when called into the shelter at the hotel protecting them from missile debris, they worshipped and prayed for Israel. They decided to leave Israel through Taba, Egypt, then to Athens and the U.S. The pastor of this group shared with me what a deep, rich, spiritual experience this trip provided for everyone in his group, and they already have a sign-up list for next year’s tour.
We also left Egypt about the same time and traveled from Tel Aviv to Taba, Egypt, to Cyprus, to Athens, and then to the U.S. I did not leave Israel because of the war but because I was scheduled to leave so I could take care of some obligations in the U.S. On the trip to the U.S., We felt very blessed by the hand of God leading and protecting us. While waiting for our plane in Taba, Egypt we saw a beautiful clear blood moon appearing over the Sinai desert. I thought about the verse in Joel 2:31 and contemplated the days we are living in and the timing of this blood moon before Purim and during the war.
After several flight delays in Taba, we flew to Cyprus. While there a drone from Iran attached Cyprus and they closed the airport from which we were to fly to Athens. After a few hours (and a time of prayer) they reopened the airport and we went on to spend a night in Athens and then to the U.S. We were in Athens when our group who visited Israel were there on their way home. We meet some very special people in both Cyprus and Athens. We prayed often during our trip to the U.S., but every day was very special, and again, we felt the Lord’s leading and protection the entire trip.
Some of the worldwide media in their reporting of the middle east, paint a negative image of Israel and can discourage people from visiting Israel. However, a tour in Israel is always a wonderful spiritual experience in the land of the Bible. We are returning to Israel on May 4th and are looking forward to not only being in Israel but also, we are excited to welcome our next tour of Christians who arrive on May 17th. We are hoping to schedule more tours to Israel later in 2026 and I would encourage all who can to participate in one of our upcoming tours.
May God bless you richly,
Bruce Larson