Easy is Not Always Best

On Saturday, we were out of town and so were unable to worship with our church family in Rishon Letzion. We used that opportunity to go into Jerusalem on Sunday and worship with a small church there. As I told Mom Saturday night, that while I missed seeing everyone at Grace and Truth and listening to the preaching, I was so looking forward to hearing a service in English! I would be able to sing the songs, and I wouldn't have to work so hard to keep out all the distractions and focus on the translator. While it was easier to sit and listen to the service, I found that the easiest isn't always the best and that God had blessed us with providing Grace and Truth, a wonderful church in which to minister and worship.
Grace and Truth is predominantely a Russian and Hebrew congregation. The service is conducted in Hebrew, and then a translator with a microphone translates into Russian, the sign language interpreter translates to the deaf section in front of us, and then one of the English translators stands near us and translates into English. Talk about opportunity for distraction! The church doesn't boast many creature comforts that we Americans are use to, such as personal space, air conditioning, and English. What you can't see in the picture is the 20-30 Russians who sit just outside the door in the alley, and the heat, or the sitting and standing people into the two hallways and adjoining office rooms, one along the wall with the projector screen and the other behind the photographer.
While not an easy, comfortable place, Grace and Truth is a wonderful place to worship because they preach the Word in truth and love each other in unity and community. The first Sunday we were there, I was struck by how loving and unified the congregation seemed to be. It reminded me of Trinity and Hillcrest, and that in and of itself made me want to stay! Then the service started and they sang and prayed and preached, all in Hebrew and Russian, but their zeal and love for the Lord and the truth that they spoke from God's Word finalized that this church was where we would be worshipping. I loved listening to them preach and sing and pray in Hebrew. Even though I couldn't participate or understand everything, worshipping with them opened my eyes to the universal church of God. We were worshipping God together in unity, and the unity had nothing to do with our language. Darren commented later that it felt as if the curse of Babel had been reversed for those few hours, and believers from different nations and tongues could praised and worship God together.
The church is a Reformed Baptist church with a gun-toting preacher! Yah, that was a shock when I first saw it. I was sitting in the young adult Bible study on Thursday night and almost burst out laughing in surprise when I saw a big hand gun tucked into his belt. Of course, I wasn't going to interupt him or question anything he said as long as he had that gun close - maybe that's why he wears it! Actually, it's because he takes his role as protector very seriously - protector of his family and of his church- and in Israel, that can mean more than just insurance. Pastor Maoz and his wife share the name, in masculine and femine form, which is the Hebrew word for blessing. Please pray that this church will always be that blessing to the family of God that it edifies. The church's website is www.gnt.org.il if you want to read more about it.