One of the joys of writing fiction is picturing God in unexpected situations. Sometimes these situations are tense. In The Persian Gamble, Marcus Ryker finds himself sharing the gospel with Peter Hwang and Nick Vinetti just prior to a dangerous rescue mission in a North Korean port town. Sometimes these situations are tragic. The Auschwitz Escape sees Pastor Luc LeClerc showing the sacrificial love of Christ to Jacob Weisz while suffering in the Auschwitz death camp. In the very places that you don’t anticipate seeing the hand of God, suddenly there he is.

But this is just a model of real life. God is always showing up in places where he’s not expected. One recent example of this is in the horrible fires that raged through Israel at the end of May. Over a 41-hour period, 1023 fires started. That’s a rate of one new fire every two and a half minutes.[1] Speculation regarding the causes of these fires ranged from simple electrical shorts and holiday bonfires to more sinister explanations like arson and incendiary balloons from Gaza.[2] Whatever the debate regarding the direct causes, there was complete agreement that the severe heat didn’t help the situation. People were injured, homes burned, and acre after acre went up in smoke.

So where was God in this tragedy? As the extent of the devastation became evident, Prime Minister Netanyahu put out a call for international help to fight the fires.[3] Five countries responded—Italy, Greece, Cyprus, Croatia, and Egypt.[4] Those not from the Middle East may not realize the miracle in that short list. The first four have had their ups and downs with Israel, but it’s not a shock that they came to help. But the fact that Egypt stepped up is nothing short of a God-appearance. Onlookers marveled as they watched two Egyptian military helicopters loading up with water, then carrying their loads to drop on the flames. One spectator observed that the last time Egyptian military helicopters were in the region of Ashdod was seventy-one years ago during Israel’s War of Independence.[5]

That Egypt jumped in to help is not something that will be soon forgotten in Israel. It is one more step in the growing relationship between these two former enemy countries. While we never wish tragedy or devastation on anyone, it is certainly a comfort to know that, when it does come, our God of power and grace comes with it. He may not always be easy to see, but we can be sure he is there.

-Joel

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[1] “Over 1,000 Fires Ravage Israel over 3 Days, Forcing Evacuation of Thousands.” The Times of Israel, 26 May 2019, www.timesofisrael.com/over-1000-fires-ravage-israel-over-3-days-forcing-evacuation-of-thousands/.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Magid, Jacob. “Netanyahu Asks for International Help as Huge Fires Force Evacuation of 3,500.” The Times of Israel, 23 May 2019, www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahu-calls-for-international-help-as-huge-fires-force-evacuation-of-3500/.

[4] Naftali, Hananya. “Fires Continue to Rage in Israel. Thank You Italy, Greece, Croatia, Egypt, and Cyprus for Sending Help! Please Keep Praying for Israel! Pic.twitter.com/5szk9XLG3y.” Twitter, 24 May 2019, twitter.com/hananyanaftali/status/1131926632858628096?s=21.

[5] Ahronheim, Anna. “The Last Time the #Egyptians Were in the Ashdod Area Was in 1948 during #Israel’s War of Independence. 71 Years Later They Are Helping Israel to Fight Fires Which Have Broken out in the Area. https://T.co/KwautIERiK.” Twitter, 24 May 2019, twitter.com/aahronheim/status/1131986301631291392?s=21.