Those who have ever built anything know just how much it takes to raise up a structure, build it, renovate, reconstruct. The efforts, resources, challenges… and in our case obstacles along the way.
We have been in the final phases of our building renovations for a while, and it seems like the smallest things often take the longest to finalize.
God’s grace has always been sufficient and it has pushed us through challenging moments, while His provision was always faithfully and supernaturally supplied.
We are now finalizing some permits that will enable us to finally move into our new building, which you helped us purchase and renovate, through your prayers, support, generosity. For that we are always so thankful, and consider you to be one of the stones that keep this building together.
Some of the obstacles we haver been facing was of course of a religious nature. Since the city’s religious authorities and Chief Rabbi openly declared they will oppose us in every way they can, so our building is never finished, we have seen how much damage they could have done, had it not been for all the prayers.
There has been a lot of pressure on everyone who came in contact with us, whether it was in issuing permits for us, or anything logistical even… we have been hearing time and time again from different clerks how we don’t even need to present ourselves, everybody knows about us and perhaps were advised to obstruct us while we are trying to get all the final paperwork sorted out. That’s how far and wide word about our work has gotten out.
However, we give God all the glory that what the enemy has meant to harm us, the Lord is turning it around. The pressure has been great, but the challenges have been worth it, especially when we step into the building and see how God’s vision, years of prayers, dreaming and believing, have all materialised into what we see today.
This building is no small effort, and it’s quite a historical moment in our city, where there are over 400 synagogues, and not a single believer-owned congregational building. Beit Hallel will be the very first!
Which is why we need your prayers as never before in this final stretch, so we can break through the obstacles. God is faithful to His word, and He “will make the crooked places straight…” for us (Isaiah 45:2)
We also need your prayers for the professionals that are involved in the whole process. The enemy has been also attacking our architect, as well as contractor. Our architect’s wife suddenly fell very ill, to the point of not being able to walk and the doctors can’t figure out what is wring with her.
On several occasion it has been confirmed that the religious orthodox that persecute us, are using witchcraft and hurling curses at us through prayers. Yeshua has been our shield through it all, but we see that the spiritual war is far from over, and now even people that work with us can subject to that darkness.
Please pray with us for a breakthrough as we fight to finalize our building and preparing for our move.
Pray for protection for all involved in this process, as well as for God’s favor and provision as we bring this project to completion in the next few weeks.
Beit Hallel is a Messianic Jewish congregation in Ashdod, led by pastor Israel Pochtar, serving holocaust survivors and the poor and needy locally and throughout the nation of Israel, while building up the body of Messiah in the promised land of Israel.