It is wintertime in Israel, which means it is raining. In fact, this past month of January, 2012 saw the highest number of rainy days in one month on record since the founding of the modern state of Israel. During this time of the year, the days are typically short on light because of cloud cover, consistently cold because of uninsulated stone buildings, and undeniably damp because of intermittent drizzle.

Over the past year, we have watched the Middle East landscape blown and shaped by shifting political and populist winds. This “Arab Spring” storm has toppled and continues to blow down autocrats, while tempering the arrogance of surviving regimes. All are reminded that governance and power are not a cudgel, but a privilege—even for kings.

You might say that Israel seems to be in a tight spot right now. Israel’s already tough Middle East neighborhood is only getting tougher. Egypt, renown for its “cold peace” with Israel since the Camp David accords in 1978, appears to be developing into more of a foe than an ally. With the Egyptian people’s popular overthrow of autocrat Hosni Mubarak this past February, the new “democratic” Egypt has allowed, or been powerless to stop, a spate of anti-Israel attacks.

Since the advent of the Global Financial Crisis in 2008, the world’s nations now more than ever are being confronted with the symbiotic relationships they share with one another in the international community. Pressures with trade agreements, currency valuation, and debt deals are challenging the integrity of some governments as they struggle with the reality of too many bills and not enough income.

In March, a new book by Rob Bell, pastor of Mars Hill Bible Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan, took the Evangelical world by storm. Even before Bell’s book, Love Wins, was released, some Evangelical leaders were quick to give their opinions about its theological deficiencies, specifically Bell’s allusions to universalism, or ultimate reconciliation between God and all of humanity.

This past month, on May 2nd, the world woke up to the news that Osama bin Laden, founder and leader of the terrorist organization, al-Qaida, enabler and financier of countless murders, most notably the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 on New York and Washington D.C., was killed by American special forces in a residential compound, outside of Pakistan’s capital.

Mary Gardner was a Scottish Bible Translator who worked in Togo, West Africa helping to bring the Bible to the Ife people in their own language. She came to study in Jerusalem for six months with Halvor and Miriam Ronning’s Home for Bible Translators.

Not since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 has the world watched with as much anticipation as the changing of political power in the Middle East of 2011. Yet, our hopes for real freedom for the nations of this region are cooled by the memory of the Iranian Revolution of 1979 which “liberated” their people from one repressive rule to be enslaved by another—Islamic fundamentalism.

The teachings of Jesus are not easy. They can be hard to understand, difficult to accept or more often than not, tough to follow.

The Jews are known as the “People of the Book”. Jewish society has revolved around the Hebrew Bible for more than 2,000 years as demonstrated by the finding of nearly every book of the Old Testament in the Dead Sea Scrolls at Qumran. The Jewish people’s extensive relationship with Scripture stretches back another millennium or more beyond that, demonstrated by the discovery of the Priestly Benediction (Num 6:24-26) on two silver amulets buried in a Jerusalem tomb from seven hundred years before Jesus.

It is the most important lesson we learn in childhood. It prevents civilization from falling into anarchy. One could argue, it is the foundation of the Bible. Psalm 34:14 commands us, “Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.” The Hebrew word for “pursue” is typically used of warriors passionately chasing their enemies who are fleeing in the heat of battle (Lev 26:7; Josh 8:16).

As the long, hot summer slowly drags through Israel, one is painfully reminded of the heat of battle and the undesired results of war. For in the ancient days, with the beginning of spring/summer when the rains stopped—this was the time when kings went off to war (I Chr 20:1/II Sam 11:1).

Last month, Shavuot, or the Feast of Weeks (Ex 34:22; Deut 16:10), was celebrated here in Israel. According to the Bible, the feast of Shavuot completes the counting of seven “weeks” from Passover to the time of the new grain offering to the Lord (Lev 23:15-16). This offering was a way to thank God for His abundant blessing during the completion of the wheat harvest.

As we enter 2009 in the wake of the World Economic Crisis, it is a fitting moment to discuss the subject of “security”. To do this I want to broach the following subjects: the Advent season, the Kingdom of God, the current economic situation, the end of the world, the Kingdom of God again, and finally, the danger of security.