BabuLife

Gaza Update

Below is the most recent note sent to the "Once An Arafat Man" Facebook Group members.  If you'd like to join the group, sign up for a Facebook account and join the over 270 people on the "Once" Group Page here.  To all who have asked how my folks are....THANK YOU.  Your prayers and concern mean more than you know...

Hello "Once" groupers!

As you know, there's a lot happening right now in Gaza where my folks have been working over the past couple of years. Thankfully, they are safely outside the borders of Gaza...however, there are many friends and partners within. We covet your prayers for the people of Gaza and the people of Israel during this time.

Many have asked for information on where my Dad (Tass) and Mom (Karen) are. Currently they are in Israel doing what they have been called to do. If you've read the book, you know there's no stopping them from doing what the Lord has called them to do.

Today, my Dad put a post up on the blog www.OnceAnArafatMan.com to give you some insight into his thoughts regarding the current escalation in Gaza. You can read it here:

http://onceanarafatman.typepad.com/my_weblog/

Keep your ears to your radios and eyes to your TV sets, as all attention is being drawn to Gaza and Israel, you might hear or see my Pops sharing his story of redemption. He's been on several shows recently including Janet Parshell, Jay Sekulow among many others.

Thank you all so much for your support! And please...keep passing the book around! There's no better time than now to share the story with your friends and family...the world is watching, wondering what exactly this whole conflict is about.

God bless!
-Ben (Son of Tass)

Gaza Update: Trouble

Hey all.  It's been some time since I've reported anything regarding the ministry of my folks in Gaza.  They had some terrible things happen a couple of weeks ago.  You can read more here detailing the events.  You can also read author Joel Rosenberg's blog post here.  Here's the post:

Dear friends of "Once an Arafat Man".  It is with a heavy heart that I write this post. Our humanitarian organization in Gaza was ransacked...no...not ransacked...but robbed.  By who you might ask.  The answer is one that may surprise people...but to those who are educated in middle east politics, particularly in the Palestinian world, it may not come as a shock.  The governing body in the Gaza Strip, Hamas, has taken it upon themselves to destroy all the good that is being accomplished through the cultural center in Gaza.

I received a phone call early this morning informing us that our home in Gaza was robbed by Hamas.  What they could not take, they destroyed.  Bullets shot through windows, bullets shot through walls, furniture taken, pictures, books and the front door...yes the front door.   If the home was not enough, they took everything from the cultural center.  Computers, desks, chairs, sofas, furniture...all things being used to help the poorest citizens of Gaza.  In addition to our home and cultural center, they took it upon themselves to destroy the Hope Kindergarten facility.  Taking playground equipment, toys, and educational material...surely the soldiers of Hamas will find them useful while the children who received joy and education will now be without.

This "governing" body is on a mission to eliminate hope in it's people...but be assured...as long as the Body of Christ continues to commit itself to the purpose of hope, love, peace and reconciliation to God...Hamas and the dictatorships like it will never succeed.  They will only continue to fan the flame quietly burning in the hearts of their people.

In a time such as this, with the political future of the United States being decided in November, it is  becoming increasingly important for the Body of Christ to educate itself in the story of the Middle East.  While intentions of former presidents visiting the leaders of Hamas may seem purely motivated, it only emboldens these governments to pursue acts such as these.  My hope is that the book "Once an Arafat Man" will be a helpful tool for all who wish to understand the volatile situation in places like Gaza.

Thank you for your continued prayers.

-Tass

Thanks so much to all of my friends both on the web and in "real life" for your prayers and support for my family.  We're anxious to see what God does moving forward with Gaza.

Meet a Former PLO Sniper

This Sunday my Dad's coming to Grace.  As we begin a three week series on world missions, my Father will be coming to share his story, heart and encouragement to the church in it's need to reach the muslim world.  With a book coming this Fall called "Once an Arafat Man", it may become more difficult to get the opportunity to have him speak so I hope many of you Gracer's are able to come.  With it being a holiday weekend I know there might be pockets of you traveling.  As always...you can tune into the podcast to hear the message.

Here's a snippet of the upcoming guests over the next three weeks.

• July 6: Tass Saada - Former Muslim PLO Sniper and author of the upcoming book "Once an Arafat Man". www.OnceAnArafatMan.com www.HopeForIshmael.com

• July 13: Claude HIckman - Author of "Live Life on Purpose" and member of TheTravellingTeam.org.

• July 20: Matthew Ellison - Founder of "LifeLine Missions" and member of 1615.org.

"I'm Proud of You Son"

It's been a looooong time since I've posted anything regarding my parents and their ministry to the Middle East.  They are currently in the U.S. and are prepping for the upcoming book being written on my dad's life.  I do not envy the author who is having to work from a translated version from German then is rewriting much of it to fit the western American reader.  The book should arrive on shelves this fall.

Last week I met with the author for breakfast so he could just find out a little about me for the book (I'll be signing copies for the one or two pages I might be mentioned on).  He had some great questions that hopefully my answers gave him a little more perspective into the man my father was before he met Christ and who he is now. I think the question he asked "Tell me a story about your Father" was the most intriguing for me.  I found it easy to answer, yet difficult.

Growing up my Dad was a very busy man and we typically saw him only on Sundays and sometimes on Mondays.  He was a manager in the high class dining restaurant business so he was out late closing the restaurant then he'd sleep in every morning so we never saw him during the week.  I have a TON of memories of him taking me out to movies, going out to eat and hanging out.  But those weren't the kind of stories I think built character within me.  The stories I value most aren't events, but simple statements made at critical times in my life. "I'm proud of you son."

The last time he said that publicly to me was on the stage at Grace on March 18, 2007.  I was preaching that day and I had my folks, who happened to be in town,  share some time answering questions about how they worship God on the mission field where they can't publicly assemble.  When they walked on stage my Dad said, "I'm proud of you son." Sure it was a little embarrassing to be fawned over by your parents in front of 600 people.  I didn't realize the importance of this statement, because it's something I heard frequently in my house growing up.  Standing outside alone on the front porch of my aunt's house with Dad during my High School graduation party he said, "Son...I'm proud of you."  On the phone probably a thousand times I've heard those words come from his mouth.  And that Sunday morning last year I was struck with the fact those words are what every man desires to hear from his father.

After my parents were with me on stage, a few guys came up to me and the one thing they mentioned about the message I had taught was this, "I would give anything to have had my father tell me he was proud of me."  Wow.

Once again my Dad, unknowingly throughout my life, helped guide me to a place where I could understand that my heavenly Father is proud of me.  He accepts me just as I am.  A reminder that God the Father is accepting of us all, because of what His son, Jesus Christ did through the cross.  My Dad filled that void and taught me the need to fill that spiritual void with a relationship with the ultimate Father.

I think this will be a statement I'll continue to pass on to my children.

Gaza Update - Everyone's Ok

I felt with current climates over in Gaza between Hamas and Fatah it might be time for a quick Gaza update on my folks.

They are well.  Dad is in Israel, Mom is actually here in the states wrapping up a weeklong visit with us.  All are safe.  There are folks in Gaza who do need prayer.  Stories of people holed up in bathrooms while their building is being overtaken are coming through to my folks.  And as for any person involved in humanitarian work to people they love and care about, my folks are longing to be there with their friends.

Thank you for your prayers and notes asking about my folks.

A news story from Gaza

Gaza Update: Mom and Dad are Back!

We have had a great time with the folks.  They arrived here in KC last Thursday night and we reunited with them after a long year apart.  We feasted on some good Kansas City BBQ while the kids got a little wild being back with their Grandma and Grandpa. I wonder what my first meal would be coming back to Kansas City if I was on the mission field for a year. I think I'd go for a nice big steak.  One of my Dad's first meals was a few Krispy Kreme doughnuts.  Probably aren't many doughnut places over there.

This weekend my Dad will be sharing a little during our weekend services about their experiences in Gaza and the ministry they are doing there.  Thanks to all of you for praying for my folks.  They've got a whirlwind time here in the states for a couple months and will be heading back in June.  The kids are LOVING spending time with them.  Here's a pic of Dad, me and the crew.

Gaza Update - Pray for Gaza Baptist Church

This morning I recieved a link to a story from my parents.  It would seem the Fatah folks have taken the building that the Gaza Baptist Church meets in.  It's apparently in a strategic location giving them the ability to snipe and fight against Hamas.   Here's the story from Christianity Today:

Five Fatah police officers remain stationed on Gaza Baptist Church's sixth floor as a tense truce has brought at least momentary peace to the tiny strip of coast teetering on the brink of civil war.

Tuesday afternoon, fights between the secular Fatah party and its rival, the militant Islamic party Hamas, flared on Gaza's side of the Egyptian border as Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh passed through Rafah Crossing en route to reconciliation talks.

The 10-minute gun battle not only threatened to shatter the latest cease-fire but also trapped Hani Fazah, a Christian Gazan doctor and fiancé of prominent Gazan evangelical Rana Khoury (see "Love in the Land of Enmity," July 2005) in a bus at Rafah as he tried for a second day to enter Gaza for their imminent wedding.

These are the latest of many violent events since January 2006, when Hamas won a majority of seats in the Palestinian parliamentary elections. Hanna Massad, pastor of Gaza Baptist Church, told Christianity Today that each round of Hamas-Fatah fighting ratchets up the bloodshed and lasts longer than the previous round. On January 28, Gaza Baptist's Awana club bus driver, Wasfi Khardish, 20, was walking down a street when a stray bullet pierced his heart, killing him instantly....Continue Reading

Gaza Update - A Wheelchair

This March my folks will be back in the U.S. I cannot tell you how much my family is looking forward to being with them.  Our youngest will get a chance to reaquaint herself with her Sidi (Grandpa in Arabic) and Seti (Grandma).  Every night my two oldest pray for their safety and the work they are doing in Gaza.  They are going to be thrilled to see them again in person instead of a shaky webcam.  They have so many stories to share about God's work in the hearts of the muslim people in Gaza.  Too many to share in one post or even on this blog. Every once in awhile I take a moment to share a prayer request from them or a cool story from their ministry here on my blog. Check out the Gaza category to see past posts.  Thank you to all who pray for them.

This past August a note was put out by my parents about a mother who was raising a family of 8 on her own.  Four of her children are in wheelchairs.  Their father abandoned them moving to the West Bank, remarried and started another family.  My parents wanted to help this family and were able to help the mother financially through their ministry to get the kids ready for school.  They wanted to do more.

Around Christmas a note was passed to their supporters and friends as well as a post on their password protected blog.  They wanted to raise some money for one of the sons in a wheelchair who is very talented with fixing TV's, radios and various electronics.  The rocky terrain and lack of transportation made it extremely difficult for this young man to attend school.  With an education he might have a chance to provide support to his mother and siblings.  The call was put out and Grace Church answered!

Thank you to all who answer the call to provide support to missionaries and their work financially. Through my parents I've learned there is no greater feeling for a missionary than when they are able to love people with gifts from those who know Christ. Grace Church purchased the wheelchair for this young man and brought joy, hope and comfort to a family on the other side of the world, in a small town in Gaza.

The body of Christ is awesome!

Gaza Update - Some Local Threats

It's been some time since I've posted on how my folks are doing. They are well, however they have requested some urgent prayer. There are some significant things going on there that I cannot talk about on this site as google is a powerful tool for both innocent bloggers and those who would do harm to others.  But my folks know the power of the praying body of Christ and would covet your prayers this week.  If you'd like to learn more, feel free to email me.

Thanks!

Babu

Gaza Update - What is Pure Religion?

I love reading the stories my Mom and Dad share on their blog about the lives they are touching in Gaza.  They've asked me to modify pictures of the people if I post them on my site in order to remove their identity.  Rather than do that, I thought I'd put the story and if you want to see more, shoot me an email and I'll forward their blog info...unless you're a baddie.  If you would like to learn more about my folks ministry, visit the Gaza category on this site.

We drove down the rocky, sandy road and pulled into a small dusty yard framed by remnants of steel and barbed wire.  As we did, four young people, two girls and two guys, wheeled around their chairs to see who was entering the yard.  With smiles as bright as the sun, they greeted the unfamiliar car full of people and began to laugh as they noticed our friend S. hopping out of the back of our tiny Volkswagen station wagon.  On his suggestion, we had decided to spend some time with this lovely family.  This mother is raising eight children, four of whom are in wheel chairs, all on her own.  Their father decided to go to the West Bank and live.  Once there, he remarried and started another family leaving them without the love or financial provision of a father.  The mother receives $300 a month from the government to take care of herself and eight children.

These young people have every right to expect more out of life, however, they are giving more than they are receiving!  The two young girls have drawing talents and sewing talents and they are using them for others.  They stitch pictures of the Jesus of their visions.  One of the girls draws and the other stitches the decorative beads around the picture.  So creative!  They were not shy to show us their portfolio of drawings.  One of the young men is very handy with repariing TV's and radios, so he is enrolled in a technical school in the city where he hopes to learn more and earn a certification for his skills.  And the other one makes small toys for his brother to play with.

It was so inspiring for us to see what hope this family has for the future. Through your generous giving we were able to leave some money with this mother so she can get her children ready for school!  We would like to help them further so that they will continue to see the love of the Lord and spread hope in Gaza.  If anyone is interested in taking this family on for monthly sponsorship giving, please let us know through emailing our daughter, Farah, at farah@hopeforishmael.org.  They are in need of new wheel chairs and we would like to be able to get them scooters as well, since they have to travel to the next town in order to go to school.  Without them, they will have to whell themselves to and from school since there are no "wheel chair" ready taxis or busses here.

As we left that day, we were reminded of the words of our Lord when He said, "Pure religion is caring for orphans and widows." --- I think He said it all in that statement. --- Don't you?

Seeking to follow Him more...
T & K ... in Gaza