| A while ago, I heard the most amazing story about an airlift in 1991 of Ethiopian Jews. For many years, Ethiopia had been embroiled in a civil war which threatened the safety of a large community of Ethiopian Jews in the country’s highlands. Some of the Jews were able to travel to Israel for safety, but more than 14,300 Jews were only able to make it to the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. Thankfully, through an agreement between the Israeli and Ethiopian governments, Operation Solomon was conceived. During the thirty-six hours of this operation, those more than 14,300 Jews were airlifted from Addis Ababa to Israel mere days before the city fell to rebels. What’s more incredible is the Ethiopian Jews’ outlook on the whole process. Firstly, they left their homes and possessions behind for a chance at safety, trusting that God would protect them. More than that, these Jews were mainly farmers and craftspeople unfamiliar with modern technology. Some of them were so removed from the rest of the world that they had no idea what an airplane was! One of the men was asked after they landed in Israel if he had been scared to fly, given that he didn’t even know what electricity was, let alone how people can fly. He answered that God bore His people on the wings of eagles to the promised land, so he assumed the planes were the magical eagles (my paraphrase)! From where I sit, I cannot imagine the trust that those people had in the protection and providence of God. Faced with death, they trusted technology they didn’t know, believing that God would protect them and bring them safe to the Promised Land. Their faith reminds me of the story of the Exodus from Egypt, when the people of Israel followed the LORD wherever He led them. The Israelites had to trust that the Pillar of Fire and the Pillar of Cloud by which God led them through the wilderness was taking them somewhere safe, that He could part the Red Sea (or Sea of Reeds), and that He would continue to provide Manna from heaven for them to eat. I am thankful for the examples of God’s faithfulness that we find in the Scriptures, from His dealings with His people in the Old Testament to the promises of rest and redemption in the New. It is good that we have a faithful and unchanging God, who tells us Himself through the words of Moses that: “…the LORD your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations.” Deuteronomy 7:9 We can trust in God’s faithfulness in keeping His promises and in showing us His matchless love. We can praise God and say with the Psalmist: “But the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children, To those who keep his covenant And remember to do his commandments.” Psalm 103:17-18 I know that I have experienced our God’s faithfulness strongly many times throughout my life, and I am thankful for those personal examples that I can point to. Today, I encourage you to think about those times in your own life that you have seen God’s faithfulness. Rejoice in His faithfulness and pray with us that He will show Himself faithful again for those who need His help today. God’s Faithfulness and Love be with you all, Noah Wilson |
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