He always provides

Sunday was our first day of “real class”. By real class, I mean the semester course load. If I counted properly, we are taking 9 courses this semester. Even though the first day was long, it was surprisingly pleasant. As I was sitting at lunch, I realized what a difference three weeks of classes together had made. These people, the MSIH class of 2025, have become friends. It felt much more comfortable than the first week of emergency medicine. And even more important than feeling comfortable, it felt fun and real. We ate lunch together as Lauren continued her mission of naming all the campus cats (: There is גוינה - which is Cheese in English, במבה – Bamba (a popular snack here in Israel, think Cheetos but with peanut butter), Mr. Mustache, גמדה – dwarf, and finally The Guardian. She always includes a fun story about each new addition which only adds to the magic ;) Also in case anyone was concerned, the new Hebrew teacher turned out to be quite nice and an excellent teacher. She goes much slower than Hadass which may end up being better in the long run, but right now it makes class dragggg on. But growth is happening ;) So no true complaints from me!

Another important note was a clash which occurred at the Gaza border. One of the IDFs (Israel soldiers) was shot and critically wounded during a Gazan protest/demonstration. Israel retaliated wounding many on the Gaza side as well. The wounded soldier is actually at Soroka Medical Center, this is the hospital in Be’er Sheva. This was extremely sobering for me. And it is very sad. It seems to be an isolated incident right now, which I am thankful for. But God has been reminding me of the deep brokenness which can be more easily ignored when I am in the U.S.

Our Monday had a bit of a rocky start. According to our schedule, our first class was supposed to be in the Hospital. Most people were confused and mildly stressed because they didn’t know where the room was. We were all patiently waiting outside the classroom, when 5 minutes past the class start time turned to 10. There was no sign of the professor and the room was locked. About this time, Risper got a call from someone in administration informing us the calender was wrong and instructing our whole class where to go. So dutifully we trekked back to the university, where class began about 20 mintues behind schedule. Now, more than ever before, adaptability is one of the most valuable characteristics we can possess (: Halfway through Monday, it was easy to see a common theme in each of our teacher’s introductions. Most of them began with, “I’m so excited to be here, this is the first time I have been with students physically since….” It was really sweet to see how excited they were to be in person. The other common phrase was YOU AREN’T IN KANSAS ANYMORE. Lol really?? I don’t think anyone is in their home state anymore haha ;) All of my teachers are very into small groups as well. Almost every class instructor us into different small groups of 6 yet another group message was created each time haha. I can’t keep track of them anymore.

After class Risper, Lauren, Sammy, and I finally went to sign our lease!!! Yay!! In Israel, it is common practice for the renters to write out a check for every month, plus the security deposit, and give them to the landlord when you sign the lease. Whew! It took a while to write out the words for 1060 shekels in Hebrew thirteen times haha. That evening Lauren and I went to park Hasofrim to study instead of going to Bachata class. It was a beautiful evening. It was truly hilarious when Guy from bachata class walked by, paused, and asked, “aren’t you the girls from bachata?”. Once we confirmed that indeed we were, he was confused about why we weren’t at bachata. Of course, he wasn’t at bachata either so it was a very silly question. We all shared a good laugh from our exchange. It’s moments like these that make Be’er Sheva feel small and more like a home. We also saw some of the 2nd year students who stopped and gave us some chocolate - it doesn’t get better than that!

On Tuesday I FINALLY got up for my early morning run and workout. It burned sooo good. But it did make for a long day of sitting when class started at 8:15am and continued until 6:00pm and the longest break was 45 minutes for lunch. I'm honestly excited for almost all of my courses, but I wanted to share a quote from my ethics course. “Never have people in the West lived so long, or been so healthy, never have medical achievements been so great. Yet paradoxically rarely has medicine drawn such intense doubt and disapproval as today”. Thinking about this statement, I think it is true. But why? I don’t have a simple or complete answer, but it has given me something to ponder deeply. What do you think?

While we were walking back from class, outside the hospital, we noticed a huge pile of garbage. Upon investigation, we found 2 chairs and 2 crates we decided were worth carrying the 20-minutes back to the dorms. One man’s trash is another man’s treasure you know (: Simon also come to inspect the goods, apparently he really wants a gurney to sleep on?? Unfortunately he was unsuccessful in his search haha. I’m actually stoked about these chairs and crates. It has felt stressful to be paying to go to school, buying food, and basically start over on most of our living supplies. Tuesday was an amazing day, we love free stuff!! (well I do, I’m not sure if my roommates are completely sold with the chairs haha). Many people, including the Hospital security system, gave us strange looks as we marched our treasures home, but I felt like I was floating on cloud nine. Unfortunately, studying didn’t go quite as smoothly as our acquisition of new furniture. There are so many resources, and it feels very overwhelming right now. Maybe means our teachers are doing their job right haha.

My Wednesday began with a run with Caroline. A few highlights included me getting pooped on by a bird lolol and Caroline finding a clothing rack that was leaning next to the trash. If this isn’t the perfect description of what living in Be’er Sheva feels like, I don’t know what is (: It was especially incredible because Caroline and I had been talking about how God always provides even if it’s not how or when we expect it. I often find myself forgetting the ways God has been faithful in the past when I am in a period of waiting. Caroline really needed a drying rack and the ones she had seen were much more than she wanted to pay. There is no detail too small for Our God.

In Molecular Biology we tried to find differences between a mechanic and a doctor. If you think about it, their tasks are quite similar. The takeaway message was the doctors have less room for error and are held to a higher standard but know less about their subject than mechanics do. Cars come with a manual; they are human creations. People may have a manual scientifically, DNA, but honestly, we don’t know how to read it properly. Humans are created by something much bigger and more complex than anything we could imagine.

During lunch, Adam brought out a gold mine. Exploding Kittens, but in Hebrew (: We didn’t have enough time to actually play the game, but just looking through the cards and trying to figure out what they said brought me so much joy. You should try it sometime if you are looking for a good laugh ;)

Wednesday concluded with Bible study. We had delicious chicken enchilada soup, I was very impressed and my stomach was quite satisfied. Bible study looked a little difference since all the 2nd year students were quarantined due to a positive Covid test result, but with the help of zoom, we made it work. With a hybrid bible study, I should have seen the foreshadowing for potential remote classes. One of our focuses in Bible study was what it looks like to be on your guard. We know the enemy is going to attack us every chance he gets, it is our job to be prepared and recognize it when it comes. This hit close to home for me. I could feel the weight of the enemy’s attacks this week. I have felt unworthy, unwanted, incapable, and just overwhelmed in different moments and circumstances. Even though I knew it was the enemy, there were moments when it felt like the truth. Most of the time I don’t know how to fight it. But I am reminded again and again that if I run to Jesus, I don’t have to fight. Exodus 14:14, “The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

And just as God promised, He provided. Early Thursday morning, I got to share an encouraging conversation with one of my people, one of the greatest blessings in my life. And I was reminded of God’s truth and love. He is never late in providing.

The morning was a slow one with our first zoom lecture. But it gave Lauren and I time to go to one of the 4th year’s apartments (who was leaving Be’er Sheva to finish his electives and GETTING MARRIED!!) and pillage through his give-aways. We found some great additions for our new apartment (: Muffin tins, matches, spices, and other small but important items. Again, we LOVEEE free stuff!! We had another zoom and histology lab to end the week.

Much to my surprise, I ended up going to a wine festival Thursday evening. Most of you probably know I don’t drink alcohol. Not because I think it is evil or wrong (although maybe when it is abused), but simply because I don’t have a desire to drink and I have made the personal decision not to. This could change in the future, but it is where I am now. You may wonder why I would go to a wine festival. I was wondering the same thing. I had a bit of an internal crisis/breakdown/I’m a mess. On one hand, most of my class was going and I wanted to spend social time with them outside of school. On the other hand, if I went and didn’t drink would I just feel awkward and would everyone think it was dumb that I was there? It cost 50 shekeleem to get in, and it wouldn’t be worth it if I went and felt super excluded simply because I wasn’t drinking. In the end, the pros won out, it is important to at least try. It ended up being a lot of fun. Everyone got a wine glass after they paid their entry fee, so my 50 shekels didn’t entirely go to waste ;) It was very chill atmosphere with live salsa style music that just made you want to dance. I got to talk with several of my classmates whom I don’t interact with as often, and as I continue to get to know them, the more I discover how amazing they are. Even though I didn’t drink wine, I did purchase a delectable smoothy (: The woman working the smoothy stand didn’t speak much English, so I simply asked her to put in whatever she recommended. I think it had banana, pineapple, mango, juice, and some other fruits. She made sure I tasted it and approved before she would take my money, it was quite tender of her. My tip to you, is if you want to blend in at a wine festival, carry around a wine glass and no one will know the difference haha.

Photos by Maya, myself, and Binil (I think)

Fridays are always a bit of a weird day. I haven’t managed to convince my brain that free Fridays do NOT equate to a three day weekend. After a run and quick workout, I headed off to the Shuk to get fresh produce. Once I arrived, I felt a little panicked. This was my first time at the Shuk by myself. Since I don’t understand numbers past 10 in Hebrew yet, I really have no idea how much the venders are asking me to pay. I always try to avoid speaking in English so that I don’t get ripped off. I got some peta, fruits, and veggies without a problem. But my ignorance was exposed when I tried to pay for some nuts and dried fruit. The vender gave me the price and I handed him a bill in response. He shook is head, so I added more shekeleem and tried again. This time he gave me a funny look, so I gave in, asking my go to question, “מדבר אנגלית?“ (do you speak English?). He understood and kindly wrote the amount I owed on a piece of paper. I also took a chance this week and bought some ground beef at the Shuk. I’ll let you know how that decision works out for me (:

On my way home, I stopped at some stores to buy a few household supplies. Mirta, who is currently living in the apartment we will move into on September 1st, allowed me to stop by and drop some things off so that we don’t have to move everything at once. She is truly the sweetest. She greeted me with a hug and made me feel so seen throughout our conversation. We talked about how I ended up in Israel, and I think she is the first person here whom I admitted to that I did not want to move here when I was accepted to MSIH. Which just served to remind me of God’s faithfulness. By the time our conversation was over, she was inviting me and my roommates over for Shabbat dinner. Lauren and I were more than honored to accept. The rest of the day was spent doing laundry, some studying, and some packing to move. Along with some much needed conversation with friends from home <3.

Shabbat dinner with Mirta and one of her roommates, מיכל (Michal), was more special to me than I think I can describe with words. The food of course was wonderful, טעים, as Michal taught us (: But even more than that was just the depth of fellowship. Another one of their friends, Esti, also joined and added to the fun. We shared our testimonies with each other and laughed so much. Michal is a Messianic Jew, so she practices most of the Jewish traditions very closely. Mirta is from Croatia, and as a non-Jew, shared some deep perspective with us about practicing biblical Jewish traditions through the lens of Christianity. Most of the time when practicing Jews have recited their prayers or practiced their traditions, it has felt pretentious to Mirta, but when Michal said the same words, it was a completely different experience and Mirta could only see the beauty. It is clear that is comes from a heart of love for Christ and Mirta can see from her life that she is filled with the Holy Spirit. It isn’t a necessary to honor the Sabbath and other traditions from the Old Testament to follow Christ, but when it is done out of place of reverence for who God is and love for his whole character, I am beginning to see more of who God is and his blinding goodness. God has put a fire in my heart to work to understand the Old Testament through this perspective. I feel so blessed to experience this.

Mirta got out her guitar and we sang songs together in a mixture of Hebrew and English. I left that night feeling tired, but also very filled up, encouraged, and challenged. I feel challenged to live my life in a way that continues to point back to Our God. His goodness knows no bounds and I am continually reminded that his love is richer than I will ever be able to fathom.

Saturday.

I was rethinking the idea of going to church Saturday morning. None of my roommates were planning to accompany me and I was planning to walk with two boys I had met in the dorms. And it is quite a long walk, 2 miles there and 2 miles back. Which seems much longer in the hot sun. The week had been long. Even though I have made many friends, sometimes it still feels very lonely. But when me and my companions reached the church, sweaty and red, I was reminded of why I go and why I am here in Israel. My dear friend Jacey recently asked me if I felt like I had found my purpose here. I honestly can’t remember exactly how I answered her, except that no I didn’t feel like I had found my purpose. But in moments when I feel this way, I remind myself that if I am here for no other reason than to grow closer to Jesus and to be transformed by him, it is enough. I admit, there are moments when I don’t quite believe it deep in my heart. But in that moment of walking into the church, I was reminded of just how deep God’s love is for me. And even if I don’t see the purpose in each moment, He is good. God placed just the people I needed to see in church today. I got more hugs than I can count, and sometimes I forget how much I need hugs. The message was about Zion. The Jews typically believe Zion refers to the land of Israel. But the scriptures make it clear that even the enemies of Zion are written in the book of life. We are welcomed in and treasured as sinners. Even though studying and school feels a bit like hitting my head against a wall right now, God continues to provide. He provides in the small and He provides in the big.

Hosea 6:3

“Oh, that we might know the Lord! Let us press on to know Him. He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn or the coming of rains in early spring.”