The war with Iran, thank God, just ended, and look at this miracle that happened! Here is a letter from a mom, whose baby was born during the war and given the name Lavie Israel - The Lion of Israel, inspired by the name of the Israeli operation.

For the Lilach Organization,

I’m Alexandra, mother of four sweet children, 24 years old, and I would like to thank you for your support, help and listening ear. My sweet baby boy is finally here, and I named him Lavie Israel [The Lion of Israel]. I was hospitalized for almost a week before undergoing an emergency C-section. I was scared, but this little treasure is worth everything. Really, Thank You from the bottom of my heart for your help! Now I’m slowly recuperating for the sake of my children.

Alexandra

The Rising Lion Operation lasted for twelve days, a time of significant victories over Iran’s nuclear capacities, their leaders taken down and on the run, and a time of painful losses of Israeli lives and homes. The norm was sleepless nights because of missile alerts, long days which required us to stay near bomb shelters, and children yearning for school just to get out of the house. The mothers whom we serve are no strangers to trauma and difficult situations. Beyond the long war in Gaza and the destruction from missile bombardments of the past twelve days, these women have suffered fear from unplanned pregnancies, fear from depleted bank accounts, fear from the rejection of partners, and all too often some sort of abuse. Our practical help through the Operation Moses Project, which provides all the baby’s basic needs for the first year, comes at a vital time. Yet, beyond the practical help, the kind words of the counselor have saved the baby’s life and turned the mother’s heart from hardness to compassion for her preborn child.

A troubled heart can be helped by a simple good word, one that brings insight and kindness, giving the listener a new perspective and bringing light and hope into a situation that seems hopeless. I rejoice to see the many times that our counselors have spoken a word of encouragement which resulted in a mother’s life being turned around and a baby’s life being spared from abortion. Eyes that were focused on hurt look to the future in HOPE. Communication is always seasoned with compassion.

I am deeply grateful to you for your prayers and care.

“May the God of Hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him” (Romans 15:13).

Sandy

EXPANSION OF OUR WORK

Oxen can make a big mess! But to see a harvest, strength and hard work are required. When there is no work and no change, there is no mess to deal with, but to see progress, a mess is worth it. In recent months, our Be’ad Chaim team has been working hard to grow and provide distribution of baby items for more new moms and their babies. Sometimes, this seems messy, with the uncertainties of more rent to pay, more stock to purchase for the shelves and more staff. But it’s worth it! This month, we rented a new office for counseling and distribution in Haifa and have been offered our own private counseling room and storage space in Tel Aviv through another ministry. Our current Tel Aviv location which is shared with another distribution center has distributed diapers and other necessities to mothers who have suffered because of their homes being bombed. A new, experienced counselor has agreed to join our team in the soon-to-open office in Rishon L’Zion. For the fifth year, we renewed the contract for the home for pregnant and new mothers in Ashkelon. The renovations of our newly purchased centre in Be’er Sheva are nearly finished. Our other centers include: Tiberias, Petach Tikvah, Jerusalem and Eilat. The expansion of our work is a huge blessing because it allows us to support new mothers and provide vital needs for babies. We thank God for the strength to offer alternatives to abortion and believe Him that this lifeline of practical and emotional backing for new mothers, especially during this crisis season, will protect the lives of thousands of unborn babies, sparing women the regret of losing their child.

FAITH WORKING THROUGH LOVE

Although our staff, like everyone else, experienced the trauma of sirens and missiles, these faithful women continued to reach out in love to those whom they serve with phone calls and practical help. The caring messages and phone calls brought comfort to the mothers who felt alone and frightened. In Ashkelon, our counselor, with her daughter, distributed baby gifts – better called “love gifts” to encourage the fearful mothers. In Tel Aviv and Bat Yam, where homes have been demolished and people hesitated to go anywhere that there isn’t a nearby bomb shelter, we sent online gift cards to purchase baby needs from their local pharmacy. We’ve helped pay the rent for some mothers who lost income. We’ve bought baby beds for mothers who had to be evacuated because their homes were bombed. Extra funds and gift cards have been sent to those who are pressed and suffering. Despite our offices having been closed according to the directives of the Home Front Command, we continued to work tirelessly to share His love. Our motto – “Where you see misery, extend your hands in mercy.”

Photos:
Missile interception over Jerusalem, by Aaron Hecht
Counselor Yael and her daughter distributing “love gifts” in Ashkelon

God Has Done a Miracle with Yafa!

One of our counselors sent this message to the other counselors for prayer:

“Yafa told me this morning that she visited the hospital clinic today and will have an abortion today morning. Her partner is violent and threatens her. She’s afraid that the baby will connect them for life. She’s absolutely determined to abort. This will be her third abortion. She’s only twenty five years old.”

Two days later, she shared this good news with us:

“Good morning! God has done a miracle with Yafa! She told her mother that she was going to have an abortion and her mother succeeded to deter her from that decision. She cried and begged Yafa not to have an abortion, promising that she would support her with the baby and accompany her all along the long journey, just ‘don’t kill the baby.’ All of the honor and glory to God. Yafa will give life to her baby. I know that I’ve prayed for Yafa in the past, but she seems to sway toward abortion whenever there’s a crisis. Let’s pray that this time, she will hold on to life until birth.”

Eden and Baby Girl Halleli

Eden came to our Jerusalem office barely two weeks after giving birth because she is so incredibly grateful to her counsellor Rose. She couldn’t wait to share with Rose the joy that her precious newborn daughter Halleli (“my praise”) has given her. Because she experienced numerous epileptic seizures during the pregnancy, she had considered abortion. She didn’t want to share her ambivalence about the pregnancy with her husband or her parents. Her sister urged her to phone us, telling her it’s “just a phone call… you have nothing to lose. If you don’t like it, you don’t have to talk with them again.” Eden said that the phone call led to several personal meetings with Rose which gave her the opportunity to share her fears and apprehension. It was healing to her soul to share her pain and to hear Rose’s words of comfort. A good word made her heart glad. Today, she is deeply grateful for the words that empowered her to give birth to her first child, beautiful Halleli.

Betty and Baby Boy Rafael

A year ago, Betty discovered that she was pregnant. Her partner had been arrested for selling drugs and pressured her to abort the baby. Her message describes her deep thankfulness to Bead Chaim and specifically for the love shown her by her counselor:

“I wish to express an enormous THANK YOU. You are the angel sent to me by the Lord just at the right time. Your aid throughout the past year helped me so much and I don’t have words to express how much I appreciate it. I thank you from the bottom of my heart and ask that the Creator of the world would give you back double, in every area of your life – health, finance and joy. Also, a HUGE THANK YOU to the amazing Bead Chaim team, who opened their hearts to me.”

Rachelle & Baby Boy Brion

In the February newsletter, we shared that baby Brion had undergone eye surgery and had been completely and remarkably healed. God healed baby Brion’s eyes. Beyond this wonderful physical healing, we had the privilege to see the eyes of Brion’s parents opened to see the LOVE OF GOD. Because of the crisis pregnancy with Brion, his parents heard and accepted the GOOD NEWS. Our counselor says that Rachelle, Brion’s mother, is one of the most special and amazing mothers whom she has met! She is very active with her three boys. She drank in the words of the gospel during many conversations. Although they were Buddhists, she and her husband started attending a local congregation and both became followers of Yeshua!! It was very exciting for our team to be involved with this special family.

It isn’t easy for them to thrive in a land where they don’t have citizenship or social benefits. Rachelle is still struggling to make ends meet, and they are living in an apartment which they share with other families. This is very hard, but they are doing their best. Rachelle and her husband trust the Lord now and rejoice that they have acquired in Israel a treasure that can never perish.

Nina and Baby Shaun

In early June, we welcomed people to our new Eilat office so that they could be introduced to our life-saving and humanitarian work there. It was a special blessing to personally meet Nina, a foreign worker from Africa (whom we wrote about in the March newsletter) and to see the dramatic changes in her life since discovering her pregnancy with her son Shaun. Nina said that her life has turned around 180 degrees and that she is a totally changed person. Another mother there asked her, ”Do you have a man in your life now?” “Only ONE,” she replied with a smile.

This is her letter:

I am truly happy to meet you. All the support and love I’ve received have been the jump-start I needed to gain momentum in life. Raising this child with love and care has brought meaning to my days. Since receiving this blessing, my life has been filled with light, laughter, love, and contentment. What I received wasn’t just material help—it was also affirmation, hope, and the belief that things could be okay. And I can tell you with confidence: things are okay now. Looking back at where I came from, I see how far I’ve come, and my faith has grown stronger. I am deeply grateful for the support that reached me during a time of darkness, hopelessness, fear, and anxiety. It made all the difference.

Nina, Shaun’s mother

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