As we prepare this newsletter, the world is in an uproar over the so-called “flotilla trag- edy.” Reports say that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) attacked a small, unarmed fleet of “peace activists” who were trying to deliver humanitarian aid to the suffering multitudes in Gaza. As usual, however, most people are not getting the whole story.

Hamas (whose sworn purpose is the destruction of Israel) from using ships to smuggle
in rockets and weapons. Hundreds of rockets have been launched from Gaza into
Israel, and these attacks have resulted in dozens of Israeli deaths over the years. The
blockade seeks to minimize these attacks, and is therefore an act of self-defense.
Every sovereign state in the world has the right to defend itself and its citizens—and
that includes Israel.

cess involves searching ships to ensure that they are not carrying weapons. In 1962,
the United States blockaded an entire nation (Cuba) to prevent the delivery of missiles
that could be used against us. Why can’t Israel do the same?

rants have begun to emerge in Gaza City, and a brand-new, Olympic-sized swimming
pool has opened to the public. Street markets are overflowing with fruits and vegeta-
bles on most days. Nonetheless, no one disputes that Gaza is economically depressed.
The high unemployment rate is due, in part, to the fact that Israeli companies were
forced out of Gaza when the Israelis withdrew security forces in 2005.

everyone already knows how to get that done) as it was about breaking the blockade; thereby opening a conduit by which Hamas could receive a steady stream of deadly weapons to use against Israel.

the south because they know the Hamas terrorists are dangerous. Hamas operatives
have dug tunnels under the Egyptian walls to bypass the blockade. Egypt destroys the
tunnels whenever they detect them, but new ones are always being built.

These are perilous times—and more than ever, we need to be praying for the peace of
Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6). Also, please pray for our workers in Israel as they continue their
labor of love in the Name of Jesus the Messiah. As always—thank you for your support.

If hindsight is 20/20, then 78-year-old Els Verhiel has perfect vision. When she recounts the story of her life, the superintending hand of God is abundantly clear.

In May 1940, Els was not quite 9 years old when the Nazis invaded and occupied her native Holland. Dur- ing the war, Els’s world revolved primarily around her five siblings, her parents (her father was a highly placed government official), their live-in maid, and the church.

Tilburg, the southern city where Els grew up, was heav- ily Roman Catholic. She, like most children, attended parochial school; Tilburg’s few Jewish children attend- ed the one Jewish school in town.

Although Els had no particular dealings with the small Jewish community, she noticed when people began wearing yellow stars bearing the word “Jood” (Jew), and wondered why they were disappearing. Only later did she learn where Tilburg’s Jewish citizens had gone; more than half perished in the Holocaust.

Growing up, the Catholic Church taught Els to live in fear of hell and purgatory. Holland’s massive cathedrals, and the endless streams of brown- and black-clad priests and nuns added to the intimidation. In those days before Vatican II, Holland’s Catholics were not encouraged to own Bibles—let alone read them—as everything was in Latin. Els had heard about Jesus, but never under- stood why He died on the cross. At one point she found herself drawn to the small portions of Gospel that were printed in her missal. She read them, and it whetted her appetite for more.

God safely saw her and most of her family through the war years, sometimes in unexpected ways. The Nazis had initially offered her family a beautifully appointed home to rent—one that had been hastily vacated by an escaping Jewish family. At the last minute, however, the Nazis decided to use the house for their headquarters. Her family’s disappointment turned out to be a bless- ing in disguise. A Nazi test rocket later went astray and struck the church next to that house; both the church and house were destroyed, killing everyone. Els’s fam- ily did survive the war, except for her 16-year-old sister who suffered an excruciating, lingering death from en- cephalitis.

After the war, Els finished high school and enrolled in a Montessori teacher training program. While on the train enroute to her practice teaching assignment she met Adrian Verhiel. He had just begun electrical engi- neering classes. The year was 1950.

That same summer, Adrian and two friends took a bi- cycle trip throughout post-war Europe, traveling from Tilburg to Vienna with stops in Rome and the Riviera. It was a special anniversary in the Catholic Church calendar, and Adrian wanted to make a pilgrimage to Rome. Along the way, while staying at a cloister in Monte Carlo, he had a “chance” encounter with a Ca- nadian bishop. The bishop rose early to celebrate Mass, and needed an acolyte to assist him. Adrian, who had served in that capacity in Tilburg, volunteered to help. The bishop was grateful, and before parting the next day, he gave Adrian his card.

Three years later, that brief encounter enabled Adrian to emigrate to Canada. Like many in post-war Europe, Adrian wanted to leave Holland and make a better life elsewhere. He chose Canada as his destination, but im- migration was far from automatic; according to Els, immigrants had to have a job and someone willing to sponsor them for 10 years. Adrian pulled out the Cana- dian bishop’s card, contacted him, and was quickly on his way!

Clockwise from top left:
Els and her husband Adrian
on their 50th anniversary
in 2005. Els has shared her
home with a widowed friend,
Dennee, since 1988. Els with
champion Jamaican athlete
Caltha Seymour, a member of

Marcos Morales, CJFM worker in Mendoza, Argentina, has felt regu- lar aftershocks since neighboring Chile’s 8.8 earthquake. But the trem- blers have not limited his ministry. On the contrary, it has energized the work! Earthquakes have a way of reminding folks that life is frag- ile and uncertain. At such a time, believers have unique opportunities to speak peace to troubled hearts. The earthquake has also heightened Marcos’s desire to establish a ministry among Chile’s 25,000 Jew- ish people. No permanent Jewish ministry exists in that country, and Marcos has enlisted Chilean believers to join him in praying for the work there.

Marcos has also been led to develop a Gospel witness among the Jew- ish people of San Rafael—a city about 160 miles south of Mendoza. He recently conducted a Shabbat service there, and is also searching for a San Rafael radio station to broadcast his “Oye Israel” (Hear, O Israel) program. Unfortunately, there are only a limited number of programs available for broadcast—and Marcos hasn’t been able to record more. A local Christian radio station had been providing the necessary facili- ties and technical support, but the volunteers who run the station have been unavailable. Marcos is determined to record more because these programs have proven effective in educating the Church and reaching Jewish people with the Gospel.

Although he is active in developing his radio outreach and work in San Rafael and Chile, Marcos’s primary responsibility is to shepherd the congregation in Mendoza. At their weekly Shabbat meetings, they are

Once Adrian was established in Canada, he returned to Holland for Els, who became his bride in 1955. Nine days later, the newlyweds arrived in their new homeland. Still devout Catholics, Els and her husband immediately began their family. Eventually, however, physical problems developed and Els was caught be- tween the advice of her doctors and the counsel of her church. Her relationship with the church began frac- turing. The final blow, however, appears to have been the edicts of Vatican II that caused massive changes in the church as she knew it. Things she had been taught from childhood were no longer true. She was confused and angry. She hungered for unchangeable truth, and prayed for the Lord to show it to her.

One day, a friend dropped by with some literature. It pointed her to the Gospel, and to the teachings of Scripture. Today, Els knows the Messiah as her per- sonal Lord and Savior. She is a devoted student of the Word, and serves her church in numerous capacities— including deaconess and leader of a home Bible study group.

Several years ago, Els found our radio broadcast on her car radio; Dr. Charles Halff was speaking at the time. She was drawn to the teaching and to our ministry to the Jewish people. She continues listening to the broad- casts of Dr. Halff’s successor Dr. Gary Hedrick. She loves the Word; she loves the Jewish people. Perhaps it was that small seed planted—that snippet of the Gospel found in her childhood missal. God’s word (however small) does not return to Him void!

We thank you, Els, for sharing your story with us, and for being a listener and supporter of CJF Ministries. May you continue to grow in grace and in the knowl- edge of our Lord and Savior! (Adrian passed away in 2006 after 51 years of marriage. They have four chil- dren, 12 grandchildren, and 13 great-grandchildren.)

(Note: Holland was the only country to initiate labor strikes to protest the Germans’ treatment of Holland’s Jewish citizens. And more Dutch names fill the rolls of Yad Vashem’s “Righteous Among the Nations” than any other country.)

In March, Marcos Morales of
Mendoza, Argentina conducted two
special “Messiah in the Passover”
presentations.