A Dangerous Palm Sunday for Christians in Gaza

Holy Week began with a pre-dawn air strike Sunday on the only Christian-run hospital in Gaza. After a 20-minute advance warning, employees, patients and others evacuated Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital just in time, with only one child dying of a former head injury. The adjacent Church of St. Phillip also suffered damage in the IDF attack.

Meanwhile, Palestinian Christian families harboring at St. Porphyrius Church in Gaza City worshipped outside in the open air beneath the constant sound of drones and threat of air strikes to celebrate Palm Sunday. Children dressed in white gathered in the courtyard along with their families, carrying crosses, hearts and crowns they handmade from palm branches, as they celebrated Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem before his death and resurrection.

About 650 Christians remain in Gaza.

Letter from a Christian in Gaza City:

Good morning,

My name is Ann* I graduated with a master’s degree from the Bible College in Bethlehem. I do not want to share much personal information to protect my safety and the safety of my family. I am a displaced person in the Latin Church in Gaza, and every day new families join us. We are approximately 570 people, and in a neighboring church, there are more than 300. We are located in the northern half of the Gaza Strip.

I want to share with you that our hearts are broken and we are full of fear and sadness. We are peaceful Christians and reject violence from both sides. Love, as Christ taught us, is an effective weapon for peace.

There are many people we love who have died. Our family members have died. My cousin and her children died. My best friend died. My daughter’s best friend died. Amid sadness, pain, and heartbreak we look at the face of Jesus Christ.

I would like to share with you the humanitarian situation here. It is catastrophic on the psychological, physical, and spiritual levels. There is very little food, and soon we will not be able to find food or water which will cause us to starve. As a mother of two children, I am afraid for the future. My children’s psychological state is very bad, especially with the lack of food. My heart is bleeding and wounded. I don’t expect to be able to recover.

There are many people whose voices aren’t heard, and we don’t know if the media is reporting any of this. We are not numbers. Each of us has a dream. But I’m afraid that our dreams will end and the nightmare never will. We see death everywhere. We smell death everywhere. The people of Jesus are heartbroken and waiting for healing and peace. We want to live. I cry while I write this because my people, people who have nothing to do with politics or violence, are burned, broken, and heartbroken. All I can think to do is write and hope that people will listen. Please don’t forget us. Please pray for us.

Shared through Christian Mission to Gaza, March 21, 2024

Lord, thank You for the lives that were spared at the hospital and churches. May the praises on the lips of believers who stood in the open to worship You, even in the midst of terrible danger, bring You great glory. Protect these and other displaced Christians in Gaza from any harm, and provide for all their needs, both physically and spiritually. Use them as a light in the darkness, drawing the lost into Your love. Deepen their faith and give them hope. Heal their hearts and minds. Surround the places where they harbor with Your angel armies, and fill the rooms with Your felt presence and peace. Don’t let any harm come to them, Lord. Be for them a mighty, impenetrable Fortress. Bring a quick and right end to this war, and save by the thousands, even millions, every lost Jew and Palestinian. Awaken Gaza and Israel to Your love. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Join the army! Pray through the news for God’s purposes to prevail. To get the daily posts delivered to your inbox in time for your morning quiet times, enter your email address in the space below:

For 30 Days of Prayer for Global Awakening, a book of prayers for every heart, home and country to awaken to God’s love, as well as other resources on knowing Christ, walking as one with Him and fighting for what matters most, visit MoreThanAConquerorBooks.com.

Mikaela Vincent and her husband are missionaries who live by faith, trusting in God to provide for their needs as they pray for and share Christ with the nations. If you would like to help their ministry through giving a donation, shopping at Mikaela’s online bookstore, praying for them or inviting them to speak at your church, retreat or other event, click the buttons below:

All proceeds missionary author Mikaela Vincent receives from sales at More Than A Conqueror Books goes to shining Christ’s light to the nations. Thank you for your support! If you’d like to know more about how you can help the Vincents’ ministry, please contact Mikaela.