C4I Holland - Tulip tour 2011

by Johan van der Ham

The annual Tulip to Israel was again exceedingly successful. We were able to encourage our Jewish friends in settlements, schools etc, but also to meet the new Dutch ambassador in Tel Aviv and the mayor in Jerusalem. It was already the fourteenth tour!

Every year in the month November, C4I Holland organizes a two week tour in Israel, in which we Dutch Christians for Israel distribute 150,000 tulip bulbs in Israel. With a small delegation (6-8 persons) we follow a well-prepared and detailed schedule. During that week we visit schools, settlements, mayors, projects, officials, partners etc throughout the country to show our strong connection, our belief in the same God Adonai, who is the God of Avraham and his descendants Yitzchak and Ja’acov. We encourage them in this difficult times of isolation in world politics, in these hard times of falsification of the real picture in the world media.

In the Netherlands lots of donations are collected by individuals who warmly and strongly support the promised land. Each distributed bag of bulbs has a sticker with the generous giver’s name on it. This enables recipient to send an email with some words and thoughts about this annual project.

Here is one of the many reactions we received:

“A warm 'shalom' from Judea. It was such a pleasure to be able to meet you and the lovely group of people you travelled with. Thank you particularly for coming to visit us on our settlement, Rimmonim. Some Israelis would call that an act of courage, as many settlers have children and grandchildren who deem it too dangerous to venture into Judea and Samaria.

We are truly living in momentous times for Israel and the nations; Israel is becoming more and more isolated; I believe that God is hedging up our way with thorns so that we have nowhere to run to but to Him, then He will allure Israel into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto us. ( Hosea 2)

The Middle East is on fire, but fortunately the Word of God is forever settled in heaven: ‘The Lord shall roar out of Zion, and utter His voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the Lord will be the hope of His people, and the strength of the children of Israel.... And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine....and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth of the house of the Lord.... Judah shall dwell forever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation.’ (Yo’el 3)
Thank you for your friendship and support, and for the kind gift of tulips.”

What more is there to say? It is very clear that our visit was very much appreciated.

‘Has God cast away His people? God forbid’, Paul says in Romans 11:1. As we all know, dear friends of Israel, we’re living in prophetic times. Let us strongly pray for the people of God, the land of God, the fulfilling of the promises of God!

Shalom,

Yochanan van der Ham