In Gaza: Life and death, blessing and curse

Watching the escalation of fighting between Israel and Hamas in Gaza this week, the words of God as recorded in Deuteronomy 30:19 continue to run through my head: “I call heaven and earth as my witnesses against you right now: I have set life and death, blessing and curse before you. Now choose life — so that you and your descendants will live.”
 
What the world is witnessing in Gaza is the stark contrast between Israel, a nation and a people that choose life, and Hamas, a bloodthirsty terrorist organization that celebrates and embraces death. 

During the past week, Israel has taken action to defend itself against on onslaught of rocket and missile attacks that have terrorized its citizens for years.

For the men, women and children who live in southern Israel, 15 is the most important number in their lives. That is how long they have to seek shelter once the air-raid sirens go off. Fifteen seconds is how long it takes for the rockets fired in Gaza to soar toward sovereign Israeli territory and detonate close to civilian targets.

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