Although they all speak one language, our Jewish and Arab students come to our seminary from a wide range of backgrounds and from all over Israel. The person who has been appointed as student liaison officer is a graduate named Zohar, and she is in the perfect position to understand the diverse needs of our students across the board.
Zohar, who is from a Chinese background and married to a Russian Jew, first came to our Bible College when she was in a pre-military training course for Messianic believers almost ten years ago. They were shown around the campus and introduced to the “Bikkurim” (First Fruits) foundation course in Bible study and theology. She knew then that she wanted to come back and study at our seminary. But first, like most Israelis, she had to complete her army service.
“The army was a dry period of my life,” Zohar said, as many have experienced and expressed before her. It is not easy to maintain a strong faith walk while in the IDF, which is one of the reasons we do our best to serve our soldiers. But once she was released, Zohar plunged herself into an intensive discipleship course called “Lech Lecha” before coming to the ONE FOR ISRAEL Bible college.
“I was baptized when I was 16, but in Lech Lecha I decided this was the way I wanted to live my life. I had my time ‘in the world’, but then I wanted to build my roots in the faith, so I went to Bikkurim,” she said, explaining her journey into ministry.
“It felt like home,” she said. “The Bible college is very mixed and you can meet all sorts of different people,” she added, saying she met people of all different ages and backgrounds: Arabs, Jews, Russians, Ethiopians, and Chinese — and how it had been such a positive experience.
She particularly benefited from a course on spiritual disciplines where they learned how to practically build in practices like devotionals, prayer and fasting, and Bible study into their lives.
“It was very meaningful to me,” Zohar reflected, saying she started fasting as part of a practical assignment they were given and found how dependent she had been on particular foods — and what happened once that reliance was broken. The course gave practical ways of building these disciplines into their daily lives and writing papers about their experiences helped to solidify what they were learning.
Now as student liaison, Zohar is helping to represent the students and organizing the social calendar, preparing activities to bring everyone together socially. She also meets with the students to hear about their experiences at the college and how to best support them, both individually and collectively. They are invited to share why they came to the program, what they hope to get out of their time studying with us, and any concerns or questions they may have.
“It’s really exciting to see that this group has really have the calling and the heart to study,” Zohar relayed. “They have the heart and calling to serve the body of Messiah here in Israel: to serve young adults, kids and youth. You get to see their passions, you know? They want to know how to build the right foundation, how to grow. And how to serve.”
