ARTICLES

By Stephen Faircloth

The land of Israel is more than a backdrop for biblical events. Its rivers, hills, animals, and even its changing seasons fill the language of Scripture. The land itself shaped the metaphors, poetry, and images used by the prophets, psalmists, and storytellers of the Bible. To stand in certain places today is to hear, see, and feel the very scenes they described. The Dan Spring is one such place.

Located at the base of Mount Hermon, the Dan Spring is the largest of the three main sources that come together to form the Jordan River. Flowing with remarkable force, it produces an estimated 240 million cubic meters of water each year. In the winter and spring, as rains fall and snow melts from Mount Hermon, the sound of the rushing water becomes a deep, steady roar.

It is not difficult to understand why the psalmists drew spiritual imagery from this place. In Psalm 29, the writer describes the voice of the Lord over mighty waters, breaking cedars, and shaking the wilderness. References to Lebanon, Sirion, and Kadesh place this picture in the northern region surrounding the Dan Spring. To the psalmist, the roar of these waters reflected the power and majesty of God’s voice.

Psalm 42 offers another glimpse into the spiritual symbolism of these waters. Here, the psalmist compares his longing for God to a deer thirsting for fresh streams. Standing in the humid heat near the Dan Spring, he hears the thunder of its rushing flow and likens his feelings of being overwhelmed to waves and billows crashing over him. The geography is more than a backdrop. It is part of the message itself. The sound, the setting, and the experience all speak to the soul’s deep need for God.

Visiting the land of Israel is more than seeing historic sites. It is stepping into the physical world of the Bible and allowing the land to deepen our understanding of God’s Word. At the Dan Spring, creation itself declares the glory of God, reminding us that the geography of the Bible is one of its most vivid teachers.

If the psalmists could listen to rushing waters and hear the voice of God, what in your own surroundings can remind you of His power and presence? What everyday sights and sounds could you use as a prompt for worship?

Stephen Faircloth is the President of CBN Israel, an initiative dedicated to sharing the true story of the Jewish nation and inspiring a global community of Christians to stand with Israel and support her people in need. Our vision is to reshape the global conversation about Israel by fostering understanding, hope, and healing between Jews and Christians around the world. For more than 50 years, the Christian Broadcasting Network has supported Israel. By joining CBN Israel, you become part of this enduring legacy, transforming lives today and strengthening Christian support for Israel for generations to come.

By Stephen Faircloth

In response to a troubling surge in antisemitism across the United States, The Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN), CBN Israel, and Regent University have partnered with JewBelong, a New York-based nonprofit known for bold public messaging, to launch a powerful nationwide awareness campaign. The initiative features visually arresting pink and white billboards delivering a simple but urgent message: standing against antisemitism is standing with America. More than a public display, this campaign is a call to action for Christians, students, alumni, and communities across the country to unite in solidarity with the Jewish people.

The campaign begins August 11 in Virginia, with three prominent billboards positioned along major thoroughfares near the CBN and Regent University campus in the Tidewater area. These messages are intended not just to inform, but to spark conversation, reflection, and ultimately, action. The billboards will remain in place through September 29. CBN will amplify the campaign’s reach through its influential television and digital platforms, engaging audiences nationwide.

Following the Tidewater launch, the campaign expands to four key Ivy League campuses: Harvard, Yale, Brown, and the University of Pennsylvania. These universities, long esteemed for their academic distinction, have increasingly become challenging environments for Jewish students. The Ivy League campaign aims to confront this reality with bold, unapologetic messaging. By bringing the conversation directly to these campuses, the effort seeks to break the silence that often follows antisemitic incidents and to encourage students, faculty, and administrators to stand as allies against hate.

At the same time, the campaign will engage students and alumni across Southeastern Conference universities through a coordinated strategy of billboard placements and digital outreach led by Regent University. This SEC-focused initiative invites campus communities throughout the South to take part in a growing national movement that refuses to look away from antisemitism and instead embraces shared responsibility and moral courage.

This campaign is driven by alarming data. The Anti-Defamation League’s 2024 Audit of Antisemitic Incidents ranks Virginia among the top ten states for such activity, with 266 incidents reported last year alone, representing a 19 percent increase from 2023. Nationally, antisemitic incidents have surged by 893 percent over the past decade. These are not isolated occurrences. They are part of a persistent and intensifying pattern that must be addressed with urgency and resolve.

College campuses, in particular, have become flashpoints for antisemitic rhetoric and behavior. Jewish students have reported harassment, exclusion, and threats, often met with silence or inaction from university leadership. That silence not only fails to protect, it emboldens those who propagate hate. This campaign seeks to challenge that silence and to empower campus communities to speak out in defense of their Jewish peers.

Gordon Robertson, President and CEO of CBN and Chancellor of Regent University, emphasized the moral and spiritual significance of this initiative. He said, “It is vital that Christians in Virginia and across the country stand in solidarity with the Jewish community. Antisemitism is not just a Jewish issue, it is a human issue and a spiritual one. We are called to stand against hatred, to defend our neighbors, and to reflect God’s love through our actions. This campaign is one important step in that direction.”

This effort builds upon JewBelong’s previous campaigns in major cities including New York, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas, and near academic institutions such as Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and the University of Pennsylvania. With this expansion and collaboration with faith-based and academic organizations, the campaign marks a growing movement determined to challenge antisemitism wherever it takes root.

The message is clear. In the face of rising antisemitism, especially on the campuses shaping the next generation, silence is no longer an option. Every billboard, broadcast, and digital message is a call to choose courage over complacency, to reject hate, and to stand unwaveringly with our Jewish neighbors. Christians and Americans alike are urged to raise their voices, because defending others is not only right, it is at the very heart of what it means to love our neighbor.

If you are a Christian who believes in standing with Israel and the Jewish people while confronting antisemitism, lies, and misinformation, we invite you to join CBN Israel in making a meaningful difference today.

GIVE TODAY

Stephen Faircloth is the President of CBN Israel, an initiative dedicated to sharing the true story of the Jewish nation and inspiring a global community of Christians to stand with Israel and support her people in need. Our vision is to reshape the global conversation about Israel by fostering understanding, hope, and healing between Jews and Christians round the world. For more than 50 years, the Christian Broadcasting Network has supported Israel. By joining CBN Israel, you become part of this enduring legacy, transforming lives today and strengthening Christian support for Israel for generations to come.

When she was just 13, Natalia had to flee her home in Ukraine to escape the Nazis. As World War II raged, this young Jewish girl survived by working in a factory that supported the war effort. She eventually returned home.

In 2022, as Russian missiles rained down on Ukrainian cities and families were torn apart by violence, Natalia faced the unthinkable. After a lifetime spent recovering from the trauma of World War II, she was once again forced to relive its horrors as war returned to the very place where she had rebuilt her life.

She recalled, “A rocket hit our neighborhood in the middle of the night. The explosion killed over 30 people in my community.” Terrified, this elderly woman sought refuge in Israel, making Aliyah to become an Israeli citizen.

Yet as a frail senior who arrived with nothing, Natalia has had other battles to fight. At age 95, she must use a wheelchair to go outside. Because of her handicap, she had to find another apartment with an elevator. And in addition to needing help getting enough to eat, she also lacked basic furniture. Alone in a different country, where could she get help?

Thankfully, friends like you came to her rescue through CBN Israel. Caring donors are there delivering nutritious food, and she says these visits from our team mean as much as the aid itself. Donors also provided her with a special bed and essential furniture, to make her apartment feel like home.

Natalia exclaimed, “Thank you so much for your generous help. I have been overjoyed to receive the regular provisions of food and groceries, and I am so grateful for the furniture… Your kindness means more than you know!”

Your gifts to CBN Israel can be a blessing to Holocaust survivors like Natalia, and to refugees, single moms, terror victims, and others struggling to survive in the Holy Land.

And you can make a tremendous difference for those in need by providing hot meals, safe housing, necessities, and financial assistance.

Join us today in sharing God’s love and compassion with those who are hurting in Israel!

GIVE TODAY

By Stephen Faircloth

High above the Mediterranean coastline, the limestone ridge of Mount Carmel stretches like a natural stage, connecting the highlands of Samaria to the eastern sea. Fertile and green, it receives generous rainfall most of the year and has long symbolized agricultural abundance in the Bible.

But Carmel is remembered not just for its beauty. It is remembered for a decisive moment when God’s people were called to choose.

“If the Lord is God, follow Him. But if Baal, then follow him” (1 Kings 18:21).

Elijah the prophet stood on this very ridge and called for a confrontation. The people of Israel had turned away from God during the reign of King Ahab. In their fear of drought and desire for prosperity, they sought help from Baal, the Canaanite storm god, hoping he would bring the rain.

The fertility, precipitation, and location of Mount Carmel play a key role in the story of Elijah and the prophets of Baal. Agriculture in the land of Israel proved difficult in the ancient world. The people depended solely upon God for rain to water their fields and crops due to the topography of the land (see Deuteronomy 8; 11:10-20).

Mount Carmel was a fitting battleground. It was not only a high place often associated with pagan worship, but it also sat near the Phoenician region where Baal worship was born. The land itself, lush and well-watered, seemed to testify to Baal’s influence. But God was about to set the record straight.

The drought had not been an accident. According to God’s covenant in Deuteronomy, Israel’s disobedience would result in the heavens being shut. Their spiritual dryness was reflected in the parched ground beneath them.

Elijah proposed a simple test. The god who answered with fire would prove himself to be the true God. Baal’s prophets called on him all day, but there was only silence. Then Elijah called on the Lord, and fire fell from Heaven. The sacrifice was consumed completely. The people fell face down and cried out, “The Lord, He is God.”

Shortly after, the skies broke open and the rain returned.

This moment on Mount Carmel was not just about power. It was about loyalty. The setting, the drought, the silence from Baal, and the fire from Heaven all pointed to one truth. Only God is worthy of trust and worship.

Are there areas in your life where you are looking to something other than God for security or provision? Elijah’s question remains for each of us. If the Lord is God, will we follow Him?

Stephen Faircloth is the President of CBN Israel, an initiative dedicated to sharing the true story of the Jewish nation and inspiring a global community of Christians to stand with Israel and support her people in need. Our vision is to reshape the global conversation about Israel by fostering understanding, hope, and healing between Jews and Christians around the world. For more than 50 years, the Christian Broadcasting Network has supported Israel. By joining CBN Israel, you become part of this enduring legacy, transforming lives today and strengthening Christian support for Israel for generations to come.

“As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God” (Psalm 42:1).

There are times in life when the soul feels dry, worn, and desperate for something more. Joy feels like a distant memory and hope seems hard to find. The writer of Psalm 42 understands this state of mind. He compares his longing for God to a thirsty deer searching for water.

This is not simply a poetic image. It is a cry of deep spiritual need.

The psalmist finds himself far from home, possibly in exile, far from the Temple and the worship he once enjoyed with others. He is surrounded by sorrow. His tears have been his food day and night. People around him question his faith, asking, “Where is your God?” But the greater cry is deeply internal. His own heart aches with the same question.

Still, his longing turns him toward faith and hope.

“Why, my soul, are you downcast? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him” (Psalm 42:5).

His circumstances do not change, but his focus and mindset does. He remembers who God is. Even when his heart feels crushed and forgotten, he speaks truth to himself. God remains faithful. God hears. God will respond.

In other words, his situation never dictates his reality or perception of God. He recognizes that God answers those who cry out to Him. He responds to those who long for him as the thirsty deer does the streams of water.

This kind of longing is not weakness. It is worship. The psalmist brings his pain honestly to God and trusts that the One who fills the thirsty will fill him again.

If you are in a season of spiritual dryness, do not be afraid to cry out to God. Longing for Him is a sign of faith. Just as a stream refreshes the weary deer, God refreshes the hearts of those who seek Him.

Are you experiencing a dry or distant season with God? What would it look like to bring your longing to Him right now today and trust Him to meet you?

PRAYER

Father, I thirst for You. Even when I feel distant or overwhelmed, my soul reaches for You. Please be my source of refreshment and restore my hope. I trust in Your love and faithfulness. Amen.

By Stephen Faircloth

In the fifth month of the Hebrew calendar, on the seventh day, during the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, his captain of the guard, Nebuzaradan, arrived in Jerusalem. He set fire to the Temple of the Lord, the royal palace, and every important building in the city. The destruction was total. Jerusalem was left in ruins (2 Kings 25:8-9).

Tisha B’Av, meaning “the ninth of Av,” is recognized as the most sorrowful day in the Jewish year. It is a solemn fast day that remembers not only the destruction of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem, but also centuries of suffering and loss endured by the Jewish people.

Although rooted in the Bible, the observance of Tisha B’Av is established through Rabbinic tradition. It concludes a three-week period of mourning that begins with the fast of the 17th of Tammuz, marking the breaching of Jerusalem’s walls, and culminates in the fall of the Temple.

Jewish tradition holds that both Temples were destroyed on the exact same Hebrew date, though they fell nearly 650 years apart. The First Temple, constructed by King Solomon, was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 B.C. The Second Temple, rebuilt after the Babylonian exile and later enlarged by King Herod, was razed by the Romans in 70 A.D.

But the tragedies tied to Tisha B’Av extend far beyond ancient ruins. Over the centuries, this date has come to symbolize the collective grief of a people who have endured exile, persecution, and displacement again and again.

Some of the darkest moments in Jewish history coincided with Tisha B’Av:

• The expulsion from England in 1290 was decreed on this day.
• In 1492, Spain’s Alhambra Decree gave Jews until the end of July—Tisha B’Av that year—to leave the country or face forced conversion or death.
• Pogroms, massacres, and the horrors of the Holocaust have also become part of the broader legacy remembered on this day.
• In 2005, the Disengagement from Gaza, which saw thousands of Jewish families uprooted from their homes, concluded just as Tisha B’Av ended.
• On October 7, 2023, over 1,200 Israelis were murdered in a Hamas-led massacre, the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust.

A story often shared to capture the emotional depth of Tisha B’Av involves Napoleon Bonaparte. While passing through a Jewish village in Europe, he heard sobbing from a nearby synagogue. Curious, he looked inside and saw men and women sitting on the floor, dimly lit by candlelight, reading from ancient texts and mourning.

Perplexed, Napoleon asked what tragedy had just occurred. His advisor explained that no new disaster had taken place. Instead, the Jewish people were observing their annual day of mourning for the destruction of their Temple—events that had taken place nearly two thousand years earlier.

Moved by their enduring devotion, Napoleon reportedly said, “A people who mourns for their Temple for so long will surely be rewarded with its restoration.”

Today, the observance continues much as it has for centuries. The Book of Lamentations is read aloud in synagogues, often in a dim setting that reflects the solemnity of the day. Traditional customs include sitting low to the ground, refraining from greetings, and fasting from food and drink for 25 hours. In Jerusalem, thousands gather to walk along the Old City walls, honoring the memory of what was lost and hoping for what is yet to come.

Tisha B’Av is not only a day of sorrow but also a testament to the Jewish people’s resilience and unwavering hope. It reminds us that even in the ashes of history, faith endures.

Stephen Faircloth is the President of CBN Israel, where he is dedicated to supporting both the nation and the people of Israel. He leads advocacy and humanitarian efforts that deliver practical aid and lasting hope to vulnerable groups, including terror victims, Holocaust survivors, refugees, and families in crisis. Before assuming this role, Stephen helped launch an initiative that brought Christian groups such as pastors, churches, students, and youth to the Holy Land, enabling them to experience Israel and encounter their faith where it began.