War Zone

I recently returned from a war zone. The whole world, focused on Israel and Iran, pondered the meaning and result of the battle we watched play out before us.

While much has been spoken and written about the moral or political aspects of this war, I want to offer a few other lessons from my short experience in a war zone.

There Are Various Levels of Danger in a War Zone

Since October 7, 2023, Israelis have had missiles fired at them from all directions. The Israeli government has a polished system of warning its citizens when rockets or drones approach their territory. Home Front Command shares the level of danger as they perceive it and shares rules for the citizens to live by. Shelter in place. Stay close to a safe space. Go about business as usual. It all depends on the threat level.

Most Israelis have a Home Front Command app on their phone. When a missile is detected, an alert is sounded from the app. If it’s a pre-alert, the citizens have about ten minutes to find shelter. If a siren sound emanates instead of the soft rattle of the pre-alert, citizens know they have about one-and-a-half minutes to be inside their bunker.

The missiles Israel dealt with at the first part of her war were different than the most recent barrage from Iran. Sadly, the Israelis learned that a direct hit from a ballistic missile was deadly, even if they were in their “safe space.” The shelters most Israelis have protect them from shrapnel of a rocket or drone shot down by the government’s defense, but the safe rooms were not built to handle the power and speed of a ballistic missile fired from 1000 or more miles away.

While all Israel could be considered a war zone while I was there, the number of rockets shot at the country was minimal when I first arrived. Iran wasn’t firing. Hezbollah and Hamas were subdued. Only the Houthis in Yemen were firing at times. Our tour guide told us what to do if we heard a siren, but life went on as usual. Tourists enjoyed sightseeing a beautiful land while Israelis worked and played as they could.

But one week after we arrived, everything changed. Israel attacked Iran’s nuclear sites and missiles from Iran came in response. Sirens and alerts sounded throughout the land of Israel.

Pictures of damage done by the missiles and drones let everyone know the threat level had risen dramatically. Parts of the country were in greater danger than other parts, but everyone was now on high alert. During my stay in Israel, soldiers fighting in Gaza were always at a greater risk than citizens elsewhere in the county. But now, everyone was potentially in harm’s way. Different levels of danger depended on when and where you were in the war zone.

There Is No Place For Fear in a War Zone

Someone asked me what made me go to Israel during a war. For the Israelis, life goes on. It has to. They have nowhere else to go.

Many people who love Israel have made the trip there since October 7, 2023, to show support for the people and the country. I wanted to go, but the timing had not been right. A group going this summer fit the bill for timing and opportunity for me. And the Lord confirmed in my heart it was good.

While we were there, we met many courageous Israelis. This war had been their life for twenty months. They learned how to help one another. How to keep on keeping on. How to grieve losses and keep living.

The hotel manager at our first hotel in Tel Aviv was a beautiful young woman. Her husband was fighting in Gaza. She was taking care of clients like us, while sponsoring twenty-four hour respite opportunities for soldiers fighting like her husband. There was no sense of anxiety seen in her. She had no time for fear.

A young mother and her children were at our hotel in Jerusalem. She cheerfully chatted with me as we rode down the elevator, her children wearing school uniform. They evacuated their home on the Lebanon border eighteen months earlier and now lived in the hotel where they felt safe. Her husband was away at war.

That night we heard our first alarm. This mother and her children knew the drill. She simply pulled the children’s mattresses into the hall and let them sleep until morning. No room for fear.

Proper Protection Is Imperative in a War Zone

Soldiers on the front line have certain battle gear they wear. They know the value of helmets and body armor. Civilians don’t usually wear armor. But they’re warned to know at all times where safe spaces are located.

When we first joined the tour group, our guide told us if a siren went off while we were on the bus, we would pull off the road. People traveling in cars would get out of the vehicle and find whatever shelter they could on the side of the road. With us having so many people in a bus, our best bet would be to stay put and pray.

When we reached a hotel, the guide told us where to go if an alert sounded. At some hotels it was the stair well, at others it was the underground garage.

But what if you were walking to the store or on the beach? Some times there was a public shelter nearby. Other times there wasn’t. And for many citizens living in apartments, their only safe space was a stair well or a public shelter at ground level. The elderly or sick often weren’t able to get to a shelter.

This is the way Israelis lived for months. Sadly, for some of those who did not have proper protection or chose not to move to a protected space, the results were deadly as missiles rained down.

Our Entire Lives Are Spent in a War Zone

We tend to mentally block off certain parts of the globe as safe or not safe. We think of Ukraine and Russia and parts of the Middle East as war zones while other countries aren’t. Perhaps we want to think our neighborhood is safe, while the downtown city nearby isn’t.

But the Lord tells us our entire lives on this planet are lived in a war zone.

In the last part of his letter to the Ephesians, Paul tells the believers how to live in this world. He gives practical advice for wives, husbands, children, servants and masters.

And then he says,

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil (Ephesians 6:10-11).

Wait a minute. Here he is talking about living properly as men and women in this world, and now he tells us to put on armor. Why?

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places (Ephesians 6:12).

We live in the middle of a spiritual war zone. The enemy of the Holy One fights night and day against all that is good. We have to choose sides. There is no middle ground. No Switzerland exists in this spiritual battle.

Paul says,

Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand (Ephesians 6:13).

Conclusion

My new friends and I were privileged to spend several nights visiting in the underground garage that was our designated safe space the last part of our stay in Israel. We became adept at hearing the alert, pulling on shoes, and grabbing our go-bag. We knew the most important thing was to be in our shelter in case the missile landed in our location.

Scripture makes it clear the LORD is our shelter in this spiritual war zone. He is our safe place. We need to hide ourselves in Him. He’s our fortress and our high tower, our hiding place (2 Samuel 22:2-3, Psalm 144:2, Psalm 18:2).

He is also our Home Front Command, telling us clearly we’re in danger and need to be prepared (1 Peter 5:8-9, 2 Corinthians 10:3-4, 2 Thessalonians 3:3).

Living in a war zone is not for the faint of heart. We’re allowed to be courageous because He’s with us. He tells us that over and over again (Joshua 1:9, Matthew 28:18-20).

Fear not, for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand

Isaiah 41:10

Application

While we’re on this earth there are various levels of danger just as in the war zone I experienced. There are times when missiles aren’t flying at us from the enemy, but other times when the alarms need to be sounding. At all times, we must recognize the danger and be prepared. How do we do that?

We hide God’s word in our hearts (Psalm 119:11). If we spend time with the Lord, meditating on His word, His Holy Spirit will fill our minds with truth. This allows His Spirit to use that truth to guide us day by day (John 16:13).

We meet with other like-minded believers who love the Lord and His word, we encourage one another to remember the truth (Hebrews 10:24-25, Hebrews 3:13). And walk in it (3 John 1:4).

And we don’t get distracted with the things of this world (2 Timothy 2). When we do, we just might forget. We’re living in a war zone.

Thank God we have a living shelter!

(Scripture: New King James Version; Photos: Screen shots from my time in Israel, 2025; first one from one night as we joined others in the shelter, second one as we sat on the side of the road during an alert on our way across country to fly home.)