53 First Naples Church members return from Israel, Lead Pastor reflects on the experience

Author: Camila Pereira
Published: Updated:
53 members of First Naples Church in Israel (CREDIT: First Naples Church)

The 53 members of the First Naples Church returned home safely Thursday afternoon after being stuck in war-torn Israel.

And Lead Pastor Alan Brumback is happy to be conducting the Sunday morning services once again, reunited with the members of the church who were praying day and night for the safe return of the roughly fifty members of the congregation.

“It was like a family reunion, people were crying,” he said. “I mean, when you’re in those crisis situations, that bonds you and brings you closer together.”

53 members of First Naples Church in Israel (CREDIT: First Naples Church)

The group began their trip to Israel on Oct. 2, and toured the sites mentioned in the bible to connect with the holy land for a few days before Hamas had launched their surprise attack.

But even in the midst of missiles and sirens going off, Pastor Alan said they felt safe because God is always protecting them.

“There was just a sense of calm in the group,” he said. “It was surreal, that no one was panicking. We were laughing, we were singing, we were praying, we were worshiping. You know, our overall motto was, ‘God’s got this.’ And we’re going to trust him in this and whether we are going to get out, or whether we’re going to be stuck there for a while, we’re going to trust God either way. And by God’s grace, we got out.”

They caught their regular scheduled flight back Wednesday night, but there were a few bumps in the road as 8 members of their group almost didn’t have a way to return home.

But, as he looked through every scenario and made every phone call possible, everyone had their own ticket out and got on the plane headed to the Miami International Airport.

Now, back at the Sunday church services, Pastor Alan is praying for those still living day-to-day in the war zone. Hoping for peace in the middle east.

“We have a happy ending right now, but there are people in Israel, in Palestine that are struggling,” he said. “And so, we don’t want to, in any way diminish that. But we got out and we’re very grateful for that.”

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