One Saturday evening of September of 2023, the ABC attended the ordination of a Baptist Pastor in the village of Rama in the Galilee region of Israel. Bishara Khazen was ordained as the pastor for not just one, but two Baptist churches: Rama and the one in his hometown of Beini.
Bishara Khazen and His Wife at the Ceremony
200 people from various regions of the country gathered for this special occasion. Despite the scorching heat earlier in the day, as the ceremony began, a refreshing cool breeze came from the mountains of northern Galilee, gracefully cooling the atmosphere just outside the church building.
Pastor Khaled Dalleh, the Ministry Officer of the Association of Baptist Churches in Israel (ABC), and the Pastor of the Kufur Yasif Baptist Church, served as the host for this remarkable event. The program started with a selection of worship songs performed by a local worship team, accompanied by readings from the Bible and prayers. As the evening continued, people were deeply moved by three heartfelt endorsements for Bishara Khazen’s ordination. These endorsements came from members of both the Beini and Rama churches, as well as representatives from ABC.
Following this segment, members of the Ministry Committee of ABC, distinguished pastors, generously shared their wise counsel and encouragement with the newly ordained pastor. They urged him to care for and shepherd his flock with unwavering devotion, just like Jesus did, emphasizing the importance of preaching the word both in season and out of season.
The climax of the evening was the moment when hands were laid upon Bishara and his wife, Randa. In a sacred ritual, all ordained pastors gathered to pray for them, while the entire crowd joined in this powerful act of collective prayer.
Special Moment of Joint Prayer by other Pastors over newly Ordained Pastor Bishara Khazen and His Wife
As Bishara was introduced to the guests as “Pastor Bishara” for the first time, a special message from him marked this significant moment. With gratitude, he attributed all the glory to the Lord for this milestone in his life as he shared the remarkable journey of his faith. He reminisced on how, as a once-shy child from Beini initially apprehensive about standing in front of a crowd, he evolved into a preacher and a shepherd. Bishara spoke about the beginnings of his faith journey in Beini, where his late father opened his home for the ministry of the gospel. He acknowledged the plentiful blessings and prayers of his mother and the support of pastors from various church traditions, some of whom were present in the crowd.
All in all, it was a beautiful blessing to be gathered together for the ordination of Bishara Khazen, as we were able to stand in solidarity with pastors of churches from all over the country, and join in this milestone of newly ordained Pastor Bishara Khazen.