As I travel through our 2016 seminar schedule with the America-Israel Friendship League, my latest stop in Edmond, Oklahoma gives me much hope for the future.

(This comes on the heels of the news from my friends at Christians United for Israel that they have now passed the three million-member mark! Truly astonishing and a testmament to the marvelous work done by David Brog’s team over the past decade.)

At Fairview Baptist Church this past Sunday, I spoke along with Mark Liotta, the Workman’s Compensation Commissioner for the State of Oklahoma. Mark gave a tremendous talk about his two trips to Israel with the AIFL.

“Israel is the economic engine of the Middle East,” he said.

Once again, I was struck by the enthusiasm of the audience, and their passion for Israel and knowledge. I urged them to use that to further advocate for Israel.

The pastor of Fairview Baptist, Paul Blair, is not only a champion for Israel; he is a passionate and fearless defender of Christian liberty and American principles. He is also running for a seat in the state legislature. Even though Paul played college football at Oklahoma State (and not for my beloved OU Sooners), I forgive him that. He later played 10 seasons for the Chicago Bears, finishing as one of the game’s greatest offensive tackles.

We need more men like that taking stands, frankly.

So far this year, I’ve traveled to California, Florida, and now Oklahoma for our church outreach program. The crowds have been tremendous. My colleagues, Ambassador Uri Bar-Ner and Dr. Alex Grobman, have been able to educate people on a variety of topics: Holocaust, Israel’s diplomatic standing in the world, and Bible history. We hope to be at a location near you soon.

All this buoys me, and comes at a time when Israel’s enemies are having a bit of a rough go. As Hamas tunnels collapse, and ISIS is pinned down, the Palestinian Authority also faced a huge embarrassment this week with the announcement that a new museum dedicated to Palestinian history and culture will open in the West Bank.

They have no exhibits.

Wow, that story so symbolizes the Arab-Israeli conflict. As Israel surges on so many fronts: economic, military, technology, the Arab world languishes in Third World realities. In 2014, Israel’s gross domestic product amounted to $305 billion U.S. dollars. This doesn’t factor-in the new oil and natural gas deposits found.

The stunning announcement about the Palestinian “museum” reminds me something I stumbled across in the ‘90s. Helping David Lewis gather material for a book that would become The Last War, I looked online at the then-website for the Palestinian Authority.

Stumbling across their section for Palestinian history and culture, I laughed out loud. I really did. Right there at my desk.

The items displayed included some sewn dresses (pretty, to be sure), and some images of old currency from “Palestine.” If one looked closely at the currency images, one could see three languages: English, Arabic, and…Hebrew.

That’s correct: to further add to the mountain of evidence that there was never a sovereign Palestinian state with Arab citizens, the currency proves the exact opposite. The currency was issued (pre-Jewish state) by the British Mandate government. It was simply currency to be used by residents of what was then Palestine: Arab and Jew. In fact, until Israel was birthed, Jews in Palestine were also known as “Palestinians.”

Amazing, isn’t it?

There is no end to Arab delusion, lies, and failure to live in reality.

That’s why, as Israel surges into the future, her neighbors continue to look in the window and covet.

Here’s to the day when all of them will live side-by-side in peace. We pray for it, We expect it.

Reprinted with author’s permission from Rapture Ready