What’s Next After the Ceasefire? By Eleanor Khoury, MA Student from Gaza

The conditions of the last war were the most difficult we have experienced compared to the previous wars. The sounds of explosions were terrifying, and the vibrations that occurred were like an earthquake shaking the earth.

During this period, the hand of the Lord worked in our lives in a particular way, by planting peace within our souls in times of fear. The word of the Lord was always on my mind: “A thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand; but it shall not come near you” (Psalm 91:7). We were in the storm of war, but the hand of God worked to calm that storm.

The scenes and effects left by the war are not easy for us. Gaza is not what it used to be. Watching the city we love completely changed in its features was very difficult. The smell of missiles is still in the air, and the grief for those who died and for the hearts of their families is great. Every place tells a sad and painful story. Our conversations now revolve only around the harsh nights and days of war. Even now, there is anxiety and tension about any sounds we hear in the sky. Children also experience those feelings; when they hear the sound of “fireworks,” they ask whether war is back again?

After the war, I dealt with children in my ministry in my church. I asked most of them to draw something. Most of the children’s drawings were rockets and explosions. Everyone suffers from psychological trauma after the war, and everyone needs real psychological support.

What happens next since the shooting is over? What’s the aftermath of the war? Our feelings are so conflicted that we cannot explain or understand them. Is it joy that the war has ended? Or fear of it coming back again? Is it sadness and pain for our beloved city, which has lost its landmarks? Or sadness and pain at the loss of our loved ones?

My prayer is that the Lord may grant peace and security to our country, that war may never happen again, and that the Lord may send a spirit of comfort to every grieving heart in our country.