Letters from Jerusalem
February 6, 2020
"Now therefore, I pray, if I have found grace in Your sight, show me now Your way, that I may know You and that I may find grace in Your sight. And consider that this nation is Your people.”
"Then he said to Him, 'If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here. For how then will it be known that Your people and I have found grace in Your sight, except You go with us? So we shall be separate, Your people and I, from all the people who are upon the face of the earth.'”
"And he said, 'Please, show me Your glory.'” EXODUS 33:13,15-16,18
Greetings, in The Name of Yeshua h'meshiach…The Victor, Who, after all is also CREATOR, and Deliverer and Truth and Light …The Living Word… The eternal Way through all of this that swirls around us. May HE be glorified and blessed! May you also be blessed and encouraged.
This letter has been a BATTLE to even begin. Life has been an increasing battle (I have no doubt that you have noticed and that it is the same for you!) As I finally sat down to begin this letter…the mouse and keyboard for my computer gave up the ghost! I am so completely intimidated by technology that it took a great deal of courage to pronounce it dead, dissect it from the computer (it is wireless…which should speak volumes about my abilities) and bring it downtown where I told the sales girl 'My keyboard and mouse just died. I want another just like this!' I told her in a shaky voice, half expecting to be told that these are antique and aren't made anymore. Thankfully I had prayed and her maybe 19 year old expertise replied 'Sababa!' (which is Hebrew and Arabic street talk for something like: 'cool, great, no problem, what-ever') and in no time at all I was home praying again that 'I could really do this'! As you see PRAISE GOD! It works! I ATTACHED A NEW KEYBOARD AND MOUSE AND MIRACLES DO HAPPEN!
The heaviness and reality of the hour that we live in was brought home vividly to me at the shuk today. The shuk was crowded by the time that I got there so went to an Arab vendor whom I have known for many years and trust. 'Where are these clementia from?' I asked him. 'They are NOT from China!' he answered. 'See? Look at the box; Jaffa…they are from Israel!' As I went to the apples I saw that he had written on the sign 'Israeli apples'. I looked at him and said 'I work in a doctor's office and this is serious what is happening now.' I was afraid that maybe he was thinking I was a bit loony. He grew very serious: 'I know!' he answered. 'This is life and death…but you know what? It is God's judgment on the world! How many thousands of years has He sent His prophets to us? And how have we listened?? We haven't!! We cheat and hate and say it is good when it isn't…everything that He told us not to do…oh we agree with our mouths but the day of His judgment is here with the earth!' Our eyes met in spite of the fact that he is an Arab Moslem man and I a Jewish disciple of Yeshua, there was total agreement: 'We get it! God…God Almighty…God Who is real and alive…is not happy with us and we would have to be blind not to see His Hand! And ofcourse, things like plague cross country boarders, political parties, races, religions, economic barriers…we can't say 'YOU' did this and need to repent'… it must be 'Woe to US for we have sinned and not listened and not turned back to Him with our hearts in our hands!'
THIS is the climate that I see here today.
And with THIS report I will begin the letter.
Most of you thought that I would be at the IFI Prayer Conference. I did too. I was hoping to see some of you there although I do not go to visit, for it really is a 'working' (PRAYER) conference. This is the third our of 4 years now that we had a crisis on the one day that I am able to join the conference and, having truly prayed…I can only say; 'Yes Lord'. It seems to me to be enemy intervention, but I have not prevailed and so I must leave it before Him. This year my husband VERY suddenly got extremely ill with a fever of above 102 (39) that wouldn't come down. There was no warning…he was fine and then suddenly shivering under the covers. If he were younger I might have left him sleeping but after consulting the emergency doctor I knew that I couldn't leave him alone…so didn't. Did the enemy win? No… I prayed anyway…just not with my brothers and sisters. All of the messages from the IFI conference are free and easy access to listen to on line RIGHT HERE IS THE LINK. I encourage you to take advantage and listen. At the IFI conferences we pray during the day but in the evening there is a message given concerning Israel by mostly local leaders.
And during the time of the conference, (wouldn't you know it…what perfect timing!) there was finally the unveiling of the 'American Peace Plan'. Here at home, listened with the rest of the country and it was quite dramatic…but one thing kept quietly beating in my heart: 'THE LAND MUST NOT BE DIVIDED!". I heard what America said…I heard what The Arabs said…I heard what the Palestinians said…and I heard what the Israelis said…but I could not forget what I know that GOD has said: 'The land is not yours, but MINE!' The fear of God entered my heart…this is not to toy with. There is a silence in my heart; I don't know what to say other than that. To my great surprise, the bus was quiet the next morning…even while the news was on; everyone was listening but NO one was commenting. That is unusual! That happens when 'things are serious' and no one dares to have an opinion. The look on the faces of the other passengers was serious and stoic…set. It continued at work: no comment.
Years ago I had begun to make a list of scriptures that said that we should not divide the land. It is incomplete, but here is what I had written down should you wish to study them for yourself. Some speak not directly but to the heart of the issue: Leviticus 25:23, Joshua 9:24 (the Gibeonites knew the promise!), Joshua 13, Nehemiah 9:8, Exodus 34:12, Joel 3:1-3, Acts 13:17-19…In a way it reminds me of the commands to husbands and wives (Mat 19:6 and Mark 10:9 "So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.” and yet…it is a hard one to 'keep'…like the commands concerning The Sabbath…and...God forbid we should be legalistic… and there is this verse and that verse…BUT IN MY HEART RESOUNDS THE INTENT OF GOD THAT THIS LAND BEING DIVIDED IS A SIGN OF JUDGMENT AND THAT THIS LAND IS HIS AND NOT OURS OR ANYONE ELSES.
And while this is going on (and yes…violent responses are taking place…a car ramming last night injured 12 soldiers…there was a stabbing attempt against a border officer this afternoon at one of the gates to the Old City) China is brought to her knees by the Corona virus…how itty bitty microscopic. China is brought to her knees and it remains to be seen if the rest of the world will also follow suit. It is certainly worthy or more than 'a pause'! I will NEVER forget (I hope) last year's brush with death when I was in the hospital with influenza and pneumonia and how clearly The Lord spoke to me out of 1 Chronicles 21…the POWER of David's intercession as he stood between the death angel on the very spot that was to become the temple…and PREVAILED over the PLAGUE that God had sent to judge. TEACH ME, LORD, TO PRAY! "THAT I MAY KNOW YOU AND THE POWER OF YOUR RESURRECTION AND THE FELLOWSHIP OF YOUR SUFFERING, BEING MADE CONFORMABLE TO YOUR DEATH" remains my prayer…and I have no doubt that it is yours as well.
And AGAIN, my Pastor sent out a wonderful prayer letter which I will attach rather than go on. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRAYERS…FOR US…FOR ISRAEL…FOR HIS PURPOSES…FOR THE LORD TO BE GLORIFIED! May The Lord FLOOD you with Himself! Lovingly, your sister here. (no time to read this over…please forgive mistakes)
MY PASTOR'S MESSAGE- PLEASE READ
"
"Now therefore, I pray, if I have found grace in Your sight, show me now Your way, that I may know You and that I may find grace in Your sight. And consider that this nation is Your people.”
"Then he said to Him, 'If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here. For how then will it be known that Your people and I have found grace in Your sight, except You go with us? So we shall be separate, Your people and I, from all the people who are upon the face of the earth.'”
"And he said, 'Please, show me Your glory.'” EXODUS 33:13,15-16,18
Greetings, in The Name of Yeshua h'meshiach…The Victor, Who, after all is also CREATOR, and Deliverer and Truth and Light …The Living Word… The eternal Way through all of this that swirls around us. May HE be glorified and blessed! May you also be blessed and encouraged.
This letter has been a BATTLE to even begin. Life has been an increasing battle (I have no doubt that you have noticed and that it is the same for you!) As I finally sat down to begin this letter…the mouse and keyboard for my computer gave up the ghost! I am so completely intimidated by technology that it took a great deal of courage to pronounce it dead, dissect it from the computer (it is wireless…which should speak volumes about my abilities) and bring it downtown where I told the sales girl 'My keyboard and mouse just died. I want another just like this!' I told her in a shaky voice, half expecting to be told that these are antique and aren't made anymore. Thankfully I had prayed and her maybe 19 year old expertise replied 'Sababa!' (which is Hebrew and Arabic street talk for something like: 'cool, great, no problem, what-ever') and in no time at all I was home praying again that 'I could really do this'! As you see PRAISE GOD! It works! I ATTACHED A NEW KEYBOARD AND MOUSE AND MIRACLES DO HAPPEN!
The heaviness and reality of the hour that we live in was brought home vividly to me at the shuk today. The shuk was crowded by the time that I got there so went to an Arab vendor whom I have known for many years and trust. 'Where are these clementia from?' I asked him. 'They are NOT from China!' he answered. 'See? Look at the box; Jaffa…they are from Israel!' As I went to the apples I saw that he had written on the sign 'Israeli apples'. I looked at him and said 'I work in a doctor's office and this is serious what is happening now.' I was afraid that maybe he was thinking I was a bit loony. He grew very serious: 'I know!' he answered. 'This is life and death…but you know what? It is God's judgment on the world! How many thousands of years has He sent His prophets to us? And how have we listened?? We haven't!! We cheat and hate and say it is good when it isn't…everything that He told us not to do…oh we agree with our mouths but the day of His judgment is here with the earth!' Our eyes met in spite of the fact that he is an Arab Moslem man and I a Jewish disciple of Yeshua, there was total agreement: 'We get it! God…God Almighty…God Who is real and alive…is not happy with us and we would have to be blind not to see His Hand! And ofcourse, things like plague cross country boarders, political parties, races, religions, economic barriers…we can't say 'YOU' did this and need to repent'… it must be 'Woe to US for we have sinned and not listened and not turned back to Him with our hearts in our hands!'
THIS is the climate that I see here today.
And with THIS report I will begin the letter.
Most of you thought that I would be at the IFI Prayer Conference. I did too. I was hoping to see some of you there although I do not go to visit, for it really is a 'working' (PRAYER) conference. This is the third our of 4 years now that we had a crisis on the one day that I am able to join the conference and, having truly prayed…I can only say; 'Yes Lord'. It seems to me to be enemy intervention, but I have not prevailed and so I must leave it before Him. This year my husband VERY suddenly got extremely ill with a fever of above 102 (39) that wouldn't come down. There was no warning…he was fine and then suddenly shivering under the covers. If he were younger I might have left him sleeping but after consulting the emergency doctor I knew that I couldn't leave him alone…so didn't. Did the enemy win? No… I prayed anyway…just not with my brothers and sisters. All of the messages from the IFI conference are free and easy access to listen to on line RIGHT HERE IS THE LINK. I encourage you to take advantage and listen. At the IFI conferences we pray during the day but in the evening there is a message given concerning Israel by mostly local leaders.
And during the time of the conference, (wouldn't you know it…what perfect timing!) there was finally the unveiling of the 'American Peace Plan'. Here at home, listened with the rest of the country and it was quite dramatic…but one thing kept quietly beating in my heart: 'THE LAND MUST NOT BE DIVIDED!". I heard what America said…I heard what The Arabs said…I heard what the Palestinians said…and I heard what the Israelis said…but I could not forget what I know that GOD has said: 'The land is not yours, but MINE!' The fear of God entered my heart…this is not to toy with. There is a silence in my heart; I don't know what to say other than that. To my great surprise, the bus was quiet the next morning…even while the news was on; everyone was listening but NO one was commenting. That is unusual! That happens when 'things are serious' and no one dares to have an opinion. The look on the faces of the other passengers was serious and stoic…set. It continued at work: no comment.
Years ago I had begun to make a list of scriptures that said that we should not divide the land. It is incomplete, but here is what I had written down should you wish to study them for yourself. Some speak not directly but to the heart of the issue: Leviticus 25:23, Joshua 9:24 (the Gibeonites knew the promise!), Joshua 13, Nehemiah 9:8, Exodus 34:12, Joel 3:1-3, Acts 13:17-19…In a way it reminds me of the commands to husbands and wives (Mat 19:6 and Mark 10:9 "So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.” and yet…it is a hard one to 'keep'…like the commands concerning The Sabbath…and...God forbid we should be legalistic… and there is this verse and that verse…BUT IN MY HEART RESOUNDS THE INTENT OF GOD THAT THIS LAND BEING DIVIDED IS A SIGN OF JUDGMENT AND THAT THIS LAND IS HIS AND NOT OURS OR ANYONE ELSES.
And while this is going on (and yes…violent responses are taking place…a car ramming last night injured 12 soldiers…there was a stabbing attempt against a border officer this afternoon at one of the gates to the Old City) China is brought to her knees by the Corona virus…how itty bitty microscopic. China is brought to her knees and it remains to be seen if the rest of the world will also follow suit. It is certainly worthy or more than 'a pause'! I will NEVER forget (I hope) last year's brush with death when I was in the hospital with influenza and pneumonia and how clearly The Lord spoke to me out of 1 Chronicles 21…the POWER of David's intercession as he stood between the death angel on the very spot that was to become the temple…and PREVAILED over the PLAGUE that God had sent to judge. TEACH ME, LORD, TO PRAY! "THAT I MAY KNOW YOU AND THE POWER OF YOUR RESURRECTION AND THE FELLOWSHIP OF YOUR SUFFERING, BEING MADE CONFORMABLE TO YOUR DEATH" remains my prayer…and I have no doubt that it is yours as well.
And AGAIN, my Pastor sent out a wonderful prayer letter which I will attach rather than go on. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRAYERS…FOR US…FOR ISRAEL…FOR HIS PURPOSES…FOR THE LORD TO BE GLORIFIED! May The Lord FLOOD you with Himself! Lovingly, your sister here. (no time to read this over…please forgive mistakes)
MY PASTOR'S MESSAGE- PLEASE READ
"
January 23, 2020
"You visit the earth and water it, You greatly enrich it; The river of God is full of water; You provide their grain, For so You have prepared it." PSALM 65:9
"And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. 2 In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations." REVELATION 22:1-2
Greetings with grace and mercy in The Blessed Name of our Lord, Yeshua h'meshiach. May He be blessed and glorified and may you (and I) be encouraged toward Him for His glory. May you (and I) be TRULY planted beside His River, drinking of the fullness of it and producing HIS fruit for His glory!
Well…the longer I put off writing this letter because there is just too much to write about…the more there IS to write about: It only multiplies daily!
I have not written to you since our torrential rains claimed 7 lives; nor since the assassination of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani and senior Iraqi militia commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis; not since our electioneering started again intensely for the THIRD time in a year…nor since the 49 (according to Miki Levi - the police spokesman) Kings, Presidents, Prime Ministers and assorted dignitaries and heads of state solidified their participation in events marking the 75th year since the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp; named The World Holocaust Forum. That began today and perhaps I will begin there and work backwards.
'There will be major traffic disruptions this week, especially on Wednesday and Thursday.' all of the media informed us to a collective groan. 'You are advised to leave vehicles at home (not in tow away zones) and take public transportation if you have to leave your houses.' …'Public transportation will experience delays and disruptions…' (they neglected to add 'and insane overcrowding') I watched as sharp shooters staked out roof tops and popped up from under man hole covers. Security vehicles inspected every corner of the city…and under every rock. At the bus stops the flashing sign read (in Hebrew, Arabic and English) 'The bus lines will experience significant delays and interruptions on the 22 and 23rd. For specific information call *8787'. My boss insisted that I could make it to work, so I called *8787. After about 20 minutes of music (EVERYONE was calling *8787!) an annoyed worker told me that they HAVE no information concerning Jerusalem buses and that I should just stay home. When I gave my boss what information I had gotten he just rolled his eyes and said that he'd pay for a taxi. NOT SO EASY! You see… I work across town. My memories of the visits of US Presidents Obama and then Trump are still quite vivid; walking to work isn't as bad as walking home when I am tired…about 1.5-2 hours each way…and I am older and less agile.
But why are they gathering?
Our President, Reuven Rivlin, hosted them as anti-semitism has been rising at a most alarming rate while the number of Holocaust survivors is dropping rapidly: 'Never Again' and 'Never Forget' seems nearly forgotten and our nation seeks a way to prevent what appears inevitable.
HOLD THAT THOUGHT! (or perhaps drop it!)
I am incredibly thankful and humbled by The Lord's restraining Hand! I had tried my best to write and send this letter yesterday…but interruption after interruption put an end to ALL of my best efforts.
Last night before going to sleep I listened to some of the events and was deeply touched…and learned things that I hadn't known. This morning as I prepared to write, my husband turned the proceedings on and said 'Come and see! You need to see this!' …I had 'INTENDED' to write…but I went and saw and could not stop watching and listening.
As I sat down to work on this letter yet AGAIN…there was an email from my Pastor concerning what I was watching and it was said so much better than I ever could that I will include it and only add one fact that I learned from the conference that sent chills down my spine and I hadn't known: A historian and researcher at Yad Vashem exhibited meticulous notebooks filled with lists, photos, information and even fingerprints! Ofcourse I KNEW about the lists that they kept; the 'inventories'…but I never thought of it in this light: He said how IRONIC it was that the stated intent of the Nazis was to wipe ALL MEMORY of the Jews from the earth…to eradicate their names…their ways… their lives. Instead…preserved IN JEWISH JERUSALEM…are their names, information, even photographs and fingerprints recorded as witness by the Nazis themselves…Oh my! I was overwhelmed by the impact of what I was seeing. God sovereign will: 'They will NOT be forgotten! You will be defeated!' It is as if I am in a dream to realize that, yes, we are a PART of this huge spiritual battle…and I share with you from Jerusalem…restored to the Jews after 2,000 years!
Yesterday, while I was still only thinking narrowly…I confess…about the traffic jams and being 'sequestered' - my own selfish interests, I was waiting in an office across from a woman older than I, perhaps 85. She was speaking English, it seemed as if perhaps she was doing a phone interview with someone in America. I was able to make out both sides of the conversation. She was quite serious and it was her intensity that touched me. She said 'I never thought that I would live to see this day. I never dreamed that such a thing would happen, but it is and ha'Shem (God) has brought it about! Do you understand what we are witnessing?' I understood that she was speaking about this gathering and I was ashamed for my narrow thoughts. I looked at her and realized that she was indeed a Holocaust survivor and began to think about what it must feel like to her; could it be even like Joseph seeing his brothers coming, bowing down to ask for food?
So, these two days have passed with, in my opinion, minimal inconvenience considering the amount of astounding security; I can't imagine HOW they pulled it off, protecting all of these dignitaries and escorting them around the city as well as in and out of the country.
And rather than comment further I will attach my Pastor's letter…it is more important to digest Truth than added words. May The Lord TRULY keep you in His perfect will, tender of heart and before Him for His glory… and me too please Lord! Lovingly, your sister.
A warning to the nations; a wake-up call to the Jewish people, and to the Body of Christ(If you want to read this on the web, click here)
Fifth World Holocaust Forum - The largest diplomatic event in Israel’s history!
The Forum this year will commemorate the 75th liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp.
It theme is: “Remembering the Holocaust, Fighting Antisemitism,”
The peculiar thing about this year’s Forum:
It was hoped that 10 or 15 world leaders would agree to attend. Instead, it has become the largest diplomatic event in Israel’s history.
Delegations from 49 countries, including 41 heads of states, are in Israel at this moment. The US vice president, Mr. Pence, Russia’s president, Mr. Putin, Prince Charles of Britain, French president Mr. Macron, and many other kings and heads of states.
Why is this significant - A warning to the nations
First: We are in a time of growing denial of the Holocaust, and an alarming increase of anti-Semitism in the world. Significantly, the leaders of the nations are acknowledging it.
Second: We are living in the time of Israel’s restoration, and this could be God, calling the nations to warn them before they descend into deeper darkness and further rebellion against God, His people, and His unfolding plan. It will be very destructive, Psalm 2:10-12
Here is why I think this is the case
Last night, on Wednesday, Prominent Holocaust scholar, Professor Yehuda Bauer, delivered the keynote address at a festive dinner held for about 45 heads of states that were present. (Putin and Pence came only this morning on Thursday.)
He claimed (rightly I believe) that the deadliest military conflict in history, claiming anywhere between 70 to 85 million lives, including 6 million Jews, was caused by hatred for the Jews!
He was given eleven minutes to do this, eleven Minutes! They spent far more time eating than listening to what I believe is, a warning from God.
The most chilling part is Prof. Bauer’s quote of Hitler: “Today I will once more be a prophet: If the international Jewish financiers in and outside Europe should succeed in plunging the nations once more into a world war” – as we all know, World War I was caused by the Jews, right? – “then the result will not be the bolshevization of the earth, and thus the victory of Jewry, but the annihilation of the Jewish race in Europe” Die Vernichtung der jüdischen Rasse in Europa. So, the Jewish capitalists rule the West, and what they want is the victory of Bolshevism. The result will be the annihilation of the Jews.“
And here is the warning: “Anti-Semitism is not a Jewish illness, but a non-Jewish one; it is a cancer that kills and destroys your nations and your countries.” And, this, “…..fight anti-Semitism. Not because of the Jews, but to protect your societies from a deadly cancer.”
The caption for the text in the Times of Israel was: Holocaust scholar’s speech to world leaders: Anti-Semitism destroys your nations
Read more about it here
Will it be heeded? Will the nations respond? Have they read Psalm 2? Will your country respond!
Personally, I believe that although diplomatic activity regarding these things is important, these efforts will never win the battle against Israel-hatred, and antisemitism. It is a spiritual battle that is leading to the final confrontation between the nations and God. We as believers have an important role to play, we are called to stand before the Lord and call upon His name.
"Israel is God’s Spectacle to all the world, by which HIS MERCY SHALL BE MADE KNOWN - a Visible Demonstration in The Last Days - to “the nations of them that are saved,” Rev. 21:24. Israel - The Mystery Nation - carries through into The Revelation Prophecy. THERE appears those who are SEALED IN THEIR FOREHEADS, and “who follow the Lamb, whithersoever He goeth.” Redeemed? Yes. Washed in The Blood of The Lamb? Yes. Saved by Grace through Faith? Yes. BUT the ONLY NATION mentioned BY NAME among the Ransomed Throngs in The Revelation Vision. For these very reasons, we declare that the anti-semitic spirit - HATE THE JEWS - is one of the most deadly spirits in the world." (Rex Andrews, The Mystery of Israel")
We must pray!
But this is also a warning to Israel and the Jews of the Diaspora
In March of 1939, weeks before Britain published the ‘white papers’ (May 1939) effectively slamming shut the doors of Palestine to the Jews of Europe, the Jews of Poland, sent a desperate telegram to London, begging the British to keep the doors of Palestine open!
It went unheeded. You can read about it here.
[I thank God that my grandmother, a dentist in Poland, saw the dangers already in 1933 when Hitler came to power and pushed the family out of Europe. By 1935, her family was already in Palestine. Just four years later, the doors were slammed shut!]
Just as most of the Jews of Europe delayed dealing with leaving Europe for Palestine, so today, millions of Jews are refusing to read the signs of the times and are delaying their decision to come to Israel.
We must pray!
The Body of Christ must wake up!
Instead of being so taken up with their comfort, welfare, and seeking of blessing as their highest goal in life, Christians should awaken to the dangerous times they are living in. Dangerous to their nation, dangerous to the believers, and dangerous to Israel.
Christians must learn to seek the face of God, make the Bible their primary book, and learn to pray with understanding!
While some focus on praying for the political side of these things, I prefer to pray the scriptures. There is no indication that Daniel, for instance, ever used his political ‘connections’ to try to influence the king of Babylon to restore the Jews. He prayed from the Word (Jeremiah). Neither did Esther. Her act was not a political one but an intercessory one. They prayed according to the Word of God, and even risked their lives to do so! So should we, (pray I mean.)
Pray for the gathering of the Jews from the nations. There are many other scriptures and promises regarding God’s gathering of the Jews from the lands where they willingly remain in exile. Take some time, find them, pray them, I urge you. See for instance Ezekiel 39:21-29
Pray for your nation. God’s warnings are not idle threats. Remember the devastation of Germany in WWII. Take a look at the condition of the nations around Israel at this time. See how the cancer of the Jew-hatred and Israel-hatred has devastated their lands.
Psalm 2 is an example, See also Zechariah 12, especially Zech 12:10
Pray for the salvation of Israel Ezekiel 39:21-29, Zechariah 12:10-13:1
Pray for the Body of Christ in the nations. You can find many places in the scriptures that speak of the spiritual condition of Israel; there are great parallels to the condition of the Body today.
Read Malachi. Is the Church offering God worthy sacrifices? Is the Church wholeheartedly serving the Lord in the Word? Is the Church faithful to God’s view of marriage, money? Is the Church faithful to God and serving him wholeheartedly?
Will you pray for the purifying work of the Lord in your own life? In your fellowship’s life - Malachi 3:1-5.
Will you trust the Lord to work in this fiery way in your own life. Do not be afraid to yield to His nail-pierced hands as He works to sanctify you and prepare you for the things ahead.
Blessing from Jerusalem,
"You visit the earth and water it, You greatly enrich it; The river of God is full of water; You provide their grain, For so You have prepared it." PSALM 65:9
"And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. 2 In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations." REVELATION 22:1-2
Greetings with grace and mercy in The Blessed Name of our Lord, Yeshua h'meshiach. May He be blessed and glorified and may you (and I) be encouraged toward Him for His glory. May you (and I) be TRULY planted beside His River, drinking of the fullness of it and producing HIS fruit for His glory!
Well…the longer I put off writing this letter because there is just too much to write about…the more there IS to write about: It only multiplies daily!
I have not written to you since our torrential rains claimed 7 lives; nor since the assassination of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani and senior Iraqi militia commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis; not since our electioneering started again intensely for the THIRD time in a year…nor since the 49 (according to Miki Levi - the police spokesman) Kings, Presidents, Prime Ministers and assorted dignitaries and heads of state solidified their participation in events marking the 75th year since the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp; named The World Holocaust Forum. That began today and perhaps I will begin there and work backwards.
'There will be major traffic disruptions this week, especially on Wednesday and Thursday.' all of the media informed us to a collective groan. 'You are advised to leave vehicles at home (not in tow away zones) and take public transportation if you have to leave your houses.' …'Public transportation will experience delays and disruptions…' (they neglected to add 'and insane overcrowding') I watched as sharp shooters staked out roof tops and popped up from under man hole covers. Security vehicles inspected every corner of the city…and under every rock. At the bus stops the flashing sign read (in Hebrew, Arabic and English) 'The bus lines will experience significant delays and interruptions on the 22 and 23rd. For specific information call *8787'. My boss insisted that I could make it to work, so I called *8787. After about 20 minutes of music (EVERYONE was calling *8787!) an annoyed worker told me that they HAVE no information concerning Jerusalem buses and that I should just stay home. When I gave my boss what information I had gotten he just rolled his eyes and said that he'd pay for a taxi. NOT SO EASY! You see… I work across town. My memories of the visits of US Presidents Obama and then Trump are still quite vivid; walking to work isn't as bad as walking home when I am tired…about 1.5-2 hours each way…and I am older and less agile.
But why are they gathering?
Our President, Reuven Rivlin, hosted them as anti-semitism has been rising at a most alarming rate while the number of Holocaust survivors is dropping rapidly: 'Never Again' and 'Never Forget' seems nearly forgotten and our nation seeks a way to prevent what appears inevitable.
HOLD THAT THOUGHT! (or perhaps drop it!)
I am incredibly thankful and humbled by The Lord's restraining Hand! I had tried my best to write and send this letter yesterday…but interruption after interruption put an end to ALL of my best efforts.
Last night before going to sleep I listened to some of the events and was deeply touched…and learned things that I hadn't known. This morning as I prepared to write, my husband turned the proceedings on and said 'Come and see! You need to see this!' …I had 'INTENDED' to write…but I went and saw and could not stop watching and listening.
As I sat down to work on this letter yet AGAIN…there was an email from my Pastor concerning what I was watching and it was said so much better than I ever could that I will include it and only add one fact that I learned from the conference that sent chills down my spine and I hadn't known: A historian and researcher at Yad Vashem exhibited meticulous notebooks filled with lists, photos, information and even fingerprints! Ofcourse I KNEW about the lists that they kept; the 'inventories'…but I never thought of it in this light: He said how IRONIC it was that the stated intent of the Nazis was to wipe ALL MEMORY of the Jews from the earth…to eradicate their names…their ways… their lives. Instead…preserved IN JEWISH JERUSALEM…are their names, information, even photographs and fingerprints recorded as witness by the Nazis themselves…Oh my! I was overwhelmed by the impact of what I was seeing. God sovereign will: 'They will NOT be forgotten! You will be defeated!' It is as if I am in a dream to realize that, yes, we are a PART of this huge spiritual battle…and I share with you from Jerusalem…restored to the Jews after 2,000 years!
Yesterday, while I was still only thinking narrowly…I confess…about the traffic jams and being 'sequestered' - my own selfish interests, I was waiting in an office across from a woman older than I, perhaps 85. She was speaking English, it seemed as if perhaps she was doing a phone interview with someone in America. I was able to make out both sides of the conversation. She was quite serious and it was her intensity that touched me. She said 'I never thought that I would live to see this day. I never dreamed that such a thing would happen, but it is and ha'Shem (God) has brought it about! Do you understand what we are witnessing?' I understood that she was speaking about this gathering and I was ashamed for my narrow thoughts. I looked at her and realized that she was indeed a Holocaust survivor and began to think about what it must feel like to her; could it be even like Joseph seeing his brothers coming, bowing down to ask for food?
So, these two days have passed with, in my opinion, minimal inconvenience considering the amount of astounding security; I can't imagine HOW they pulled it off, protecting all of these dignitaries and escorting them around the city as well as in and out of the country.
And rather than comment further I will attach my Pastor's letter…it is more important to digest Truth than added words. May The Lord TRULY keep you in His perfect will, tender of heart and before Him for His glory… and me too please Lord! Lovingly, your sister.
A warning to the nations; a wake-up call to the Jewish people, and to the Body of Christ(If you want to read this on the web, click here)
Fifth World Holocaust Forum - The largest diplomatic event in Israel’s history!
The Forum this year will commemorate the 75th liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp.
It theme is: “Remembering the Holocaust, Fighting Antisemitism,”
The peculiar thing about this year’s Forum:
It was hoped that 10 or 15 world leaders would agree to attend. Instead, it has become the largest diplomatic event in Israel’s history.
Delegations from 49 countries, including 41 heads of states, are in Israel at this moment. The US vice president, Mr. Pence, Russia’s president, Mr. Putin, Prince Charles of Britain, French president Mr. Macron, and many other kings and heads of states.
Why is this significant - A warning to the nations
First: We are in a time of growing denial of the Holocaust, and an alarming increase of anti-Semitism in the world. Significantly, the leaders of the nations are acknowledging it.
Second: We are living in the time of Israel’s restoration, and this could be God, calling the nations to warn them before they descend into deeper darkness and further rebellion against God, His people, and His unfolding plan. It will be very destructive, Psalm 2:10-12
Here is why I think this is the case
Last night, on Wednesday, Prominent Holocaust scholar, Professor Yehuda Bauer, delivered the keynote address at a festive dinner held for about 45 heads of states that were present. (Putin and Pence came only this morning on Thursday.)
He claimed (rightly I believe) that the deadliest military conflict in history, claiming anywhere between 70 to 85 million lives, including 6 million Jews, was caused by hatred for the Jews!
He was given eleven minutes to do this, eleven Minutes! They spent far more time eating than listening to what I believe is, a warning from God.
The most chilling part is Prof. Bauer’s quote of Hitler: “Today I will once more be a prophet: If the international Jewish financiers in and outside Europe should succeed in plunging the nations once more into a world war” – as we all know, World War I was caused by the Jews, right? – “then the result will not be the bolshevization of the earth, and thus the victory of Jewry, but the annihilation of the Jewish race in Europe” Die Vernichtung der jüdischen Rasse in Europa. So, the Jewish capitalists rule the West, and what they want is the victory of Bolshevism. The result will be the annihilation of the Jews.“
And here is the warning: “Anti-Semitism is not a Jewish illness, but a non-Jewish one; it is a cancer that kills and destroys your nations and your countries.” And, this, “…..fight anti-Semitism. Not because of the Jews, but to protect your societies from a deadly cancer.”
The caption for the text in the Times of Israel was: Holocaust scholar’s speech to world leaders: Anti-Semitism destroys your nations
Read more about it here
Will it be heeded? Will the nations respond? Have they read Psalm 2? Will your country respond!
Personally, I believe that although diplomatic activity regarding these things is important, these efforts will never win the battle against Israel-hatred, and antisemitism. It is a spiritual battle that is leading to the final confrontation between the nations and God. We as believers have an important role to play, we are called to stand before the Lord and call upon His name.
"Israel is God’s Spectacle to all the world, by which HIS MERCY SHALL BE MADE KNOWN - a Visible Demonstration in The Last Days - to “the nations of them that are saved,” Rev. 21:24. Israel - The Mystery Nation - carries through into The Revelation Prophecy. THERE appears those who are SEALED IN THEIR FOREHEADS, and “who follow the Lamb, whithersoever He goeth.” Redeemed? Yes. Washed in The Blood of The Lamb? Yes. Saved by Grace through Faith? Yes. BUT the ONLY NATION mentioned BY NAME among the Ransomed Throngs in The Revelation Vision. For these very reasons, we declare that the anti-semitic spirit - HATE THE JEWS - is one of the most deadly spirits in the world." (Rex Andrews, The Mystery of Israel")
We must pray!
But this is also a warning to Israel and the Jews of the Diaspora
In March of 1939, weeks before Britain published the ‘white papers’ (May 1939) effectively slamming shut the doors of Palestine to the Jews of Europe, the Jews of Poland, sent a desperate telegram to London, begging the British to keep the doors of Palestine open!
It went unheeded. You can read about it here.
[I thank God that my grandmother, a dentist in Poland, saw the dangers already in 1933 when Hitler came to power and pushed the family out of Europe. By 1935, her family was already in Palestine. Just four years later, the doors were slammed shut!]
Just as most of the Jews of Europe delayed dealing with leaving Europe for Palestine, so today, millions of Jews are refusing to read the signs of the times and are delaying their decision to come to Israel.
We must pray!
The Body of Christ must wake up!
Instead of being so taken up with their comfort, welfare, and seeking of blessing as their highest goal in life, Christians should awaken to the dangerous times they are living in. Dangerous to their nation, dangerous to the believers, and dangerous to Israel.
Christians must learn to seek the face of God, make the Bible their primary book, and learn to pray with understanding!
While some focus on praying for the political side of these things, I prefer to pray the scriptures. There is no indication that Daniel, for instance, ever used his political ‘connections’ to try to influence the king of Babylon to restore the Jews. He prayed from the Word (Jeremiah). Neither did Esther. Her act was not a political one but an intercessory one. They prayed according to the Word of God, and even risked their lives to do so! So should we, (pray I mean.)
Pray for the gathering of the Jews from the nations. There are many other scriptures and promises regarding God’s gathering of the Jews from the lands where they willingly remain in exile. Take some time, find them, pray them, I urge you. See for instance Ezekiel 39:21-29
Pray for your nation. God’s warnings are not idle threats. Remember the devastation of Germany in WWII. Take a look at the condition of the nations around Israel at this time. See how the cancer of the Jew-hatred and Israel-hatred has devastated their lands.
Psalm 2 is an example, See also Zechariah 12, especially Zech 12:10
Pray for the salvation of Israel Ezekiel 39:21-29, Zechariah 12:10-13:1
Pray for the Body of Christ in the nations. You can find many places in the scriptures that speak of the spiritual condition of Israel; there are great parallels to the condition of the Body today.
Read Malachi. Is the Church offering God worthy sacrifices? Is the Church wholeheartedly serving the Lord in the Word? Is the Church faithful to God’s view of marriage, money? Is the Church faithful to God and serving him wholeheartedly?
Will you pray for the purifying work of the Lord in your own life? In your fellowship’s life - Malachi 3:1-5.
Will you trust the Lord to work in this fiery way in your own life. Do not be afraid to yield to His nail-pierced hands as He works to sanctify you and prepare you for the things ahead.
Blessing from Jerusalem,
December 31, 2019
"Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon’s porch. Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, “How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father’s name, they bear witness of Me. But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.” John 10:22-30
Oh LOVING GREETINGS DEAREST sisters and brothers- beloved, chosen to follow The Lamb and then choosing to follow Him! May you be encouraged toward Him, blessed and edified …and may The Lord…The Light of the world…The only begotten Son of The Father…The Lamb…MESSIAH…The Word made flesh…THE LORD GOD ALMIGHTY…THE GREAT I AM…MAY HE ALONE BE GLORIFIED, blessed and comforted in His children today.
Greetings! As the year draws toward a close. Greetings as we choose, TODAY, HIS LIGHT!
The eight candles and the 'shamas', the middle, lifted up 'servant candle', are freshly lined up in our chanukiah waiting for my husband to come home from work; it is the last light of the 8 day celebration tonight! "Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon’s porch." The Light of the world, walking in His Temple during the feast of the dedication…the feast that celebrates re-dedication of the temple after its desecration by the Greeks who (among other atrocities) sacrificed un-kosher pigs -("Also the swine is unclean for you, because it has cloven hooves, yet does not chew the cud; you shall not eat their flesh or touch their dead carcasses."Deut 14:8 and Levit 11:7 for just two examples) on the holy altar of God. Modern Chanukah celebrated the triumph of the Maccabees over the Greeks, but the most important part to me…and the part that I grew up hearing about most and wondering at was that when the filth was cleaned out of the temple and the Priest went to light the menorah…the eternal lamp…there was only one sealed flask of the prescribed oil… enough for just one night! The oil took a week to prepare…so by faith he lit the one lamp…BUT GOD! WHO WAS RICH IN MERCY THEN AS NOW, MULTIPLIED THE OIL NIGHT AFTER NIGHT…FOR 8 NIGHTS THE LAMP BURNED UNTIL THE FRESH OIL HAD BEEN PREPARED ACCORDING TO THE DIRECTIONS THAT MOSES HAD BEEN GIVEN BY GOD AND DELIVERED TO THE PEOPLE! Chanukah! The festival of Light…of multiplied Light! And THE LIVING LIGHT WALKED IN THE TEMPLE! "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow me…" He said during Chanukah in the temple… the temple that was His. What a picture!
But He is STILL walking here…and where you are as well…and STILL reasoning with those who will listen and still speaking to all who will hear. I think about that in the hustle and bustle of the packed train and bus. At least I TRY to think about that…to remember that for THIS cause He came…NOT because we were righteous…but because we are filled with sin and darkness and yet Abba created us for Himself and He still reaches out and loves us.
I looked around at the faces today. The train was PACKED! When I left for work at 6 this morning I was surprised to see the train full. Usually on my way to work it is reasonably empty but today it was jammed and I wondered what was going on. Perhaps they were all going for their flu shots? Influenza is particularly virulent this year. I didn't have much time to wonder because once at work I was surrounded by throngs of sick people who had NOT gone for their flu shot and were now at the doctors with influenza. It was a BUSY day! Coming home, traffic was at a standstill. It took me 45 minutes to get to the train by bus! So many big families…baby carriages and twin strollers crowded the aisles of the train as little ones peered out of the windows with small happy faces. This year, it didn't seem as if as many locals were stuffing themselves with sofganiyot (the traditional oily jelly donut), latkas ( a sort of potato pancake) bunuelos or sfenj (sort of like sofganiyot…a more middle eastern traditional fried sweet dough)… none- the-less, the tasty fares were everywhere as Jerusalem hosted a record breaking number of tourists this year and they wanted to taste it ALL… So our bakeries weren't TOO impacted by the health concerns of the locals.
Large electric Chanukiahs dot the city neighborhoods and at sundown people gather around them as they are lit and sing traditional songs. It is a festive time. We used to have one of these large public Chanukiahs across from our apartment but there was none this year. When we first made aliyah, they were gas lights. I loved watching them lit and their flames flickering in the wind. Now they are electric bulbs. Times are rougher now…people are rougher…and times change all things.
A friend drew my attention to comments made by Israel's IDF (military) Chief, Aviv Kochavi this week as he spoke before the conference at the Interdisciplinary Center in Hertzliya. They were sobering. He spoke of our now open and undercover operations in Syria and around the area against Iran…which have been far more frequent and brazen…"even at the risk of war." He warned Israeli civilians to "mentally prepare" for heavy fire will be directed against our home front"…continuing "I'm looking people in the eye, and saying, there will be heavy fire. We have to recognize this and we have to prepare for this…We have to prepare for this militarily; the civil hierarchies have to prepare for this ; and we have to prepare for this mentally."
Yes Lord. "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow me…" …'We trust You Lord…through whatever fire we must pass…that You will lead us and that Your rod and Your staff…and Your Voice WILL lead and comfort us…and enable us to walk in a manner that will glorify You!.'
My mind turns to another local news article that I saw '11 Christian men executed in Nigeria by Isis as retribution for the death of their leader…' I thought about those "11 Christian men" who were chosen because they were Christian…and went with Him into the fire…and came out the other side into His Presence. 'Prepare us mentally, Lord, to be part of Your solution and not part of the problem!'.
And time has run swiftly and now it is the eve of 2020!
When we made aliyah, this was definitely a day NOT mentioned! It was a distinction made on the Western calendar - observed in the west…and NOT on the Hebrew calendar/ NOT observed here! If someone said 'Happy New Year' everyone around him frowned in obvious disapproval. We made aliyah during the days of the Russian aliyah, and the secular Russians celebrated New Year (Sylvester) the way that secular westerners celebrate Christmas…yes…it was frowned upon.
Times change.
It seems to me that the major 'foreign languages' that I hear today on the trains and buses are French and English. The Hebrew (and Arabic)/Russian signs have been replaced for the most part (in Jerusalem anyway) by Hebrew (and Arabic) /French / English. Is it the dramatic rise in anti-semitism in the west? Perhaps. With the rise of western immigration, the New Year according to the western calendar has pressed through. I hear of and see signs announcing restaurants celebrating, balloons appear with 2020 written on them…among the western young people on the train I see a 'party excitement' and listen to their plans…somewhat with dismay; is it my age? I think about how He had come into my life just before I was 30 and I am thankful that He gave me direction that these poor sheep do not have yet.
And so I pray.
And I pray to pray…because I don't pray enough and can get 'weary in well doing'.
But my people stand at the door of … what? Eternity for sure…and how can I but pray??
My boss announced to me that he plans to retire this coming October. There are not many places for a 74 year old to find fresh work…and so as the new year lies ahead I am reminded that none of us EVER knows what is ahead. James reminds us of that so well: "Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.” But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin." James 4:13-17
HOWEVER…KNOWING THE GREAT MERCY OF GOD…I look ahead to the year before us…for us and for you…and I know that as I ask Him to glorify His Name…I am asking according to His will. If I ask Him to fill me with His Holy Spirit daily…I am asking a good thing…and with THAT RE-ASSURANCE I pray that you and I will walk into this new year with BLESSING!
I truly miss you…your fellowship…and I am thankful for each one of you who prays for Israel and our people… who remembers our family…and who even takes precious TIME to read these letters! May they be a sweet smelling savor for His glory alone! God Bless you and Keep you and make HIS Face to shine upon you…and give you (and me) His Peace.
Lovingly, your sister here
PS. The IFI yearly prayer conference here in Jerusalem is set to begin 20 Jan…IF…by any chance…He is still prodding any of you to come…please do as He says.
"Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon’s porch. Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, “How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father’s name, they bear witness of Me. But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.” John 10:22-30
Oh LOVING GREETINGS DEAREST sisters and brothers- beloved, chosen to follow The Lamb and then choosing to follow Him! May you be encouraged toward Him, blessed and edified …and may The Lord…The Light of the world…The only begotten Son of The Father…The Lamb…MESSIAH…The Word made flesh…THE LORD GOD ALMIGHTY…THE GREAT I AM…MAY HE ALONE BE GLORIFIED, blessed and comforted in His children today.
Greetings! As the year draws toward a close. Greetings as we choose, TODAY, HIS LIGHT!
The eight candles and the 'shamas', the middle, lifted up 'servant candle', are freshly lined up in our chanukiah waiting for my husband to come home from work; it is the last light of the 8 day celebration tonight! "Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon’s porch." The Light of the world, walking in His Temple during the feast of the dedication…the feast that celebrates re-dedication of the temple after its desecration by the Greeks who (among other atrocities) sacrificed un-kosher pigs -("Also the swine is unclean for you, because it has cloven hooves, yet does not chew the cud; you shall not eat their flesh or touch their dead carcasses."Deut 14:8 and Levit 11:7 for just two examples) on the holy altar of God. Modern Chanukah celebrated the triumph of the Maccabees over the Greeks, but the most important part to me…and the part that I grew up hearing about most and wondering at was that when the filth was cleaned out of the temple and the Priest went to light the menorah…the eternal lamp…there was only one sealed flask of the prescribed oil… enough for just one night! The oil took a week to prepare…so by faith he lit the one lamp…BUT GOD! WHO WAS RICH IN MERCY THEN AS NOW, MULTIPLIED THE OIL NIGHT AFTER NIGHT…FOR 8 NIGHTS THE LAMP BURNED UNTIL THE FRESH OIL HAD BEEN PREPARED ACCORDING TO THE DIRECTIONS THAT MOSES HAD BEEN GIVEN BY GOD AND DELIVERED TO THE PEOPLE! Chanukah! The festival of Light…of multiplied Light! And THE LIVING LIGHT WALKED IN THE TEMPLE! "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow me…" He said during Chanukah in the temple… the temple that was His. What a picture!
But He is STILL walking here…and where you are as well…and STILL reasoning with those who will listen and still speaking to all who will hear. I think about that in the hustle and bustle of the packed train and bus. At least I TRY to think about that…to remember that for THIS cause He came…NOT because we were righteous…but because we are filled with sin and darkness and yet Abba created us for Himself and He still reaches out and loves us.
I looked around at the faces today. The train was PACKED! When I left for work at 6 this morning I was surprised to see the train full. Usually on my way to work it is reasonably empty but today it was jammed and I wondered what was going on. Perhaps they were all going for their flu shots? Influenza is particularly virulent this year. I didn't have much time to wonder because once at work I was surrounded by throngs of sick people who had NOT gone for their flu shot and were now at the doctors with influenza. It was a BUSY day! Coming home, traffic was at a standstill. It took me 45 minutes to get to the train by bus! So many big families…baby carriages and twin strollers crowded the aisles of the train as little ones peered out of the windows with small happy faces. This year, it didn't seem as if as many locals were stuffing themselves with sofganiyot (the traditional oily jelly donut), latkas ( a sort of potato pancake) bunuelos or sfenj (sort of like sofganiyot…a more middle eastern traditional fried sweet dough)… none- the-less, the tasty fares were everywhere as Jerusalem hosted a record breaking number of tourists this year and they wanted to taste it ALL… So our bakeries weren't TOO impacted by the health concerns of the locals.
Large electric Chanukiahs dot the city neighborhoods and at sundown people gather around them as they are lit and sing traditional songs. It is a festive time. We used to have one of these large public Chanukiahs across from our apartment but there was none this year. When we first made aliyah, they were gas lights. I loved watching them lit and their flames flickering in the wind. Now they are electric bulbs. Times are rougher now…people are rougher…and times change all things.
A friend drew my attention to comments made by Israel's IDF (military) Chief, Aviv Kochavi this week as he spoke before the conference at the Interdisciplinary Center in Hertzliya. They were sobering. He spoke of our now open and undercover operations in Syria and around the area against Iran…which have been far more frequent and brazen…"even at the risk of war." He warned Israeli civilians to "mentally prepare" for heavy fire will be directed against our home front"…continuing "I'm looking people in the eye, and saying, there will be heavy fire. We have to recognize this and we have to prepare for this…We have to prepare for this militarily; the civil hierarchies have to prepare for this ; and we have to prepare for this mentally."
Yes Lord. "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow me…" …'We trust You Lord…through whatever fire we must pass…that You will lead us and that Your rod and Your staff…and Your Voice WILL lead and comfort us…and enable us to walk in a manner that will glorify You!.'
My mind turns to another local news article that I saw '11 Christian men executed in Nigeria by Isis as retribution for the death of their leader…' I thought about those "11 Christian men" who were chosen because they were Christian…and went with Him into the fire…and came out the other side into His Presence. 'Prepare us mentally, Lord, to be part of Your solution and not part of the problem!'.
And time has run swiftly and now it is the eve of 2020!
When we made aliyah, this was definitely a day NOT mentioned! It was a distinction made on the Western calendar - observed in the west…and NOT on the Hebrew calendar/ NOT observed here! If someone said 'Happy New Year' everyone around him frowned in obvious disapproval. We made aliyah during the days of the Russian aliyah, and the secular Russians celebrated New Year (Sylvester) the way that secular westerners celebrate Christmas…yes…it was frowned upon.
Times change.
It seems to me that the major 'foreign languages' that I hear today on the trains and buses are French and English. The Hebrew (and Arabic)/Russian signs have been replaced for the most part (in Jerusalem anyway) by Hebrew (and Arabic) /French / English. Is it the dramatic rise in anti-semitism in the west? Perhaps. With the rise of western immigration, the New Year according to the western calendar has pressed through. I hear of and see signs announcing restaurants celebrating, balloons appear with 2020 written on them…among the western young people on the train I see a 'party excitement' and listen to their plans…somewhat with dismay; is it my age? I think about how He had come into my life just before I was 30 and I am thankful that He gave me direction that these poor sheep do not have yet.
And so I pray.
And I pray to pray…because I don't pray enough and can get 'weary in well doing'.
But my people stand at the door of … what? Eternity for sure…and how can I but pray??
My boss announced to me that he plans to retire this coming October. There are not many places for a 74 year old to find fresh work…and so as the new year lies ahead I am reminded that none of us EVER knows what is ahead. James reminds us of that so well: "Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.” But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin." James 4:13-17
HOWEVER…KNOWING THE GREAT MERCY OF GOD…I look ahead to the year before us…for us and for you…and I know that as I ask Him to glorify His Name…I am asking according to His will. If I ask Him to fill me with His Holy Spirit daily…I am asking a good thing…and with THAT RE-ASSURANCE I pray that you and I will walk into this new year with BLESSING!
I truly miss you…your fellowship…and I am thankful for each one of you who prays for Israel and our people… who remembers our family…and who even takes precious TIME to read these letters! May they be a sweet smelling savor for His glory alone! God Bless you and Keep you and make HIS Face to shine upon you…and give you (and me) His Peace.
Lovingly, your sister here
PS. The IFI yearly prayer conference here in Jerusalem is set to begin 20 Jan…IF…by any chance…He is still prodding any of you to come…please do as He says.