Although we had to cancel our Wednesday Intercessory prayer, we are sending this little update as it is very much the thing we carry in our hearts before the Lord all the time. 

Ezek. 39:25 ¶ “Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Now I will bring back the captives of Jacob, and have mercy on the whole house of Israel; and I will be jealous for My holy name--
Ezek. 39:26 after they have borne their shame, and all their unfaithfulness in which they were unfaithful to Me, when they dwelt safely in their own land and no one made them afraid.
Ezek. 39:27 When I have brought them back from the peoples and gathered them out of their enemies’ lands, and I am hallowed in them in the sight of many nations,
Ezek. 39:28 then they shall know that I am the LORD their God, who sent them into captivity among the nations, but also brought them back to their land, and left none of them captive any longer.
Ezek. 39:29 And I will not hide My face from them anymore; for I shall have poured out My Spirit on the house of Israel,’ says the Lord GOD.”

Whereas the  Ezekiel 38-39 describe the terrible battle of God against Magog in the land of Israel, chapter 39 ends with a surprising finale and the most wonderful promise of all! God will restore His presence in the land! 

A deep longing and hope arise within our hearts as we read this incredible promise. Israel, as a nation, has been without the visible felt presence of the Lord for two millennia. What are we as a people without His presence, His face?

Who can imagine such a thing that the presence of the Lord, would be in the midst of the nation again?! These verses raise deep longing in our hearts for our king and savior. For our David to rule over us. For our savior Yeshua to take His place. What is a country without her king? What are a people without their promised savior? 

Oh, for God's presence, to live before His face, to see Him and to know Him and to hear Him! To live before Him and in His presence day by day! And to think that this is what He wants, and He desires and that He has, therefore, promised to do it!

Too many of us, believers, are willing to go on with life without desiring God's presence. We get so easily bogged down in the "jungle" of life, worries, self-desires and wishes, temptations, fears, and the "cares of this life" that we forget our destiny, and forget to want the best thing - Himself. 

How many times have you heard teachings and sermons about the battle of Armageddon? Of Gog and Magog? About the Last Days? Isn't it sad that the verses above hardly get a mention? Yet,  they express the point of it all!  

Moses, on the other hand, was unwilling to proceed towards the promised land, without a guarantee of God's presence. (Exodus 33:15) 

Perhaps you would like to take a moment and tell God you want Him?!

May this portion of scripture inspire you both to cry out to God for yourself and to cry out to God for His people Israel

• Lord above all, it is you whom we desire: Lord it is your presence that we long for, above all things
• We have read of the times you were present in our midst. Return O Lord and rule over us as in days of old.
• Pour out your Holy Spirit on us your people and give us a new heart and a new spirit
• Give us circumcised hearts with which to love you and you alone
• Be jealous for your holy name dear God and sanctify it by your great works of grace in your people
• Sanctify your name in us in the sight of many nations that they may know that you alone are God
• Gather your people from their enemy's lands and bring them home to Israel
• Lord open the eyes of your people to Yeshua; may we see the one whom we have pierced 
• Bring your people to deep repentance and into the new covenant
• Sanctify your people by the Holy Spirit 
• Reveal your face again to us and take your place in the midst dear Lord 
• Lord we pray for the Body of Messiah in the Land -- Let there arise in the heart of many a mighty prayer and desire for your Presence -- Yourself. 
• Let your Body in the Land have the heart for you, for your Word and for your way.
• May many in the Body seek you above all things.
• May your Body in the Land turn away from trifles and earthly pursuits to seek you to be The King, of their lives. 

​
Security situation 

• Please continue to uphold Israel's security, especially as it is the month of Ramadan
• Please continue to pray into the volatile situation in the north: Hezbollah, Iran in Syria, etc.
• Please continue to pray into the volatile situation in the south: Hamas in Gaza, ISIS in Sinai, etc. 

Blessings from Jerusalem,

Momentous events in Israel this week 
This week has seen some momentous events in Israel. The battles at the Gaza borders, the moving of the US embassy in Jerusalem, the expelling of diplomats between Turkey and Israel, and this week is not even over.

Some light as to what really happened in Gaza - The nations lost no time in condemning Israel for its "barbaric" killing of innocent Gazans who were "peacefully" marching by Israel's borders. But had they waited a day or two, they would have learned that the Hamas itself admitted that 50 of the 61 who died on May 14, were its operatives (who were sent to attack Israel under the cover of women and children).  (Read this here.) 

Furthermore, a captured Hamas terrorist exposed Hamas tactics and motives behind recent events. He said, "They control the Gaza Strip, and everything that happens there goes through them." He further explained Hamas' reasoning behind events: "Hamas organizes these riots so that the people won't revolt. Hamas tell themselves, instead of having people revolt and turn against us, we'll send them to the fence and let them 'revolt' there freely," (to read the article and watch the video click here). 

As Mark Twain said: "A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes."1  But of course, what the nations do and say are not about truth at all anymore, but about manipulating words to achieve a self-serving agenda. No one really cares about the Palestinians in Gaza; otherwise, they would do their utmost best to free the Gazans from Hamas rule. 

We were led to pray for Israel and the nations from Isaiah 2
Is. 2:1 The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
Is. 2:2  Now it shall come to pass in the latter days  That the mountain of the LORD’S house  Shall be established on the top of the mountains,  And shall be exalted above the hills;  And all nations shall flow to it.
Is. 2:3  Many people shall come and say,  “Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,  To the house of the God of Jacob;  He will teach us His ways,  And we shall walk in His paths.”  For out of Zion shall go forth the law,  And the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
Is. 2:4  He shall judge between the nations,  And rebuke many people;  They shall beat their swords into plowshares,  And their spears into pruning hooks;  Nation shall not lift up sword against nation,  Neither shall they learn war any more.

In these verses, we see that in the last days, God would cause Israel to rise above other nations (mountains here are nations, hills are smaller nations O.A.) and be established at the very top. Israel's rising, rising from the dead as it were, has caused and continues to create, huge political quakes; and tremendous opposition. It is clear that this move is against God as much as it is against Israel. 

Verse three shows the nations coming to Jerusalem to hear the word of God to learn His ways. We don't see that today do we? What causes the change of heart? Verse four reveals it: God sends His Word (law) from Zion, this word is a rebuke and a judgment that causes the nations to change their ways, turning their weapons to useful instruments. That is the only true "peace process" that will work! What a Word must it be, to change nations!. 

• We prayed for the Lord to continue to watch over His Word to perform it
• We prayed he would continue to bless this land and continue to raise it
• We prayed for a change in leadership in many nations. (Think of how the Lord caused leaders to change in some countries to support His plan for Israel - in Canada, in Australia, in the US., even if it was temporary 
• We prayed for the leaders of nations to humble themselves and take God's advice from Psalm 2
• We prayed for the Church in nations to rise and be a light in these matters
• We prayed for the Church in nations to take its place in mighty intercessions
• We prayed for the mighty preaching of the Word of God from the pulpits of the Church in the different nations
• We prayed for leaders in different nations to have someone close to them advise them godly advice (President Truman had Edward Jacobson who urged him to recognize the establishment of Israel and to support it. Trump has Jared Kushner, etc.
• We thanked God for the moving of the US and the Guatemalan embassies to Jerusalem and prayed that many more nations would follow suit (it will do good to those nations)

We continued with Isaiah 2:5-11 and prayed for Israel's salvation.
Some of these verses describe modern Israel: Rich, strong,  but also full of idols and self-admiration. Our leaders are expressing some of these attitudes. And while Israel can be proud of its achievements, wrong pride can lead to idolatry, and so:

• We gave God the glory for what Israel has become
• We thanked Him for making Israel prosperous and strong
• We recognized Israel's achievements as a result of God's blessings and help
• We prayed that the Lord would rain upon us the Spirit of Grace and Supplication, the spirit of prayer and beseeching and humility
• We prayed He would reveal Himself to our nation and that this revelation would bring us to our knees in adoration and admiration and wonder -- thus ascribing all the greatness and great goodness to our God and Him alone
• We recognized our need for salvation as a nation

We prayed for the US president, Trump
President Trump is a bit like Jehu who rode furiously. He has done things such as move the US embassy to Jerusalem, withstood North Korea, pulled out of the agreement with Iran; these were all unthinkable only a few months ago. We were reminded of Jehu because Jehu was a man outside of the system. He came from "nowhere," and so did things that were unthinkable. Trump, also, has come from outside of the "system" and is doing things that everyone says he cannot do. We recognize that this can be an extraordinary period and that at some point it will pass. 

• We prayed for the Lord to achieve all that He wants to through Trump; as it concerns Israel.
• We prayed for the maximum benefit for Israel from this period
• We recognized that the world is in turmoil and that this particular time is essential for Israel and the US as well.
• We thanked God for the truth that this administration is speaking in the public arena such as the UN Security Council, and other UN forums. 
• We prayed for the Lord to guard this time and bring it to fullness so that it will accomplish all that it is meant to. 

Finally, we prayed for Israel's security 
We prayed from Ezekiel 38. We are not thinking or saying that we are at that time, but we recognize that some of the same principles are at work already and we acknowledged that the Lord is sovereign over the nations and enemies. 
 

• God brings the nations against Israel (Eze. 38:4)
• God calls them to prepare themselves (Eze. 38:7)
• God will rise in a fury against the enemies of Israel (Eze. 38:18)
• God will deal with the nations who come against Israel (Eze. 38:20)
• The nations will know that He is the LORD (Eze. 38:23)

• We acknowledged God's sovereignty and lordship over the nations
• We acknowledged God's control of the nations
• We thanked Him for giving Israel victory over its immediate enemies (Iran, Hamas)
• We prayed that the Lord would continue to protect our borders and people

Blessings from Jerusalem,

______________________________________
1. https://goo.gl/QthDmG

Keep your eyes on Jerusalem
Israel has had an astoundingly successful week. The successful attack on Iranian assets in Syria, Trump's announcement that the US is pulling out of the nuclear agreement with Iran, and Bibi Netanyahu's successful trip to Moscow.

But the central drama and focus are Jerusalem.
In a few days, the US will move its embassy to Jerusalem. A Palestinian pastor told me just yesterday that Abbas is encouraging the street to riot; indeed some rioting and trouble has already begun in the Bethlehem area.

At the same time Hamas is building up more violent protests in Gaza, near the fence. The goal is to break through the fence into Israel by the thousands. The same day is also the beginning of Ramadan and Nakbah Day (see the previous update). 

But far more ominous is the possible division of Jerusalem. The rumors are (in the newspapers) that Trump's peace plan requires that israel relinquish four Arab neighborhoods in East Jerusalem to the Palestinian Authority, and that the Old City would come under International oversight.

The idea of placing the Old City under international supervision and management is not new. It was suggested in the UN partition plan in 1947, it was brought up again after the war in 1949, but it was vigorously resisted by Ben Gurion and Israel's then government. He said:  "At the same time, we see it our duty to declare that Jewish Jerusalem is an organic and inseparable part of the State of Israel, as it is an inseparable part of the history and religion of Israel and the soul of our people." He further stressed: "But we cannot conceive that the United Nations will try to tear Jerusalem from Israel or to impair the sovereignty of Israel in its Eternal Capital.1 

Jerusalem is the very heart of the State of Israel. To the Jewish people, the Old City of Jerusalem IS Jerusalem; this is the high drama that is unfolding.

Praying for Jerusalem 
We prayed along three lines:
Psalm 132 - Zion's God and His eternal plan for her
Zechariah 12:6 - Zion's people and their restoration to her
Psalm 129:5-6 - Zion's enemies and God's dealing with them

Psa. 132:13-14 For the LORD has chosen Zion;  He has desired it for His dwelling place: “This is My resting place forever;  Here I will dwell, for I have desired it.
We prayed into God's eternal purposes for Jerusalem: 

• The Lord has purposed to rule and reign over the earth from Jerusalem
• The Lord has purposed to shine the light of salvation again from Jerusalem (Isa 62:1-2)
• The Lord has purposed to declare His Word again from Jerusalem (Isaiah 2:1-4)
• The Lord has purposed to judge the nations from Jerusalem (see Isa. 2)
• The Lord has purposed to to bring peace to the world through this judgment (see Isaiah 2)
• The Lord has purposed to bring healing to the nations from Jerusalem (see Ezekiel 47:12, Revelation 22:2)
• The Lord has purposed to dwell with His people in Jerusalem (Eze 37:26-27)

Zech. 12:6 In that day I will make the governors of Judah like a firepan in the woodpile, and like a fiery torch in the sheaves; they shall devour all the surrounding peoples on the right hand and on the left, but Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place—Jerusalem.   

What a wonderful chapter is Zechariah 12! It includes a clear statement that Jerusalem is the real Jerusalem located where it has always been. That her inhabitants are the Jewish people, and that God will save them, reveal His Son to them and will deal with their enemies. All this in 14 verses.

• We prayed for the restoration of the Jewish people to the land and the city
• We stood on the promises of God regarding the Jewish people and the city
• We prayed for the outpouring of the Spirit of Grace and Supplication to fall in Jerusalem
• We prayed for the revelation of Yeshua the Messiah, Son of God and Son of David, the rightful heir to the throne in the midst of Israel
• We prayed for an outbreak of salvation in the land
• We prayed for Israel to be released from all religion and the ancient, awful resistance to her King and Messiah
• We prayed for the leadership to be given wisdom, authority, and strength to defend Jerusalem and keep it from being divided
• We prayed for the presence of God to be restored to His people and city

Psa. 129:5  Let all those who hate Zion  Be put to shame and turned back. Psa. 129:6  Let them be as the grass on the housetops,  Which withers before it grows up,

• We prayed into the danger of Iran in Syria 
• We prayed into the danger of Hezbollah in Lebanon
• We prayed into the ongoing "March of Return" Gaza especially in light of the 14th of May, which is the most dangerous day in this whole thing.
• We prayed for Israel to be a new threshing instrument (Isaiah 41:15) [This was before the attack, that took place the very night we prayed]
• We prayed into Zechariah 12:9 realizing that the nations that so vehemently desire to destroy Israel are coming against His purposes and plan for the entire earth.
• We prayed for the confusion and division of the enemies of Israel
• We prayed their resources will dry up 
• We prayed for the Lord to free Iran from the Ayatollah's regime

Blessings from Jerusalem,


__________________________________________
1.http://www.mfa.gov.il/mfa/foreignpolicy/mfadocuments/yearbook1/pages/5%20statement%20to%20the%20knesset%20by%20prime%20minister%20ben-g.aspx

"The purpose that is purposed against the whole earth...."
Is. 14:24  The LORD of hosts has sworn, saying,  “Surely, as I have thought, so it shall come to pass,  And as I have purposed, so it shall stand:
Is. 14:25  That I will break the Assyrian in My land,  And on My mountains tread him underfoot.  Then his yoke shall be removed from them,  And his burden removed from their shoulders.
Is. 14:26  This is the purpose that is purposed against the whole earth,  And this is the hand that is stretched out over all the nations.
Is. 14:27  For the LORD of hosts has purposed,  And who will annul it?  His hand is stretched out,  And who will turn it back?”

Although these verses begin with a prophecy against Assyria, they cast a long shadow to the future, pointing to the Day of the Lord, in which He will reckon with all nations who are in a full-tilt open rebellion against Him and His purposes in the earth. 

Israel is caught in the middle of it all.

Those who are praying for Israel should be aware that they are involved in an all-out-battle for the earth, for God, and for His purposes on the earth.  The outcome is both sweet and sure: Isaiah 14:32 ".... The Lord has founded Zion (established His City, his people and His purposes in the land and the earth) And the poor of His people shall take refuge in it."

Let us keep in mind that the purpose of God is to bring salvation, grace, mercy, life, freedom from sin, peace. Let us remember that it's the resistance to His purposes, that is evil! 
Israel has a huge part in this plan, and that is why It is no wonder that the Palestinians call Israel's birth as a nation "Nakbah" - The Great Disaster. 

The month of May -- a challenging month for Israel 

• The US is set to move its embassy to Jerusalem on May 14, 
• Hamas is planning its most massive move to overrun the barrier into Israeli territory 
• Iran is, no doubt hatching its plans to retaliate Israel's attack in Syria, and for stealing an enormous amount of material from Teheran, proving her Iran's intention to build a nuclear bomb.

We continue to call on the name of the Lord to fulfill His covenant promises.
While some call Israel's restoration a Disaster, the Bible sees it as fulfillment and blessing. Israel shall be a blessing in the midst (Isaiah 19:24), a praise in the earth (Isaiah 62:7) a lamp of salvation for the nations (Isaiah 62:1). 

These promises are so breathtaking for their scope. For the depth of mercy they express, for the promise of ingathering, renewal of the covenant (the New Covenant) and best of all, renewed fellowship with God.

Jeremiah 32:37-42 

• Pray for the ingathering of the Jewish people from the ends of the earth
• Pray for the dwelling in safety He has promised
• Pray He will make us His people again (They shall all know me from the least of them to the greatest of them (Jeremiah 31:34)
• Pray He will put His fear in our hearts
• Pray He will give us a new heart and a new spirit
• Pray He will bring us to the place of not departing from Him ever again (vs.40
• Pray He will plant us in this land with His whole heart and soul (vs.41)
• Pray He will do us all the good that He has promised (vs. 42)
• We also prayed for evangelism going on in the land via the internet (useful for those who want to consider the gospel in privacy)
• We prayed for the orthodox and religious in the nation that the grace that is in Messiah might free them.

The Body of Messiah in the Land
Rev. 19:7 ......and His wife has made herself ready

There is something for the Bride to do, she gets herself ready! This does not speak of works of the law but of a heart that responds to the Holy Spirit of God. It speaks of a turning to Him in the fullest way, it speaks of a heart that seeks His Face, a heart that loves His Word, a heart that shuns other loves, in short -- a heart for God!

• Lord help us to be as the five wise virgins, as the diligent servant who waits for your coming, like the merchant who found a costly pearl....
• We prayed for the congregations
• We prayed for the Word of God to prosper in the Body 

Luke 5:27 After these things He went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, “Follow Me.” Luke 5:28 So he left all, rose up, and followed Him.

May we all have a heart such as Levi, who left all, rose up and followed Him

Blessings from Jerusalem,