Does This Offend You?

“”Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this said, ‘This is a hard saying; who can understand it’?” John 6:60
“When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples murmured about this, He said to them, ‘Does this offend you’?” John 6:61

How can I be offended by the One who died for all my offenses?

Lord, when You speak a harder truth that I don’t understand, I desire to stay humbled before You until I do. And here’s a simple poem . . .

A Hard Saying

Eat My flesh
and drink My blood
and you shall abide
in Me.

Your fathers ate manna
and are dead -
eat this Bread
and live.

(from John 6:56, 58)

Lying There

“When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, ‘Do you want to be made well’?” John 5:6

I’ve been here at this question for several days. In tears.

Jesus, thank You for asking us the questions no one else knows to ask. And here’s a simple poem . . .

Pool Side

By my pool
of Bethesda
the waters stir
I don’t jump in.
Am I waiting
to be carried
or to be healed
by only Him?

Inside Israel – A View From The Midst

Hi everyone! Thank you for coming by today for a look inside Israel. Much is happening quickly there and J of Jerusalem is so gracious to share her perspective as a Jewish believer. Praying that you be blessed and led to pray as you read. And that you have a blessed Memorial Day as well. Now here’s J . . .

I have missed writing. It is odd, but when I write I feel ‘connected’ with each of you and I end up being edified, as if I have had fellowship. I was meditating in John 17:21 this morning where Yeshua prayed that we would be one as He and Father are one. The unity of the body is a great and wonderful mystery, and I do love each of you. My computer has been giving me problems and my time and strength have been stretched beyond even my normal, but I am thankful for this slot of time, and pray that what I share will be of some value for the glory of the kingdom and the edification of the body…and…yes…some takes place ‘on the bus’!

In the midst of this VERY high powered couple of weeks, I feel that I am NOT to share much about ‘what I think concerning the speeches’ and actions that have stormed the world. There has been more then enough commentary to keep everyone puzzled and full of opinions. I will share just 3 things that might be a bit unique simply from the perspective of a believer in this land; we have news channels in English from different countries; Sky News and BBC from England, a French news station, American Fox news and the international version of CNN. I find it fascinating to first listen to the speeches themselves and then go immediately to these stations to hear their initial responses. They are generally predictable, and it does give me a taste of why the views from your respective countries differ so tremendously.

The other thing that I want to share is the VIEW FROM THE BUS J Following Mr. Obama’s speech; the bus was grim…and angry. Oh what yelling took place on that 6am bus the ‘morning after’! Mixed with the anger was fear, and a sense of defeat; fear that our Prime Minister (who was set to arrive in the US very shortly) would crumble and not be able to hold firm against such pressure. This was a real fear since he did just that during his first term in office when he shocked the nation by returning from the Wye meetings having given Bet Lechem and Hevron to Arafat…for ‘peace’. Now…how do I paint this for you? The entire nation was glued to radio or television for these speeches. The morning after our Prime Minister’s speech, the bus was ‘still’. Now I do NOT mean ‘still’ as in ‘silent’ or ‘not noisy’ (that is NOT an Israeli bus!)…but ‘still’. You know what I mean; when someone walks into a room agitated, or angry, or grieved…you feel it. It changes the atmosphere in the room. But when someone is ‘satisfied’ and their heart is ‘quieted’, there is a peaceful ‘stillness’. THAT’S what I mean! And it was odd, simply because I have NOT felt that on the bus in Lord knows how long! At least not since the last intifada. There was a ‘still’ STRENGTH in the determined look on people’s faces, and in their talk. The most beloved statement that our Prime Minister had made seems to have been that ‘the people living in Judea and Samaria (and he DIDN’T say ‘the west bank’!) are not ‘occupiers’ but are legitimate owners of their ancestral land’ that The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob gave. The world has been saying loudly that we are illegitimate…and that our God is illegitimate. Strength came back into the people as our Prime Minister stood against the forces of the world (albeit, in a receptive congress) and declared these things unashamedly.

The last, but most important thing that I want to confirm (rather then ‘report’) is that GOD ANSWERED PRAYER CONCERNING OUR PRIME MINISTER, AND WE GIVE THANKS TO GOD, THROUGH YESHUA! Thank you for your prayers…the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth MUCH!

And that is all that I plan to say concerning the MANY events before our eyes. If you didn’t hear some of the speeches and would like a copy of a transcript, or a comment, or comments concerning the upcoming Gaza ‘flotilla’, the opening of the border between Egypt and Gaza, the so called Arab spring, the hypocritical bombing of Libya by nato, the horrific storms etc, etc, ETC…please write and ask. It IS all whirling around us! There are so many good commentators and I am not an ‘expert’…just someone ‘passing through’. J
BUT…in the midst of all of that…The Lord continues to prepare us for what ONLY HE KNOWS lays ahead. I am more and more convinced that He really is lovingly teaching us at an accelerated speed…in our closets…in hidden and quiet ways, less and less in the ‘flashy’ and ‘big’ ways.

I came from a very small family. My Father had one sister who also had one daughter…and they are all gone. My Mother had one sister who never married. They are gone. I have one sister who has one daughter. My sister is married to a rabbi and lives in Ohio, USA. I have not seen her in the 16 years since we came here. We love each other dearly, but I am still the only one in my family to ever know Jesus…HOWEVER! He isn’t done yet! MY SISTER HAS TICKETS TO COME AND VISIT ME BETWEEN 8-18TH OF JULY!! I am SOOO excited and I do ask (no…’beg’) for prayer, that this time will have eternal value! But an interesting thing happened. Right after I got saved, I shared with my whole family, and continued to share. My sister and I have had some serious talks and I have prayed. For a long while now I have been able to share no more. We speak every Sunday and this last Sunday she told me sarcastically; ‘Well…the world didn’t end, but everyone is sure nervous!’ I thought a minute…’HUH?’ I eloquently replied, ‘What are you talking about!?’ I KNEW that the speeches were weighty, but we usually don’t discuss ‘politics’. ‘You know! The prophecy of the end of the world and the rapture!’ What WAS she talking about! Was she finally reading the New Testament or what was going on? I stuttered. ‘Harold Camping’s prophecy of course!’ she sputtered! ‘Who is Harold Camping?’ I said. (I remember when I also thought that whatever happened in America everyone else knew) She went on to tell me about him setting a date for ‘the rapture’ (I was SHOCKED to hear my sister say this word and quote N.T. scripture!) and how it made headlines in Wash DC (where my niece lives) and Ohio and other states and how ‘everyone was in a panic’…’hum’…I listened quietly. No, we hadn’t heard of it. She became smug, but I was still amazed to hear such talk coming out of my sister! He works all things to the good… can He use even this to stir her heart and the heart of the family to Him rather then harden it further? I know He can and that is what I’m asking for. Please pray for my sister’s upcoming trip. She is a University professor. Please pray for their salvation (Charlotte, Bob and Rachel). Thank you so much!

It is shabat today and we have had a refreshing rain this morning…part of the ‘latter rains’ which are delighting the eye-dazzling flowers, flowering trees, fruits and foliage of all kinds that clothe Jerusalem in a shocking beauty. I so wish that you could see this city right now! The colors dazzle my eyes and the sweet fragrance of jasmine fills the air and all I can do is worship and praise God, Who, in His expression of love, created such beauty for His children! How could I have denied His existence for so many years, but I did! I was so blind and I am so thankful that He had mercy on me, of all people, and that now I can love His fingerprints everywhere I look! And we are thankful for the rain, although it has had little affect on our water levels which remain in drought. It is the first time in a number of years now that we have been blessed with the ‘latter rains’ of spring. They just didn’t arrive for several years. Our ‘early rains’ are from Sukkot through Jan-Feb and our ‘latter rains’ from March-April through Passover. This year they are happily surprising us.

He woke me up, startled me in fact, the morning of the 26th. I awoke from a deep sleep at about 2:30am distinctly hearing the words “Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me.” Uh oh! Was I in the midst of trouble again? What was wrong? ‘That is not the point…the point is that I WILL REVIVE YOU! Keep your focus on Me, not on what surrounds you. Walk in the kingdom, NOT in the flesh!’ None the less, I couldn’t shake the ‘fear’ that MORE ‘trouble’ was about to hit. I slept fitfully until my regular time to get up and have devotions. The verse was still ringing in my heart and I knew that it was NOT a verse I had read lately, so I had to go to my concordance to search for it. I don’t remember the last time that He woke me up in this way. There it was in Psalm 138:7. It wasn’t one that I memorized, nor had I read it in about a year. As I sought Him concerning it, I thought of the time when Jesus raised the ‘little girl’ from the dead. She WAS dead and the parents were distraught. He told them; “Do not be afraid, only believe” Wow. That is NOT easy! It says to me ‘There is the daughter that you love and she is dead. DO NOT LOOK AT DEATH! Turn your eyes away from your daughter and look at ME…at LIFE! LET GO!’ Now I felt that He was saying to me ‘Do not fear the ‘trouble’ for I will revive you.’ By nature, you can not revive something that wasn’t alive and then became dead
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I looked at His faithfulness in our lives thus far. The past few years have been nothing short of traumatic, but GOD has carried us THROUGH deep waters, floods, and fires. Yes, I do still ask prayer for our health, which has not been great. For our older daughter, still going through post partum instability that can be frightening and exhausting at times (and for their whole family); for our younger daughter who is nearly 30 and terribly depressed as she so longs for a future and a hope…and a husband …and struggles with fibromyalgia. I went with her this past Wed to the hospital to have the stitches taken out of her eye finally (many of you prayed as she had her cornea replaced a year ago and we are HOPING that it is successful!) and after waiting for hours we found out the doctor is on reserve army duty…it was quite a let down for her. All of us struggle with financial challenges (since our landlords have passed away our rental is also in doubt again) and there is no possibility of ‘retirement’ for us…and at 65, we are tired. NONE of the challenges are unique to us. I am sure that many of you share these and others. I am so thankful for the body and that we can pray one for another. I am sharing these because several of you have been asking and I have not been answering. Now that I KNOW that HE has promised to ‘revive’, I can share them without ‘worry’. My main prayer request for my family is that each one will be walking in the center of His will, looking to Him. Thank you
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This has become a long, chatty letter. I truly have missed you. I am thankful that my computer opened today, but I am mostly thankful for each one of you. May you be blessed, and may The Lord be glorified! Lovingly, your sis here.

Owning It

“And many more believed because of His own word.” John 4:41
“Then they said to the woman, ‘Now we believe, not because of what you said for we have heard for ourselves and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world’.” John 4:42

We’ve seen giraffes on t.v. and know they are tall. Seeing them close up at the zoo makes that fact more personally real.

Lord, we thank You for the testimony of others and for giving us each a testimony of our own. And here’s a simple poem . . .

Testimonies

We hear and believe
by their testimony
and our faith
takes wing.
Then Jesus comes
to us personally
and our faith
now sings.

Immeasurable Spirit

“For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the spirit by measure.” John 3:34

When I cook, I have to measure the ingredients. When I add gas, oil or coolant to the car, I have to measure too.

Lord, we thank You that You don’t give Your Spirit out in teaspoons or 1/4 cups, but let it flow without measure. And here’s a simple poem . . .

All Out

God pours Himself out
without limit or measure
filling us with
His Spirit today
so we can walk forth
sure of His power
for He doesn’t skimp
or fill us half way.

Do It!

“His mother said to the servants, ‘Whatever He says to you, do it’.” John 2:5

Servants do as they are told.

O Lord, I desire to be a faithful, joyful servant of Yours. And here’s a simple poem . . .

The Servants Knew

Just servants at the party
there to wait on guests

no one paid them much attention
they went about their business

and although they didn’t know Him
they did want He asked them to

and saw the wonder of a miracle
and God’s glory shining through.

Through Jesus

“For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” John 1:17

The law was needed . . .was necessary . . .we had to have it.

Thank You God, for fulfilling the law for us with the grace and truth of Jesus. And here’s a simple poem . . .

Colored In Truth

It’s there to do
in hard black and white
but my heart just fades
and slips away

until You color in
with the truth of Your love
and get my heart skipping
to the beat of Your grace.

Face to Face

“Now Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands on him; so the children of Israel heeded him, and did as the Lord had commanded Moses.
But since then there has not risen in Israel a prophet like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face . . .” Deuteronomy 34:9-10

What astonishing lengths God went to for His people Israel . . .and for us.

O Lord, I pray for you to raise up prophets today, who will know You and speak as You command, causing many to be turned back to You at this time. And here is a simple poem . . .

Seeing His Face

Face to face, Moses met You
and You talked, heart to heart

about Your plans for Your people
from which they’d struggle not to part

how they’d be a nation born of God
where You would set Your love

how unto them You’d send a Savior
for the whole world to see the face of.

This is the last Deuteronomy post! Tomorrow I’ll switch back to the New Testament, the Gospel According to John. Thank you so much for coming along with me through the Bible!

Happy Are You

“Happy are you, O Israel:
Who is like you, a people saved by the Lord,
The shield of your help
And the sword of your majesty!” Deuteronomy 33:29

We might watch a movie or read a book about a brave person saving someone of nobility. But how many stories have we read of the poor and downtrodden being saved by a King?

Thank You, Father, for saving Your people Israel and for sending us all a Savior King through them. And here’s a simple poem . . .

Who Is Like You?

We look back and perhaps think
it was no big thing
that Israel entered into a covenant
with their Lord God Almighty

but never before
had such a thing been done
and now we can too
through Jesus Christ His Son.

Inside Israel – from May 15

“Hi” to everyone here to take a look inside Israel. Much has been going on this week and we are so thankful for His faithfulness, that He keeps His promises and has His own plans. Thank you for taking the time today to read and pray, for J of Jerusalem and for Israel. Now, here’s J . . .

I want to add to this that the Syrian boarder was breached by about 200 Syrians this afternoon. The boarders appear to be the main target -breaching them from outside – from Gaza, from Egypt, from Jordan, from Lebanon, and from Syria. HOPEFULLY the Egyptian and Jordanian rally’s were controlled from within their countries, but the day is not over yet. I have been praying all day that God would confound the enemies at the borders and raise up His standard there…reminding Him that, according to His immutable, faithful WORD, HE established the borders. I was at our daughter’s for most of the day helping with the children and the inter-city bus that I took home was driven by an Arab man. His cell phone began ringing (illegal for anyone to talk while they drive) and he looked at it and looked worried, then turned it off. It rang again and again and AGAIN (likely 10-15 times) and he began driving the back country, windy roads like a maniac. Finally at one of the stops he took his call, but he was speaking in Arabic and I did not understand. There is a GREAT deal of tension in the air today (the air, where the prince of the power of the air loves to stir things up), but God IS on the throne and I am thankful for the ‘helps’ that help us to pray into it…PARTICULARLY THE HOLY SPIRIT! I am also forwarding my Pastor’s update on praying through this day. BLESS YOU AS YOU PRAY!

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Israel Prayer Center – Jerusalem
You are subscribed as jc.2174@hotmail.com

Prayer Priority Update
“I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also”
1Corintians 4:15
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As Nakba Day Progresses

Terror attack
An Arab truck driver has used his truck this morning as a weapon for a terror attack in Tel Aviv.

The truck driver rampaged through the streets of Tel Aviv, hitting several vehicles. One person was killed and 17 wounded.

After the rampage, the truck driver got out of his car and proceeded to attack by-standers who were in the area. The man was finally subdued after people realized it was a terror attack.

In east Jerusalem, rioting resumed on Sunday morning as residents of one neighborhood hurled stones at police.

In Ramallah Nakba Day began with a siren which lasted for 63 seconds, a second for each year of Israel’s existence. Thousands marched the streets, Israeli flags were burned, and some rallies are planned. All these activities are a mimic of Israel’s Memorial Day and Independence, just celebrated.

Some incidences of stone throwing and firebombs have been reported.

However, overall, it seems that Nakba Day will not become an all out 3rd Intifada, as many Arabs have hoped and called for.

Meanwhile, Hamas leader Ismalil Haniyeh, launchd ‘Nakba Day’ by calling for the destruction of Israel. “Palestinians mark the occasion this year with great hope of bringing to an end the Zionist project in Palestine,” he said to approximately 10,000 people at a Gaza City mosque.

We continue to stand before the Lord for His unambiguously expressed will to restore Israel to Himself and to the Land. God is GOD, and His will is not only supreme, but also good!

“Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion: for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith the LORD. And many nations shall be joined to the LORD in that day, and shall be my people: and I will dwell in the midst of thee, and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto thee. And the LORD shall inherit Judah his portion in the holy land, and shall choose Jerusalem again. Be silent, O all flesh, before the LORD: for he is raised up out of his holy habitation.” Zechariah 2:12-13

Notice in the verse above:
1. The Holy Land is called Judah and Zion, not Palestine (a name given the land, by the Romans after the second Jewish revolt between 132-135 AD, to erase the memory of the Jews from the land.)
2. Salvation in Yeshua is foretold in verse 11, “many nations shall be joined to the Lord…”
3. Israel is God’s inheritance and His portion in the land.
4. God’s answer to all other voices and opinions? “Be Silent” (Literally, “Shut up”)

Pray that God’s will be done on earth as it is done in heaven!

IPCJerusalem, Israel