Tag Archives: Prophecy

October 19, 2014 · 9:47 am

Inside Israel

Once again, it’s time to hear from our sister in Jerusalem about what she is witnessing there as a believer in Yeshua. Put your prayer shawls on and pray for Israel and Sister J. Now here she is …

Greetings dearest sisters and brothers with peace and mercy from Him Who alone can pour these out. All glory to God Who gives us all things of Himself richly to enjoy.

With barely the hint of a moment to catch our breath, the third of the fall feasts is upon us. Following Rosh Hashanah (feast of trumpets) and the 10 days of awe leading up to Yom Kippur (the day of atonement) the gears shift dramatically giving an interesting glimpse into the Heart of God: Sukkot (the feast of tabernacles) begins at sundown on a Wednesday night.

*NOTE: It is now the night of Sukkot and we were blessed beyond blessing by our first rain, accompanied by lightening, thunder and rainbows from Haifa to Eilat. We in Jerusalem had a wonderful drenching. Scripturally, the early rains begin during Sukkot. What a symbol of God’s faithfulness.

As you may know, we generally experience NO rain during summer at all and count on the early rains and the latter rains for our yearly water supply and KNOW that it is a blessing from God when they arrive.

Sukkot is undoubtedly my favorite holiday, except for maybe Passover and Yom Kippur and then there is Shavuot (Pentecost). I will just focus on Sukkot right now. I love it.

What does GOD say? Not just say but He COMMANDS all Israel to STOP. But this time, having blown the shofar, having called the people to repentance and set us aside to repent, now we are to quickly build flimsy, temporary huts with leafy branches for the roof so that we can see the stars through them. Then we dwell in them for 8 days, while we rejoice before God, remembering the great deliverance from Egypt and giving thanks for His abundance.

And not only that, but this is one of the 3 pilgrim feasts. Three times a year, all Israeli men are COMMANDED to “come up to Jerusalem to rejoice before Him.” Passover, Shavuot (Pentecost) and Sukkot (feast of tabernacles).

When you read Psalms and see the heading “song of ascents” around Psalm 120 and on, these are the songs that were, and are still, sung as the people went up to Jerusalem.

You can read the scriptures referring to Sukkot in Deuteronomy 16, Leviticus 23, and Nehemiah 8 to see the scriptural background of this feast.

These are but a few of the many times in scripture that Sukkot is referred to. In Zech 14 it says that the saved among the gentiles will come up to Jerusalem to worship during the feast, and oh they do by the thousands from around the world, and the Israelis wait and watch with wonder, awe and appreciation. There are indeed, MANY gatherings, conferences and prayer convocations taking place right now in Jerusalem and throughout the country attended by believers from around the world. The Christians marching and waving flags from their countries are the highlight and delight of the Israelis during the popular Jerusalem march, which is scheduled to take place on Tuesday.

I love watching the city in a happy tizzy, running hither and yon gathering materials to build their sukkas and to gather the necessary ingredients for the holiday. First there are the 4 species: a willow branch, a palm branch, a myrtle branch and an etrog or citron fruit. The three branches are wrapped together and the etrog is held separately and brought as an “offering” of sorts, with prayer, to the western wall and daily to the sukka (market).

There are also the 7 species: Deuteronomy 8:8: “A land of wheat and barley, grapevines, figs and pomegranates, a land of olive oil and dates.” that grace most tables in the sukka. The sukkas are fun and although the different denominations impose different rules concerning what should and shouldn’t be about the sukka, the scriptures give us the liberty to build them with joy and rejoicing and all of the creativity that the Lord placed in us. I love looking at pictures on the web of sukkas in Jerusalem during the 1800s.

And now it is Thursday, the first day of Sukkot. We decided to go to the western wall of the temple in the Old City as in our reading together this morning we were in 1 Kings chapters 5-8. That’s where Solomon completed the first temple and Solomon prayed. And his powerful prayer which he prayed on his knees with his hands in the air has echoed through the ages and truly is more powerful then pogroms, and Hitlers, and replacement theology.

It includes those who come from the nations who are not part of the tribes of Israel. My husband was struck by hearing over and over again, “when the people sin…when they pray toward this place and repent…hear them.”

He showed me a you-tube video of the wall on Yom Kippur with thousands of people there repenting and turning toward that place where The Lord chose to put His Name. Then we talked about why he often sees people on the bus stand and face east (the Temple Mount with the wall being a remnant of the temple) as they pray and others pull over at sunset as they say their prayers and get out of their cars and stand facing the Old City to pray and so forth.

But what struck us most was that Solomon’s prayer for the dedication of the temple and the people TOOK PLACE ON SUKKOT. (the feast of the 7^th month) and after he blessed all of the people they rejoiced for 7 days here in Jerusalem and round about and then returned home to rejoice for another 7.

So off we went to the wall to look at some of those stones shaped in the quarries so that “no sound of a tool would be heard in the temple.” And surely we are being shaped that way, or at least I am and I suspect that you are too. Hammered away on, shaped and chipped out in a pit somewhere and THEN coming together to be part of His temple, the body, growing, knit and joined to bless and reflect HIM.

And that is why this letter is so late.

I don’t dare write if there is something wrong with my spirit that I’m aware of and there was. I really really enjoy sukkot. I get to sit outside in my sukka with earth and plants around me and it feels simple and rural. I was born in NYC but have always been very much a rural person.

When I left NY permanently at around 20 years old I swore that I would NEVER again live in a city. (I also fully believed that I would not live past 30, but that’s a different story.) BUT GOD Who answers prayer has heard the DEEPEST cries of my heart: “I WANT TO KNOW YOU! I WANT TO DIE TO MYSELF AND BE CONFORMED TO YOUR IMAGE! I WANT YOUR BEST FOR ME NO MATTER WHAT! YOUR WILL AND NOT MINE BE DONE! OVERRULE THIS WILL AND FLESH OF MINE AND LET ME BECOME NOTHING BUT A SIGNPOST TO YOU!”

Your heart too, right? Ouch! Some of us are more stubborn and self-willed then others perhaps. At any rate, He Who knows our hearts better then we ourselves do must lead us all on His path to Himself. Mine includes living in the nosiest part of the CITY with difficult neighbor and being told by my husband this year that we were NOT BUILDING A SUKKA.

Talk about a pouting, rebellious wife…oy!

That is NO way to approach the command of The Lord to rejoice before Him. To compound that, the police again contacted me that the neighbor complained that we were making too much noise – while we were sleeping.

“But Lord! I want to describe the joys of Sukkot to my sisters and brothers abroad and to send them happy photos of us in our sukkah! Wahhhh!” Temper tantrum… temper tantrum.

So I had to work late, forgot to take chicken out of the freezer for dinner which I didn’t want to cook anyway and there was NO fresh chicken to buy at the shuk by the time I was on my way home. There to find out that my husband had invited a guest, a brother in The Lord.

Hum! I defrosted some chicken in a bowl of salt water and sukkot came, ready or not.

BUT, as with Solomon’s prayer and countless others through out history, He heard my prayer: “Lord! Be a sukka unto me and over this black self-willed heart of mine and change my hard heart and exchange it for your soft one.”

“Wow! Looks like GOD built you a sukka this year,” Bob said.

I was shocked. He continued, “With that tree right over this merapeset and all of these flowers around that you planted, I feel as if I’m in HIS sukka, the best one ever.”

My husband beamed and I broke through to a repentant heart.

Thank You Lord for Your Holy Spirit, Your faithfulness, Your quarry in which You pound away at our misshapen surfaces, and Your incredible patience. Thank You Lord for the glimpses of Your Heart and Character that we glean through scripture, through Your holidays and even Your law as well as Your grace. Thank You that we are changed into Your image even from glory to glory although we still see through a glass darkly. And thank You that as You command the children of Israel to sit in flimsy dwellings where we are and where we can see the sky and remember that IT IS YOU WHO BROUGHT US UP FROM EGYPT, WHO DELIVERED US FROM SLAVERY AND DO YET DELIVER US ALL FROM THE HOUSE OF BONDAGE THROUGH YOUR SON YESHUA. IT IS ALWAYS YOU AND YOUR STRENGTH. NEVER OURS.”

And THIS is the message of Sukkot. We rejoice before our Father Who know that we are but dust. Yet He remembers our frame and we too must remember that we really aren’t very strong and powerful. And yet precious to Him. This is the message of Sukkot!.

Come and join in. I will, Lord willing, write more about what I see, hear and smell AND taste, during this time. BLESSINGS to you sisters and brothers!

Love,

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October 17, 2014 · 7:06 am

Friday’s Prayers for Prisoners (10/17/2014)

Each Friday I pray and fast for nations where Christians suffer the worst persecution around the world. This week I am praying and fasting for:

Maldives. 333,000 people with .2% Christians.

To be Maldivian is equated with being Muslim, so officially there are no Maldivian Christians, only ex-pat Christians. The government sees itself as the protector of Islam, and the law prohibits conversion to other faiths; those who do so face losing citizenship. There is extensive social control over all individuals to correct any deviation from the path of Islam. This pressure is mirrored within families and communities. Consequently, there are no church gatherings or buildings, and the few Maldivian Christians hide their faith to avoid being discovered. (Open Doors Watch List)

The Maldives, an Islamic Republic, is an archipelago of 1,191 islands in the Indian Ocean…Maldives is one of the least evangelized countries in the world. The 0.2% figure for Christians refers to expatriate Christians. Citizens of the Maldives are automatically Muslim, and non-Muslims may not become citizens. The open practice of any religion other than Islam is forbidden. Maldivian believers are carefully watched. They suffer ostracism, mockery, incarceration and even torture. Christians cannot meet or read the Scriptures openly. Expatriate believers have been expelled, especially after sharing their faith. (Voice of the Martyrs)

Today, I prayed:

Lord, I pray that You break through the walls of the kingdom of darkness and lead the people of Maldives out of the gates of captivity into Your freedom and that You guide them in their journey. (Based on Micah 2:13)

Join with me on Fridays to fast and pray for prisoners, according to Hebrews 13:3.

Click on to see MyGFA site.

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October 16, 2014 · 1:49 pm

Praise the Lord…Pass the Ammo (Part 4)

Like most kids, I grew up listening to popular music. Del Shannon, Dion, The Four Seasons, Beatles, Rolling Stones, Roy Orbison, Beach Boys, Bobby Dylan, The Supremes, and others were my favorites. I purchased their albums and turned the radio up to full blast to hear their sounds. I seldom did any work on Dad’s farm without a nearby radio dialed to the top-40 hits.

Even today, when I hear old songs, like Runaway or Pretty Woman, memories flood my thoughts from that era. I don’t have to stir up anything because the music has a hook in it which draws me back to that day. That is the power of popular music.

Contemporary Christian music has much the same type of hook and power in it.

If I hear the opening notes to David Ruiz’s We Will Dance, I am instantly transported back to 1995 and a Vineyard Church in Iowa. I want to raise my hands and move my feet to the song. It still has its hooks in me.

Now, there will be many believers who will say that contemporary Christian music has a heavenly anointing upon it. To which, I will answer: “Maybe.”

For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth. (John 4:24 NLT)

I attended a crowded assembly in late 1995 when the worship team began playing a contemporary worship song, one loved by all. The opening notes stirred us to stand and ready ourselves to worship God.

As I stood there, I looked into the heavenly realms. There I saw a beautiful creature sitting on a glorious throne heading our direction at thousands of miles per hour. I assumed at first that it was the Lord hurrying to be in the midst of our worship.

But as the creature approached, I realized it was an angel of light, posing as the presence of the Lord. The crowd around me continued to sing and raise their hands in worship.

“Go in Jesus name,” I said to the fast approaching creature and it left.

We believers need spiritual discernment. We cannot go into spiritual battles with hooks in us pulling us back to 1995 or 2004 or even last year.

Ask the Lord if music – of any type – has any hooks in you. If it does, don’t listen to it anymore. We need to train like we are going to fight.

What else can we do to prepare ourselves?

(Continued in Part 5)

Click on to see MyGFA site.

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October 14, 2014 · 11:46 am

Tuesday’s Prayers for America (10/14/2014)

“You are called to a ministry of reconciliation,” said the elder as he prayed over me during a small church service.

I probably nodded my head and may have even uttered, “Amen, brother,” but to be honest, I thought it was one of those vanilla-flavored prophecies that fits most Christians and could have been spoken by a McDonalds’ cashier during rush hour on a Saturday night. There didn’t seem to be much pizazz in the word reconciliation. So I spent almost no time meditating or praying about the man’s prophecy.

This took place over twenty-five years ago and guess what? I have spent the last two or three years praying for reconciliation and renewal centers to be birthed on the West Coast.

Admittedly, I am a little slow sometimes.

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to Himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. (2 Corinthians 5:17-19)

The word reconciliation in the Greek means: “restoration to the favor of God to sinners that repent and put their trust in the atonement and death of Christ.”

Today, I prayed:

Father, I pray that You raise up thousands of ambassadors for Christ in America who implore people to be reconciled to God through Christ Your Son. (Based on 2 Corinthians 5:20)

What do you think and did the Lord speak to you today?

Join with me on Tuesdays to fast and pray for America.

Click on to see MyGFA site.

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October 12, 2014 · 9:07 am

Inside Israel

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

Blessings to you again and may this letter be to His glory, faithful, and edifying to you.

Twenty years ago, on our first Yom Kippur in the land, I wrote my first letter to bare witness to what I was seeing and hearing. This morning in my meditation verse of Revelation 1:5, I sat before The One Who sends grace and peace, Yeshua h’Meshiach, “The Faithful Witness.” I asked Him to measure my faithful witness against His and to conform me into His Image. A big, grandiose prayer perhaps, but not too big for Him Who calls us all to be nothing less then faithful witnesses of Him in this upside down world.

That Yom Kippur 20 years ago was a shock to my system. Although I was blessed to have experienced deep silence in Alaska, in rural California, and in many other places, I (who had been born in NYC) had never experienced the drama of a city turning off its engines and vehicles. It’s difficult to know how much sound motors make until they suddenly stop. I experienced the “great blackout” in NYC in the 60s when everything electrical stopped, but the vehicles continued.

That sunset, 20 years ago, I was struck by the SUDDEN, DRAMATIC silence as it was ALL unplugged. Yom Kippur is not like Shabat, even then, there are many sabbath breakers…but not on YOM KIPPUR.

At that time we lived in the neighborhood of Gilo, just below us was a mosque. Shortly after the city fell silent, the minaret began full blast and I mean full blast. I did not need to understand Arabic to realize that there was an angry and incriminatory diatribe being preached intermingled with Koran readings. As opposed to a normal day, this continued for the entire 25 hours of the fast. In the morning I got up and took my Scriptures and went out on to the merepeset (balcony) and read out loud facing the minaret. It was my first glimmer of the ancient battle between God Almighty, The God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob, God The Father of Yeshua, against the god named Alla (one of the names of His ancient foe.)

There was another spiritual battle that my eyes were opened to on that day, which I had not at all understood before. This was the battle between certain parts of the Church and God’s plan concerning Israel and the Jews.

At the time we were sharing the apartment with a lovely couple from New Zealand or some place near there. They volunteered to live here for a season. I have often heard that people should have their spiritual house in order before coming here because the spiritual warfare is so tough, particularly for people with hidden sins. They are often overthrown and fall into great confusion when they live in Jerusalem. I have witnessed that this is true.

The husband began some secret drinking. So as the Yom Kippur fast approached, he announced that there was no way that he was going to take part in a heathen fast because he knew he was saved by The Blood. We explained that we also knew that truth and were not fasting for our own souls. Instead, we humbled ourselves to pray for the people of the land as they sought Him and also to identify as Paul wrote:

“For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win the more; and to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might win those who are under the law;…” (1 Corinthians 9:19-20)

This poor man became furious and began to rage that he would not fast (which none of us insisted on him doing), and he didn’t. He also got quite drunk. I did not understand at the time. In fact, I wondered what we had done to offend him. No one had required him to fast and surely no one was being judged by whether he did or did not. I just didn’t understand that other things were at work, such as sifting and exposing of hearts.

But it did not take many years for me to understand that, like it or not, what the Church does with God’s purposes for Israel and the Jews is some sort of plumbline in these latter days.

It is now heading toward 4 p.m. and the synagogues are full, people having fasted and prayed. Some stood for the full night and day. Yesterday from 2:00 onward our airport, Ben Gurion, was closed to all traffic, incoming and outgoing flights were halted until 10 p.m. tonight. We became a nation cut off from the outside world…a nation closed in to seek God.

My reading today included time in Jeremiah, turning my heart to cry out for our people still in darkness, still veiled, still seeking according to traditions and yet blind. MERCY is HIM. My heart trembles before Him.

My reading also took me to Hebrews and I read chapters 8-10. I worshipped Him Who MADE THE WAY INTO THE HOLY OF HOLIES. What perfect chapters for today!

We have such a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man.

For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us; not that He should offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood of another— ²⁶He then would have had to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. ²⁷And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, ²⁸so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.

But the Holy Spirit also witnesses to us; for after He had said before,“This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them,”^[ ¹⁷then He adds, “Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”¹⁸Now where there is remission of these, there is no longer an offering for sin. (Hebrews 8-10)

What wonderful chapters, reminding me of the joy that awaits my brethren after the flesh when Romans 9-11 and Zecheriah (just to name some) are fulfilled and they are set free and fully cleansed by The Atoning Blood of Yeshua. How wonderful that there will be no need for a third temple made by human hands – and even if it were to be built it could not be fulfilled since it was The Lord Himself Who filled the Ark of the Covenant with the 10 commandments, Aaron’s rod that budded, and the pot of manna. They are gone. For we learn in Revelation 11:19 –

“Then the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of His covenant was seen in His temple. And there were lightnings, noises, thunderings, an earthquake, and great hail.”

BUT THE LORD IS BUILDING HIS TEMPLE HERE AND NOW, HIS BODY. For we are the temple of the Living God. Although HIS TEMPLE was destroyed 2,000 years ago and the people dispersed from the land, we are back.

Isn’t it good that our times are in His Hands??

Blessings to you dear sisters and brothers and BLESSING AND HONOR AND GLORY AND POWER TO GOD WHO SITS ON THE THRONE AND UNTO THE LAMB.

Lovingly from still quiet Jerusalem,

your sis J

Click on to see MyGFA site.

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October 11, 2014 · 4:06 pm

You Can’t Ever Quit!

In the mid-1990s, I lived in a beautiful Iowa town with a population of less than 4000 for just over a year. The town was located close enough to large cities to enjoy the benefits of metro areas, but far enough away not to suffer from any of the problems attached to large cities. Friendly people, an excellent school system, and good evangelical churches made the town a perfect place for families.

The reason I moved to the town was to help a friend who suffered a broken leg. I lived in his home and worked at another friend’s Christian bookstore. We were all a part of a home group where I often taught at its meetings.

That autumn, three tragedies and a near miss disrupted the beautiful town. Two teenagers committed suicide and another teen failed in his attempt. A fourth youth was killed by a blow to the head in a fistfight with another teen. This all happened within a few week’s time.

As you can imagine, the tragedies stunned the townsfolk. The pastors counseled their flocks, psychologists met with kids at the schools, and everyone talked about the plague striking their youths. What was the answer?

The Holy Spirit spoke to me soon after the last teen calamity: “More bad things will happen unless the people fast and pray for the young people. Tell them to fast and pray.”

Now, I admit my simpleminded, naive attitude led me to think the pastors would all join in with my idea. After all, the Bible often mentions fasting and praying when facing the kingdom of darkness. So, we sent letters to every pastor and even followed up with personal meetings and phone calls to many of them. But yet, not one pastor and none of the churches joined with our small group to fast and pray for the youth of the town.

Everything soon returned to normal for the town. Football season was followed by basketball season, which was then followed by track and golf.

Then it happened.

A pastor and his wife came home after an evening out and discovered their son lying on the floor in a pool of blood. The sixteen-year old son had taken a shotgun and killed himself.

The town cloaked itself once again in grief, but this time it was different. You see, the pastor’s son was the near miss tragedy from months earlier. He was undergoing psychiatric treatment and taking prescription drugs for his depression. All reports showed him on the road to recovery. So everyone assumed that nothing else could have been done to prevent the suicide.

I was angry. First, I was angry with Satan and then, I was angry with the pastors for rejecting my call to fasting and prayer for the town’s youth. And to be honest, I was upset with every person in town. The last place I wanted to go was to the young man’s funeral.

But the pastor was an acquaintance of mine. I had prayed for him and prophesied to him about his calling from the Lord. He told me that my prophecy matched one given to him many years earlier when he attended seminary.

Because I did not really want to attend the funeral, I stood at the end of the reception line, waiting to meet the pastor and his wife before the funeral service. The people ahead of me shook the couple’s hands and said a few words before walking up the steps to the sanctuary.

There I stood, looking at the pastor. He looked at me and we both broke down crying, unashamed about our grief. We held each other and wept. I was no longer angry with him because I understood the spiritual battle had been tough for all of us. The Body of Christ may have suffered a defeat, but the pastor and his wife had lost their son. They were destroyed.

In the midst of our anguish, a prophetic word rose up within me.

“You can’t quit! You can’t back away from your calling from the Lord,” I said through sobs and tears.

He looked at me with unfathomable grief in his eyes.

“I have to give up. I can’t go on.”

“You can’t quit. God called you and He will help you through this.”

He shook his head and began to walk away with his wife.

“This time I can’t go on,” he said as he walked up the stairs.

I stood in the stairwell with my fists clenched and almost screamed at him, “You can’t ever quit!”

The pastor opened the door to the sanctuary and walked inside with his wife.

(An excerpt from my memoir, The Hunt for Larry Who, an Amazon ebook.)

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October 9, 2014 · 4:54 pm

Praise the Lord…Pass the Ammo (Part 3)

For D.L. Moody, “the church was a voluntary association of the saved.” So staggering was his influence that by 1874 the church was not seen as a grand corporate body but as a gathering of individuals. This emphasis was picked up by every revivalist who followed him. And it eventually entered into the marrow and bones of evangelical Christianity. (Frank Viola, What’s Wrong With Left Behind?)

There are approximately 320,000 churches in America today. They mostly follow Moody’s vision about the church being a “voluntary association of the saved.”

Although these churches have various doctrinal foundations, their number one goal is how to market themselves and increase their memberships. Because of this, the American traditional church system now more nearly resembles a business structure than a living organism as seen in the New Testament.

This is a sad overview of today’s traditional church system in America.

What can we do?

Train like we are going to fight. (U.S. First Army maxim)

We America Christians are at war. Period.

Yes, there are no sounds of explosions and AK-47s in our neighborhoods as yet, but it will happen soon enough. When we finally hear the sounds of war with our own ears, it will be too late to prepare ourselves. We will then be like children tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.

We must make up our minds now.

And we must realize our government will not help us. We are on our own.

This will either be the American church’s greatest hour or its worst one.

So, how can we train like we are going to fight?

(Continued in Part 4)

P.S. If you have not seen Rick Joyner’s video which I included in yesterday’s post, I would advise you to watch it. You can see it here.

Click on to see MyGFA site.

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October 8, 2014 · 5:15 pm

Islamic Terrorists vs. Radical Christians: New Game. New Rules. (Part 1)

(Azam Amir Kasav)

I wrote this series almost six years ago, but because I just watched a video by Rick Joyner, which you can see on Youtube here, I am rerunning this series. All Christians need to watch Joyner’s video. We must prepare ourselves now!

When you look at the 21-year old terrorist, Azam Amir Kasav’s face, what do you see? A good-looking youth who should be at a college, preparing himself for a future career. Maybe having a beer or two with buddies on Fridays nights. Maybe dating a soccer cheerleader on Saturday nights. All in all, just being young and doing what youths do, right?

But the facts are that Kasav trained for months, gobbled steroids to buff up his body, and dedicated his life, along with his dead compatriots, in the hope of killing 5,000 innocent people. 5,000 people. They hoped to kill until their last, dying breaths.

Now, most soldiers are trained and committed to being warriors. If occasions should arise, and combat actions are needed, they will fight. Yet, in the back of their minds, they will desperately want to live. This is a normal reaction by normal men in peril. Thus, most soldiers’ combat actions will be toned down according to a calculated risk/reward ratio on the battle field.

Not so these terrorists. They are committed to killing and dying! No risk is too severe or too challenging for them.

How do we defend our cities or America against dedicated, radical terrorists like Kasav?

Maybe, we don’t really want to think about Mumbai-type terrorist attacks happening in our neighborhoods. After all, nothing much has happened since 911. Why stir up our fears and anxieties now, right?

(CONTINUED Part 2)

Click on to see MyGFA site.

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October 7, 2014 · 2:43 pm

Tuesday’s Prayers for America (10/7/2014)

The saying, “divide and conquer,” is attributed to Emperor Julius Caesar, but it is even older than that. It goes back to the Garden of Eden when Satan convinced Eve that she would not die if she ate the forbidden fruit and would instead be like God. She was deceived and ate the fruit. Adam sinned and did the same.

Satan’s ploy worked. A division formed between God and man.

Since the Garden of Eden, Satan has used his “divide and conquer” tactics over and over again with us believers. I now believe it is the number one reason we Christians have no prayer power to execute righteousness in our cities and over America.

Today, I prayed:

Lord, I pray for us American believers to walk in humility and gentleness with patience, and that we would bear with one another in love and be eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. (Based on Ephesians 4:2-3)

What do you think and did the Lord speak to you today?

Join with me on Tuesdays to fast and pray for America.

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Filed under America, Christianity, Church, Fasting, Kingdom of God, Prayer, Prophecy, spiritual warfare

Tagged as America, Christianity, Church, Fasting, Gifts of the Spirit, Kingdom of God, Prayer, Prophecy, Spiritual warfare

October 5, 2014 · 8:28 am

Inside Israel

I greet you dear sisters and brothers, with the humbling knowledge that you and I have been freed from sin and forgiven by the kapara (atonement.) The Precious Blood of The Perfect Lamb has set us free from the Law. We are unworthy, and yet ever thankful to be one in Him for His glory. How beyond wonderful is that?

I told you in my last letter that I would try to describe the tashlikh practice, but we are also in the time of the kapara and so much is passing before my eyes and ears that beg to be described.

I told you that it was when I was meditating in Micah 7:18-20 that I realized the source of tashlikh, and that is indeed where it comes from. l simply copy it here and encourage you to research it further as it is very interesting:

Tashlikh (Hebrew: ‫תשליך‎meaning casting off) is a long-standing Jewish practice usually performed on the afternoon of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, although it can be said up until Hoshana Rabbah. The previous year’s sins are symbolically cast off by reciting a section from Micah that makes allusions to the symbolic casting off of sins, into a large, natural body of flowing water (such as a river, lake, sea or ocean). The name Tashlikh and the practice itself are derived from the Biblical passage (Micah 7:18-20) recited at the ceremony: “You will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.”

If you continue searching the word tashlikh in Google or another search engine you will find some beautiful prayers and deeper understanding of how many Jews become aware and burdened by the weight of their sins and truly seek forgiveness in so many ways. Yes, for many it is ritual and tradition without true soul searching, but for many others these traditions are doors through which they seek God’s provision for cleansing. I trust that He Who is Faithful can use these doors to lead many and finally all to Himself and His provision: Yeshua or Jesus.

Yeshua or Jesus is THE Kapara…THE Atonement…THE One provided by God The Father. It’s not the chicken or the money used in the rather strange kapara ceremony that took place all through the city today.

Kapparot (Hebrew: ‫כפרות‎, Ashkenazi pronunciation, Kapporois, Kappores) is a Jewish ritual practiced by some Jews on the eve of Yom Kippur. The person swings a live chicken or a bundle of coins over one’s head three times, symbolically transferring one’s sins to the chicken or coins. The chicken is then slaughtered and donated to the poor for consumption at the pre-fast meal.

I recall seeing both of these rituals in NYC when I was a child. My Grandparents were Orthadox and although they died when I was small, I remember going with my father and grandfather to the synagogue. I must have accompanied them also both to the river for tashlikh and to kapara at one time. Of course, we now live in a modern world and these practices take place amidst more and more controversy every year, even in Jerusalem.

In past years I witnessed tremendous tenderness among the general population – an unusual kindness as they were actively seeking repentance. This year seemed different. People seemed edgy and hostile, quick-tempered with one another. I wondered what had changed. Maybe a certain fatigue had settled in with a frazzled hopelessness. It made my heart sad.

Today at the shuk (marketplace) I witnessed a scene that personified the situation.

A young Haradi man and an old religious man were entering the shuk area where the kapara is performed. A youngish women’s libber sort of lady with a sign on her back and another in her hand that she attempted to post at the entrance, approached them and said that the slaughter of ritual chickens was cruelty to animals, even though they are slaughtered by a butcher and the meat is given to the needy. For a short while they discussed the ritual versus animal rights, but it wasn’t too long before angry shouts replaced discussion.

As I continued along my way, my heart ached and I prayed for my people who were swallowing a camel and straining at a gnat again. While seeking forgiveness they were engaged in angry debate.

My mind flashed back to the night when they came for Yeshua. It was a similar night and a time of preparing the heart to worship and give thanks for the deliverance from Egypt and from the death angel through the obedience to the sprinkling of the blood of the lamb on Passover. While sacrificing the lamb and seeking to please God, they took HIM to HIS cross.

How often do I miss HIM while I strain at a gnat?

How often do I slaughter my sister or brother or my husband because I am right?

But I think back to the one ray of hope that I witnessed today. It was at work in the busy waiting room. There was an emergency among emergencies, and people who had already been waiting had to wait longer. Having worked there for 17 years now, there are many people whom I know very well and dearly love. One lady began to flatter me with much praise for my goodness and patience which I SO know are HIS and NOT mine.

I told her, “No no Na’ama! EVERYTHING good that I have and do comes from Elohim.”

She smiled as if to say, “Oh…and so you are humble too…”

So I went on and a boldness took over: “You know, I get up very early in the morning and I read the Tenach and the Neve’eem (Old Testament and Prophets). (No, I did not mention the New Testament as it would have been inappropriate just then to what was being said). I read them day after day in my mother tongue so that I can understand. Do you know that they are easy to understand? You can read them without a Rabbi.”

At this point several other patients began listening.

“You really can not read them day after day after day without a real fear of The Lord coming into you. The prophets teach us and warn us and tell us the way that we must walk before Him and when you look at that with your heart every day, and ask HIM to come into your bad heart and change it, He does share Himself with us.”

Suddenly something happened. I didn’t mention forgiveness but the answers shocked me.

Na’ama sighed and looked at both Mali and me. “Ah! But I find it so hard to forgive! I KNOW that I HAVE to forgive everybody everything but that is so hard. How can I forgive?”

Mali immediately agreed and said that she also needed to forgive and she KNEW that He required us to forgive. “But how can I forgive? It is just so hard!” Mali said.

Into my mind flashed that I can forgive others because I know the awful things that I have been forgiven, but these sheep don’t know that. No! They DON’T know the forgiveness yet of God, but they know that He requires them to forgive. Wow…they know that instinctively.

As I did the dishes just now and listened to the last news broadcast, they ended with slichoot (forgiveness) prayers sung. The announcer said, “And as we close for the last evening broadcast before the closing for Yom Kippur, we will leave you with the Slichoot prayer sung by − get ready…I kid you not − The Gospel Choir.”

I suspect that we are yet to hear the end of that one.

God bless and keep you. Perhaps you will join in prayer for Israel at this most special time when the people believe that the books of life and death are open and our names are written in one or the other. The traditional greeting − “G’mar hatima tova” (may you finish the fast with a good signature”) − takes on new meaning for us who know our names are inscribed in The Lamb’s book of Life. We are praying this inscription becomes reality for the still lost sheep of Israel. May this year ALL OF ISRAEL FINISH WITH A SIGNATURE UNTO LIFE.

Lovingly,

your sis J