Arrows from Zion
Serving the Body of Messiah in Israel since August 2001
& Strategically Aimed for the Lord’s Harvest in Israel
Serving the Body of Messiah in Israel since August 2001
& Strategically Aimed for the Lord’s Harvest in Israel
Donations: PayPal acct is donna@israelprayer.com
or make check to Donna Diorio PO Box 111302 Carrollton TX 75006
I do not have tax exempt status.
Priority Prayer Focus Feb 19, 2014
"...the scorner is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off: who by a word make a man out to be an offender" Isaiah 29:20-21
Contact information for all the ministries is included inside the attached Weekly Summary.
Arrows from Zion
Strategically Aimed for the Lord’s Harvest in Israel
"...the scorner is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off: who by a word make a man out to be an offender" Isaiah 29:20-21
Contact information for all the ministries is included inside the attached Weekly Summary.
Arrows from Zion
Strategically Aimed for the Lord’s Harvest in Israel
Arni Klein of Emmaus Way wrote a fascinating prayer
letter this week explaining some of the dynamics behind their move to the
Galilee and the visions that have unfolded for them there. Klein speaks about the Galilee which is not
only where Elijah battled the false prophets of false gods, but it is also
where the train left the tracks in the occultic form of Jewish mysticism, Safed
being the world center for Kabala. Did
you know that the Orthodox consider Tiberias to be second in importance only to
Jerusalem and tens of thousands come to worship at the tombs of famous rabbis
buried there. As Arni says with great
understatement: “This is not a small
thing.”
I would encourage you to open the attached Weekly Summary and read many of the spiritual dynamics that make the Galilee a strategic region for the establishing of a strong worship of Yeshua. One of the towns in the Galilee is a village that God has especially marked for this purpose – and “Apart from Israel’s one Messianic moshav, Yad Hashmona, no place in the country has a higher concentration of Messianic believers.”
God is up to something in the region and the vision is not only for the Messianic Israelis, but also for the believers from the international Church to participate in. Read inside about the Congregation, the tower of worship, the village, the worship network, the worship tour and next week - a place to play, break break and unwind for the believers in the Land.
From Asher Intrater’s Revive Israel ministries in Jerusalem we are reminded of their annual Esther Fast coming up on March 13th from 6 am to 6 pm Israel time and live streaming for the international church to join in. This prayer time will be led by different local leaders from congregations and ministries in Israel. It is before the start of Purim. Prayer topics, schedules and links will be shared here in the weeks to come.
I would encourage you to open the attached Weekly Summary and read many of the spiritual dynamics that make the Galilee a strategic region for the establishing of a strong worship of Yeshua. One of the towns in the Galilee is a village that God has especially marked for this purpose – and “Apart from Israel’s one Messianic moshav, Yad Hashmona, no place in the country has a higher concentration of Messianic believers.”
God is up to something in the region and the vision is not only for the Messianic Israelis, but also for the believers from the international Church to participate in. Read inside about the Congregation, the tower of worship, the village, the worship network, the worship tour and next week - a place to play, break break and unwind for the believers in the Land.
From Asher Intrater’s Revive Israel ministries in Jerusalem we are reminded of their annual Esther Fast coming up on March 13th from 6 am to 6 pm Israel time and live streaming for the international church to join in. This prayer time will be led by different local leaders from congregations and ministries in Israel. It is before the start of Purim. Prayer topics, schedules and links will be shared here in the weeks to come.
Eddie Santoro who pastors
the Ahavat Yeshua congregation also shares about steps they are taking to
deepen the relationships between members of their congregation with a men’s brunch
and fellowship together. The women have
an event of their own coming up. Santoro
writes, “The relationships that are strengthened from times like these are
ultimately the "glue" that holds the Body together and enables it to
fulfill the high calling that God has destined for it.”
Revive Israel also lists 7
“turning point” issues that the Israel Supreme Court is facing at this time
involving many cases of corruption in different sectors as well as sexual abuse
cases and the refusal of the ultra-Orthodox to serve in the Israeli army. Revive wrties, “The Chief Justice of the
Israel "High Court of Righteousness" is Asher Grunis. In biblical terms the supreme court of Israel
has a key role to play for morality and justice.” Pray for Grunis and the Israeli High Court to be an
instrument for real social justice and morality in Israel . (Isaiah 1:26
"I will restore your
judges as at the first and your counselors as at the beginning; after that you
will be called the city of righteousness, the faithful capital.")
Israel
Pochtar shares that they have been witnessing a powerful move among their young
people and have recognized a need and call to begin organizing special
gatherings and conference for the young people from all over the south. The Beit Hallel congregation is perfect for
such events, with a minimal one-time investment of about $4,000 for
equipment. If you would like to be a
part of investing in the Israeli Messianic young people, please read more of
Pochtar’s prayer letter inside the attached Weekly
Summary.
From
Tiberias, the Peniel Fellowship pastored by Daniel and Shirya Yahav is also
reporting on how in the past year their focus has been on building and
strengthening individuals, marriages and families in the congregation. Shirya has completed another CD of Shabbat
school material for ages 3-4 in Hebrew.
Her first CD was for ages 7-12 and they have distributed the CD’s to
about 60 fellowships throughout Israel. This is the key to their ministry: “We believe the word of God is the only sound
foundation we can count and build on. Without a strong and sound foundation all
our work will be in vain.”
Very exciting other things they have to report
is the fruit from on of their congregants who does evangelism and prison
ministry. 21 prisoners in the past year
have received the Lord through this brother’s investment to minister in the
prisons about 20 times a year. Pray for “N”
who is literally fulfilling Mathew 25:36 to visit those imprisoned.
An exciting development in one of the ministries is the 8-man
rescue team of brothers who have professional equipment and
training as rescue workers. In a recent
training exercise with the army and fire department rescue forces, the army
supervisor gave high praise to the team: “the team received much
commendation for the quality of the equipment, for their performance, for good
team work and professionalism. At the end of the day, the army supervisor said
that this is the best team he has seen so far.”
This is one of the things we like to highlight
to our subscribers, because often Christians give to Jewish and Christian
groups that donate those resources in Israel with secular and religious
projects that are outside the Messianic Jewish community. Often the thinking is that Messianic Jews are
already saved so why donate to them.
First, because these are the only ones who are carrying the Gospel of the Messiah Yeshua to Israelis, and secondly because they are engaged in every conceivable type of ministry – from the Pro-Life Movement of Be’ad Chaim to the building of shelters, from an emergency rescue team or to humanitarian aid stockpiled for the needy now and in the case of wars or other violent siege. What difference does it make? Much – if you want the testimony of Jesus in the lives of Israelis to be recognized as excellent!
First, because these are the only ones who are carrying the Gospel of the Messiah Yeshua to Israelis, and secondly because they are engaged in every conceivable type of ministry – from the Pro-Life Movement of Be’ad Chaim to the building of shelters, from an emergency rescue team or to humanitarian aid stockpiled for the needy now and in the case of wars or other violent siege. What difference does it make? Much – if you want the testimony of Jesus in the lives of Israelis to be recognized as excellent!
Evan and Maala Thomas in the Netanya Beit
Asaph congregation write about new immigrant families settling into the
congregation despite the “challenges of severe ‘culture shock’, the intensity
of Hebrew language school and a very high cost of living. They need a lot of
pastoral encouragement and guidance through the ‘minefields’ of bureaucracy,
but even more than that, they need your prayers for wisdom and grace, favor for
good jobs and the right choice of schools for their children.”
In the USA we have prided ourselves as being a
“melting pot” nation where peoples from nations around the world have come to
meld together as Americans. Israel is
like that too – even with all the accompanying challenges that come along with
such an ideal of nationhood. In many
ways, this is a picture also of the challenges of the kingdom of God as every nation,
and kindred, and tongue, and people are being fitly joined together into one
new man in Messiah. Did God ever say
this would not be challenging to us as He was bringing it to pass? No.
But it is HIS IDEA and we should keep that in mind as it is being worked
out in real time in our midst.
Evan writes:
“This month we will hold a seminar on evangelism and examine methods
appropriate to our context. This is very important for all of us, but
especially so for those still unfamiliar with the complexities of Israeli
society. This too is a season of discipleship for new and young Believers who
are ‘settling into’ Body-life. This is never an easy transition but having a
choice of healthy, enthusiastic home groups in a variety of languages is an
enormous help. Please keep our ‘new-born’ and our home bible-study groups in
your prayers.”
Evan continues, “As we entered the new-year
the Lord began to challenge both Lev and Evan with a desire to encourage and
strengthen open communication between the leadership and the young adults in
our community. ...in mid-January we invited our young members for an ‘open
conversation’ with the pastors ....The results of our discussion were both
valuable and revealing. Among the topics
of interest that our young people brought up were aspects of our services,
methods of evangelism, discipleship programs and how to improve our support for
those involved in their military service. We are blessed and encouraged to see
this next generation engaged and desiring to move on in God and in
congregational life and it was clear that our young people were similarly
encouraged by a specific time set aside to ‘be heard’.
This
is a wonderful idea for making young people truly experience being a valued part
of the Body. Pray for the young people
of Messianic Israel to be groomed toward productive contributions to the whole
congregation, not just provided with teen entertainment.
Howard
Bass in Beer Sheva mentions that with the holidays approaching many of the
children and teens have opportunities to attend various camps and conferences
where they can associate with other believers their own age. This opportunity is a lot more rare than many
of us are used to thinking in terms of, so these opportunities are very important. Not all the young people can afford to pay
their own way – this is just the fact of life in Israel – but we can help. If young people are the area of ministry that
God has stirred up in you, kindly consider making a donation to help some
Israeli Messianic child or teen attended holiday camp or conference. We can help you make those connections. Read more of Howard’s comments and contact
information inside the attached Weekly Summary.
Ruth
Nessim in Nahariya writes about the Hebrew and Lebanese fellowships that she is
connected with in northern Israel. You
might be surprised how much interchange is going on between believers in their
area: “The Assembly is thriving, with
lively meetings and new people coming along. One of the features that our
pastor Efraim has introduced is a once a month Friday evening meeting with
Kiddush and followed by a communal supper. We are joined on these occasions by
our Lebanese and Arab friends and we have translations into Arabic, Hebrew and
English, making this a truly united Arab/Jewish and Gentile fellowship!”
Ruth
is off to North America from Feb 23-Mar 31 for speaking engagements and visits
with old friends, like 91-year old Shoshanna, whom we have prayed with Ruth for
many years to receive Messiah Yeshua. Pray that this is the appointed season
for Shoshanna to see, that her good friend Ruth is carrying to her the good
news she need to receive most.
Ruth
also speaks of her eldest grandchild (Debbie and Yo-Yakim Figeuras’ son) who
has been given his first call-up to the army.
Ruth writes, “Whether you believe it or not, I find it more difficult to
see my grandsons called up than I did to see my own children go, one by one!” Any grandparent understands those words and that
feeling – how did that child become old enough to enter the army? It all happens so quickly, this growing up
business.
Speak
blessings over the children of Israel – the kids, the teens, the young people
entering adulthood via their mandatory army service, the young people just
starting their families, the parents becoming grandparents for the first time,
the aged grandparents still marching under the orders of their King Yeshua to
go out into the highways and byways sharing the good news of Israel’s Hope, the
Messiah who dwells within our hearts.
Urgent HEALING Needs: Life and Death is in the power of the
tongue
Please keep in prayer the Israeli
believers who are fighting for their lives or other urgent health needs:
- Arni & Yonit Klein of Emmaus Way request prayers for staff in the U.S. (Becky and Keith) and in Germany (Hannah). We reported the extremely serious injuries of Keith and of Hannah months ago, now in caretaking Becky is also suffering physical strain and pain. Keith is beginning to be able to move both legs a bit, but Hannah is still in intense physical therapy with pain spreading. They would appreciate prayers.
- Howard Bass at Nachalat Yeshua asks prayers for German (pronounced with hard 'g'), who suffered a stroke a couple of weeks ago. German is 83 yrs old, but has been in excellent health.
- Brian Slater’s wife Racheli has suffered a broken hip/Femural Neck Fracture from a fall in their home. She will be on crutches for two months. Appreciate prayers.
- Four elder ministry leaders in Israel, are dealing with Parkinson’s which is a neurological syndrome. Since they have not shared this information, I will just ask for you to please pray for them each to be able to continue to live normal lives, and for the hand of the LORD to bless them with healing.
- Harvest of Asher Elena is in need of continued prayer. The tests for the cancer all came out good. However she is still receiving chemo and experiencing extreme side effects. Please pray for a 11-yr old autistic boy who functions at a high level, but has declined emotionally with a change in schools this year. Pray for Marina & her daughter suffering from a genetic hearing disease.
- Please pray for the wife of Ariel Ben David, who leads an Eilat Congregation, and also for his worship leader, both of whom were recently diagnosed with breast cancer.
- Pray for Ami Ortiz for ongoing issues from the 2008 bomb blast – and that he would win the appeal for government recognition that he is a terror victim. It would mean benefits for the continuing surgeries and legal expenses. See Leah’s report on their website of the latest round of laser surgeries on Ami’s scarring in this issue.
Inside the attachment of the
Weekly Summary of Prayer Requests from Israeli Ministries
Arrows from Zion can be shared freely. Just copy and paste this email into a Word document to make it easy to print. However, we ask the Weekly Summaries not be forwarded or information republished without consent of the specific ministries. The Weekly Summary is by subscription only, write arrowsfromzion@gmail.com or donna@d10r10.com
Teaching Articles
Antichrist - Could It Happen Again? (part 3)
By Asher Intrater
Praying the Headlines Christian
Tourist Arrested, Detained, Deported
Lura Beckford reported that a Christian from the Far East was detained at the
airport, put into an immigration prison cell until she can be deported. Authorities said she "might
work and her visa doesn't cover that.”
Lura said, “She is a tourist and she won't work, so it is just their
excuse for keeping another Christian from coming in the country. They probably
suspect her of being a missionary.. . . I just found out there is a 10 year ban
on returning to Israel once the Interior Ministry does not allow a tourist to
enter the Land & sends them back to their own country. We consulted a
lawyer.
“The global ethics code for tourism, which the state of Israel signed and even advertises on its own Ministry of Tourism Web page, states that tourism for the purpose of exchanging religious beliefs is not only valid but also should be encouraged”.”
“The global ethics code for tourism, which the state of Israel signed and even advertises on its own Ministry of Tourism Web page, states that tourism for the purpose of exchanging religious beliefs is not only valid but also should be encouraged”.”
Latest update 2/19: Despite all the testimony that our friend has never worked in Israel and is a tourist, the Judge declared her visa invalid and claimed that she is in Israel to work, because the Interior Ministry said so. The one bright light in this fiasco is that he also struck down the 10 year ban and said it did not apply to her. That's good. But then he cut short the lawyer's talk a few minutes after he began. The Judge made the incredible statement that he already made up his mind so the lawyer did not need to talk. The Judge threw one of our Israeli friends out of the courtroom for trying to talk in our tourist friend's defense. The Judge did tell her to get her lawyer to help get her back into Israel with the "proper" visa. At this point, we don't know what that is. Our take on this matter --- Yad L'Achim is involved - this whole case smells like them. God is not finished with this.
ALSO: The Jerusalem Institute of Justice reveals a new
website
Israeli Ministries on Tours
BOOKING meetings now (See open dates) Inside
the attached Weekly Summary are
itineraries and open dates for Orna Greenman of A Sign & A
Wonder; Joel Jelski of Sukkat Hallel; and Brian Slater of Yeshua’s Fresh Bread in Israel.
The Israeli Messianic Marketplace Feature of the Week
Mutual Blessing
By Daniel C. Juster
Israel Watcher – A Second Opinion Mostly
political or current events commentary
| Fruit of the Fig Tree Spiritual insights
If you appreciate the efforts of this ministry to share both the challenges and the great things God is doing among the Israeli indigenous ministries, please pray about making a financial gift donation. Make donations payable to the order of Donna Diorio and mail to:
Israel Prayer P O Box 111302 Carrollton, Texas 75006
Or click on the PayPal account: donna@israelprayer.com
I do not have tax exempt status.
| Fruit of the Fig Tree Spiritual insights
If you appreciate the efforts of this ministry to share both the challenges and the great things God is doing among the Israeli indigenous ministries, please pray about making a financial gift donation. Make donations payable to the order of Donna Diorio and mail to:
Israel Prayer P O Box 111302 Carrollton, Texas 75006
Or click on the PayPal account: donna@israelprayer.com
I do not have tax exempt status.
No comments:
Post a Comment