Keep your eyes focused on things above!
It's funny- I've been feeling overwhelming
peace and joy
these last couple of days but especially and particularly today-
I woke up and have been filled with the spirit- dancing, singing, and
praising God for his faithfulness all day!.. just immense feelings
of complete awe, amazement and gratitude
rejoice and flow from my heart
It's an indescribable feeling of appreciation for what
he has done.
The Holy Spirit Will bite you- not like a snake,
but like a dance bug!
I didn't happen to realize it was also Independence Day
for this great milestone in 'Israel,
but I think it's fitting.! I'm completely convinced the
holy spirit
is truly moving this year and greater miracles are underway,
My God is a faithful, powerful,
miracle worker!
So many milestones this Year!
I also want to praise my husband for his 8 years of
sacrificial
military service around the globe-
for our nation! He's our backbone, and
BEARS
all the heavy lifting of carrying our families
Cross.
It's no wonder why he has a reputation of being
full of grace and sacrificing for us like
Jesus-
and he truly has. Next month we celebrate our
12th wedding anniversary, and I turn 40 in the fall!
If I'm really lucky he will say yes to a trip to Israel!;)
He's pretty successful at fighting off
crazy wilderness scorpions,
so I'm
well prepared!
He is indeed truly all God created him to be. We continue
to pray for peace for all families and all people
in
God's creation!
Sharing The Word from Israel
INDEPENDENCE DAY: ISRAEL TURNS 75!
ONE FOR ISRAEL
After being established in 1948, the state of
Israel is now reaching another milestone: 75 years!
A whole generation! Those 75 years have been
packed with
danger, adventure and great
blessing as well.
The nation has thrived and developed beyond all recognition,
but has had to fight for survival every step
of The Way
We just want to take a moment to thank God
for 75 years of His goodness to us,
adding to millennia of His faithfulness before that.
He keeps His word
and does not renege on
His promises.
GRATEFUL TO BE HEREW
We do not take Israel’s existence for granted.
Each year, the day before the Independence Day celebrations begin,
Israel holds a Memorial Day to
honor
all those who have died in Israel’s struggle
for survival.
The number of soldiers who are killed in active
service together with civilians murdered in terror attacks
increases year by year, and has reached almost 30,000 in total.
Everyone is affected in this small nation--
almost everybody knows somebody who has been killed.
Those plotting for Israel’s destruction
will not cease, but
The God of Israel
does not
slumber or sleep.
Miracles of His protection and rescue
are not
just found all over the Bible,
but all throughout our times as well.
So on Monday evening
(because Jewish days start on the sunset of the day before)
a siren will sound. Israel will stand in silence to
honor
the memories of all those who have been killed in war or terror.
Tuesday is a somber day dedicated to the fallen,
and a reminder of how precious life is,
and how important the state of Israel is as a refuge for Jewish people.
However it is not only Jewish people who are among those killed,
many Druze, Christian, and Muslim Arabic speakers have
also been killed in service in the army, or in
indiscriminate terror attacks against Israeli citizens.
Some died heroically saving others.
It’s important to take the time to
recognize the sacrifices made,
the lives needlessly lost,
and the pain that remains among the bereaved among
both Jewish and Arab families.
MOURNING TO DANCING
But then at sunset on Tuesday
there is a
sudden, and almost surreal,
about-turn
The nation goes from mourning to dancing as Independence Day
kicks in.
Fireworks go off all round the country and there are
celebrations in the streets.
Flags, parties, music and fun are characteristic of the following day, along with the tradition of barbecues! The smell of grilled meat always fills the air for Independence Day, which is a national holiday. Recently polled to be the fourth happiest nation on earth—Israelis are very glad to be alive.
The simple existence of Israel is
due to a
series of miracles:
The end of the Ottoman Empire‘s Islamic rule, the 1917 Balfour Declaration determining that there should be a national home for the Jewish people, the UN resolution in 1947, and the sudden creation of the Jewish State,
born in a day in May 1948.
There’s been war after war attempting to wipe Israel off the map
as Arab nations united against the Jewish state in 1948, 1967, 1973,
and there has been constant aggression on every side…
but by
God’s grace and protection,
Israel has made it to the grand old age of 75.
Having said that, Abraham was only just getting started at
the age of 75 when God called Him, saying,
“Go from your country and your kindred
and your father’s house
to the land that I will show you.
And I will make of you a great nation, and
I will bless you and make your name great,
so that you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you,
and him who dishonors you I will curse,
and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
(Genesis 12:1-3)
It’s amazing to think that the descendants
of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are here today, in this
land of promise, after all those years.
Through Israel came the
oracles of God
(the Bible) and the
Messiah, Jesus.
Israel has been used as
God’s vessel
to
bring blessing to the world, but
there is
much more yet to come.
WHAT NEXT FOR ISRAEL?
Much has been made of
the
“fig tree generation”
taken from
The Words of Jesus in Matthew 24:
“From the fig tree learn its
lesson
as soon as its
branch
becomes tender and puts out its
leaves,
you know that summer is near.
So also, when
you see all these things,
you know that he is near,
at the very gates.
Truly, I say to
you,
this generation will not pass away
until
all these things take place.”
(Matthew 24:32-34)
The word in Hebrew for summer (קַיִץ)
is from the
same root word
as the end
(קֵץ) because the summer is
The End
of the agricultural season.
Jesus had two Fig tree Parables
The fig tree
often represents Israel in the Bible, and so many believers interpret
this to mean that 1948 set off a
countdown
to the end of days--that the
generation to see
Israel’s rebirth would see the
end times events
take place in their lifetimes. Quite what
a “generation”
means and whether or not this interpretation is correct
remains to be seen.
But 7-5
is a great age to reach regardless.
Jesus gives us signs to look out for, and many of them
are stacking up to create the picture He described,
but the
Great Commission is not
yet complete!
We see the day approaching, and long
to see Jesus return,
but if He tarries it’s so more can be saved.
As we continue into the future, even with
all the troubles
within Israel and the threats
all around us,
we can walk with confidence and joy
knowing that we go with the
God of Jacob
He has kept us so far, and it’s good to know
He is on the
throne
He is the one
in charge of the times and seasons,
and
He will judge all things
with
righteousness
Israel is no stranger
to unrighteousness, just like all other nations,
but we long for God to
Pour out His Spirit so All Israel
would
recognize the Messiah.
Our times are in His hands.
PSALM 75
We give thanks to you, O God;
we give thanks, for your name is near.
We recount your wondrous deeds.
“At the set time that I appoint
I will judge with equity.
When the earth totters, and all its inhabitants,
it is I who keep steady its pillars. Selah
I say to the boastful, ‘Do not boast,’
and to the wicked, ‘
Do not lift up your horn;
do not lift up your
horn on high,
or speak with haughty neck.’”
For not from
the east or from the west
and not from the
wilderness comes lifting up,
but
it is God
who executes judgment,
putting down
one and lifting up another.
For in the
hand of the Lord
there is a
-cup-
with foaming wine, well mixed,
and he
pours out from it,
and all the wicked of the earth
shall drain it down to the dregs.
But I will declare it forever;
I will sing praises to the
God of Jacob
All the horns of the wicked
-I will- Cut off,
but the horns of the
righteous shall be lifted up.
The Barren Fig Tree
“A man had a
fig tree planted in his vineyard;
and
he came looking for fruit on it and
found none.
So he said to the gardener, ‘
See here!
For three years I have come looking for fruit on
this fig tree,
and still I find none. Cut it down!
Why
should it be wasting the soil?
’ He replied,
‘Sir, let it alone for one more year,
until I
dig around it and put
'manure on it'
If it bears fruit next year,
well and good;
but if not, you can
Cut it down
— Luke 13:6–9
RSS Feed
