“And Gentiles shall come unto thy light, and kings to thy brightness of thy rising .….. The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee: and all that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet: and they shall call thee, The city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel. Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.” Isaiah 60:3, 14-15
Dear Intercessors for Israel:
Greetings from Jerusalem, the capital city of Israel and the seat of its government! The United States this week, in an historic move, established its embassy in Jerusalem. President Trump officially made the diplomatic move on May 15th, and at 4pm, officially marking the exact hour and date on the Gregorian calendar that the nation of Israel was established. Many notables and dignitaries attended the opening ceremony, including President Trump’s son-in-law, Jered Kushner, Ivanka Trump, U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman, Prime Minister Netanyahu, members of the Knesset, rabbinic leaders, and Christian leaders. Marylois and I with others watched the ceremonies which were happening just a few miles away on our television, cheering and thanking God for this momentous day.
Prime Minister Netanyahu in his opening remarks declared that “President Trump’s decision to move the embassy to Jerusalem affirms a great and simple truth: Jerusalem has been the capital of the Jewish people for the past three thousand years. It’s been the capital of our state for the past 70 years. It will remain our capital for all time. Thank you, President Trump, for your bold decision, thank you for making the alliance between Israel and the United States stronger than ever.” (www.imra.org.il)
He also took the opportunity to challenge the rest of the nations to join the U.S. in moving their embassies to Jerusalem. P. M. Netanyahu then declared to the world’s leaders: “Move your embassies to Jerusalem because it advances peace, and that’s because you can’t base peace on a foundation of lies. You base peace on the foundations of truth and the truth is that not only has Jerusalem been the capital of the Jewish people for millennia and the capital of our state from its inception, the truth is that under any peace agreement you could possibly imagine Jerusalem will remain Israel’s capital.”
Following President Trump’s decision, the nations of Guatemala and Paraguay, also opened embassies in Jerusalem. Other nations will soon follow suit. The nation of Turkey recalled its Ambassador and Palestine removed its envoy from the United States over the U.S. embassy’s relocation. Turkey also sent Israel’s ambassador back to Jerusalem, leaving these two countries at odds once more.
Pray for the nation of Turkey. Under its President Erdogan, there has been a shifting towards an Islamic dictatorship. He has sought ways to support Hamas in helping it continue its terrorist activities against Israel. Erdogan has imprisoned U.S. pastor Andrew Brunson without cause for nearly two years. Pray for his release. The Turkish Lira has hit historical lows in financial markets, losing its value to other world currencies. This free fall in its value has raised concerns of impeding political changes, trade imbalances, and economic inflation. Pray for Turkey, that it would change its stance regarding Israel.
An Historical Overview
The United Nations first sought to implement a partition plan on the Palestinian Mandate administered by Britain. Jerusalem was to become an international city, under U.N. Resolution 181 which was passed on November 29th 1947. The world powers never envisioned Jerusalem to be the capital of the Jewish State. This plan was rejected by the Arab nations, and five Arab nations invaded Israel in 1948. The nation of Jordan then successfully captured the Old city of Jerusalem and portions of lands today known as East Jerusalem. The status quo remained until Israel recaptured these lands during the Six-day war in 1967. The State of Israel in 1980 declared that Jerusalem was its capital. The nations, upon hearing this notification, left Jerusalem, removing their embassies from Jerusalem and relocating them to Tel Aviv. For 38 years, the nations of the world had supported the United Nations partition peace place and had boycotted the right for Israel to call Jerusalem its capital city.
2018, Another Year of “Shiftings”
The voice of the LORD has revealed to many that 2018 would be another year of “shiftings.” Webster’s defines “shift” as “a change or a replacement by another.” “Shiftings” speak of sudden changes, abrupt moves, an unpredictability in events, and a fluidity in nature. Every computer keyboard today has a “shift” key which takes you to either to another line or allows you to type capital letters or characters. The establishment of the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem has certainly “shifted” the status quo politically, diplomatically, and in a sense, spiritually. Businessesrely on “innovation and networking to cope with sudden changes.”
Suddenly 2018
I want to pass on some insights regarding “shiftings.”
Suddenly you may shift into a promotion. Suddenly you may shift from sickness to health. Suddenly you may shift into greater authority in the spirit. Suddenly you may shift from a dark night of the soul to greater revelation of Christ. Suddenly you may shift from feelings of oppression to new levels of freedom. Suddenly.
Believe for the suddenlies in 2018. Expect them to happen. Wait with anticipation, but understand that you have to do your part. Like the disciples in the upper room, you need to pray. Like Paul and Barnabas in the prison, you need to praise. In other words, you need to create a spiritual climate over your life that invites the Holy Spirit to work in your heart, in your life and in your circumstances. Your climate change will eventually lead to a season shift that will bring a suddenly you could never make happen in your own strength.
Take heart in Isaiah 48:3: “I have declared the former things from the beginning and they went forth from My mouth, and I announced them. Suddenly I did them, and they came to pass” (Charisma: Prophetic Insight.)
A Mighty Rushing Wind
Last week we had a guest minister at the House of Peace for an evening meeting. John Carlos and his wife Katherine from the U.K. encouraged us by revealing the “Father’s Heart.” Then while he was ministering the Father’s Love, a mighty rushing wind descending outside the House of Peace. The windows, the transoms and the plastic shutters were all vibrating with the force and sounds of the winds. We happened to have a man who was a meteorologist attending our meeting. He heard the wind and stepped outside on our deck. There he observed a lenticular cloud formation (a stationary lens shaped cloud) in the shape of a dove, on the horizon. He came back inside and told us the “good news.” Only God! The winds were only blowing near our house. I drove people home a short while later and every place I went was calm. A mighty rushing wind of the Holy Spirt invaded our ministry meeting. There was such a strong presence of His fire, His love, and His presence that all of us knew the LORD was with us.
The Biblical Feast of Shavuot
I wanted to write about this experience to all of you because this Sunday, the 20th of May, is Shavuot or Pentecost. It’s a national holiday here.
In the Old Testament, Shavuot was called the Festival of Weeks. It was a harvest festival that was celebrated seven weeks and one day after the first Sabbath of the Feast of Unleavened Bread in Deut. 16:9, or seven weeks and one day after the Sabbath in Leviticus 23:16. The Festival of Weeks was also called the feast of Harvest in Exodus 23:16, and the day of first fruits in Numbers 28:26. In Exodus 34:22, it is called the “first fruits of the wheat harvest.” The date for the “Feast of Weeks” originally came the day after seven full weeks following the first harvest of grain. In Jewish tradition, the fiftieth day was known as the Festival of Weeks.
After the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD, offerings could no longer be brought to the temple and the festival started to have a different focus on the giving of the Law at Mt. Sinai. This feast eventually received the name Pentecost from the koine Greek word Pentekoste meaning fiftieth day The actual mention of fifty days comes from Leviticus 23:16. (www.wikipedia)
The descent of the Holy Spirit on the Feast of Pentecost spoke of a new shifting, a day of empowerment and authority to preach the “good news” of the kingdom. It was a day of harvest. A spiritual harvest of souls. Here Peter spoke to thousands who became believers in Jesus. He proclaimed to the crowd that this event was the fulfillment of the prophecy in Joel 2. In Acts 2:17, it reads: “‘And in the last days,’ God says, ‘I will pour out my spirit upon every sort of flesh, and your sons and your daughters will prophesy and your young men will see visions and your old men will dream dreams.”.
Lord, we pray that you would continue to move upon your people this Shavuot. Fall on us anew and afresh, Holy Spirit. Descend upon your people and cause them to know that you are the promised Messiah.
A Week to Remember.
This past week has been memorable in this city and nation. Last Sunday brought with it the celebration of Jerusalem Day, the 51st observation of the unification of Jerusalem. The streets were filled with youth marching to Jerusalem, carrying flags and banners. It is a joyous day here, acknowledging the unity of this city. Monday saw the relocation of the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem and the acknowledgment that this city is the capital of Israel by the United States.
Tuesday was Nabka day, or “Catastrophe day,” mourning the establishment of the Jewish State by the Arabs. Rioting occurred by some 40,000 people bused into areas at 13 points along Gaza’s 30-mile border with Israel. Women and children were used as “human shields” to protect Hamas leaders. These demonstrations quickly gave way to firebomb attacks, along with the smoke from thousands of tires burning and gun-fire at the IDF. The IDF responded back with water cannons, skunk water, tear gas, and at a last resort, sniper fire.
Hamas’ terrorist leadership has been seeking ways to breach the borders and loose its forces upon Israel. These rioters were turned back after days of assaulting Israel’s borders with over sixty casualties on the Arab side. Hamas admitted that 53 of its members were lost. The Kareem Shalom Crossing to Gaza was destroyed, with over nine million dollars in damage to the facility. Fuel and gas pipelines going into Gaza were destroyed along with conveyor belts and transport infrastructures. Gunfire was directed at the nearby Israeli farming community of Sderot and fields were set afire by Gazans in hopes of damaging Israel’s harvests.
Thursday also brought the observance of Ramadan, the month of fasting by all Muslims. The IDF is expecting more violence. Please pray that peace will reign in this trouble land. Pray Isaiah 60:14-15 for Israel and Jerusalem; “The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee: and all that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet: and they shall call thee, The city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel. Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.”
Shabbat Shalom,
Gene and Marylois,
House of Peace