“And Ruth said: Entreat me not to leave you, Or to turn back from following after you. For wherever you go, I will go; and wherever you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, And your God my God” (Ruth 1:16 NKJV).
“But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts. 1:8 NKJV).
“When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and [one] sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2: 1-4 NKJV).
Dear Friends of Israel:
Shavuot greetings! From the evening of June 1st to the 3rd Israel and the Jewish people worldwide observe the harvest feast of Shavuot or as we know it, Pentecost. The Jewish calendar is lunar while Christians follow the Gregorian calendar, thus Pentecost Sunday for the Church is June 8th.
Shavuot commemorates the date when God gave the Torah to the Jewish people at Mount Sinai over 3,000 years ago. Preceded by 49 days of counting in eager anticipation, Shavuot is celebrated through refraining from work, staying up all night reading the Torah, and listening to the reading of the Ten commandments in the synagogues.
The custom of staying “awake” all night comes from ancient story that says when the Israelites were at Mt. Sinai, they overslept on the morning the law was given, and had to be awakened by Moses. So, to make amends and prove that God’s people won’t fall asleep while waiting like their ancestors did, many modern Jews stay up all night, or go late into the evening, to study and celebrate receiving the Torah. The tradition is then to go to the “Kotel” or Western Wall at sunrise. One year, Marylois and I heard an entire company of IDF soldiers marching down Hebron Street, singing in cadence. I looked out our window, as it was daybreak and saw this unit smartly pass by, shouting and as if passing by in review. This year, over 100,000 people visited the Western Wall over the holiday, with approximately 20,000 participating in the sunrise prayer service (IsraelNationalNews.com).
This tradition of being at the “Wall” at daybreak was also observed during the time of our Lord. That is why Peter when “the day of Pentecost had fully come” was able to witness to thousands of Jews gathered in the Temple portico and in the outer court. His fiery words and testimonies about Jesus were gladly received by the crowds. Luke records that some three thousand souls were baptized and added as new believers in Jesus (Acts. 2:41). The Feast of Pentecost is traditionally noted as being the birthday of the Church.
The Marriage Covenant Remembered
Shavuot also means “oaths,” for on this day God swore eternal covenant to His Chosen People, and the Israelites in turn pledged an everlasting loyalty to Him. Today, some Sephardic communities have a tradition of reciting a Ketubah l’Shavuot or symbolic marriage contract between the Jewish people and God to symbolize the betrothal of God and His people.
“First Fruits”
In ancient times, two wheat loaves would be offered in the Holy Temple on Shavuot. It was also at this time that people would begin to bring bikkurim, their first and choicest fruits, to thank God for Israel’s bounty. Shavuot began as a harvest festival or chag hakatzir, marking the end of the spring barley harvest and the beginning of the summer wheat harvest. In ancient times, Shavuot also was a pilgrimage festival during which Israelites brought offerings to the Temple in Jerusalem the “first fruits” of their harvest.
Customarily, the Book of Ruth is read during services on Shavuot. Ruth was a young Moabite woman who married an Israelite. When her husband died, she followed her mother-in-law, Naomi, back to Israel and adopted the Jewish faith and people as her own. To feed herself and Naomi, she gleaned in the field of Boaz, who then fell in love with her. They marry and among their descendants are King David and Jesus. The theme of Ruth’s conversion to Judaism is central to this story.
Pray for a breakthrough revival, and that the veil hiding the Jewish Messiah Yeshua be taken away. Hearts are “tender” in the midst of daily missile alerts, forest fires, a potential war with Iran, and ongoing war with Gaza, Hezbollah in the North, as well as Syria, plus international condemnations by the nations. Israelis are searching for answers to quiet their hearts. The LORD speaks to Jeremiah and says: “You shall seek me, and find me, when you shall search for me with all your heart.”
A Shavuot “Gift from the Houthis”
Last evening and today as well, the lives of most Israelis were disrupted as ballistic missiles were fired by Yemen’s Iranian supported Houthis rebels. The first incoming missile set off sirens shortly before 9 p.m. across central Israel, the Jerusalem area, several communities in Judea and Samaria, and some areas in southern Israel, sending millions to bomb shelters. It was intercepted by the Arrow anti-missile system near the Dead Sea, but the explosion was heard in many parts of Israel. There were no reports of injuries or damage in the attack, which marked the fourth from Yemen in the past week and the ninth in two weeks. Footage posted to social media showed the aftermath of the missile interception, with burning shrapnel falling from the sky.
The Houthis have a slogan or sarkha, which means “scream.” Banners bearing the sarkha dot the streets in areas of Yemen under Houthi control and are brandished by supporters at their rallies. It declares: “God is Great, death to America, death to Israel, a curse upon the Jews, victory to Islam” (Wikipedia).
Yet we who are believing Gentiles or Jewish also have a war-cry. It is found in Isaiah: “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord “ (Is. 54:17). Pray that scripture against the Houthis and may every evil work they conspire to do against Israel and America be frustrated and come to nothing.
The War in Gaza
Israel, after some 18 months of warfare against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, is gradually winning against this terrorist group. Negotiations to free the last 20-25 living Israeli hostages, though, have gone nowhere with Hamas continually rejecting any form of ceasefire. The leadership of this Islamic terror organization is based in Qatar, a small oil-rich Arab nation which gladly shelters the leadership of these Israeli-hating rebels. Pray and intercede for the release of all living hostages and the defeat of Hamas.
Today brought more sorrow to the citizens of Israel with the report that three Givati soldiers were killed when their Hummer was destroyed by a roadside IED.
Prime Minister Netanyahu released a statement: ”On behalf of all the citizens of Israel, my wife and I send our deepest condolences to the families of our heroic fighters…Our hearts go out to the families in this most terrible moment. We will forever appreciate the heroism of our soldiers, Lior, Ofek and Omer. May their memories be blessed and forever in the heart of the nation.” 861 IDF soldiers have fallen since October 7th 2023 (Times of Israel).
France advocates recognition of Palestine.
French President Macron recently announced that European nations should “harden the collective position against Israel if it did not respond appropriately to the humanitarian situation in Gaza” (Times of Israel). France is also considering recognizing a Palestinian State ahead of a United Nations conference which France and Saudi Arabia are co-hosting June 17-21st.
The Trump Administration issued a statement to the UN Security Council which said: “the United States stands with Israel in unequivocally rejecting any effort to unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state or impose conditions on Israel – which would be an unconscionable reward for the heinous Hamas attack on Israel that massacred and brutally kidnapped Israelis and Americans” (Jerusalem Post).
The main sticking point is who will rule the Temple Mount, and how to re-divide Jerusalem, which has been re-unified under Israel for some 58 years. The P.A. though, is continually demanding that Jerusalem will be its capital and seeks to control everything along pre-1967 lines including the Old City and the Mount of Olives. Pray that this conference bears no fruit for the Palestinian Authority, nor any of the participating nations.
The United Kingdom suspends trade talks with Israel
This week, Britain’s Labor government also halted trade talks with Israel, and pushed for the creation of a Palestinian State. The UK, with a high Muslim population, has also issued fresh sanctions against Israel over its “morally unjustifiable” escalation of violence in Gaza and has demanded an end to its “cruel and indefensible” 11-week block on humanitarian aid. No mention was made of Hamas keeping Israel’s 58 hostages (living and dead), and its refusal to free them at the expense of its own people.
Israel’s foreign ministry spokesperson Oren Marmorstein said Britain was harming its own economy and had an “anti-Israel obsession.” He called sanctions in relation to the West Bank “’unjustified and regrettable.’ And he added: ‘The British Mandate ended exactly 77 years ago. External pressure will not divert Israel from its path in defending its existence and security against enemies who seek its destruction’” (The Independent.co.uk).
Global Outpouring 50th Convention
Last month, over the Memorial Day holiday, Global Outpouring held its 50th gathering in St. Louis. This was the first time we met in St. Louis in ten years and about 250 people attended. We heard from Sigi Oblander, long time associate with Sister Gwen. Marylois and I also shared on Israel. Other speakers included Dean Braxton, Tony Kemp, Jeff Symons, and Sharon Buss. We had representatives from fourteen nations attending including a large group from New Zealand and China. Bob Baldwin and I also baptized twelve adults and children. All in all we had a glorious time and hope you can join us next year.
House of Peace Kitchen Renovation Update from Marylois:
I shared at our recent Convention about the renovations that have been accomplished at House of Peace that began in May, 2023. We are so grateful for all that everyone has given to bring much-needed updates to our beautiful ministry center. Our next phase is updating the kitchen.
Our architect/designer and downstairs neighbor, Dalia’s design for the kitchen includes:
1. Removing the half wall between the kitchen and the dining area. COMPLETED
2. New island for the stove with seating for four around the island.
3. Expanding the storage space. The new design will allow for new lower-level drawer storage for easy access. Dalia shared with me that she no longer designs kitchens with upper level cabinets as she believes they are not safe for any kitchen design. Thank you Lord, we won’t have to use a step-stool to the get dishes from the cabinets!
4. New counter tops.
5. New air-conditioning and heating unit in the kitchen. The old unit has been in the house before we purchased, and it is not working. It’s close to 30 years old.
The cost for this new kitchen renovation is approximately $35,000. The offering at Convention raised $7,000.00 Thank you, saints! Praise The Lord!
Thank you deeply for partnering with us to bring Global Outpouring-ETH House of Peace into this new season of ministry. Several prophetic intercessors have seen us “stretch our tent pegs” for the ministry days ahead! We are believing the Lord to move forward quickly! Once we have all the needed funds, we will start the new kitchen. I will keep you posted as the funds come in.
Again, thank you for your help with this vision for House of Peace as we continue our stewardship for the ongoing care of our beautiful HOP Ministry Center. August 5th, 2025 marks the 27th anniversary of the purchase of House of Peace. Praise God! What a Mighty God we serve!
To give online, click on the blue “Donate to Global Outpouring Israel Ministry” button below. Then click Please Choose Fund and select Renovations.
You can also send your gift by check to our office with note for House of Peace Renovations.
House of Peace Global Outpouring, PO Box 447, Jasper, AR 72641.
“Chag Shavuot sameach” (Have a Happy Shavuot).
Gene and Marylois
House of Peace, Jerusalem