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Photo of the Judean Hills by Emily Gissen
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Approaching the 18th anniversary year of weekly
Arrows from Zion,
it seems good to once again share the guiding vision of these email lists.
it seems good to once again share the guiding vision of these email lists.
My Vision for Arrows from Zion from August 2001 to Present
It is pretty simple really. It started because
even in a Messianic congregation I noticed that the majority of the focus was
on issues and prayers for Israel, but minimal focus on the body of believers in
Israel. It was the same thing among churches and Christian organizations that
supported Israel — rarely ever a mention made to pray for the few thousand Jewish believers in Israel, or the Messianic
congregations ministering to them. Both Diaspora Messianic congregations and
Israel-supporting churches tend to view their connection to Israel as somewhat
detached from the Israeli Messianic community in Israel. They hold the mandate
and the key to the harvest in Israel, as no one else does. That has to be
understood.
I had been exposed to the existence of Messianic
ministries through an Israeli minister who lived at that time in the United
States and co-pastored with Francis Frangipane. I signed up for Reuven Doron's Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem monthly
email about 1990 or so. He didn't name them by name, but his descriptions of
the ministries made me aware for the first time that they existed and they were
important. I already knew God had stirred my heart toward Israel, but this was
another step forward toward understanding God's purposes.
Soon after I came to see that God was intending
to restore the church to its "duty" to materially support the
Messianic Jewish believer ministries in Israel. It was not just about
supporting Israel in general as most of the Israel support I saw was directed
toward. Over the next several years my eyes were opened beyond Romans 15:26-27:
"For [the churches in] Macedonia and Achaia
were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem.
They were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles
have shared in their spiritual blessings, they are obligated to minister to
them with material blessings."
Many in the church today read that statement
without seeing that it was not just the debt owned by the first century
churches to the Israeli Messianic body of Messiah, but in God's eyes that duty
has never been abolished. Those Christians who grasp that truth often fail to
grasp the other truth in this passage, that the duty and duty of Christians is
not to contribute material blessings to Israel in general, but most
specifically to "the saints in Jerusalem".
As I read the letters from Paul, "Apostle to
the Gentiles," I began to see that it was not just that Macedonia and
Achaia that were making a contribution to the apostles in Jerusalem to
distribute. Paul was using them as an example to encouraged other, more
financially able churches to do the same.
Verses began to jump out at me in Paul's letters
and I saw from the time of Acts 12, when Peter and James were arrested by Herod
and James put to death — while Paul was in town to deliver a contribution to
the leaders of the Messianic faith! — Paul purposed himself to raising a
donation collection in all the churches. He made it a mission to instruct all
the churches he had helped to establish among the Gentiles, to take up a
collection specifically for the purpose of helping "the saints in
Jerusalem".
If you will study the phrase "the poor"
as used by Paul, in four out of six uses of the phrase, "the
poor," Paul is clearly referencing
the poor of Judea, and one is a reference to himself. (Ro 15:26, 1 Cor 16:1, 15; 2 Cor 9:1; and
9:12-13). Many people think Paul is
referring to the generic poor, but he is specifically referring to the
believers in Israel as poor. As a former aggressive persecutor of the Messianic
Jewish believers, Paul of all people understood the religious opposition in
Israel would always be great against the Jews of faith in Israel, as it
continues to be today.
Paul's urging of collection-taking went on for
several years and then came the point that leaders from the churches were to
take their collection and accompany Paul to Jerusalem to lay it at the feet of
the leadership there to distribute as needed for the ministry. The collection
was not going to the Temple, nor the Sanhedrin, nor any type of secular
representation of Israel — it was for those ministering the Gospel in Israel
and caring for the flock in Israel.
You may recall that on this last trip to
Jerusalem to carry this donation to the churches that the prophets of God were coming
out of the woodwork to warn Paul that if he went to Jerusalem, he would be
bound in chains. His freedom would be over. But Paul had "resolved in the
Spirit" that he must go. Many people teach that Paul made a big spiritual
mistake, but that is not what God has shown me.
God gave Paul a mandate to go set down the model
of support that the churches should give in support of the body of Messiah in
Israel for the ultimate Divine purpose that "all Israel shall be
saved" ...but God also showed Paul the price he would pay to fulfill the
mandate. Paul was determined that no matter what the cost to himself was
personally, he would do what God appointed him to do.
I believe this is what many congregational
leaders, ministries and Messianic Jewish believers in Israel are doing today.
And the mandate of the church to contribute to them so they can fulfill their
mandate is also still in full effect.
This is why the focus of my Weekly Summary of
Prayer Requests from Israeli Ministries and Arrows from Zion are not focused on
Israel in general, but on the Body of Messiah in Israel specifically.
My vision for these weekly prayer lists is not so
much to share about Israel, or Judaica, or how to pray about external threats,
or teachings from the Torah, or any other facet but the significance of the
Jewish believers in Israel. It is a Divine mandate of Christians to help the
believer ministries in Israel to fulfill their mandate of proclaiming Yeshua,
establishing and strengthening faith among the congregants and presenting the
witness to their countrymen that the answer to life, peace and joy truly does
lie in a relationship with Israel's hope, the Messiah of Israel Yeshua.
In the
coming weeks I will be writing about how and why there was a breakdown in the
churches materially supporting the believers in Israel. Here's one thing you
can chew on: it happened before the Nicene Council I, and in fact, the Nicene
Council might have been borne out of fears created in Rome by a request for the
restoration of giving to the believers in Israel. — Donna Diorio
Arrows from Zion
Summarized from the Weekly Summary of Prayer Requests Israeli Ministries by subscription only donna@israelprayer.com
Summarized from the Weekly Summary of Prayer Requests Israeli Ministries by subscription only donna@israelprayer.com
Sadly we are reporting yet three more deaths from the Israeli Messianic
community, a father, mother and their 2 month old infant son. A toddler daughter
has survived. It is news that has deeply impacted the body in Israel, which has
lost three precious ministers in the past month - now this tragic car accident
has taken the lives of a young, devoted to the Lord, family from their midst.
Please pray for comfort for the whole body of Messiah in Israel.
Moaz Ministries, Shira Sorko-Ram sends her report of the funeral which
was attended by "close to 1,000 people" about "half of them soldiers and pilots and officers, including
several generals." Rodrigo, was a "much beloved Major in the Israeli
Air Force." He grew up in the Tiferet Yeshua congregation, 1 of 7 Rostesky
children. He and his wife, Sophie were sold out believers and Shira calls him
"a role model of a true believer. His fellow soldiers testified of what a
lovable person he was, and his superior told of what a hard worker he was who
always carried out whatever orders he was given. In life, he passed the test,
and in death hundreds of soldiers heard the Good News."
Opher Amitai, Rodrigo and
Sophi's pastor from Jerusalem, "announced that the funeral would be held
according to the faith of Rodrigo - that is, a Messianic Jewish ceremony -
obviously with the approval of the Air Force. And so for 45 minutes, members of
the family and friends from their congregation spoke about his life and what it
stood for. They spoke about his family's faith in Yeshua HaMashiach." Please
pray for the families, both the natural family but also spiritual family who
mourn this tragic loss.
In the weekly prayer
requests, Maoz also asks for intercessions to be made for the September
elections. Without God's intervention, polls show the vote outcome will be
exactly the same as the last two votes, with no one able to form a government
coalition. This impasse would be greatly harmful to Israel going forward.
A wonderful report comes
from Eddie Santoro's widow, Jackie, who also speaks to the losses of Eliyahu
Ben Chaim, Ye'shi Reinhardt, and the Rostesky family. It has been difficult to absorb
the losses. Jackie writes, " Please pray for the Body in Israel as it
tries to understand and grapple with all that has happened in such a short
time. Pray for each family as it goes through this season of grief. May God's
comfort and love fill each one of us as we move forward day by day."
Jackie also writes, "After all that has happened since that day, we
are all so much more aware of how fleeting and fragile this life can be. How important it is to commit ourselves to
loving one another. Love leaves no regrets! .... Eddie never missed an
opportunity to show love. May this legacy live in me as I go forth. "Teach
us to number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom". (Psalm 90:12)"
Read her full letter here.
The Tikkun Cares monthly email features different ministries among Tikkun
and their special needs. This month the feature is Guy Cohen who leads "a
vibrant, on-fire Messianic community in Akko, Israel" where Guy was born
and raised in an Orthodox Jewish home — a fact that has brought Guy persecution
which he has weathered with the help of the LORD's Holy Spirit. Watch this VIDEO
to catch the vision that burns in Guy to see Jew and Gentile
united in Messiah Yeshua. The NEED: They have an opportunity to purchase space
next to their existing location which would allow expansion for the children,
youth ministries, space for counseling, training and family services plus food
and clothing distribution and so much more! Ron Cantor writes, "Please
hear me, this is a rare opportunity—roughly 9,300 square feet in three floors has
opened up right next to a Messianic community. We have to seize the moment. Read in full...
or Click to Donate
Also, directly from Guy Cohen on Facebook: "Yesterday I received a
phone call from the Manager of the Acco Welfare office. They asked if Harvest
of Asher could help support 200 children from at risk families with school
supplies for the coming school year before they return to school. The cost per child
is $75 and includes the following:
school bag with notebooks, pencil case with supplies, etc."
Evan and Maala Thomas of the Beit Asaph congregation in Netanya, have
returned from their 10-day intensive in Uganda - a sort of forward scouting
party before sending their congregant Miriam off in January 2020 for a long
term mission. They are building a school and an orphanage and the scouting
party certainly opened their eyes to the challenges and immersed them in the
compassion's of the Lord for the deep poverty of the people. If you are
interested to learn
more, or want to participate in this mission from Israel with love, contact & donation
Chuck Cohen's Intercessors for Israel Friday Prayer Points 7/19/19
includes prayer points for Iran, Iranian proxies, Security
along Gaza border, Security in Judea and Samaria, spiritual call to pray over
politics Israeli Elections, and for Aliyah.
Also, this IFI note of appreciation from Hanna Ben Haim and family: We as a
family have been greatly blessed by the outpouring of love and support which we
have received from around the world during this painful time. We know that your
prayers have held us up. Thank you also for those loving memories that so many
of you have shared. We will treasure them deeply. May we all continue to pray
and stand with the prophetic purposes of God for Israel and His people. With
much love from Hanna Ben Haim and family. Our dear friend Julie Stahl wrote an article
on Eliyahu recently that gives an overall picture of him.
What a lovely picture of the
love of God in a long, blessed marriage.
From Revive Israel: Yoni Koski writes Responding
to Non-Believers, Cody Archer with Don Finto in VIDEO Sustaining
Covenantal Relationships, Dan Juster VIDEO Available 24/7,
this article Partnership
with Arab Christians, and Asher's A Strategic Alliance
From Israel Pochtar, Beit Hallel and Voice of Judah ministries, a praise
report about their new live-stream
of services via Facebook. This thanks to new broadcast equipment allowing
them to minister to many who have given their lives to the LORD through
outreaches, but for reasons from being shut-ins, to pressure not to attend
Messianic services, are unable to attend. Now in the privacy of their own homes
they can access the worship and preaching. MOST DO NOT UNDERSTAND HOW VALUABLE
INTERNET OUTREACH IS TO REACH ISRAELIS —and privacy to learn and grow in faith
without persecution is a big reason why.
Also they share the touching testimony of Guy Pochtar as he took part in
an outreach to a Tel Aviv neighborhood "plagued by drug and alcohol abuse,
prostitution, as well as homelessness." At one point I looked up and
realized that two very different scenes were playing out in front of me. On one
side of the street there were people being deceived by the devil and making
horrible life decisions, and on the other side of the street there was a park
full of kids who were playing football and just behaving like normal kids.
Suddenly a thought came to me: "Are these kids going to end up like those
adults across the street?" Learn about their upcoming Youth Equipping
conference and other outreaches here
Ron Cantor, currently traveling in the US writes: The Most
Dangerous Woman in America (Ilhan Omar), Tiferet
Yeshua Renovations Underway, Is the
Genesis 12:3 ‘Bless Israel’ promise still valid? and Ron Cantor's
December Israel Tour Up to Zion {Arrows:
There is not any better tour of Israel than the ones that Messianic
Jewish leaders offer. Real potential to change your whole view of God's
purposes in the Holy Land.}
David Lazarus has a shocking article on Israel Today: 80% of
Israeli 13-Year-Old Boys Access Porn
Yariv Goldman, Ye'shi
Reinhardt's chosen successor for Tents of Victory and Hands of Mercy, continues to
carry forward the humanitarian work of the ministry, but is also going through
a reorganization to put greater emphasis on ministry to the lost sheep of
Israel. Please pray for Yariv and the team as they go forward in a direction
that ministers not only to the physical need, but to the spiritual need as
well.
The Jerusalem Institute of Justice has submitted a request to the International Criminal Court - ICC
to investigate the Head of the Political Wing of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, for
#crimes against humanity. Learn more at their site English
or Hebrew
Urgent HEALING Needs: Life and Death is
in the power of the tongue
Please keep in prayer these Israeli ministry leaders
and believers with urgent health needs
Please keep in prayer the Israeli believers who are
fighting for their lives or other urgent health needs:
CONTINUE to PRAY for the urgent healing needs of Jacob
Damkani | Ronit Bender is awaiting
results from her heart echo test results although she has she feels so much
better - but has had a persistent cough for months now. She will have to go to
a lungs doctor...and the heart valve is still leaking. Please continue to pray
for Ronit. She has been released to travel to Australia in Oct, and Holland in
Nov despite the outstanding issues.| Martin
Sarvis has undergone arthroscopic surgery and is now in the healing
process and physiotherapy. | Shlomy
Abramov of Awake Israel, because of a condition where blood does not flow
to his legs as it should, was advised by a specialist in case of injuries, he
could lose his leg because of the blood flow issues. Shlomy has to wrap his
legs daily because of the blood flow issues. Please pray for Shlomy | Ruth Nessim has recovered from a strong
2-month bout with Sciatica, but her most critical prayer need which she says may
required an operation. Please pray for Ruth in Nahariya| Olga
Bikas’s health condition that seems to have become chronic, with no hope
from the doctors for any improvement in the future. This, no doubt, puts an
additional emotional and physical burden on our family. Please pray for her
acute back pain. | Rania Sayegh asks for prayer of restoration of strength, energy, and complete
healing.
Teaching Articles
Israel's
tour guides — especially the Messianic faith tour guides because of Holy Spirit
insight — really have a way of opening our eyes beyond what we imagined is
contained in a simple biblical account. They are able to show us how
connected the accounts of real events in both the Hebrew scriptures and the New
Covenant scriptures are woven together by God and related past, present and
future. I thought this blog post was a great example of that from a certified
tour guide in the Messianic congregation in Kfar Saba, Kehilat HaMaayan.
A
Double Portion | by Ran Silberman | Read the full enlightening post online by
clicking title.
Elisha and Elijah crossed the Jordan river, in the same place where the sons of Israel had entered into Canaan led by Joshua. Elisha knew that Elijah was going to be taken from him - he heard this prophecy three times from the sons of the prophets. Elisha anticipated this moment and he had a plan. What was his plan? to become greater than his master! ....A spiritual principle | The principle we learn from Elisha is that when we approach God and ask for a gift - a spiritual gift - God wants to bestow on us. We might not be perfect, we may not be very nice. We certainly are considered sinners. It does not mean we cannot ask for gifts. And we can ask for a double portion of the Spirit!
Elisha and Elijah crossed the Jordan river, in the same place where the sons of Israel had entered into Canaan led by Joshua. Elisha knew that Elijah was going to be taken from him - he heard this prophecy three times from the sons of the prophets. Elisha anticipated this moment and he had a plan. What was his plan? to become greater than his master! ....A spiritual principle | The principle we learn from Elisha is that when we approach God and ask for a gift - a spiritual gift - God wants to bestow on us. We might not be perfect, we may not be very nice. We certainly are considered sinners. It does not mean we cannot ask for gifts. And we can ask for a double portion of the Spirit!
donna@israelprayer.com or donna@d10r10.com
THANK YOU to those who have considered this ministry worthy of financial support. Donations appreciated | paypal.me/DonnaDiorio Or by postal mail make donations payable to the order of Donna Diorio
P O Box 111302 Carrollton, Texas 75006
I do not have tax exempt status.
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