Jerusalem & Friends - latest book from Steve Martin - NOW AVAILABLE!

New book by Steve Martin

Jerusalem & Friends 

NOW AVAILABLE! 

Buy now. Click here: Amazon Paperback $7.95
E-book $1.99: Kindle Version

Sharing this book, containing some of my experiences in Jerusalem, is a joy, and also a promise to always stand with Israel. Steve Martin

When one considers Jerusalem, your first thoughts may be of wonder – why are the nations so bent on telling its people what to do, how to do it, and when to do it? It is as if they are the supreme governors, rather than the Jews whose capital of Israel it is.

When the Jew, King David, first made Jerusalem his capital city, long before other nations and religions even existed, over 3,000 years ago, he was following in the commands of the Lord, God of Israel, to do so. Upon the same mountain that Abraham was about to sacrifice his son Isaac on Mount Moriah, King David established the city where the Lord would later have His temple built by David’s son King Solomon.

Now centuries later, prior to the time when the Third Temple will be built on the same location, the Jews have returned to their Promised Land, re-established their nation in 1948, and recaptured the entire city of Jerusalem, during the Six Day War in 1967. The times of the Gentiles rule over the city have drawn to an end. The time of the Jews will complete this end.

The year 5778 on the Jewish calendar, or 2018 on the Gregorian one, will see Israel celebrate its 70^th year of modern-day statehood.

Having been victorious in the wars surrounding nations have begun against them, the Jewish people continue to be under the protection of the Lord Almighty, Who Himself will cause them to be the fulfillment of Scripture, and be in the Land that He will return to, as the Ruler of the Nations.

Those who stand with Israel, and particularly Jerusalem, will receive the promised blessings given to those who do so. The ones who oppose the purposes of God for this people and land will receive the eternal judgment He also promises He will hand out.

Sharing this book, containing some of my experiences in Jerusalem, is a joy, and also a promise to always stand with Israel.

Steve Martin

P.S. It contains over 60 photos I took while in Israel.

Buy now. Click here: Amazon Paperback $7.95

PRODUCT DETAILS Paperback: 118 pages Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (December 16, 2017) Language: English ISBN-10: 1981733256 ISBN-13: 978-1981733255 Product Dimensions: 5 x 0.3 x 8 inches Shipping Weight: 6.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies) Average Customer Review: Be the first to review this item TABLE OF CONTENTS Dedication                                           Page 5 Introduction                                         Page 6 1. Jerusalem                                         Page 8 2. The Holy City                                 Page 15 3. Jerusalem Connections                   Page 22 4. Derek Prince & Israel                     Page 28 5. The Western Wall                           Page 34 6. Dov and the Children                      Page 38 7. The Camels                                     Page 44 8. Yad Vashem-Holocaust Museum   Page 50 9. Louie – the Arab                             Page 57 10. O Little Town of Bethlehem         Page 61 More Photos of Israel by Steve Martin       Page 68 ABOUT THE AUTHOR                              Page 79 CONTACT INFORMATION                     Page 81 THE OTHER 16 BOOKS                            Page 84   BY STEVE MARTIN

Jerusalem & Friends - Louie, the Arab. Now Think On This by Steve Martin

Jerusalem & Friends

-          Louie, the Arab

Now Think On This

Steve Martin

"The sons of Abraham were Isaac and Ishmael.” (1 Chronicles 1:28, NASU)

A short walk inside Jerusalem’s Old City Jaffa Gate takes you down the narrow street, lined on each side with Judaica, olive wood, clothing and spice shops. That’s where I first met Louie, or rather Louie met me. He was on the lookout for tourists whom he could draw into his brother’s gift shop. As was my custom, I was open to shopping.

This past year in 2017 Louie said he first got acquainted with me in 1994 and gave the exact date. Knowing he has a sharp mind, I figured he was right, but I sure didn’t remember. I do recall he offered me orange juice or Arab coffee, my choice, which was a customary way of getting one into their shops. Of course, always liking to receive that which is free, I obliged and followed him down the cobbled, slick stone walk a quick distance. His brother had an elaborate shop, filled with Jewish and Arab items of all sorts. Some were actually made in Israel. Most were Chinese imports.

Now after these many years, Louie has his own shop. He explained that the tourism numbers are very good, but those coming now are less apt to buy, making it tough for him to earn enough to pay the high rent. With his small shop along this busy section of the Old City’s Quarters, one of four (Christians, Jews, Muslims and Armenians, each having a quarter within the outside walls) many walk by but few buy. He continued explaining that when the Americans came in huge numbers, sales were good. Now more and more are coming from China, Southeast Asia, and South America, but they tend to purchase less goods. Hence Louie said he has to spend longer hours to attempt making the sales in order to meet his expenses.

Wanting to support him too, as I have regularly done with the Jewish shop owners on Ben Yehuda Street, less than an hour’s walk west out of Jaffa Gate, he picked out items on my list I had in my mind. Olive wood camels, menorahs and possibly a piece of jewelry for my good wife Laurie. He pulled several nice pieces from behind the glass doors covering the display cases. One beautiful menorah (7 branch candle piece) was one of the few left he had on hand, actually made in Israel. With the cheaper imports from China, competition is high, forcing even the locals to get out of the manufacturing business. I bought the silver-plated menorah because it had the “Made in Israel” label adhered to the base. Support blue and white!

Adding to my menorah purchase was a three-piece camel set, of course, made out of olive wood, hand carved in Israel. There is something about camels that amaze me. Beasts of burden to carry goods for the people.  

Then he pulled out of a special wooden drawer several pieces of fine shaped silver and Eilat Stone necklaces (green and blue color stone from south Israel). Among them was my final choice, having already almost exceeded my budget - a very beautiful necklace for Laurie. Though she isn’t much on jewelry, occasionally she does appreciate this type of gift, and so the Tree of Life piece was chosen.

It is always a joy for me to spend time with Louie, hearing of his daily life as an Arab in Jerusalem. Life can be hard at times he shares, but he appreciates what he has. Here he can have his own business and livelihood, knowing freedom is not found everywhere in the Middle East.

Next time you are in the Jaffa Gate area, look around for my friend Louie. He will be looking out for you, and is anxious to share his goods with you. At a good price!

Shalom and ahava (peace and love in Hebrew).

Now think on this,

Steve Martin

Founder/President

Love For His People, Inc.

Please be sure to sign up for our newsletter. Use the "Sign Up" button on our website, or go here: Sign Me Up!

If these messages have ministered to you, please consider sending a charitable gift of $10-$50 today, and maybe each month, to help us bless families in Israel whom we consistently help monthly through our humanitarian work. Your tax-deductible contributions receive a receipt for each donation. Fed. ID #27-1633858.

  

Secure, conveniently contributions can be done online now. Click here: DONATE (or use the DONATE buttons on the blog.)

Contribution checks can be sent to: 

Love For His People, Inc. 

P.O. Box 414   

Pineville, NC 28134

Todah rabah! (Hebrew – Thank you very much.) 

Please share Now Think On This with your friends on Facebook, Google+, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr and LinkedIn.  We appreciate your help.

Now Think On This #337 - in the year of our Lord 12.15.17 – “Jerusalem & Friends – Louie, the Arab”, Friday, 12:30 pm

NOW AVAILABLE - New book by Steve Martin - Jerusalem & Friends

New book by Steve Martin

Jerusalem & Friends 

NOW AVAILABLE! 

Buy now. Click here: Amazon Paperback $7.95
Kindle version: E-book $1.99

Those who stand with Israel, and particularly Jerusalem, will receive the promised blessings given to those who do so. Sharing this book, containing some of my experiences in Jerusalem, is a joy, and also a promise to always stand with Israel. Steve Martin

When one considers Jerusalem, your first thoughts may be of wonder – why are the nations so bent on telling its people what to do, how to do it, and when to do it? It is as if they are the supreme governors, rather than the Jews whose capital of Israel it is.

When the Jew, King David, first made Jerusalem his capital city, long before other nations and religions even existed, over 3,000 years ago, he was following in the commands of the Lord, God of Israel, to do so. Upon the same mountain that Abraham was about to sacrifice his son Isaac on Mount Moriah, King David established the city where the Lord would later have His temple built by David’s son King Solomon.

Now centuries later, prior to the time when the Third Temple will be built on the same location, the Jews have returned to their Promised Land, re-established their nation in 1948, and recaptured the entire city of Jerusalem, during the Six Day War in 1967. The times of the Gentiles rule over the city have drawn to an end. The time of the Jews will complete this end.

The year 5778 on the Jewish calendar, or 2018 on the Gregorian one, will see Israel celebrate its 70^th year of modern-day statehood.

Having been victorious in the wars surrounding nations have begun against them, the Jewish people continue to be under the protection of the Lord Almighty, Who Himself will cause them to be the fulfillment of Scripture, and be in the Land that He will return to, as the Ruler of the Nations.

Those who stand with Israel, and particularly Jerusalem, will receive the promised blessings given to those who do so. The ones who oppose the purposes of God for this people and land will receive the eternal judgment He also promises He will hand out.

Sharing this book, containing some of my experiences in Jerusalem, is a joy, and also a promise to always stand with Israel.

Steve Martin

P.S. It contains over 60 photos I took while in Israel.

Buy now. Click here: Amazon Paperback $7.95

E-book: Kindle $1.99

Product details Paperback: 118 pages Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (December 16, 2017) Language: English ISBN-10: 1981733256 ISBN-13: 978-1981733255 Product Dimensions: 5 x 0.3 x 8 inches Shipping Weight: 6.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies) Average Customer Review: Be the first to review this item

Jerusalem & Friends - O Little Town of Bethlehem. Now Think On This by Steve Martin

Jerusalem & Friends

-          O Little Town of Bethlehem

Now Think On This

Steve Martin

"But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting." (Micah 5:2, NKJV)

A short six miles south of Jerusalem in Israel is the town of Bethlehem, or Beit Lechem (House of Bread) as it is properly named in Hebrew. Once a small Jewish town centuries ago, it has now been deemed a town primarily for a majority population of Palestinian Muslims. I have been there several times – first in 1994, before Palestinian rule took over in 1995, and lastly in 2017. 

A lot had changed in those decades, and as a result, it isn’t what it once was. The vast majority of Jews and Christians have been forced to leave their once thriving homes in this part of Judea, as the now so-called “West Bank” territorial population rulers do not have the toleration level for others, which is found elsewhere in Israel under the full Jewish government. Let the truth be known.

There no more remain the family shops which once produced the popular olive wood figurines and the like for the vast amount of tourists who used to “flock here” from their international homes. Oh, they still come in numbers, but only under heavy security and other safety precautions that must be taken. After I drove my rented car through Beit Lechem in May, 2017, a Jerusalemite afterward told me that the auto insurance I had would not have covered any damage if it had gotten stoned within the city limits. (If I ever return there by car, I will keep that in mind.) 

The Church of the Nativity still stands over the most probable place where the Lord, Messiah Yeshua, chose to come as man in the flesh, to fulfill the first of a multitude of prophetic Scripture, long ago prophesied. This is where Jesus’ birth on earth took place. The Jewish prophet Micah had written of it centuries prior. Though it isn’t the same peaceful abode it was back then, when shepherds watched their flocks at night in the hills surrounding, nonetheless, it still remains as a witness to the world that the Savior has come.

In my last visit to Bethlehem, by myself in that rented auto, I took great liberty to mingle among those tourists from India, China, Korea, Europe and the Americas who walked within the large church structure, built over what is believed to be the exact location of Yeshua’s birth. When in your mind you peel away the man-made brick and mortar that covers the simple spot beneath the floors, you realize that in His first coming the Savior of the world came quietly and without fanfare. Those looking for Him would soon enough realize His desire to first come as the Lamb, before His soon coming return as the Lion.

For my Catholic friends, of which traditions I grew up with, the Mass taking place over the church marked spot, though spoken by the Orthodox priest in another language which I knew not, still carried love and respect for this historical site and the Person whom these call upon. I pray they know Him as their Lord and Savior, the Living God of Israel, and not as one from a story taught from religious traditions, stripped of His true Glory. (Photo by Steve Martin: May 2017 Church of the Nativity, Catholic  Mass being said over the believed location of Yeshua's birth.)

To me, it is not so much the exact time when the Savior came during the calendar year, but the fact that He has come. Believing in Jesus’ birth, His very real life on earth, sacrificial death upon the cross and manifested bodily resurrection, all in fulfillment of Torah and Scriptural written prophesy is what matters the most. Those who know Him as Lord will reign with Him once His glorious return back to Jerusalem occurs. I so look forward to that and rest my hopes upon Him.

“O come to us, abide with us, Our Lord Emmanuel.”

Shalom and ahava (peace and love in Hebrew).

Now think on this,

Steve Martin

Founder/President

Love For His People, Inc.

Please be sure to sign up for our newsletter. Use the "Sign Up" button on our website, or go here: Sign Me Up!

If these messages have ministered to you, please consider sending a charitable gift of $10-$50 today, and maybe each month, to help us bless families in Israel whom we consistently help monthly through our humanitarian work. Your tax-deductible contributions receive a receipt for each donation. Fed. ID #27-1633858.

  

Secure, conveniently contributions can be done online now. Click here: DONATE 

(or use the DONATE buttons on the blog.)

Contribution checks can be sent to: 

Love For His People, Inc. 

P.O. Box 414   

Pineville, NC 28134

Todah rabah! (Hebrew – Thank you very much.) 

Please share Now Think On This with your friends on Facebook, Google+, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr and LinkedIn.  We appreciate your help.

Now Think On This #336 - in the year of our Lord 12.10.17 – “Jerusalem & Friends – O Little Town of Bethlehem”, Sunday, 7:40 am

Jerusalem & Friends - The Holy City. Now Think On This by Steve Martin

Jerusalem & Friends

-          The Holy City

Now Think On This

Steve Martin

“I have chosen Jerusalem that My name might be there…” (2 Chronicles 6:6, NASU)

On December 6, 2017, President Donald Trump of the United States declared that America would officially recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. That was a very good decision, being the Creator of the Universe, Jesus Christ Himself, feels the same way. He chose Jerusalem as the place where His name would be.

It is a good thing to be on the side of God Almighty. We are glad you are, Mr. President.

Jerusalem is the place where both Jews and Christians have had numerous holy sites, for centuries, situated on the mountains and hills surrounding God's city. Nations have fought over it; millions have died because of it; the Savior of mankind brought His message of love and hope to its very ancient streets.

  

The very first time I came into the holy city, in the late 1980’s, wasn’t on foot, horseback, a donkey or camel, as the Jews have done beginning centuries ago. It was in an air-conditioned tour bus, with 40 people, at night time, climbing up the highway from the east, beyond the Jordan River and the Dead Sea. The city was aglow with the glimmering lights shining forth into the October sky. It was an amazing site.

The tour guide then began playing on the bus sound system the song Holy City, Jerusalem (here is a version by John Starnes on YouTube: Holy City, Jerusalem.) I could feel my spirit welling up inside me. Listening to the words, I could sense the very real presence of the Lord overtake myself and those who had come to this Land, this Holy City, the place where Jesus (Yeshua) walked. The very place where He will soon return to again.

During that first tour we visited the Old City, including the Western Wall, the Upper Room, and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. We also went to The Church of All Nations, Gethsemane and the Garden Tomb. Each step of the way we witnessed spiritual and historical locations that pilgrims from all over the world wait a lifetime to come and walk within and upon.

To imagine that this is the very place where the Messiah chose to bring His eternal word, in the flesh, to first the Jews, and then through them, had it taken from here to the very ends of the earth. The Good News of redemption, salvation, and freedom from sin came forth from His Holy City, Jerusalem.

While on staff with Derek Prince Ministries, I once heard that Bible teacher Derek had spoken these words. "You do not choose Jerusalem. Jerusalem chooses you." For some time, I did not understand that. Now I do. It takes a spiritual awakening to know and affirm the Lord's heart for Jerusalem, Israel, and the Jewish people. With the vast majority of the nations opposed to the plans and purposes of Jerusalem and the Chosen people, only a move of the Lord Himself, through His Holy Spirit touching your heart and spirit, will enable one to stand in support of them. It may even cost one their life if they are truly committed to His eternal plan.

Jerusalem is as no other place on earth. The spiritual dimension that radiates from this place itself declares that God the Father has in place His full will to continue to make this the center of the earth. And it will be at this very place where the new Jerusalem will come down from heaven and rest upon the holy mount, as destined from the beginning of time.

“And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. Her brilliance was like a very costly stone, as a stone of crystal-clear jasper. It had a great and high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels; and names were written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel.

There were three gates on the east and three gates on the north and three gates on the south and three gates on the west. And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.” (Revelation 21:10-14, NASU)

Shalom and ahava (peace and love in Hebrew).

Now think on this,

  

Steve Martin

Founder/President

Love For His People, Inc.

Please be sure to sign up for our newsletter. Use the "Sign Up" button on our website, or go here: Sign Me Up!

If these messages have ministered to you, please consider sending a charitable gift of $10-$50 today, and maybe each month, to help us bless families in Israel whom we consistently help monthly through our humanitarian work. Your tax-deductible contributions receive a receipt for each donation. Fed. ID #27-1633858.

  

Secure, conveniently contributions can be done online now. Click here: DONATE 

(or use the DONATE buttons on the blog.)

Contribution checks can be sent to: 

Love For His People, Inc. 

P.O. Box 414   

Pineville, NC 28134

Todah rabah! (Hebrew – Thank you very much.) 

Please share Now Think On This with your friends on Facebook, Google+, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr and LinkedIn.  We appreciate your help.

Now Think On This #335 - in the year of our Lord 12.06.17 – “Jerusalem & Friends – The Holy City”, Wednesday 6:00 pm