Ahava Love Letter (#52) - Angels & Entertainment"

"Angels & Entertainment" “Let brotherly friendship continue; but don’t forget  to be friendly to outsiders; for in so doing, some people,  without knowing it, have entertained angels." Heb 13:1-2 CJB (Complete Jewish Bible)

Dear family of friends,

To my knowledge I have never entertained angels. Or even seen one.

The most recent time may have been, I might venture to say, when our ferocious, 14 pound Dachshund Zoe Girl martin, though not bigger than a fat rabbit, growled at something she must have seen in our home. With my “naked eyes” I couldn’t. But then she pretends to be the watchdog no matter what size the foe, or friend, she encounters, at first.

As “they” say, when some encounter angels they tend to freeze up in fear. I probably would too. (Except I have Zoe nearby.)

I have always liked angels. Especially my guardian angel, whom I first believed in when I was little. Then when I “got bigger”, I thought it all was a myth. Just like Santa Claus and the tooth fairy became when I reached the  pre-tween era.  Now I have made full circle.

If the Lord Adonai says there are angels, there are angels. You know, “He said it. I believe it. That settles it.”

Why I am writing about angels in this 52nd edition of my Ahava Love Letters? Because I woke up again this morning, at 3:34 am to be exact (I missed the 3:33 marked by a minute!) and the Lord spoke the word “entertainment.”

And so for the next five hours I thought He wanted me to share about all the time we humans spend on personal entertainment. As in watching TV episodes, movie blockbusters, attending dance halls, chasing the beach ball in the sand, or a day at the NASCAR track to see #24 win (hopefully.)

But as I sat down to write, His Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit) spoke further in guidance, for us to consider the reality of “entertaining angels.”

Can He be saying that in these last days, we will become more aware of the angelic hosts all around us? Some of them are daily waging war in the heavenlies, as does Michael the Archangel in his protection over Israel.

Or our guardian angels keeping watch over our steps, as the enemy and Adversary of our soul tries to daily bring discouragement, steal our joy, and take us down the wrong path? I think maybe so.

If Zoe sees another angel in our home (I hope she does!), I am going to ask the Lord that He open my eyes too, to see this mighty one of the Lord God of Israel. Or if one comes to my front door, whom I would be able to see in the natural, I want to be quick to acknowledge the purpose of his ministering mission. I want to know how to properly entertain him and receive the message he may be bringing.

Do they drink coffee? I’ll let you know. 

Ahava to my family of friends,

Steve Martin

Founder/President

Love For His People, Inc. truly appreciates your generous support. Please consider sending a monthly charitable gift of $5-$25 each month to help us bless Messianic Jews in Israel. You can send checks to the address below. Todah rabah! (Hebrew - Thank you very much.)

©2013 Steve  Martin      Love For His People, Inc.  12120 Woodside Falls Rd. Pineville, NC 28134      

E-mail: loveforhispeople@gmail.com martinlighthouse@gmail.com

Facebook pages: Steve Martin  and  Love For His People       

Twitter: martinlighthous, LovingHisPeople and ahavaloveletter 

Websites: http://loveforhispeople.blogspot.com         www.loveforhispeople.org

YouTube: Steve Martin (loveforhispeopleinc)

Love For His People, Inc. is a charitable, not-for-profit USA organization. Fed. ID#27-1633858.  
Tax deductible contributions receive a receipt for each donation.

Ahava Love Letter #52   Date: In the year of our Lord 2013 (05/05/13 Sunday 9:30 a.m. Charlotte, NC)

Zoe Girl Martin. Fierce puppy!

Possibly my guardian angel?!

Zoe in prayer.

She could be an angel. Looks fierce!

 

Paul Wilbur - Blessed Is The Lord - Desert Rain

Paul Wilbur - Blessed Is The Lord - Desert Rain

YouTube

(Photo by Steve Martin 2012)

HisStory

He came among us.

He expressed His Love 

for us.

He died on our behalf...

...and showed that
HE IS
the Lamb of God,  

the Lion of the Tribe
of Judah.

He rose from the dead, 

to fulfill the Messianic prophecies.

HE IS ALIVE!

When He returns, 

He will come through 

the Golden Gate of Jerusalem. 

Nothing will stop Him.

Be blessed 

in your believing.

Yeshua HaMashiach

Jesus the Messiah

Barry & Batya Segal - Founders of Vision For Israel & The Joseph Storehouse

Barry and Batya Segal, founders of Vision for Israel and The Joseph Storehouse in Israel (plus in the USA, UK, The Netherlands, Germany), lead worship at their annual Sukkot Celebration (Feast of Tabernacles) in 2009. People from many nations gathered to bless Yeshua HaMashiach. 

Barry & Batya Segal lead worship

Barry shares a word on the Worship Boat crossing the Sea of Galilee (The Kinneret)

 

 The Segal puppies - Baloo and Chio.

Batya with granddaughter

Barry speaking at the 

Sukkot Celebration meeting 

under a large succah!

Batya and Barry in their home succah

during Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles)

Barry likes the Beatles (among other bands) 

from his Detroit days back in the '60's -'70's.

Love For His People bless the Segals and their great work through Vision for Israel and The Joseph Storehouse. For more information on their humanitarian outreach in Israel, tours, on-line bookstore, TV program, and to sign up for their weekly newsletter "Jerusalem-On-Line", visit their website. (Link below.)

Vision For Israel

Photos by Steve Martin, except for the one I am in. I believe Peter Nissen, from The Netherlands Vision for Israel office, took it. (2009 in Israel)

Shabbat Shalom to our Jewish friends!

We send our love (ahava) 

to our friends in Israel! 

Our support for you 

grows stronger 

every day, 

and our encouragement 

to you 

will know no end!

May the good Lord, 

God of Israel, 

Yeshua HaMashiach, 

continually reveal His love 

and faithfulness to you.

Seek Yeshua, 

and He will be found. 

It is He 

who protects, 

provides, 

and is pleased 

to call you 

His people, 

as a witness 

to the nations.

And so, once again,

joined with many 

other Christians 

in the nations, 

we proclaim to you!

Have a blessed day!

Shalom and ahava to our family of friends,

Steve & Laurie Martin
Love For His People

Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day) in Israel - May 8, 2013

Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day) in Israel

Quick Facts

Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day) is the anniversary of Jerusalem's reunification.

Name

Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day)

Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day) 2013

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day) 2014

Wednesday, May 28, 2014
List of dates for other years

Yom Yerushalayim, also known as Jerusalem Day, commemorates Jerusalem's reunification in 1967. This day begins on 28th day of the month of Iyyar in the Hebrew calendar.

Yom Yerushalayim is a public holiday in Israel but is observed by many Jewish people worldwide.

What do people do?

Throughout the world, including the United States, Zionist Jews mark Yom Yerushalayim with a range of events. These include: recitations of the Hallel prayer for praise and thanksgiving in synagogues; street parades, parties, singing and dancing; special meals; and lectures on the history and future of Jerusalem and Zionism. In Jerusalem, a public reception by the mayor of Jerusalem, state ceremonies and memorial services for those who died in the Six-Day War are also held. In Israel, some people mark the occasion by traveling or even hiking to Jerusalem. Non-Zionist Jews and Arabs may see the day as one of mourning and wear black or fly black flags.

Public life

Yom Yerushalayim is a public holiday in Israel. It is not a public holiday in countries such as Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom or the United States. However, many Jewish organizations may be closed or offer a limited service so special events can be held.

Background

After Israel declared its independence in 1948, it was attacked by the neighboring Arab countries, resulting in the Arab-Israeli War. At the end of this war, the city of Jerusalem was divided. Israeli forces controlled most of the city and East Jerusalem, including the Old City, was controlled by Jordanian forces. The Old City was important for strategic and religious reasons, as many sites of religious importance are in this part of the city. These include: the Dome of the Rock and al-Asqa Mosque (Muslims); the Temple Mount and the Western Wall or Kotel (Jewish); and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre (Christian).

On June 7, 1967, one day into the Six-Day War, Israeli forces captured the old city of Jerusalem. This resulted in the reunification of Jerusalem as part of Israel. According to the Hebrew calendar, it was the 28th day of the month of Iyar in the year 5727 and the anniversary of this date is known as Yom Yerushalayim or Jerusalem Day.

The 40th anniversary of the reunification of Jerusalem was in 2007. The slogan for the celebrations in this year translates as "Something special for everyone", with a play on the Hebrew words for "special" and "united". A special logo representing the number 40 and the city walls was presented and the approach to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv was decorated with blue lighting.

The anniversary of the reunification of the city of Jerusalem under Israeli control is not celebrated by everybody. Many Muslims and non-Zionists or Orthodox Jews see Jerusalem Day as an occasion for mourning. They may mark this with parades or special prayers on the same day as Yom Yerushalayim or on the Day of Quds on the last Friday of the Islamic month of Ramadan.

http://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/israel/yom-yerushalayim

Is he a Jew, or not?

Thursday, May 02, 2013 |  Ryan Jones  

Ami Ortiz, Messianic Jewish believer (far right)

A few months ago, a Jerualem court finally convicted "Jewish terrorist" Jack Teitel with killing two Palestinians Arabs and trying to kill two Israelis, including Messianic Jewish youth Ami Ortiz. The court rejected the argument that Teitel was not sane.

One of the aspects of the case that stuck out to the Messianic community was the decision that Ami Ortiz would not be awarded the damages typically paid to a victim of terrorism.

The Israeli Defense Ministry approves damages to Arabs attacked by Jews, or Jews attacked by Arabs as victims of terrorism. But Jew-on-Jew violence is classified as crime, not terrorism, and therefore ineligible for such damages.

Wait, Jew-on-Jew violence? But doesn't the state officially reject the notion that Messianic believers in Yeshua are still Jewish? That's the question that many Israeli believers were asking following the ruling.

The State of Israel in many cases has refused to recognize Messianic believers as Jews when it came to the "Right of Return," the right to immigrate to the Jewish state.

Ami's mother, Leah Ortiz, told Israel Today that the situation is simply absurd. "When it is convenient, we are Jews, when it is inconvenient, we are not," noted Leah.

The Ortiz family is pleased that Israel is finally recognizing them as Jews, but that doesn't change the fact that the attack on Ami was a hate crime no less serious than Teitel's murder of two Palestinian Arabs.

"We have begun a campaign along with our lawyer to change Ami's status in the ministry of Defense which is responsible for declaring our attack as a terror attack," Leah said, explaining that Ami has decades of ongoing and expensive treatment ahead of him.

The Ortiz family has asked for all those concerned to please write to Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon and request he change the classification of the attack against Ami. Minister Ya'alon's email address is: myaalon@knesset.gov.il

http://www.israeltoday.co.il/NewsItem/tabid/178/nid/23825/Default.aspx?ref=newsletter-20130502

"My iris are on the world." - The Lord's creation amazes me. See?

"My iris are on...

...the world."

Photos by Steve Martin, May 1, 2013, Charlotte NC area

(Riddle Interpretations: "His eyes (iris) are on the world (ducks)." 

or - "The flowers are stacked above the ducks.")

Just a simple thought. Any others you want to suggest?

If His eyes are on the flowers, and the birds, even the sparrow, 

you can believe that His eyes are on you.

He calls out you to daily, drawing you to Himself, through His creation. 

If you do not know Jesus Christ, Yeshua HaMashiach, call upon His Name today, and He will hear you. You will see Him for Who He is, the Lover of your soul.

Watchman on the Wall - Bill Koenig "Eye To Eye"

Watchman on the Wall

Bill Koenig has served as a White House correspondent for many years. He's the author of "Eye to Eye, Facing the Consequences of Dividing Israel" and runs a website called Koenig International News (www.watch.org). 

During a recent visit to Jerusalem, we talked about his perspective on the situation in the Middle East, the dangers threatening Israel and how Christians should be responding "for such a time as this."

Bill Koening, Koenig International News

(Editor's Note: I first met Bill at our Vision for Israel (Barry & Batya Segal) conference in Houston, TX. that we did in 2006. He had written "Eye to Eye" by then. Very interesting. And his wife is a prayer warrior! Steve Martin)


http://blogs.cbn.com/jerusalemdateline/archive/2013/05/01/watchman-on-the-wall.aspx

Stakelbeck on Terror: Joel Rosenberg's "Damascus Countdown" - April 30, 2013

Stakelbeck & Rosenberg on TV program Stakelbeck On Terror

View video:

Stakelbeck on Terror: Joel Rosenberg's "Damascus Countdown" - April 30, 2013


http://www.cbn.com/tv/2341221849001

Bible Comes to Life (videos)

(Editor's Note: These are good to watch, whether you have never been to Israel, or are going again. And yes, you can join us on our annual Ahava Adventures to Israel too!  Steve Martin)

THE BIBLE COMES TO LIFE IN NEW      HOLY LAND TOURISM VIDEO SERIES

New York - May 1, 2013: The Israel Ministry of Tourism, North and South America, recently released its 12-part "Bible Comes to Life" series, offering a comprehensive look into the foundations of Christianity and its context within the Holy Land. \ "The Bible Comes to Life" series provides insight into the religious significance and modern-day importance of Christian holy sites throughout Israel, from Mount Gilboa, Tabgha and the Sea of Galilee to Caesarea, Jerusalem and the Dead Sea. Each episode is hosted by Omer Eshel, Director, Israel Government Tourist Office - Chicago, and places quotes and scriptures from the Bible within the context of the Holy Land. "We are thrilled to present our new video series, which offers detailed insight into Christian holy sites in Israel," said Haim Gutin, Israel Commissioner for Tourism, North and South America. "We hope the videos inspire a new wave of faith-based travelers from around the world to arrive in Israel this year to experience first-hand where the Bible comes to life." Travelers can order a free copy of "The Bible Comes to Life," which features HD footage filmed on location in Israel, by contacting info@goisrael.com. To preview episodes from "The Bible Comes to Life" series, visit http://tinyurl.com/cur9zkb. For more information about tourism to Israel, visit www.goisrael.com. MEDIA CONTACTS Ross Belfer at WEILL - rbelfer@geoffreyweill.com - 1-866-PRWEILL Israel Ministry of Tourism, N.A. - Gail Barzilay - gailbarzilay@imot.org - 212-499-5647 Israel Government Tourist Office, Southern USA - Dana Shemesh - danas@imot.org - 404-541 2770 Israel Government Tourist Office, Midwest USA - Jill Daly - jilld@imot.org - 312-803-7077 Israel Government Tourist Office, Western USA - Dan Manor - danm@imot.org - 323-658-7463 ISRAEL GOVERNMENT TOURIST OFFICES ◦ NORTH AMERICA Los Angeles ◦ Director: Eliezer Hod ◦ 323-658-7463 Canada ◦ Director: Ami Allon ◦ 416-964-3784  New York ◦ Director: Shahar Alon ◦ 212-499-5650 Atlanta ◦ Director: Joe Diaz ◦ 404-541-2770 Chicago ◦ Director: Omer Eshel ◦ 312-803-7080