Standing in support of Israel, Jews, and believers in all the nations, in the name of Jesus (Yeshua). Sharing biblical truth, encouragement, news and prophecy.
Happy is the man who has not followed the counsel of the wicked, or taken the path of sinners, or joined the company of the insolent. Psalms 1:1 (The Israel Bible™)
אַשְׁרֵי־הָאִישׁ אֲשֶׁר לֹא הָלַךְ בַּעֲצַת רְשָׁעִים וּבְדֶרֶךְ חַטָּאִים לֹא עָמָד וּבְמוֹשַׁב לֵצִים לֹא יָשָׁב Hear the verse in Hebrew
ash-ray ha-EESH a-SHER LO ha-LAKH ba-a-TZAT r’-sha-EEM uv-DE-rekh KHA-ta-eem LO a-MAD uv-mo-SHAV lay-TZEEM LO ya-SHAV
The Path of Righteousness
King David begins the Book of Psalms by focusing on man. This man's first action is to walk, in Hebrew halakh (הלך), and immediately upon setting out on his journey he is forced to decide which path he should take: righteous or wicked, fruitful or barren. This ‘walking’ reminds us of God’s first words to Avraham (Abraham) directing him to travel to the land of Israel, lech lecha (לך לך), ‘Go forth’ (Genesis 12:1), and more significantly, kum hithalekh ba’aretz (קום התהלך בארץ), ‘Arise, walk about the land’ (Genesis 13:17). David may have been reminding us that while praising God transcends time and place, the Books of Psalms was written in the Land of Israel, the ancient walking grounds of our forefathers.
Hamas will refuse any deal to return two Israeli civilians in its custody, as well as the remains of IDF soldiers unless it is part of a wide-scale prisoner exchange
Hananya Naftali describes how the crisis in Syria is showing the people that Israel, their sworn enemy, is actually a friend they can trust more than their own government
Syrians Thank Israel for Being a 'Good Neighbor' When No One Else Will
Monday, July 02, 2018 | Israel Today
Syrian civilians being mercilessly bombed by their own regime and turned away by neighboring Arab countries are thanking Israel for showing kindness even to its enemies.
The video above shows Israeli soldiers who are part of "Operation Good Neighbor" delivering tons of food, clothing and medical supplies to the Syrian refugees amassing on their nation's side of the Golan Heights.
The refugees began streaming to the border last week when the Syrian regime and its Russian allies began indiscriminate aerial assaults on their homes, which are situated in some of the last rebel-held territory.
Israeli officials said they can't possibly take in 160,000 refugees, but are trying to do everything possible to help them.
Over the weekend, six Syrians in need of urgent medical treatment were granted entry to Israel. The wounded included four young children, some of whom are seen being treated by IDF medics in the video below:
Speaking to Israel's Ynet news portal, one Syrian refugee said he and his family felt hopeless after being turned away at the border with Jordan, which has already taken in over half a million Syrian refugees, and turned toward Israel as a last resort.
They were pleased to find the Jewish state ready to help, despite the fact that Syria remains officially at war with Israel.
"We saw a very noble stance by the Israeli side, both by the aid that it sent and in its treating of the wounded," the man, identified as Sa’id, told Ynet.
Our favorite YouTuber, Hananya Naftali, asks rhetorically why the mainstream international media is paying so very little attention to this incredible display of Israeli goodwill, which demonstrates quite clearly that the Jewish state is not racist against Arabs:
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When you receive supernatural revelation, it is vital to discern—sometimes instantaneously—what to do with the revelation you receive. It is by practice that you learn to discern good and evil, and such discernment is of critical importance in the days in which we live.
Don't Be Naive
Not all revelation comes from God, and not even all of what appears to be spiritual comes from the Holy Spirit. 1 John 4:1 says, "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world."
As this scripture makes clear, it is imperative to learn how to "test the spirits" in order to determine if they are serving God or the enemy. Do not be naive! The unseen spiritual reality around us is populated with both angels and demons, and human beings are notoriously poor at telling the difference between good spirits and bad ones.
Only naive people will believe everything that comes across their screen. Satan is always lurking just out of sight, plotting wickedness against God's people, and we must not be ignorant of his schemes (see 1 Pet. 5:8; 2 Cor. 2:11). He especially loves to deceive the very people who are trying to learn how to receive revelation from God.
Realize that you can't elude the enemy just by pretending he is not there. He is. You will find him around every corner. During your lifetime, you will be exposed to plenty of evil, but you do not have to fall for it. To stay clear, you need to discover how to discern the difference between the devil's doings, God's workings and everything in between.
I have run across some people who hold back from testing the spirits, saying, "Well, I don't want to offend the Holy Spirit." I guess they think it would bother God if they acted suspicious about something that may or may not originate from Him. That kind of reasoning does not hold water.
Just look at Scripture. False prophets are real, and God wants you to spurn them. He wants you to be alert and to test the spirits. He wants to help you do this, and your mistakes do not worry Him. He is pleased when you make the right distinctions and lean into Him for guidance and wisdom.
Other people may read the Scripture I quoted above about testing the spirits and get a little nervous about dealing with evil powers. "Test every spirit? No way do I want to risk my welfare by calling out Satan's demons. Please don't make me do that!"
To them I can only quote the words that Paul wrote to "Timid Timothy": "God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and love, and self-control" (2 Tim. 1:7). We have not received a spirit of intimidation or bondage, but a spirit of courage, effectiveness and love.
Trust the Holy Spirit to take care of you when you confront evil. Put your trust in the God who can protect you and who will delver whoever calls on His name (Joel 2:32).
5 Discernment Basics
As you learn to discern good from evil, keep in mind these 5 basic principles:
Be a God-centered person.
Don't give others the power of making your decisions.
There is power in speaking God's Word.
There is power in forgiveness.
There is power in the cross, in the name and blood of Jesus.
Learning to discern good and evil does take time, and it is a process to learn to consistently recognize that which comes from God vs. the enemy. But as we present ourselves to God, He will bring us into progressively greater cleansing. We will have less and less in common with the god of this world, and our own inner filter will become more effective.
Always remember, each one of us is supposed to learn to test the spirits; it is part of the Christian life!
Blessings to exercise discernment and follow the Holy Spirit!
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After crisscrossing our third different checkpoint along the U.S./Canadian border in under two hours, the immigration officer asked me, "Are you guys lost?" I smiled sweetly and assured him that was certainly not the case. "Oh no, sir. We're definitely not lost! We just don't know where we are in relationship to where we want to be."
So we continued along our "scenic route" and eventually found ourselves where we did want to be. But the not knowing what we were doing or where we were going added to the fun of the experience! I was with my brother Josh, and a friend or two were along for the ride as well. We just laughed and were having a great time! We were having an adventure.
2 Are Better Than One (Eccl. 4:9)
But as much as I love having adventures, if I'd been in the exact same situation all by myself, it wouldn't have been nearly as fun.
Driving around in the dark at night not knowing where I was going all alone? Not so cool! But as it was, with friends and family, it was a blast.
I've traveled by plane, train and automobile. By camel, parachute, rickshaw and bicycle built for two. If there's a mode of transportation, I've probably tried it. If there's an inhabited continent, I've definitely visited it. I love exploring new places and my favorite thing is going where I've never been.
The thing is though, I always go with someone.
Whether it's a girlfriend, a group of friends, my brother or my husband—it's always much better than going it alone. Situations like I just described, that all by myself could be stressful or frustrating or scary, are all at once enjoyable and happy memories-in-the-making.
It just all depends on who I'm with.
A Dream of High School
A while back, I'd been considering how I could explain the spirit realm as a fun, safe place that's wide open for great adventures. It's not foreign or scary, it's home! In that setting, I had a dream.
In the dream, I went to high school. I didn't know my way around, had no idea what to do. But as soon as I arrived, I found four old girlfriends that I'd known from a church I used to attend who quickly befriended me again. They were so excited to see me! They chatted with me and when the bell rang, they all took it upon themselves to help me get the right textbooks and escort me to the right classroom. They took me under their wing and made sure I was OK and that made all the difference so I wasn't freaking out. It was great!
What's It to You?
Now, here's an important thing for you to know. And this is why when we teach on dream interpretation we really encourage you not to use a dream symbol dictionary, because dream symbols are simply not one-size-fits-all. Let me explain.
For most of you reading this, I imagine the idea of high school brings back memories. Whether fond memories or bad memories, it's a place you remember being, right?
Well that's not the case for me. Having been homeschooled my whole life, I've actually spent more time studying Mandarin at a university in Northeast China than I've ever spent in any high school in the U.S.
Point being, whatever high school may represent to you, I guarantee it doesn't represent that to me. High school to me is a very foreign place. It's a place I've never been, I'm totally unfamiliar with, and really only know what to do there based on what I've seen in movies or on TV. It's just not part of my world.
So when I dreamed of this, I immediately knew it was an answer to my heart's question about how to present the spirit realm as a thoroughly friendly, though understandably "foreign" place. I understand that people may not have a lot of experience hanging out there, just like I don't have a lot of experience hanging out in high school.
The other reason it's the perfect picture of the spirit realm is because it's a "school of the spirit." High school is like an above school. We're supposed to set our minds on things above. And above is up. It's not down low; it's high. So it's high school.
Our Heavenly Friends
Even if we feel the supernatural realm an unfamiliar place that we're not sure what to do in, don't worry—we have friends there! The girlfriends I met there were from a church called Resurrection Life Fellowship, and for this dream, the emphasis was definitely on the Fellowship. The friendship. It was their relationship with me that made all the difference. That transformed the potentially stressful environment into something that felt altogether navigable and safe.
For me, those friends represented my angels (I told you they took me under their wing!). They escort me and help me figure out what's going on in the spirit. Even though it might be new and unfamiliar to me, they know their way around. So I just stick with them and it's all good.
Same with you. Maybe you're not totally there yet with your angelic friends, but I'm sure you're tight with God. You're close friends with Jesus. You work with Holy Spirit all the time. You know these Guys! They're your family and you can trust them.
The spirit is their hometown and they're more than happy to show you around! It's their pleasure to help you get the lay of the land, to make sure you get a good feel for the place. They are spirits and they very much want to share their home, the spirit realm, with you.
Kid Stuff?
And I don't know if sometimes we think we're supposed to be grown up sons and daughters of God so maybe we should be able to figure this out on our own, if we're really mature.
While it's important to be mature in Christ, here's the thing about that. My parents live in Florida and I live in New York. When I go visit them, even though I'm a mature adult, they're still not going to just hand me a map at the airport and say, "OK, you're on your own! Dinner's at 6 p.m., so try to find your way to our house by then. Good luck!"
Of course that's not how it works. Regardless of a person's age or maturity level, when you go visit someone in their neck of the woods, they take you around. They show you some hospitality. They don't just abandon you to your own devices.
Our European Friends
Leo and I visited Estonia a few years back and my father has an awesome friend there with an incredibly effective drug and alcohol rehabilitation ministry, Village of Hope.
Bishop Mart Vahi proudly tells people he's taught Communion with God more than anyone else in the world besides my dad!
When we went to Tallinn, Mart and his fabulous wife, Alta, met up with us there. They took us all around so we could catch a glimpse of the best views of the city. They shared their delicious food with us. They told us amazing stories of what God's been up to in their part of the world. And they introduced us to some of their lovely friends who lived there as well.
So even though it was a totally foreign place to us, we didn't speak the language, we couldn't read the street signs, we felt totally safe. Literally zero stress, because they were taking care of us. They were graciously sharing their lives and their world with us. They were hosting us beautifully in every sense of the word.
The Consummate Host
And so it is with God. He is the consummate Host. He invites us into His world when He says, "Live in the spirit. Worship in spirit. Walk in the spirit. I am Spirit, this is My home, come join Me here! You are spirit, you are created in My image. This is your home too!"
And we go there, and it's awesome. It's not scary. It's not stressful, because He's right there. He's taking us around. He's showing off the glory of His kingdom. He's sharing His life and His world with us. This pleases Him greatly! He is most happy to do this.
We can trust Him to have the gift of hospitality and believe that He'll take good care of us when we visit. There's no safer place to be than the presence of Jesus. And He is nowhere more fully expressed and perfectly known than in His realm, the spirit.
Living Into heaven
It's not so much where we're going, as who we're going with.
So we're good to go. We have nothing to worry about. Living in the spirit is what we want to do. This is where we want to be. We go there often. We spend lots of time. We're transformed into His image. And then we bring His presence and the very atmosphere of heaven back with us when we come.
Indeed, that is how it can be on earth as it is in heaven.
