|
|
November 6, 2007 25 Cheshvan, 5768
Dear Praying Friends,
We are so deeply grateful for all the prayers and support during Arni’s 26-day trip to Germany. While it was quite full, it was so paced that there was time for everything…even having time alone with the Lord.
In this letter are thoughts on:
- Personal thanks - Our call to the nations - Receiving the nations - A new reformation - Worship in the streets - A personal appeal - Healing the roots - Ministry to the youth - Developments in Germany
A Deep Gratitude
God’s love, concern and favor have so touched me (arni). The overall sense and the remembrance of His Presence in every meeting cause my heart to well up with thanksgiving. Traveling and ministering in a land where you don’t speak the language could easily be exhausting, but he care I received from my friends and hosts left me remarkably refreshed. It was a long time away from home, but the grace of God was sufficient to meet our needs and longings. One of the things that stands out for me personally is that in speaking to many and diverse groups and individuals, in every meeting the Spirit of God touched people’s hearts with a message they were able to digest…tailored just for them by the Holy Spirit. Our ministry in Germany is long-term and we highly value the relationships God is building.
Our Call to the Nations
Since the Diaspora (exile) began in 136 A.D. when the Romans exiled the Jewish people from the Holy Land, the one place on earth the Creator placed His Name had been desolate, dry, and parched. About one hundred fifty years ago, Jews from all over the world heard a call to this land of deserts and swamps to prepare for the end of Israel’s nearly two-thousand-year exile. Then, just a few decades ago, born-again Jews began hearing a call to a spiritual wasteland to begin preparing for the end of Yeshua’s long exile.
In 1990, as I spent a month in Israel to seek the Lord for direction prior to our immigration, He answered by showing me a piece of His heart, without saying that it related to my future ministry. He said, “Don’t you think I want this Land filled with people praising Me when I return?” The magnitude of this task was beyond the ability of the fledgling local Body of Messiah. He was going to bring brethren from the nations to help to accomplish that end. As the early pioneers brought water to the desert and erected cities to dwell in, so now it was the time for worshippers and intercessors to pour out living water from their hearts and erect altars of worship and prayer throughout the Land to receive the returning Spirit of our risen King.
In our July trip to Germany, we sensed that the call to the “Fourth Generation” prayer army was gaining momentum and taking hold. This latest trip leaves no question about that. Even through my participation and Israel’s inclusion in the “Five Loaves” International Missions Conference was very last-minute, raising a worldwide army of intercessors to spiritually awaken Israel became the central goal of the conference. Many people, including indigenous leaders of organizations and ministries in China, India, Nepal, Kenya and Nigeria, were gripped by the call. They testified to the fact that their people had a heart for Israel and prayed for the peace of Jerusalem. The sincerity of their hearts was essentially poured out in this most general prayer. As I shared publicly and privately, they recognized the great need for their people to be informed so as to become more effective in this great battle. It impressed me that there, in their world of poverty and simplicity, was a great body of God’s end-time army. The Chinese brother and sister alone represented over one million believers! God means this worldwide prayer movement to go to the ends of the earth, though we understand it to begin with the youth in Germany. We are compelled by the Spirit to answer the call from these far-flung peoples to help them prepare their hearts and focus their passion to break through the darkness blinding the minds of those in Israel hungering after the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
Receiving the Nations
God has established and equipped the Emmaus Way Center in Israel to receive those coming to the Land to minister to the Lord. Situated in the hills in the center of the country, we are ideally suited as a place for prayer and worship and as a base from which to make trips into other parts of the Land. We are working on a separate web page to properly inform the Body in the nations of this service we have to offer.
A New Reformation
With Scripture declaring that Israel’s salvation results in life from the dead for the world (Romans 11:15), is it possible to overstate the significance of this matter? It is curious…strange…really rather supernatural, that for so long the worldwide body of Messiah has not gotten hold of this simple truth. This blindness is reminiscent of how salvation by grace through faith was hidden from the church for over 1000 years. It occurs to us that this realization of God’s plan for Israel will cause a quantum leap in the life of the church not experienced since the Reformation. Furthermore, the subsequent inclination of heart towards the children of Israel will release a blessing from God (Genesis 12:3), without which the body in the nations will not come into its fullness. Paul writes, “Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the fullness of the gentiles (ethnic peoples) has come in. And so all Israel shall be saved….” (Romans 11:25,26). In light of this straightforward prerequisite to Israel’s salvation, it behooves us to labor to bring the nations into this life-giving revelation of God’s ways.
Worship in the Streets
We recently hosted a unique worship dance team from California -- ”Klee L’Adonai” -- and took them to minister in the streets of Jerusalem. We took them to two different sites, and had two completely different experiences. They first worshiped on Ben Yehuda Street on Saturday night. People gathered around and were transfixed with the beautiful worship music and stunning appearance of these handmaidens. They use lush fabrics of gold, silver, purples, and blues and they release beauty and intimacy in their dance. It is so other. There can be no doubt that there is Someone they are relating to. We knew the Lord was delighted to be worshiped in this extravagant way in His city. We then walked a few blocks to Zion Square, where again people gathered. But this time, there was a mocking crowd of young boys (who were wearing kippot and looked like they were on drugs) who tried to pick a fight and threatened to steal Klee’s sound system and some of their fabric. It really seemed like the same spirit that crucified the Lord. It was a blessing to have been in both places. We do pray for all those who saw them dance. Releasing such ministries into the Land -- taking worship to the streets -- is an important aspect of our work. Click here for photos.
An Important Personal Message
If you have been blessed by the ministry of Emmaus Way, or feel connected to us personally, please click here to get an important update on our current financial situation.
Tending to the Roots
Bringing the body of Messiah into an effective revelation of God’s heart and plan for Israel requires more than just bringing a message or a new measure of understanding. Releasing the fire of God in the church on behalf of Israel’s salvation can only happen in a prepared heart. The modern Western gospel has unfortunately produced a people that by and large are not Kingdom minded. A respected minister in Germany recently noted that in the U.S. in the mid- 1800’s there was a shift from the “Gospel of the Kingdom’ to the “Gospel of Personal Salvation.” This shift has, in effect, given rise to a church whose focus is more on feeling good than laying down our lives for the revelation of the glory of God and the salvation of the lost.
Before the ways and purposes of God can take center stage in our lives, the set of our mind and inclinations of our hearts must be properly fixed. So, in our speaking ministry among the nations, in an ideal situation, we take several sessions “preparing the ground” before coming to the subject of Israel. Consequently, our desire is more to present seminars than single messages. Optimally, we seek to first meet with the leaders and come to know one another’s thoughts and needs.
Arni is in the process of putting the compliment of messages the Lord has given him into book form and would appreciate your prayers for this project.
Ministering to the Youth
The final event of my trip was a three-day youth-church retreat at which I was the speaker. The 70+ participants were mostly under 30. It was expected that the main theme would be the subject of Israel. As it happened, the first two sessions dealt with the state of our hearts. I had the sense that their hearts were very hungry and open. The third session was taken over by the Holy Spirit personally. He chose to continue the worship for thee hours and minister to the kids directly by Himself. As I stood to share in the fourth session, I perceived a solid wall of non-receptivity. The Spirit told me not to judge what I was sensing but rather to ask them what was going on inside of them. After some minutes of my coaxing and encouraging, they slowly began to open up. There were two main comments: they were full and could not take anything more in; and they had had no time alone with God and needed it. The afternoon program was changed to give them time to process what they had already received and to be with the Lord. In the evening, instead of my bringing a message, we broke up into small groups to give everyone an opportunity to publicly express their hearts. The outcome was amazing. The youth shared their deepest thoughts and wept together. After the last session where I did finally share about Israel, Germany, and God’s end-time plan, one of the young leaders came to the microphone to repent of an attitude he had had. That opened up the floodgate. One after another they came forward to repent and ask forgiveness of the group. What followed no one present had ever seen before. No one was left out. For the next two hours, while lunch was getting cold, there was no letup in the tears and hugs. As I stood and beheld this wonder, something happened in my heart that has not left me. Oh, that we would know when to step aside and let God move!
Developments in Germany
There has been a decided shift in the momentum behind the vision for the “Fourth Generation” in Germany. Leaders are moving beyond agreement to action. They are speaking together to see how to go forward and bring this call to the nation. One pastor, as a European representative at an international prayer conference, is bearing the call to raise up an international army of intercessors for the fulfillment of God’s plan for Israel. We expect to be in Germany about every two months for the next year or two. Trips are being planned for January and February.
We are grateful beyond words for your love, prayers, and support. We could not do what we do without you. Thank you so very much.
May God bless you from Zion!
Your servants…
For the Glory of His Name, Arni and Yonit
For information on making a contribution click here. For an update on Emmaus Way’s current financial needs click here. For information on being part of our personal “Prayer Shield,” click here.
Emmaus Way is a faith ministry dependent upon the support of God’s people. |