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December 31, 2006 10 Tevet, 5767 Dear Praying Friends,
Nearly forty years ago, in a one-room apartment in the center of Manhattan, the Spirit of God awakened my sleeping soul to the deep darkness resident in the heart of man. I (arni) understood that the reason the world was in such a horrible state of brokenness was due to a self-centeredness born out of pride and fueled by fear. In that moment of light and revelation, I committed myself to getting free of the thing in me that caused me to lift myself above others. Thus began my search for God, truth, and humility. After four desperate years of continuously gazing at my personal emptiness and sin, Yeshua came and offered to take control my life. He answered all my questions and filled me with hope and love.
Knowing Him immediately released me from mankind's blind maze of confusion. I knew Him as the way, the truth, and the life. I was, however, yet to find out that knowing the truth does not constitute being transformed by it...seeing the way does not impart to us the fruit of a crucified life...and tasting the life of God is a far cry from living in the river of His Presence. When I was born again thirty-three years ago, I had no idea that being sanctified would take so long.
Over the past few months we have been writing about our personal inner journey. In our last letter, we spoke of God's process to uproot a bad tree from the garden of our lives. In relating that image, I really had not put it together that this was precisely what was about to be done in my life. Through the years, I have had a number of meetings with the same “angel” Jacob encountered on the far side of the river Jabbok. Apparently none of those moments actually lasted until daybreak. But now, today, in my heart of hearts I know that the hour has come for me to lay hold of my Divine opponent and not let go until He blesses me...until He changes the very name by which I am known.
The bell to begin this round was actually sounded by members of our team here in Israel in response to the yet-active presence in me of the inner darkness I first beheld in my Manhattan apartment in 1969. In a state of relational breakdown, we issued a call for help. Jobst Bittner, a dear friend and board member came from Germany. He was joined by our pastor, John Myers and Marcel Rebiai, a beloved elder and father in the Land. They came to help us discern the word and way of the Lord to get us through the muck and mire of the moment. At the end of our meeting together there was no doubt about what God was saying. The personal issues, though they were the catalyst, brought us to a divinely-ordained moment of which they were but one part of a three-fold picture involving God's transforming work in me personally; His plan for Brian, Kari, Terry, Stephen and Michael; and a renewing and reshaping of Emmaus Way. A precious and fruitful season has come to an end. The community that began in Tel Aviv in 2000 and moved to the Judean Hills in 2005 is being laid to rest. As shocking as that may sound, and even as we ourselves had not anticipated it, this word from the Lord through our brethren has settled in our souls as healing waters from the Throne of God.
Over the last year or so we had received several prophecies about a new thing God was going to do with Emmaus Way. “People are going to come and go...;” “Though it will look different, it will still be Emmaus Way…;” “The new cannot be sent until the old is finished and completed...;” and “The new thing being birthed is not like what had gone before.” Honestly, when the words came at their various times, the proclamation of such sweeping changes did not cause us to jump and shout with joy. But today those words are a great comfort.
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For me, the Lord has marked this time for healing, deliverance, and the restoration of my soul to a place of love and peace that I have cried out for for years and years. This work requires a season of stepping back from public ministry and a release from the responsibility for the oversight of a ministry team and community.
For most of the team, it is a time to move on into things the Lord has prepared from before the foundations of the world. We want to emphasize a point that our counselors have emphasized: this change is for the good of everyone. God is working to bring us all to a glorious future and a hope that will not disappoint. (Michael will continue as the Israeli administrator for both the Israeli and the US non-profit organizations).
For Emmaus Way, the commission to call forth worship and prepare a place for the Presence of the Lord, the burden to bring Yeshua to a seeking generation of young Israelis, the prophetic message from Israel to the nations, and the mandate to bring forth resurrection life through a union between Germans and Jews remain intact, being confirmed and affirmed by our pastor and elders. In its essence, the mission of Emmaus Way is unchanged. Only the manner of its expression is being altered.
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To put a time limit by which the work would be done would surely limit the depth and breadth of what God desires to bring forth. I believe that the Spirit of God wants to complete something that stretches back at least to the iniquity of my Austrian forefathers. We want to say very clearly that this call to come apart for a season is not the result of an ethical or moral failure but is an opportunity from the hand of God to prepare me/us for a far greater fruitfulness in the unimaginable days ahead.
In obedience to the Lord and in submission to the spiritual authority over us, we have canceled our planned meetings outside Israel and will not be available to minister to groups coming to the Land. Consequently, the planned Schools of Worship will also be suspended.
However, in the counsel of our elders, we will continue to administrate the ministry center God has entrusted to us. The Tabernacle and guest apartments are available for those desiring to come and seek the face of the Lord. It will be our pleasure to serve as hosts, even without the elements of teaching and spiritual impartation.
In addition to having more time seeking Him in the Tabernacle, there are several things the Lord has laid on our hearts. For some time now, the Lord has been urging Arni to write. At this point it looks as though it may be two books. Also, we are both intent on improving our Hebrew skills for greater outreach into Israeli society. To this end we are joining a Hebrew-speaking home group in our congregation. And we have it in our hearts to reconnect with the multitude of Israeli friends we have made over the fourteen years of our sojourn in the Land and see what the Lord is doing in their lives. We are truly looking forward to the coming days.
It was our desire to accompany this letter with a word from one or more of our counseling brethren and we were planning to wait until we received their contributions. However, since incorrect understandings of the events we have related here are already beginning to circulate, we thought we should get this letter out right away. We will follow up with the supporting letters from our overseers when we get them.
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For those of you that have upheld us in prayer over the years, we so need your intercessions and petitions now, perhaps more than ever. For those that have believed in our calling, witnessed to our integrity, and stood with us financially, we are more dependent on the Lord's grace through the Body of Messiah than ever before. And please pray also for those among us that are moving on to new horizons. May their way be straight and their path filled with light, lined with blessing, and paved with grace.
In closing, on a more personal note, I'd like to say that it wasn't easy to hear friends share about difficulties and hurts they have experienced sitting under the pastoral efforts of a decidedly prophetic and needy Arni. Just here I want to glorify the Lord for the way He orchestrated this uncomfortable moment. I want to thank the Lord that everyone had the unhindered opportunity to say all that was in their hearts, and I want to praise Him for the dear brethren and counselors that continue to believe in us despite our shortcomings and have given so much of themselves to stand with us and walk us through to the other side. Thanks be to Yeshua, in whose brokenness and humility we find the pathway to salvation and the fullness of joy.
May 2007 bring you God's richest blessings.
Your servants… For the Glory of His Name, Arni and Yonit |