1. A Psalm of David. The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? When the wicked came against me to eat up my flesh, my enemies and foes, they stumbled and fell. Though an army may encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war may rise against me, in this I will be confident. One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in His temple. For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; in the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock. And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me; therefore I will offer sacrifices of joy in His tabernacle; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord.

    Psalm 27:1-6

    • Thank You, Lord that we can come into Your tabernacle through the blood of Yeshua.

    • Thank You, that You are able to do far more than anything we ask or can imagine. (Ephesians 3:20-21)

    • You are gracious to protect us from every danger.

    • Thank You that You, God, draw near to us Your people.

    • On Christ the solid rock we stand. All other ground is sinking sand.

    • Thank You that Jerusalem is Your city.

    • We will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised…

      Psalm 18:3

  2. Prime Minister:

    Benyamin Netanyahu is engaged in a busy program of international visits and media interviews, sharing about the increasing danger to Israel and to the world from an Iranian nuclear weapon. In a report this week the Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) stated that Iran could produce a nuclear bomb within a month. The only nations who seem to agree with Netanyahu are the Arab Gulf nations with whom he cannot talk directly! Pray:

    • That God would keep Netanyahu sound in mind and spirit and in good physical health, and that he would not grow weary in the midst of incredible pressures.

    • Keep him from spiritual attack.

    • May he speak with authority and boldness.

    • Thanks for Netanyahu's courage, that he has not been silent despite growing isolation in world affairs. May he be heard and heeded at least by some with influence in the world.

    • Give him support from advisors and from his family. Give him rest and refreshment this Shabbat.

    • May he seek and find his ultimate support in You the God of Israel. Be his shield and the lifter of his head. (Psalm 3:3) May he hunger for truth and turn towards You and Your word. May Your words inspire him.

    • Bring Your word alive to him. Make it a lamp to his feet and a light to his path. (Psalm 119:105)

    • Give him a heart for Your will to be done.

    • Save him, Lord.

  3. Iran:

    According to George Santayana, "Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it". The leading nations of the world are engaged in negotiations with Iran even though Iranian President Rouhani has boasted of the progress Iran made in the past towards nuclear capability while engaging the world in talks intended to prevent such progress. Pray:

    • That the ISIS report (see point 2) would open the world's eyes. That many would realize that they have been deceived for years.

    • That the negotiators would realize that we don't have much time. That this report would be a revelation to them.

    • Scare the negotiators with dreams and visions.

    • Cause the talks to fall apart and end in shambles.

  4. Syria/Lebanon:

    The civil war and atrocities continue in Syria and are spilling over into Lebanon and also threatening Jordan and Turkey which are flooded with Syrian refugees. All this in nations which surround Israel. Pray:

    • Lord have mercy upon these nations, especially the innocent and the believers in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Turkey.

    • Cover and protect the borders of Israel.

    • Keep the Israeli soldiers and intelligence services vigilant and aware and alert to every threat both from outside our borders and from within. Protect Israel from any kidnappings. Give them confidence and courage and let them put their trust in You. (Psalm 27:5-6)

    • Guard Jordan and Turkey and Israel from any terrorists who might be hiding amongst the Syrian refugees.

    • Give wisdom and strength to Israel's military leaders to understand the potential threats.

    • Cause Hezbollah to overextend themselves and be disabled from pursuing their wicked purposes against Israel.

    • Break the Iranian stranglehold on Syria and cut off the ability to channel weapons through to Lebanon.

    • Break up the pattern of Shiite alliances incorporating Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon. Spread confusion in their camp and cause them to make major mistakes.

    • Let Iran's pride precede her fall. (Proverbs 16:18) May all the enemy's plans to come against Israel be brought to nothing.

    • Keep Israel alert to transfers of weapons and ready to destroy them, as they allegedly did again earlier this week.

  5. Israel local elections:

    This week the sitting mayors of Jerusalem and Tel-Aviv were re-elected as we had been praying. This will come as a blow to Aryeh Deri (Shas) and Avigdor Liberman (Israel Our Home) who had strongly backed an opposing candidate to Jerusalem mayor Nir Barkat. We are also very grateful that the openly homosexual opponent to Ron Huldai was soundly defeated in Tel-Aviv. Pray:

    • Thank You, Lord for answering our prayers regarding these mayoral elections in Jerusalem and Tel-Aviv.

    • Thank You for Nir Barkat and for the good things he has done for Jerusalem. May he bring clean politics, vision, righteous government and blessing to Your city in these next 5 years.

    • Make him a good steward of Your city.

    • Protect him from pride and let him recognize that he has received the privilege of this office by Your grace.

    • Break the power of Shas and Deri its leader. Cause a rebellion in the house of Shas.

    • Avigdor Liberman is due in a few weeks to receive the court's verdict on his long-running corruption trial. Lord bring a righteous, clear judgment in this case!

    • During the election campaign Shas were seeking to exploit the recent death of their spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef by telling voters that Yosef, their father, would be watching them in the voting booths while they cast their vote. Pray that God would break this idolatry of the dead rabbi:

    • Cause the Sephardi Jewish community (the main supporters of Shas) to seek relationship with God their true father.

    • Deliver them from their idolatry and set them free.

    • In their sadness and disappointment cause them to cry to You with a hunger to know their real father.

  6. Aliyah:

    When the Jews were expelled from Spain and Portugal in the 15th century most of them found refuge in the areas then ruled by the Ottoman Empire. They were much better treated by Moslem rulers than they had been by Christians and were enabled to advance and to prosper. Modern Turkey under Attaturk was a secular nation in which Jews felt relatively safe. Under Erdogan, however, there is a major change and anti-Semitism is coming more and more to the fore especially encouraged by the Turkish leader. Jews are leaving. Pray:

    • That the Turkish Jews would choose Israel rather than the USA or Europe.

    • That God would place a longing for Zion in the hearts of the Jewish people. (Psalm 137:1-6)

    • Bring Your people home for Your holy name's sake. (Ezekiel 36:22)

    • Let the Turkish Jews already in Israel give a good report to their families and friends.

    • May they recognize that this is the place of their inheritance. This is the place where You have planned for them to have a future and a hope. (Jeremiah 29:11)

    • May the Israel government make aliyah a top priority and let them allocate finances accordingly.

    • Plant aliyah deep in the heart of Gideon Saar, the Minister of the Interior.

  7. Local body of believers:

    • Let Your word be central to the sermons preached in the congregations this weekend and let Your word touch the hearts of Your people.

    • Let Your word be read, spoken, preached, quoted, declared in Hebrew, English, Russian, Arabic, Amharic, French, German, Spanish, Finnish, and many other languages, and let it bring forth life. (Psalm 119:50)

    • May the Holy Spirit work through the word of God.

    • Pray for specific congregations and pastors, elders, leaders known to you.

  8. IFI Northern Prayer Meeting:

    Next Thursday evening some of us will be participating in the latest of our 3-monthly meetings in Northern Israel. This meeting will be in Nahariya. Pray:

    • For travelling mercies for all attending this prayer meeting next week in Nahariya.

    • That the Lord would bring everyone He wants to be at the meeting.

    • For the leaders of the local congregation which will be hosting the meeting.

    • For the anointing of the Holy Spirit on our meeting.

Hodu l'Adonai ki tov, ki le'olam chasdo. - Give thanks to the Lord for He is good for His mercies endure forever.

Psalm 118:1

Shabbat Shalom!