1. 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

    • Halleluyah! - We offer a sacrifice of joy to You, o God!

    • Thank You that deliverance is in You in the past, in the present and in the future.

    • Thanks that Your promises are sure and we can put our confidence in You.

    • Thank You that You are the strength of our lives

    • The joy of the Lord is our strength! (Nehemiah 8:10)

    • Thank You that there is no storm too strong for us to stand in it together with You.

    • Thank You for restoring Israel and Jerusalem.

    • Thank You that our strength is renewed like the eagle's. (Isaiah 40:31)

    • Thank You that we may dwell in Your house when everything around us is in turmoil. (Psalm 23:6)

  2. Yom HaZicharon and Yom HaAtzma'ut (Remembrance Day and Independence Day)

    Next Monday Israel celebrates its day of remembrance for fallen soldiers and victims of terror. Then at sunset the nation transitions into the joy of celebrating the miracle of creating a nation in a day (Isaiah 66:8). For many this is a difficult time and even the sudden transition from grief to celebration is traumatic. Pray:

    • Thank You that You are the God of all comfort. (2 Corinthians 1:3) You brought us back to the land, yet You also put a sword in our hands and required us to fight for the land You were giving us.

    • Comfort, yes, comfort My people! says your God.

      Isaiah 40:1

    • Help the families of terror victims to deal with the anger, especially the anger which is rekindled when the government releases terrorists as part of so-called peace talks.

    • Help those grieving to know that the blood of their loved ones was not shed in vain.

    • Heal the brokenhearted, o Lord. (Isaiah 61:1)

    • Bring beauty out of the ashes and give the oil of joy for mourning. (Isaiah 61:3)

    • Ezekiel 37:1-14 - Thank You that the miracle of the State of Israel shows that Your words have substance.

    • Thank You that You keep Your covenant and that You are watching over Your word to perform it. (Jeremiah 1:12)

    • Make Israel a light which shines!

    • Thank You that we can be those who dream, sowing in tears and reaping in joy. (Psalm 126)

    • May Your people recognize You as the one who has done this great thing.

    • Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! (Psalm 46:10)

  3. Aliyah

    There are reports that in a number of European countries a third or more of Jews are thinking about leaving. However, Israel is not necessarily the country they would choose to go to. (http://ejpress.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=48689) We need to pray that they will actually come home.

    • Lord, please bring the Jews home from Ukraine.

    • Open the eyes of European Jewry and give them a desire to come home to Israel, not like in the 1930's when they hoped and believed that the danger would pass.

    • Remove the deception which tells the American Jews that they are in a safe place.

    • Remove the stones of stumbling which are obstacles to Aliyah - eg. resistance of the Ministry of Interior in Israel.

    • Create jobs in Israel for Your people to come home to. Release inventiveness and entrepreneurship.

    • Release the resources needed for Aliyah. In particular supply the Jewish Agency, Nefesh b'Nefesh, Ebenezer and other organizations.

    • Put a feeling of homesickness into Your people in exile including the "yordim" (Israelis living abroard) who have gone overseas for a season but got stuck there.

    • Silence the negative reports of (the 10 spies) those who have tried Israel but have returned to the nations they came from. Anoint the voices of the 2 spies who bring a favorable report. (Numbers 13)

    • Stir up the Jews to return home in the face of the anti-Semitism in Hungary.

    • Use the European Parliament elections later this month to wake up the Jews as there are signs that candidates from the far right will gain more seats. Put a healthy fear into Your people to drive them home.

  4. Peace Process

    For all Israel to be saved (Romans 11:26) they need to be alive. We pray that the stalled peace process remains completely stopped and that Israel will be protected from increased violence at home and from increased diplomatic pressure from the nations.

    • Thank You, Lord that You have given the whole land as an everlasting inheritance to Your people. (Genesis 17:8)

    • Thank You that the stubbornness of Abbas has brought the process to an end and that Israel's leaders and even much of the world can recognize this.

    • Preserve the unity in the Israel government over this matter.

    • Thank You that despite the attempts to give the appearance of Palestinian unity, there has been no suggestion that Hamas has changed its objective to destroy Israel.

    • Thank You, Lord that if You open a door no one can shut it and if You shut a door no one can open it. (cf Revelation 3:8). Please keep this peace process door firmly shut!

    • Thank You that the mountains and hills of Israel will be inhabited by Your people, never to be uprooted. (Amos 9:13-15)

  5. Egypt

    Isaiah 19 tells us that one day Egypt will be in good relations with Israel, but before that God must judge the idols of Egypt. We do not know who is the cruel ruler who will rule over Egypt (verse 4), but at present the rule of General Sisi seems much better both for Egypt and for Israel than any alternatives, especially the Moslem Brotherhood which he replaced. Presidential elections are schedule for the end of May. Pray:

    • For Sisi to be elected President and to totally crack down on the Moslem Brotherhood.

    • For minimum bloodshed and loss of life in the period surrounding the elections.

    • For the government of Your choice in Egypt which will be open for You to direct.

    • Cause the Moslem Brotherhood to be in disarray and shut down their manipulation of the people in Egypt.

    • Hold back the persecution of believers in Egypt.

    • Anoint Sisi to stabilize the economy and to act firmly against terrorism.

  6. Syria and Lebanon

    • Give alertness to all Israel's security forces to protect against threats of kidnappings, sniper attacks, land mines and other attacks from Syria or Lebanon.

    • Thank You for largely preventing the violence in our neighboring countries from spilling over into Israel.

    • Protect Israel's communities near the borders.

    • May the Golan Heights (part of the territory of the tribe of Manasseh never be given away)!

    • Anoint Israel's spies to be quick to see if any advanced weapons are being transferred to Hezbollah, and give Israel the means to quickly destroy them.

    • Cut off the supply lines for arms from Russia.

    • Weaken Hezbollah, this demon-inspired organization which is such a poison to Lebanon as well as being a threat to Israel.

    • Raise up the believers in Lebanon and Syria to pray with authority and anointing for the future of their nations.

    • Thank You, Lord that You who keep Israel neither slumber nor sleep. (Psalm 121:4)

  7. Iran

    The nations involved in talks with Iran seem to be determined to establish any agreement at any cost as long as there is an agreement. Israel is alone in opposing the race towards nuclear arms in Iran.

    • Lord, make the Iranians so arrogant and bold that the nations will realize that there is no room for agreement.

    • Break up Iran's relationships with Russia, China and North Korea and others unless and until it is absolutely Your time for them.

    • Please Lord, don't allow Iran to prosper through the relaxation of sanctions.

    • Raise up the believers in Iran to know how to pray.

    • Break the bow of Elam (Iran), whatever that is, as You have promised You will. (Jeremiah 49:35)

    • Give Israel's leaders the understanding of the sons of Issachar to know what Israel should do. (1 Chronicles 12:32)

    • Give strategies and inventions to Israel to enable her to do whatever You are calling her to do.

  8. Believing body in Israel

    The body of Messiah in Israel is under attack. There are deceptions seeking to lead the body astray. Believers are subject to many temptations (eg influence, importance, finance, etc.) which make us vulnerable to listening to the latest teachings and being diverted from the truth (cf Acts 17:21). Pray:

    • Lord, come to the defense of Your body, those who are precious to You!

    • Give discernment of all spirits which would seek to deceive Your people.

    • Raise up leaders willing to take a stand against all deceptions.

    • Strengthen the leaders of Your body in Israel.

    • Expose the pride, delusions of grandeur, desire to build kingdoms and ministries which may allow deceptions to come in.

    • Lord, we don't want humanism in Your body. We don't want lies, but righteousness and truth!

    • Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it.

      Psalm 127:1

Shabbat Shalom from the team in Jerusalem!