1. We began this new year by recalling how merciful and faithful is our God.

    • Oh give thanks to YHWH; for He is good; for His mercy endures forever. Oh give thanks to the God of gods; for His mercy endures forever. Oh give thanks to the Lord of lords; for His mercy endures forever …who killed famous kings…Sihon king of the Amorites…and Og the king of Bashan…and gave their land for an inheritance… to Israel His servant; for His mercy endures forever. Who remembered us in our low estate…and has redeemed us from our enemies…Who gives food to all flesh; for His mercy endures forever. Oh give thanks to the God of Heaven; for His mercy endures forever.

      Psalms 136:1-3; 18-26

    • Lord, regardless of what You do, You declare that Your mercy - Your chesed - Your faithfulness based on Your covenant commitment to Your promises - endures forever.

    • We are so grateful to be called to love and serve a God like You.

    • Thank You for loving us first (1 John 4:19).

    • Hallelujah! Your mercies are new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23; Isaiah 33:2).

    • Lord, we are blessed knowing that Your mercy seat covers Your law (Exodus 25:21).

    • Bless YHWH, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name. Bless YHWH, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits;

      Psalms 103:1-2

  2. Several of our prayers have been answered this past week. Since praying for those in authority is a high priority in scripture (1 Timothy 2:1-4), we started by thanking God for the overwhelming victory that the members of the Likud party gave to Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu to continue as party leader. While we have asked God if He has someone else to take Bibi's place in the March 17th elections, we have not heard of any change in heaven. Yet if you are not comfortable to pray specifically for Netanyahu and the Likud to win, then pray for God to raise up a person/party through whom He can be glorified.

    • We thank and bless You for Bibi's victory in this week's Likud primaries.

    • Lord, do not allow this victory to make Netanyahu exceedingly proud. In fact, let the reality of how so many are looking to him at this time, actually humble him (1 Peter 5:5-7).

    • Please impart to him and the rest of the people that You are wanting in the next government, an ability to run an election campaign that is based on truth and integrity (Psalm 15:1-5).

    • Abba, be a shield about him (Psalm 3:3; 5:12).

    • Open Netanyahu's ears to Your voice and his heart to Your guidance (Psalm 119:18).

    • As it seems that at times You overrule or direct man's free will for Your purposes (Proverbs 19:21; 21:1), if need be do so in Netanyahu so that Your kingdom will advance on earth and in Israel.

    • Enable the Likud's parliamentary candidates to look to You and not the polls (Psalm 121:1-2).

    • Raise up wise counselors for all those whom You are wanting to be part of the next government.

    • Arrange the circumstances between now and March 17th so that Your chosen leader will shine brightly before the people of Israel.

    • And let the words and deeds of those politicians who are not of You fall to the ground - publically.

    • I will clothe his enemies with shame; but his crown shall shine on him.

      Psalms 132:18

    • Concerning Israel's next government, we pray, Not to us, O YHWH, not to us, but to Your name give glory, for Your mercy and for Your truth's sake. Why should the gentiles say, Where now is their God? But our God is in Heaven; He has done whatever He has pleased. (Psalms 115:1-3)

  3. Most of the Israeli media is very anti-Bibi, pro-'peace' and humanistic. The attacks against this man and all those who believe in the literal Word of God come fast and furious. We prayed for protection.

    • Lord, shut the mouths of the media lions who are roaring against those who honor You (Daniel 6:22).

    • Continue to use Israel Hayom to be a conduit of sanity in reporting and commenting on the news.

    • Give Israelis discernment when reading or listening to the media.

    • Help Israelis to judge through the filter of Your Word - our lamp and light (Psalm 119:105).

    • Bring the media's prejudice to light. Woe to those who call evil good and good evil; who put darkness for light and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! Woe to those wise in their own eyes, and bright in their own sight! (Isaiah 5:20-21; cp. Psalm 52:1-5)

    • Lord, have mercy on and turn back to the Word all the anti-Israel Jewish and Christian media sources.

  4. Another answer to prayer is the defeat of Palestinian Authority President Abbas' UN Security Council resolution demanding a 'peace' with Israel within a year and a full Israeli withdrawal from all of Judea, Samaria and Eastern Jerusalem by 2017. The US and Australia voted 'no'. The UK and four other nations abstained, while France and all the rest voted 'yes'. Still, the battle over the 'peace' process is by no means finished, as the PA has applied for membership to another 20 or so international organizations - including the International Criminal Court.

    • Lord, reveal if the rumored 'deal' between the US and the PA is in fact a fact - or whether the US did the right thing without any strings attached.

    • We thank You for the failure of this UN resolution and ask You to show us what the next attack against Israel's legitimacy will be.

    • Quicken the Israeli Foreign Ministry to be ready for whatever this year brings (1 Chronicles 12:32).

    • Help Israel deal wisely with the ramifications of the Palestinian failure.

    • Abba, this move by the Palestinians should be the final nail in the coffin of the Oslo Accords. Please make that a reality on the ground.

    • Let the PA reap what it has sown (Galatians 6:7).

    • Let them fall into the net that they tried to set for Israel (Psalm 35:7-8).

    • Lord, raise up Your specific chosen vessel to be the next Israeli UN ambassador (Daniel 5:21b).

  5. The IDF is investigating itself over possible war crimes committed during this past summer's Gaza conflict. While this is something Israel's army does regularly - yet it is bringing division between the fighting forces and the army's lawyers.

    • Abba, this is a very complicated issue. Please bring clarity so that we know how to pray.

    • Expose the truth of what happened during every situation the army is investigating and allow justice and mercy to be meted out (Psalm 85:10-11).

    • We desire for Your righteous plumb-line to be manifested - Yours and not man's (Psalm 85:13).

    • Raise up the sons of Zion (those who honor both God and His Word) to overrule the sons of Greece (the man-worshippers) in this and all legal situations in Israel (Zechariah 9:13).

    • Lord, restore Your laws in this land so that the legal system lines up with Your Word.

    • For YHWH is our judge, YHWH is our lawgiver, YHWH is our king; He will save us.

      Isaiah 33:22

  6. This current government raised the electoral threshold - the percent that it takes for a party to have representation in the parliament - from 2% to 3.25%. This was a direct answer to pray, although we would have liked to see a higher percentage. This bill was passed with most parties voting for it - including those in the opposition. Yet now, the Arabs are suing because this could eliminate some of their three small parties, unless they join ranks, which they do not want to do. The Israeli Supreme Court - the most interventionist Supreme Court in the world - could turn this law down. That would be a travesty of democratic justice, as the elected politicians are there to make the laws - not the unelected judges.

    • For YHWH is our judge, YHWH is our lawgiver, YHWH is our king; He will save us.

      Isaiah 33:22

    • Lord, please deal with this wicked abuse of the Supreme Court's authority in touching areas that they are not supposed to be involved with.

    • Abba, sweep through Israeli law schools. Sweep out all of the humanistic viewpoints and replace them with viewpoints that line up with Your revealed Word.

    • To the Law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this Word, it is because no light is in them.

      Isaiah 8:20

    • Uphold all righteous laws that are passed by our parliament - including this increase of the threshold.

    • Humble the judges who set themselves above the law - to make their own laws (Matthew 23:13-29).

  7. Iranian leaders continue to blaspheme and curse God's nation and its people. Yet when the P5+1 nations meet with them January 15th, that is not even going to be brought up. This wicked government will be that much closer to having a nuclear weapon and much of the world is too busy, or deceived, to realize how serious this is. The history of the Jews shows us that we can trust the threats of our enemies much more than the promises of our friends. Thank God, Bibi has been on high alert over this issue for better than 25 years.

    • I will set My throne in Elam [ancient Persia/Iran], and will destroy the king and the rulers from there, says YHWH.

      Jeremiah 49:38

    • Abba, thank You for doing the first part of this verse by saving multitudes of Iranians - both in Iran and those in exile.

    • Lord, since You are doing that, we expectantly wait for You to also destroy the current wicked rulership.

    • When the P5+1 nations meet with Iran, Lord provoke one of them to stand up against all the delays and games that Iran is playing.

    • Lord of hosts, prepare Israel to deal with this threat - militarily and in Your perfect timing.

    • As Esther did, we ask for Your intervention on behalf of Your people of Israel (Esther 7:2-6).

    • Provide Israel absolute proof of Iran's nuclear weapons program that can be displayed before the world.

  8. Finally, our prayers for aliyah have been answered in a tremendous way. Close to 25,000 Jews came home last year - with huge increases from both France and Ukraine.

    • Thank You Lord for gathering those whom You have scattered (Jeremiah 31:10).

    • Abba, as the greatest increase was from the areas in which the hunters of Jeremiah 16:16 are active, we thank You and ask that Your people would wake up so as to come back with as little trauma as possible.

    • Lord, keep those whom You have brought back here.

    • Continue to watch over Israel's economy to facilitate the aliyah.

    • Draw the yordi'im - Israelis who are living outside this land - back home.

    • Abba, bring back especially yordi'im who have found Messiah Yeshua (Isaiah 35:10; 51:11).

    • Lord, we ask for a large increase in Spanish and Portuguese speaking Jews returning home in 2015.

    • God, please unite families of those who have already made aliyah.

    • May Jews who are comfortable in exile, be shaken and stirred to rise up and return, before they are left with no choice and need to flee.

    • Fear not; for I am with you. I will bring your seed from the east, and gather you from the west. I will say to the north, Give up; and to the south, Do not keep back; bring My sons from far and My daughters from the ends of the earth; everyone who is called by My name; for I have created him for My glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him.

      Isaiah 43:5-7

    • Thus says YHWH of Hosts: Behold, I will save My people from the east country, and from the west. I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. And they shall be My people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness.

      Zechariah 8:7-8

We expect this to be an 'interesting' year for those of us who live in Zion and for those who stand with us.

As we draw closer to the return of our Messiah, the enemy will increase his attacks. Yet amidst all of the pressure and confusion, God's Word - both written and living - remains our solid rock upon which we stand. So we ended our time together this morning, asking for God to give us all an increased hunger to read and understand His Word.

Blessings and grace in Messiah Yeshua,

The IFI team

Forever, O YHWH, Your Word is settled in the heavens.

Psalms 119:89

The grass withers, the flower fades; but the Word of our God shall stand forever.

Isaiah 40:8