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.
   
   Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice!
   Have mercy also upon me, and answer me.

   Psalm 27:1-7

   • But You, O Lord, are a shield for me, my glory and the One who lifts up my head.

     Psalm 3:3

   • We give glory and honor and praise to You , our God!

   • You are the same yesterday, today and forever and ever and ever. (Hebrews 13:8)

   • Your mercies are new every morning. (Lamentations 3:23)

   • You neither slumber nor sleep and You are watching over this nation to save it. (Psalm 121:4)

   • You set us high upon a rock!

   • You are all we need.

   • You guide all our steps. (Luke 1:79)

   • Worthy, worthy, worthy is the Lamb. For You are glorious and worthy to be praised, the Lamb upon the throne!

   • Hiney lo yanum ve lo yishan, shomer Israel. (Psalm 121:4)

2. Government - the situation in Israel remains critical. While the Jerusalem has experienced fewer attacks in recent days, terror has continued elsewhere. The government has been trying various tactics, notably measures which keep Jews and Arabs apart, but such measures point towards a division of the land which is not biblical.

   • Give thanks for the successes and for every attack which has been prevented.

   • We need God to give ideas to the government and security services for reducing the possibilities of violence. Overall strategy as well as short-term tactical adjustments.

   • Uphold Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon who carries much of the responsibility for Israel's actions in response to the wave of terrorism. May he be equipped to give leadership and motivation to the security services and to the nation as a whole.

   • Pray against any ungodly compromises which involve dividing the land.

   • For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. For he is God's minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God's minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil.

     Romans 13:3-4

3. Violence in the land - During recent years we have witnessed a bloodthirsty spirit increasingly at work in the world, especially in the Middle East. We are also seeing it operating in the land of Israel. This is something that only God can hold back and we need to appeal to Him to act.

   • My times are in Your hand; Deliver me from the hand of my enemies, And from those who persecute me.

     Psalm 31:15

   • Deliver me, O Lord, from my enemies; In You I take shelter.

     Psalm 143:9

   • The mountains saw You and trembled; The overflowing of the water passed by. The deep uttered its voice, And lifted its hands on high.

     Habakkuk 3:10

   • Speak, Lord and cause those who hate you in the land to tremble!

   • Send the rains to quench the spirit of violence in the land.

4. Security services - Those in the army, the police, the border guard are needing to be on almost constant high alert, day in, day out. Whenever they put on their uniform, they make themselves more of a target. During the next few weeks the largest annual intake of new combat soldiers to the IDF will bring more young men and women to be trained to carry these responsibilities.

   • Keep them alert and with a positive spirit to serve their country in this way.

   • Revitalize these young men and women.

   • Give wisdom to the officers and commanders to know when their men and women need a break, also to discern those who should not be in such stressful areas of service.

   • Pray for the new recruits beginning their service in the coming weeks and also for their parents who are letting them go.

   • Pray for those involved in the recruitment process to have wisdom and discernment regarding where each new recruit should be placed.

5. Victims of terrorism - many are still recovering from physical injuries and emotional and spiritual trauma caused by terror attacks.

   • Pray for each individual who has received physical injuries that the Lord would do His work of healing in their bodies and give strength and wisdom to medical teams caring for these victims.

   • Pray for the healing of emotional trauma of victims and their friends and families.

   • Lord, pour out the balm of Gilead (Jeremiah 8:22) upon all those wounded and traumatized and all who are filled with terror which is the principal aim of terrorism.

   • So shall they fear the name of the Lord from the west, and His glory from the rising of the sun; When the enemy comes in like a flood, The Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him.

     Isaiah 59:19

   • Raise up this standard for the victims.

   • The whole nation of Israel has been devastated by the spirit of fear. Pray that the Lord would drive it back.

6. The spiritual battle - it is plain that at the root of the conflict it is a spiritual battle. It is about the claims of Islam against the God of Israel and His revealed plans and purposes. It is about God's choice of Jerusalem and the Temple Mount and the greedy occupation of the site by Islam and the Al-Aqsa mosque and Dome of the Rock.

   • Pray for the believers in the land of Israel and throughout the world to understand these realities and to have wisdom to pray.

   • If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.

     James 1:5

   • Show me (us) Your ways, O Lord; Teach me Your paths.

     Psalm 25:4

   • Please, Lord, use the IFI prayer points and every newsletter and prayer letter sent out from Israel and around the world regarding Israel to equip Your people to pray!

7. Truth Fallen in the Streets (Isaiah 59:14) - such a barrage of lies is being spoken and written in the world about the situation in Israel. Mahmoud Abbas has appealed to the United Nations Human Rights Council for protection for the Palestinian people from Israel's killings of unarmed people. Obama and Kerry accuse both sides of inciting their people to violence. The BDS movement singles out Israel for economic sanctions while ignoring abuses by regimes such as North Korea, Sudan, Iran, Syria, etc., etc.

   • Pray for the Church and the world to recognize these lies and to become lovers of the truth.

   • The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved.

     2 Thessalonians 2:9-10

   • Expose the lies and the deception and anoint all those who are called to expose the lies and to be custodians of the truth.

   • Pray for those in the Christian media and the mainstream media who are called to speak and write and broadcast the truth about Israel. Also pray that eyes and ears in the Church would be opened to the truth.

   • Lord, cause a separation between those who are lovers of truth and those choosing to believe lies.

   • Let the lovers of the truth not be silent.

   • Do not be afraid, but speak, and do not keep silent; for I am with you.

     Acts 18:9-10

8. Salvation of Israel

   • For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.

     Jeremiah 29:11

   • And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.

     Jeremiah 29:13

   • Lord, let your people seek You and discover the riches of that future and hope which You have for them.

   • Remove the veil which is over the eyes and hearts of Your people. (2 Corinthians 3)

   • Pray that the Lord would reveal Himself to religious, secular, young, old, native born Israelis and immigrants, to soldiers and police on their watches.

   • Reveal Yourself, Lord and overwhelm Your people with Your love!

9. Aliyah - violence against Jews is increasing across Europe and elsewhere. The Jewish people need to realize that this is not just a passing wave and that they need to come home to Israel.

   • Pray that the Lord would do many miracles and open the eyes of His stubborn people.

   • Pray for the Ministry of Interior to open their doors to the new immigrants.

   • Lord, we, Your people do not deserve to be brought back to this good land. But do it for Your name's sake.

   • Thus says the Lord God: I do not do this for your sake, O house of Israel, but for My holy name's sake.

     Ezekiel 36:22

   • Then it shall be, after I have plucked them out, that I will return and have compassion on them and bring them back, everyone to his heritage and everyone to his land.

     Jeremiah 12:15

Thank you for standing in prayer for Israel.

The Lord who made heaven and earth Bless you from Zion!

Psalm 134:3

The Lord bless you out of Zion, And may you see the good of Jerusalem all the days of your life.

Psalm 128:5

Shabbat Shalom!

The IFI team