1. Praise: The Torah portion for Shabbat includes Exodus 33 and 34 where both God and Moses emphasize God's grace.

   • Moses said to YHWH, 'Behold, You say to me, Bring up this people, yet You have not told me whom You will send with me. But You have said, I know you by name, and you have also found grace in My sight…if I have found grace in Your sight, make me see now Your ways, that I may know You, that I may find grace in Your sight, and consider that this nation is Your people.' [YHWH said] 'My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest.' [Moses said], 'If Your presence does not go with me, do not carry us up from here. For in what shall it be known that I and Your people have found grace in Your sight? Is it not in that You go with us? So we shall be separated… [from all other nations. So YHWH said], 'I will do this thing also that you have spoken, for you have found grace in My sight, and I know you by name…I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of YHWH before you, and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will have mercy on whom I will have mercy'… Moses rose up early in the morning and went up to Mount Sinai, as YHWH had commanded… YHWH came down in the cloud, stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of YHWH…'YHWH, YHWH God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the sons, and on the sons of sons, to the third and to the fourth generation'.from Exodus 33:12-34:1-7

   • Abba, Your grace truly is amazing. Thank You for being so gracious to us and to Your nation Israel.

   • We bless You for giving us Your Spirit which aids us to walk in and by Your grace (Zech. 4:6-7).

   • God, praise You that You are also merciful and long-suffering with us.

   • And out of His fullness we all have received, and grace for grace.John 1:16

   • We are awed by Your grace and what it cost You. Your grace is free – but it is not cheap!

   • And when all Israel is saved, it will be the result of You pouring out Your spirit of grace (Zech. 12:10).

2. Elections: This past week all parties who will be vying for a spot in the next Israeli Knesset have finalized their lists and their agreements with other parties. Several center-left parties have joined into the new Blue & White party. This conglomeration will definitely challenge PM Bibi Netanyahu and his Likud party for the most votes. Three former IDF Chief of Staffs (Gantz, Ya'alon, Ashkenazi) are in the new party and only one has any political experience. Historically, ex-IDF Chiefs have been horrendous – Rabin agreeing to Oslo, Barak pulling out of southern Lebanon and Sharon disengaging from Gaza.

   • Lord, we remind You of Your promises to provide Israel with leaders after Your own heart at the time of its restoration (Isa. 1:26; Jer. 3:14-15; 23:4-5).

   • Make Your will known to us and to this people and may it only be accomplished (Isa. 55:11).

   • Help Bibi to overcome what seems to be a spirit of paranoia and help him to show the statesmanship that he has historically walked in (Prov. 21:1).

   • We still do not see anyone other than Netanyahu who can lead this nation at this time. If we are not seeing clearly, Lord, please open our eyes and our ears to Your will (Psa. 119:118; Amos 3:7).

   • Enable Bibi to run his campaign on his policies and not on his opponents' personalities (Acts 10:35).

   • Remind him that in the recent past Israelis have proven to be wiser than the media in choosing leaders.

   • Let the real policies of Blue & White come forth clearly (Prov. 16:5).

   • Enable there to be more politicians in the next government that actually respect Your Word (1 Tit. 5:17).

3. Elections: We prayed for the Israeli public who will be electing the next government.

   • Arise God against any divination or witchcraft trying to deceive Your people (Num. 23:23).

   • Use this people as a light to the nations by aiding them to discern the evil from the good (Isa. 5:20).

   • Forbid that they vote in a spirit of pride (Isa. 5:21), but let them ask You to guide them (1 John 5:14-15).

   • Since knowing the truth sets one free, may the true platforms of the parties be revealed (Psa. 18:28).

   • Thank You for the Israel Hayom daily newspaper which is so much more conservative and often even biblical in their reporting and opinion pieces [http://www.israelhayom.com/].

   • Encourage Israelis to get out and vote and to research on whom to vote for (Eccl. 7:25).

   • Lord, please protect Israel's elections from foreign influences (Zech. 2:5).

   • Let the political experience of Netanyahu and his Likud party be seen in the correct light (Psa. 43:3).

   • Let the political inexperience of the Blue & White party also be seen – minus all media manipulation.

4. Elections: We prayed for the Body of Messiah in Israel to see how important it is to both pray for these elections and to vote.

   • Lord, may 1 Timothy 2:1-4 be proclaimed out loud in all Israel's congregations at this time.

   • Pour out a spirit of intercession on Your Body (Eph. 6:18).

   • May the prayers of the Israeli Body be in Your will and for Your glory (Psa. 115:1-3; 1 John 5:14-15).

   • Remove from Israeli believers all anti-biblical, humanistic thinking (Matt. 16:23; 1 Thess. 5:23).

   • Aid us to pray in line with Your prophetic will and purposes for this time (1 Chr. 12: 32).

   • Remove the spirit of discouragement which is attacking the IFI leadership, and aid us to lift our eyes unto You for our help comes from YHWH, maker of heaven and earth (Psa. 121:1-2).

5. Security: The Gaza border is still a major source of danger for Israel – and therefore for us.

   • It has been revealed that Hamas is paying children 300 NIS ($80) to get injured while demonstrating against Israel. Lord, where are any human rights groups? Arise against these wicked rulers (Matt. 18:14).

   • Abba, show Israel how to defend itself against this Islamic hatred and to not feel guilty when someone gets injured or killed while trying to injure or kill Israelis – especially Jewish Israelis (Rom. 13:3-4).

   • Forbid that the political pressure of the elections hold the government back from doing all they can to deal with this outpouring of violence along the Gaza security fence (Eccl. 8:11).

   • Thank You for giving Israel the ways to discover and destroy all terror tunnels (Eccl. 9:18a).

   • Please do the same with the terror balloons which start fires in Israel (Psa. 44:4-7).

   • Anoint Avi Kochavi, the IDF Chief of Staff, and the IDF's southern commanders to provide Bibi and the security cabinet with sound counsel, strategy and tactics to deal with Gaza (Prov. 20:18; 24:6).

   • Impart protection and alertness to all the soldiers who are based in the south.

   • Confound and confuse those who hate Zion (Psa. 35:26; 129:5).

6. Security: The rules of engagement in this warfare against terrorist groups – and not against other nations – are not clear here in Israel, nor internationally, yet they need to be.

   • Lord of hosts, move upon Israelis to develop the next generation of the rules of engagement that will be looked upon favorably by the West.

   • We ask for clear guidelines to be given from IDF commanders to their soldiers (1 Cor. 14:8).

   • We also ask for biblical guidelines for war to be the norm for the IDF.

   • Forbid that there be any confusion or conflicting orders given.

   • Have mercy Abba, and remove from many Muslims the death-wish that is a part of their religion.

   • Press the IDF to respond to attacks aiming to harm and kill Israeli's with disproportional force so that the fear of the IDF and of Israel's God falls on all of Israel's enemies (2 Chr. 17:10; 20:29).

7. Security: Focusing our prayers on the north, we recalled once again that Iran is the main culprit backing all of Israel's enemies – both north and south.

   • Lord, be with Netanyahu this week when he meets with Russian President Putin (Psa. 139:7).

   • May Israel's red lines be once again clearly communicated to Putin (Gal. 4:16).

   • Bless Israel's red line that it will never allow Iran to establish military bases in Syria.

   • Abba, You said You would curse those who curse Your nation (Num. 24:9). Watch over Your threat as it applies to the Iranian Islamic regime (Jer. 49:38b).

   • Prevent any mistaken intelligence or disinformation from deceiving Israel (2 Tim. 3:13).

   • Impart wisdom on how to handle all accurate actionable intelligence Israel does receive (Prov. 21:31).

   • As You have so often in the past, divide our enemies one against the other (2 Chr. 20:22-23; Psa. 55:9).

   • The next war against Hezbollah will be in reality a war against Lebanon itself. Give Israel the wisdom and courage to fight it just like that (Josh. 1:6-9).

   • We again pray for the soldiers in the north to be alert and to receive clear rules of engagement.

   • Thank You for all the terror tunnels Israel has discovered along the Lebanese border.

   • If there are more, uncover them quickly (Job 12:22).

   • Rejoice not against me, my enemy; for if I fall, I shall arise; for if I sit in darkness, YHWH shall be a light to me.Mic. 7:8

   • Do not allow Israel's Defense Minister Bibi Netanyahu to be distracted by the election campaign to drop his guard in defending the lives of his people (Zech. 12:6).

8. Security: Judea, Samaria & Jerusalem are the biblical heartland of the Jewish people regardless of what the world says. The devil knows this and so there have been more attacks and killings of Jews in this area than any other of Israel's current possessions.

   • Lord, thank You for restoring this area to Your people in the 1967 Six-Day war (Jer. 31:17).

   • Forgive the naivety and stupidity of former leaders who have traded Israel's birthright for less than a bowl of porridge (Heb. 12:16).

   • Thank You for the Israelis who live there and love that part of the Promised Land (Jer. 31:4-5).

   • Protect all the "settlers" and the soldiers who are protecting them (Deut. 12:10; 33:27-29).

   • We pray for the security forces in Judea and Samaria to also have clear rules of engagement.

   • Forbid the next government from uprooting any settlements (Lev. 25:23).

   • Give us a government that will have a heart to build in all the land of Israel (Amos 9:13-15).

   • Show Israel how to deal with the wicked Jordanian scheme to give more authority to the Palestinians on the Temple Mount.

   • Encourage and support Israel as it keeps to its red lines on that very sensitive area.

   • Protect all the security forces that are stationed there (Psa. 140:7).

   • We proclaim over the Temple Mount that Yeshua is Lord of all (Acts 10:36) and that He is God the Son (Luke 1:35; Phil. 2:6-11).

9. Water: The wet weather Israel has been experiencing is a definite answer to prayer. The Sea of Galilee has risen about 2.5 meters, yet is still 5 meters below the top line. So we thanked God for what He has given us so far this season, and asked for more. Thank you for praying into this very important part of the restoration of this nation – for His holy name's sake (Ezek. 36:35-37).

Please pray for this ministry as we want to continue on the path that He has set for our feet.

Shabbat shalom and blessings from Jerusalem

The IFI team

YHWH is my Shepherd; I shall not lack. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table for me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall pursue me all the days of my life; and I shall dwell in the house of YHWH forever.Psa. 23:1-6