Note from Chuck: As I was walking to the prayer meeting this morning, I cried out to God to show us how to pray. I sensed Him saying to me, "Stay the course! Pray based on My lines and not on the headlines." May He give us the wisdom and perseverance to do this.

  1. Praise: Shabbat's prophetic portion includes Isaiah 28:5-6:

    • In that day YHWH of Hosts shall be for a crown of glory, and for a diadem of beauty, to the rest of His people, and for a spirit of judgment to him who sits in judgment, and for strength to those who turn back the battle to the gate.

    • Thank You for being our crown of glory (John 17:10, 22).

    • We glorify You as King of all kings and Lord of all lords (Rev. 19:16).

    • We are so grateful that You humbled Yourself to dwell among and save Your people (Phil. 2:6-11).

    • Salvation was initiated by You. You sought us out; thank You for finding us (Gen. 3:8-9).

    • Lord Yeshua, You are God's Way, His Truth and His Light. What a joy to know You (John 14:6).

    • In the darkness of this world, thank You for Your Word giving us true light (Psa. 36:9; 119:105).

    • Despite the gross darkness seeping into the world, hallelujah, You still reign (Psa. 93:1; 103:19)!

    • Thank You for being the hope and future of this nation and of Your Body (Jer. 29:11).

  2. Israeli elections: All the parties have now submitted their lists and some partied have agreed to run together in this election. There was a joining together of several left wing and some of the smaller right wing parties. Yet polls show that there will be no clear victor. We cried out for mercy.

    • Lord, have mercy on Your people as Israel needs a God-given government (Psa. 98:3).

    • Since You are the One who raises up and pulls down, please raise up the one of Your choice to be the next prime minister, defense minister, finance minister, etc. (Psa. 75:6-7).

    • We plead with You for a government who will do Your will for Israel at this time.

    • Abba, show us how to pray and even give us specific people to pray for (Amos 3:7).

    • You often prophesied that You would bring us back in unbelief and then "all Israel" will be save in Your land (Jer. 32:37-42). Give us a government that will not hinder, but will help this come to pass.

  3. The land of Israel and the next government: Reports say US President Trump is considering releasing his "Deal of the Century" peace plan before the next Israeli elections. It would have a great impact on the elections, but whether it would be positive or negative is not certain.

    • Lord, You reign! We ask that You would reign over the timing of the release of this plan (Psa. 99:1).

    • If this plan is not of You – do not allow it to be released at all (Prov. 21:1).

    • Give Israel a government that will refuse to divide Your land any further (Lev. 25:23; Ezek. 36:5).

    • Protect Israel from political blackmail (Num. 23:23).

    • Prevent the spirit of Esau from invading this nation and blinding Israelis into giving away their inheritance for a "mess" of porridge (Gen. 25:34; Mal. 1:2-3)!

    • We thank You for all the years in which You have hardened the hearts of the Palestinian leadership to say "no" to any and all offers for a Palestinian state (Ex. 4:21).

    • Now use that innate stiff-neckedness of Your people to refuse the creation of a Palestine on any part of their God-given inheritance (Ex. 32:9; 33:3-5; Isa. 48:3-4).

    • Anoint Israeli representatives in the nations to state clearly Israel's right to its land (Gen. 12:7).

  4. Security and the next government: This past week has seen an uptick of attacks from the terrorists in Gaza – including rockets and incendiary balloons. When we consider that Israel is surrounded on most sides by people who hate it and want to kill all Jews, security becomes a top priority for any government.

    • Lord, You said in Romans 13:1-4 and First Timothy 4:1-3 that governments are to guard the people so that they can live a peaceful life. Give Israel a government that takes seriously Your demands.

    • Thank You for allowing PM Netanyahu to remain as leader during the transition period (Psa. 80:17).

    • Raise up a prime minister with godly wisdom to select the right defense minister and who also has a solid relationship with the IDF's Chief of Staff, Kochavi (Psa. 133:1).

    • Let the issue of security permeate all other areas so that Israelis can be alive to be saved.

    • Enable the next government to be at least as good as the current one in dealing with security threats.

    • Impart wisdom to know how to wage war in this digital/cyber age (2 Sam. 22:33-35).

    • Lord, we know that all You have to use are flawed men and women. Use our weak and foolish politicians to confound the wise – so that You alone receive the glory. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God has chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; and God has chosen the base things…in order to bring to nothing things that are; so that no flesh should glory in His presence. (1 Cor. 1:27-29)

  5. Security – Iran: Iran is in the midst of a major crisis – but it still remains as the main threat to peace for Israel, the rest of the Middle East and for the world.

    • Praise You for hearing many of our prayers over this modern manifestation of Elam (Jer. 49:34-38).

    • Continue to shake Iran physically, socially, politically and especially spiritually. But YHWH is the true God, He is the living God, and the everlasting King. At His wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to stand His fury. (Jer. 10:10).

    • Uncover and cut off all of Iran's terrorist tentacles in the nations (Psa. 33:10).

    • Destroy all of Iran's plots and schemes in Syria, Lebanon and in Gaza (Prov. 19:21).

    • Make Russian President Putin very suspicious and paranoid in relation to Iran's current leadership.

    • Dry up Iran's finances so that they are unable to support their proxies – Hizbullah in Lebanon, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza, and whoever they are in Syria and Iraq (Zech. 10:11).

    • Increase confusion and pressure on the Iranian regime (Psa. 129:5).

    • Protect the small, 8,000 or so, Jewish community that is still stuck there (Esther 7:1-10).

    • As You destroy the king and the princes there (Jer. 49:38b), replace them with a government that actually wants to be an ally with Israel (Num. 24:9b)

    • Thank You for the growing Iranian Church. Mature it quickly (Matt. 16:18; Isa. 28:6).

    • By Your Spirit, lead them in prayer that is in line with Your will (John 10:27; 1 John 5:14-15).

    • Protect them and use them to provoke many other Iranians to jealousy (Rom. 11:14).

  6. Iran and the next government: As this will remain as Israel's greatest threat, the next government needs to have courage and wisdom to deal with this raging spirit of Persia.

    • Give Israel a government composed of courageous people who deal with Israel's security seriously.

    • Expose any plans Iran has devised against Israel that it is not aware of (Job 12:22).

    • Give Israeli leaders wisdom on how to respond to these demonic plans (Psa. 144:1).

    • Please provide Israel with a leader as committed as Netanyahu is to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

    • If that leader is Netanyahu, then cut off all attacks against him and raise him back up (Psa. 3:1-3).

    • Give us leaders who are like Joshua – to whom You can speak and encourage (Josh. 1:6-9).

    • We thank You for the current transitional government's continued commitment to prevent all game changing weapons from being transferred from Iran to Hizbullah in Lebanon.

    • Enable there to be people who think out of the box and bring forth fresh strategies and tactics against the Iranian threat (Josh. 8:14).

  7. Finances and the next government: Israel has a strong economy and is also being blessed with its discoveries in the Mediterranean of natural gas. In fact, it is already exporting gas to Egypt. Yet it needs a government that can wisely distribute the monies to meet the needs of the people and not just the needs of their political supporters.

    • Abba, thank You for the abundance of finances You are supplying to this nation (Zech. 8:11-15).

    • Give us someone who understands how to distribute these riches in a godly manner (1 Tim. 6:17).

    • Prevent the wasting of these God-given resources (Jam. 5:1-3),

    • Raise up in the next government an anointed finance minister (Gen. 39:2-6).

    • Enable all waste in the various ministries to be dealt with and cut off.

    • As it is more blessed to give than receive, lead Your Body to do this by blessing Israel and all other projects or areas that You direct them to (Acts 20:35).

    • Give the next government a heart to provide for the widows, orphans, homeless, and others who are struggling to survive, and to take the threat of Isaiah 10:1-4 to heart with godly fear and trembling.

    • Help the government to distribute all the finances needed for the regathering and resettling of Your people in this land (Jer. 32:41-44; 33:6-13).

    • Behold, the days come, says YHWH, that I will establish the good thing which I have spoken to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.Jer. 33:14

  8. Aliyah and anti-Semitism: The rise of anti-Semitism, especially in the West, is contributing to an awakening of Jews in the West that it is time to come home. While this is not a huge move at this time, through our persistent prayers and God's workings, this could easily turn into a tsunami of aliyah in a short span.

    • We thank You that the aliyah has been steadily increasing over the last decade (Isa. 43:5-7).

    • Lord, we ask for an aliyah tsunami and that Israel would be prepared to receive them all (Ex. 12:41).

    • Give Israel a government with prophetic understanding to prepare Israel to help all Jews who want to return or who need to return (Ezra 1:1-4).

    • Prevent Jews in exile from burying their heads in the sand as that could lead to them literally burying their loved ones if they refuse to read Your divine handwriting on the walls (Zech. 2:6-7).

    • Replace all in the Interior Ministry who are stones of stumbling in Your people's path (Isa. 62:10).

    • Lord, we ask for a miracle – that the next government would replace the rabbinic definition of "who is a Jew" with the biblical definition.

    • Open the Church's heart to hear You speaking to them to help Israel return from exile (Isa. 49:22).

    • We ask that the Jews in Europe and North America flee Babylon now (Jer. 51:6).

    • For Jews who are too poor to make the journey, bring alongside them believers who will help (Isa. 60:8-10).

We ended praying for the security of Jerusalem next week as more than 30 national leaders will be here to attend the 75th anniversary observances at Yad vaShem of the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp and the Fifth World Holocaust Forum on anti-Semitism. Streets will be closed and security will be high in this city. We will be in the hotel for the prayer conference so while this does not affect us directly; still this is a security nightmare. Putin of Russia, VP Pence of America and Prince Charles of the UK are just a few of those who will attend. Please pray for Israel's security forces to have divine wisdom, an anointing to deal with the chaos and an eye to see any danger. Please pray against all distractions as well.

Finally, today would be Eliyahu Ben Haim's 76th birthday, but as you know, he finished his course and graduated to glory this past June. Please pray for Hannah, his wife, his daughter and his sons and their wives and grandchildren as they walk out this very large gap that has been left in their hearts – and in ours. While Eliyahu is in a much better place, we miss him dearly.

The next prayer alert will be in three weeks as we have the prayer conference next week and the prayer tour the week after. While we hope to send out video updates, there is no guarantees that that will happen. This is the first year we are having this conference without Eliyahu, and we need to see how that affects us. We do covet Your prayers over the next two weeks for the IFI team and for all of those who will be in attendance. And for those of you who will be with us, "Hallelujah! Next week in Jerusalem!"

Shabbat shalom and blessings from Zion

The IFI team