"The Miracle"

"Kissing The Face Of G-d"

As a Messianic Jewish women I know that this was not the time of our Saviors birth, however during this season this give me the opportunity to acknowledge the coming of my Messiah!
This is a great time to look at the walk we have with the L-rd, reflecting on how we all from time to time need to travel back to the beginning of our faith, realizing that it was in are innocents when G-d always showed up...just as He did in the BEGINNING!

"We Are One Israel"

Prayer for Our Children

This prayer in new translation of "Book of Prayers for Jewish Women" by Fanny Neuda-a rebbetzin in Germany in 1855. It touches me so much...I thought perhaps it would bring comfort to others.

Please for sake of the mothers and father of these men and all soldiers who go to battle and don't come home, let us not forget our children in prayer!

"From a Mother Whose Child is in Military Service... Almighty ruler of armies, you who reign mightily in Heaven and on Earth, I raise my prayer to you from the depths of a mother's heart.

Turn your presence toward me and hear me in your mercy.

Following the call of duty, my child has entered the ranks of those who fight on behalf of our country to stand for what is right and proper, to fend off threats to our nation's peace and security.

I thank you, Eternal G-d, for having given me a child strong, healthy limbs, capable of carrying out this valiant task, it shakes and terrifies my heart to think of the many dangers that will surround him. Young and inexperienced, far from the instruction and admonitions of his parents, how easily his heart might be tempted to be unfaithful to his duties and to fall into sin.

Therefore I beg of you, Eternal G-d, take my child into your powerful protection. Surround him with your all encompassing grace.

Strengthen and invigorate every noble feeling and every impulse toward good that is within them.

Strengthen and invigorate every memory of parental guidance, and advice that rises up in his soul, the teachings of virtue and that fear of G-d will never vanish from his sight.

That his soul does not turn hard under the service of arms and that no corrupting influences overcome him.

All Compassionate One, grant my child insight and strength, vigor and endurance, to fulfill his difficult duties with care and alertness so he may not be guilty of evil or transgression, and that he would not become confused or unstable amid unrelenting chaos.

And when the hot, difficult hour arrives when they are called out to the battlefield where death holds its harvest, there Eternal G-d, surround them with your mercy. Let your grace serve as a shield and as armor. Steady there arm, pour courage into their heart, and let the memory of the ancient heroes of Israel stir in their breast, allowing them to enter the fight with strength and resolve. Let my child, through his bravery and valor, bring honor to our people and show faithful service to our nation.

Almighty G-d, hear this mother's prayer for her child! Let my maternal blessing surround him like a guarding banner, so they shall return with their service well completed, healthy in body and spirit, adorned with signs that they fulfilled their duty and that they have been recognized and praised to the joy of my heart, to the glory and praise of your name. Amen

"Dinah Berland worked with a translator to bring this prayer into modern English and set them into verse. I hope they may bring some comfort to others.

As we all know not all of our children will return home to the loving arms of their mothers.

My prayer is for all the mothers and father who now have empty arms that they would be comforted by the Eternal Parent, the Great and Awesome Hashem, the one who knows what it is like to lose a child! May we all be comforted that one day we will see again the ones we love so dearly!

Light One Candle

Hanukkah Sameach everyone!

Shame on Olmert!

Shame on Ehud Olmert, he speaks only for himself! As a Jew who has had a relative give their life for the nation of Israel, and cast off to start a new life in another country-a place that was foreign to him with nothing but the clothes on his back; I am appalled at the dictatorship-like mentality he is displaying.

I weep for the injustice of what our Prime Minister is saying and doing. I pray that HaShem will remove Olmert, as He has done with every other king of Israel that has rebelled against the hand of G-d. It truly is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the Living G-d! Please join with me in prayer to reclaim the land our forefathers gave us! The picture at the top of this page is a monument in Israel to honor the six million Jews that were killed for our land. When I was standing in front of this monument and crying with every step I took, I was praying that this would never happen again. Whole families are gone because of the evil that wanted to take over our land! Please let us never forget where we came from... whether Jew or Gentile! May the Messiah come quickly!!

I wanted to thank Deborah for putting this article on her blog.

Thousands rally in Jerusalem against Annapolis
By Nadav Shragai

The most salient evidence of the rights feeling of crisis was yesterday's return of Shaul Goldstein to the bosom of the Yesha Council of settlements, which he abandoned last year. Goldstein spoke at the rally the council organized against the Annapolis conference and dividing Jerusalem, which drew thousands of people to the capital's Paris Square.

Goldstein quoted Ehud Olmert's words of two years ago - "We are tired of being brave, we are tired of winning, we are tired of defeating our enemies" - and declared: "Your role, Prime Minister Olmert, is to ensure that our enemies get tired of losing. We aren't tired of winning, defeating our enemies or being brave, and you have no mandate to cede the Land of Israel, the historic property of the nation of Israel. The nation of Israel did not establish a state so that you and your weak government could concede it." Yesterday's protest activities began with a mass prayer session at the Western Wall, which included the recitation of Psalms, penitential prayers and prayers for the peace of Israel. Then, hundreds of rabbis from the Union of Rabbis for the Land of Israel gathered in Yeshivat Hakotel to draft several declarative resolutions, including the following: * "There is a grave Torah prohibition on giving parts of the Land of Israel to non-Jews, and all the more so to the Palestinians, who are enemies and foes." * "The decision to establish a Palestinian state is unauthorized ... null and void from the outset, and forever ... and constitutes a betrayal of the government's duty to defend all its citizens." * "Everyone who joins the government in carrying out this miserable plan violates the prohibition: 'Do not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor.'" Rabbi Dov Lior, chairman of the Council of Yesha Rabbis, told the meeting: "Peace has claimed 1,000 lives, and still their hands are outstretched. This peace is the opium of the masses." After the prayer session, many of the worshipers marched to join the thousands of demonstrators gathered in Paris Square. With mixed emotions, the protesters listened to speeches from three members of Olmert's coalition: MKs David Tal (Yisrael Beiteinu), Nissim Zeev (Shas) and Zeev Elkin (Kadima). The three MKs promised not to allow Olmert to give up Jerusalem or freeze construction in the settlements, but nevertheless drew some catcalls and cries of "Leave the government!" Yet the demonstrators appeared to have equally mixed feelings about the news that MKs Arieh Eldad and Effie Eitam (National Union-National Religious Party) had boycotted the rally because coalition members were invited to speak. Yesha Council Chairman Danny Dayan described the government's moves as "stupidity and blindness" in his address to the rally. "Just two years ago, they sacrificed a flourishing piece of land, expelled its pioneering residents, and brought us Qassam [rockets], terror and Hamas," he said. "No more. We won't let you. It won't happen. We have come to defend the unity of Jerusalem, the security of Tel Aviv, the essence of this state, and loyalty to the values that established it." MK Zvi Hendel (National Union-National Religious Party) also addressed the rally, saying: "There is no animal more dangerous than a wounded animal, and today, Olmert is an animal that has been wounded by committees of inquiry and police investigations. From this weakness stems his desire to divide Jerusalem and free [Palestinian] murderers. There has never been a prime minister so dangerous to Israel." The demonstrators appeared to agree. Throughout the event - which also featured a rendition of Naomi Shemer's classic anthem to the city, Jerusalem of Gold - there were repeated calls from the crowd for Olmert's resignation.

Messianic Judaism-Beyond Evangelistic Shtick

I didn't write this... However this is how my husband and I feel. I thought you might like the link to this mans blog. http://towardblog.blogspot.com/
I believe that G-d has a ministry to touch each individual, we weren't all cut from the same mold... We have the same Potter different clay!

Messianic Judaism - Beyond Evangelistic Shtick

In defining what Messianic Judaism is it is important to deal with the issue of Torah observance and to see what the differing voices in the larger spectrum say on this issue. In doing this we can see clearer those who affirm a Messianic Judaism that is a Torah-honoring movement for Yeshua and those who hold for a Jewish cultural form of Evangelical Christianity. This is the divide between Messianic Judaism and Jews for Jesus/Missions/Hebrew Christian movement. Below is a post from Year 1 of Toward Blog, looking at Jews for Jesus' view of Torah observance for Jewish believers in Yeshua:

Jews for Jesus affirms Jewish believers who, for the sake of honoring our heritage and developing a Jewish testimony, choose to give up some of what grace allows to conform to dietary standards and various other Jewish practices. As long as such practices are not presented as incumbent upon others in the body of Messiah, Jewish or Gentile, we hope to be an encouragement to those who desire to uphold their Jewish identity in this way, (from Fall 2003 Havurah, a publication of Jews for Jesus)

The above quote from JFJ's Havurah newsletter was looked at in a previous post. In this post I want to look further at this statement from Jews for Jesus. In their statement above they put forward that a Messianic Jew can observe Torah commands if they choose to give up some of what grace allows to conform to dietary standards and various other Jewish practices. Torah observance is not an "abandoning of grace", but an embracing of obedience to G-d. Observing kashrut, Shabbat, the Festivals and other Torah commands is an act of obeying G-d and faithfulness to the covenant G-d made with all the Jewish People. If we choose not to obey Torah commands we are not "living in grace", but "living in sin". Non-observance of Torah commands is an act of disobeying G-d and not walking in His ways, not a benefit of being a follower of the Messiah. Torah observance like dietary standards and various other Jewish practices is not just shtik to be used for evangelistic outreach (which sadly is the case for Jews for Jesus and other Jewish missions), but it is a matter of obeying G-d and living lives that honor Him. I close with a statement by another Messianic Jew on the topic of grace and sin:

What may we say, then? are we to go on in sin so that there may be more grace?In no way. How may we, who are dead to sin, be living in it any longer?(Romans 6:1-2)Let us live in obedience to G-d and observe His Torah!

IT'S ABOUT TIME!

Landmark Criminal Suit Against Waqf for Temple Mount Destruction
by Hillel Fendel

(IsraelNN.com) A group of 150 Israeli citizens have filed a class action suit against the Moslem's who run the Temple Mount site for having destroyed Jewish antiquities there.The suit, brought by the Shurat HaDin Israel Law Center, charges that Islamic Waqf officials have engaged in the deliberate destruction of ancient Jewish relics on the Temple Mount. The indictment was filed in the Jerusalem District Court last week, and Shurat Hadin sources say it is the first of its kind in Israeli legal history.
Atty. Darshan-Leitner on Temple Mount suit Can't see audio player above? Click here to listen.
"We are utilizing a seldom-applied section of the penal code," Shurat Hadin director Attorney Nitsana Darshan-Leitner explained, "that allows private citizens to bring a criminal complaint in certain areas. If we win, the Waqf officials could face years in prison.""Why has this never done before," Israel National Radio's Yishai Fleisher asked. "Many things have never been done before," Darshan-Leitner said. "You have to think and be creative in order to do these things. Basically, it’s something that the government should have done... There are certain areas of the penal code in which private citizens are permitted to file a private criminal complaint... The Israeli government has been notified of our suit, and it has 15 days in which to decide whether it wants to pursue it on its own. If not, then we will do so on our own."

She explained that the 150 plaintiffs are acting as representatives of the Jewish People, who are the owners of the Temple Mount and therefore the injured party as a result of the Waqf actions at the holy site. "In 1967," Darshan-Leitner said, "after the Six Day War, Israel made a terrible mistake in allowing the Jordanians to continue to run the Temple Mount. It now continues to be under the custody of the Islamic Trust (Waqf), but is not owned by the Waqf; it is still owned by the Jewish people. King David purchased it, King Solomon built the Temple there, and the Jewish People have longed to return there ever since the Exile began nearly 2,000 years ago. Our regaining it in 1967 was the pinnacle of Zionism. Because it has long been the heritage of the Jewish people, anyone who violates our rights there must be stopped and punished." The suit accuses members of the Waqf of intentionally demolishing priceless Jewish artifacts, including remains from the Second Temple. In recent months, the Waqf brought in bulldozers and heavy digging equipment to dig a long trench on the Mount, supposedly to replace electrical cables. "Israeli archaeologists who sifted through the discarded earth," the Law Center reports, "were shocked to discover a great number of Jewish artifacts brutally trashed by the bulldozers. A wall from the outer courtyard of the Second Temple is believed to have been completely pulverized."
"The recently accelerated destruction is part of a four-decade-long campaign by the Waqf to eradicate all evidence of the historical Jewish connection and claim to the Temple Mount," the suit maintains. Shurat HaDin alleges that the Israeli government, in its "political cowardice," has "consistently refused to undertake any concrete actions to stop the criminal activities of the Waqf."
Darshan-Leitner says, "This private suit is an unprecedented response to the brutal attempt by the Waqf extremists to eradicate any Jewish claim over the Temple Mount. The Waqf leaders belong in prison for their actions, and since Israel's government is refusing to protect Jewish heritage and property, we will prosecute the Waqf ourselves. This legal action is a moral obligation, not only for the Jewish people, but also for the Christian community, which has significant interests in safeguarding the Temple Mount as well."

This is so long in coming, I'm surprised it has taken this long.

Ya'betz (Jabez)

Ya'betz (Jebez) called on the G-d of Isreal: "Please bless me by enlarging my territory. May your hand be with me! Keep me from harm, so that it will not cause me pain!" G-d granted him his request. Complete Jewish Bible (I Chronicles 4:10)

Such a small prayer with huge rewards! I have prayed this prayer many times in my life with all the same results as Ya'betz. That is why I decided to use that name for my blog. Ya'betz mother said in the verse prior to the prayer that she named him Ya'betz because she bore him in pain!

I have also bore many things through my life in pain... and through the pain of prayer with much travail awesome things have come to pass.

I love G-d with all my heart and soul without Him I am nothing! May you find this journey as exciting as I have!