Psalm 4: 6-8 There be many that say, Who will shew us any good? LORD, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us. Thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased. I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety.
We found an interesting story in an old copy of “Our Daily Bread”: In 1883 in Allentown, New Jersey, a wooden Indian — the kind that was seen in front of cigar stores — was placed on the ballot for Justice of the Peace. The candidate was registered under the fictitious name of Abner Robbins. When the ballots were counted, Abner won over incumbent Sam Davis by 7 votes. A similar thing happened in 1938. The name Boston Curtis appeared on the ballot for Republican Committeeman from Wilton, Washington. Actually, Boston Curtis was a mule. The town’s mayor sponsored the animal to demonstrate that people know very little about the candidates. He proved his point. The mule won!
Today, people all over Israel are voting for the party whom they hope will best choose a prime minister for our country. The politics here are very complicated and just crazy. We’re used to having only two options. Here, there are more than 20 choices! And many Israelis are undecided.
On a more serious note though, Israel is crying out today. “Who can show us any good?” “Who will help us to sleep in peace and to dwell in safety from all our enemies?” And really, there is only One who can — and unfortunately, His Name does not appear on today’s ballot.
The modern-day Hebrew word for Christian is “Notzree”. Notzree means watchman. God has called all of us who know Him to be watchmen and apparently, so have the Israelis.
We must be praying for Israel — that God would open her eyes to see the truth of His goodness and mercy, and most of all, His salvation. Please stand with us as we pray.
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]The first king of Israel, King Saul,was told by God to utterly slay Amalek and his descendants. In blatant disobedience Saul allowed Agag, the king of the Amalekites and the best of the cattle to remain alive. The following day, Saul tried to remedy his disobedience by attempting to sacrifice the best of the cattle to the Lord.
If you’ve ever been to Israel, you know that Shabbat—what we call the Sabbath—is a big deal. It starts Friday at sundown and goes until Saturday at sundown, and let me tell you, the whole country gets ready for it like clockwork. Friday mornings are busy—really busy. The outdoor markets are packed, folks are rushing around grabbing last-minute groceries, cleaning house, cooking meals, and getting everything wrapped up before things shut down. By the time the sun sets, the streets get quiet, the stores close, and life slows down. For the next 24 hours, it’s all about rest.
Watching Yeshua (Jesus) lay down His life to die on the cross was not what His disciples were expecting, but rather a shocking, perplexing, and apparently hopeless ending to what had seemed like a promising fulfillment of Messianic hope. The shattering ordeal of Yeshua’s trials, torture, and horrific death must have left them all feeling bereft, miserable, and uncertain of the future. What would they do now? What would their future hold?
According to ancient Jewish legend, one day Abraham was shown his father, Terah’s room of many idols. Young Abraham, thinking that perhaps he could discover intimacy with them, made some desirable delicacies and placed them before the idols. When nothing happened, he realized that these idols were nothing more than clay — they could do nothing for him or anyone else for that matter. So he proceeded to destroy all the idols, except for one.
Among those in the court of Alexander the Great was a philosopher of outstanding ability but little money. He asked Alexander for financial help and was told to draw whatever he needed from the imperial treasury.
Make no mistake—the spirit of antisemitism is very much alive today. Yet this isn’t a new struggle. It is an ancient spiritual war that has been ongoing for thousands of years. As people worldwide celebrate Purim, recalling the Jewish people’s deliverance from Haman’s evil schemes that took place in the ancient Kingdom of Persia (Iran), we are reminded of a deeper reality: a spiritual conflict between heavenly powers and demonic principalities.
The Festival of Purim, which we celebrate on the 14th of Adar—the last month in the Biblical calendar—begins this Thursday evening and continues through Friday evening this year. Although Purim isn’t one of the moedim, or appointed festivals named in the Torah, it arose in the 4th century BC and has been cherished ever since.