Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem

Oh LORD, Our God
You Alone are LORD,
You Alone are Sovereign.
You Reign Over All Of Your Creation,
All of Nature Sings of Your Glory!
You Alone Are Worthy of Praise
Awesome in Power
And Wonderful Beyond Measure!
How Magnificent that You have Chosen to Manifest Yourself
In Such Wonders!

We Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem,
According to Your Will and Promise.
We Pray For the People and Leaders of Israel,
that They Will Look to You for the Protection
and Prosperity of their Nation.
We Also Pray For Revival in our own Beloved USA.

  We Pray For The Leaders of Our Nation,
May They Be Inspired and Led By You,
And Please Guide Them in All Things.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem

Today's story is true and somewhat recent, so I am changing some of the "particulars", and hope that anyone who remembers the event will keep the characters anonymous for the purpose of today's study! Thanks! :-)

The Pastor of the large, popular, Evangelical Church was a bit concerned. Several members of his congregation had been speaking ecstatically about the Revival Tent that had been set up right across the street, and the powerful "anointing" and "miracles" that were going on. Now, the Pastor was not against the modern manifestations of the Gifts of the Spirit, and he wasn't worried about losing members to this transient tent preacher, but he felt it was his duty as a shepherd to check it out and make sure that his flock were not being exposed to error. So he decided to go to a meeting.

The music was great and he enjoyed worshiping with the folks in the tent. Then the preacher came out, and she immediately recognized the well-known pastor in the audience. She called him to come up to the podium so she could pray for him. The pastor went up, expecting a nice prayer of encouragement, or maybe a word from God, if He was indeed using this lady to minister His Word.

She laid hands on him (inappropriate in the situation!) and began "prophesying" all kinds of effusive, flattering stuff over the patient minster who endured quietly her loud pronouncements. Then she asked him if he had anything to say. He went up to the microphone, thanked her for praying for him, and then turned to the audience and said she was a false prophet and that they should not listen to her.

At that point, she grabbed the microphone from his hand and accused him of being possessed by the devil! (Right after she flattered him for being anointed of God). The minister walked out, and the members of his congregation walked out with him.

Some would say that the Pastor was rude to the woman. Others would say that he did the right thing. Today's story is not to debate that point, but to look at our own credulity and naivete' when talking about "spiritual" things. Nathaniel was impressed that Jesus said He "saw him sitting under the fig tree". Jesus saw his gentle, guile-less spirit and cautioned Nathanial that that was just a tiny little miracle compared to what he WOULD be seeing. Jesus' tone seems even a little bit (can I say this?) sarcastic. "You believe in me because of THAT?" He seems to be saying.

The Pastor in today's story was concerned that members of his congregation could be led astray by the Tent Preacher across the street. Indeed, members of his church had RECOMMENDED her. Like Nathaniel, they were impressed by some little thing that she had said. It may have been the music, or the passion in her voice, or key words like "anointing". Or maybe, like a fortune teller, she had zeroed in on a person and discerned something about them, and pronounced it as prophecy. (That is always impressive. "She said something about me and it was TRUE!")

Jesus warned us to be "Wise as Serpents and as Innocent (harmless) as doves. We all need to have the gentle faith of Nathaniel, an honest innocence in order to receive the Kingdom of Heaven like a little child. But we also need to guard against wolves in sheep's clothing, especially if we are in positions of leadership.

Come and Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"The counsel of the LORD stands forever, The plans of His heart from generation to generation. Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, The people whom He has chosen for His own inheritance..” Psalm 33 NASB

God Bless America!

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

This Symbol Represents Christians in The Middle East, who desperately need our Prayers.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

Amen and thank you. Additionally, his not being deceitful implies to me that he works and is self sufficient and doesn’t lie, cheat, steal, connive or manipulate. When you were in school, did you ever hear the expression, “He/she isn’t smart. He just studies hard.” Peculiar, no?

When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.”

I’ve heard some say Jesus was cracking a joke here. Jacob, aka Israel, meant supplanter or heel catcher, hence deceiver.

He was saying - Here is a Jacob whom there is not Jacob.

Anyway...

Joining in prayer, left that other site, for the Peace of Jerusalem and for revival in our beloved America.