Shalom to all of you!

I’m sorry it has been so long since I last sent out an update; I have been really busy over the last few weeks.

I have just a few things to share with you this time.  Recently God has begun to highlight Tel Aviv and the original inheritance of the tribe of Dan to some of the people I am with.  The tribe of Dan never took possession of the territory God allotted to them as a tribe. Instead they went north.   That may not seem significant, but it means that the place that tribe was to fill was never established.  Dan means righteous judgment.  So, righteous judgment was never fully established in Israel.  If I’ve learned nothing else I have learned this – what happens in Israel affects the rest of the world.  The world has been greatly lacking in righteous judges and judgment because of this.  God has been highlighting this because He wants to close that open door.  People from around Israel are now going to be targeting Tel Aviv with prayer to bring the area into alignment with God’s purposes for it.

If you have been watching any of the news lately you know that things have been a bit stirred up for the last few weeks in parts of Jerusalem.  There have been a number of riots in East Jerusalem related to the Temple Mount and people building in the neighborhoods near there.  The issue of who can decide what is done in Israel – the U.S., the Palestinians, or the Israeli government – has come to a head again.  Pray for the leadership (Netanyahu and his staff) to have wisdom and not fall to the pressure of men.  It is important that we continue to stand with Israel in prayer, even if the leadership of our country is not.  Several states have recently sent signed documents with leaders to Israel saying that their state is standing with Israel; may God raise up even more states who understand the significance of Israel and stand with them!  Just because the government of our nation is going the wrong way doesn’t mean we stop praying and asking for God to intervene. No matter how bad things get God can still turn them around.  We need to proclaim the purposes and plans of God over this nation because His purposes and plans don’t change, regardless of what man decides to do.

On a slightly different note, for those of you who don’t already know, I am home for a few months!  I really felt God leading me to come home early for a few months. The plan is to return to Israel in June and stay through September.  So please be praying for me to have wisdom in all of the decisions that will need to be made over the next few months.   I really feel that there is a reason for my being home early, though I certainly don’t know all of His reasons, nor am I currently aware of all of the doors He wants me to walk through.  I am looking forward to seeing as many of you as possible while I am home! Feel free to email me about getting together and I will do my best to make it work!

Blessings to all of you and I look forward to giving you hugs in person!

~Lydia

Pictures: #1 Seeing my god-daughter for the first time!

#2 My nephew, who was quite happy to have me back

Chag Sameach (Happy Holiday)!

This week we celebrated Purim!  Purim is the feast that Mordecai and Esther set in place after they were delivered from Haman’s evil plan.  It is a fun filled celebration, with kids and some adults dressed up in funny costumes parading about!  They have lots of parties and eat fun cookies called Haman’s Ears.  The kids I nanny had loads of fun dressing up, partying and eating LOTS of candy and sweets.

We spent a lot of time praying into the story of Esther this past week, asking God for more revelation. A few things that I thought were significant are as follows:

1.    Esther  5:1 – Esther put on her royal robes.  We are to be clothed in royal robes! We are royalty and it is time for us to step into this role.

2.    5:2-3 – We are entering a time where we will be shown great favor. When the King saw Esther he didn’t sit there and struggle to decide if he should extend his scepter. She had favor and he extended it right away. Then before she made any request he said she could have anything she wanted, up to half his kingdom (which was huge by the way).  She was his favorite and he found great delight in her. It is the same between us and the King of Kings. He delights in us and desires to answer us.

3.    5:4, 5:8, 7:3, 8:5, 9:13 – She remained humble. She never demanded anything from the king. She said “if it pleases the king”.  We are not to demand things of God. We are His favorites, yes, but He is still God and we are not.  It is important that we remember who we are and who He is and make our requests in humility not arrogance.

4.    9:1 – Two decrees were written in the Book of Esther, one by Haman and one by Mordecai. Both of these men were given authority by the king to write the decrees, but the king did not take an active part in the writing of either.  However, in 9:1 they are both referred to as decrees of the king.  When God created the earth He gave man authority over it which we gave away through sin, but when Yeshua died on the cross He took back that authority from the enemy.  We are able to walk in the authority God created us to walk in once again! So, as sons of God and as the Bride of Yeshua we now wear the “signet ring” and what we decree is seen as a decree from the King! How exciting is this? 

On a slightly different note, today we spent a lot of time praying into all of the shaking (in both the natural and the spiritual) that God has been doing lately. A few of the scriptures we prayed from are Psalm 2, 29, 83 and Isaiah 30:29-33.  It’s the voice of the Lord that is shaking the earth and because of all of these shakings those who are in opposition to the Lord are reacting!!  We are going to see the results of this soon enough, but just remember who is doing the shaking, it’s not them, it’s GOD!!!  I found the results of the quakes in Haiti and Chile very interesting in the natural. They said that Chile didn’t suffer as many casualties from the quake (which was bigger than the one in Haiti) because their structures were better built and they were simply more prepared for a quake. Interesting isn’t it? God says He’s going to shake everything that can be shaken.  But we can prepare for the shakings and be left standing when it’s all over! (Heb. 12:27-29)

We are not to walk in fear when the world around us is shaking. We are to be at rest in our Father. I love Psalm 131:2-3 “Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with his mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. Oh Israel, trust in the Lord from this time forth and forever.” A huge key to standing when everything is shaking is being able to rest in Him.  We can’t be caught up in the fear and tumult of the lost around us; if we aren’t at rest in Him we won’t be able to draw others into that place either.   

I saw a painting entitled Peace and I’ve never forgotten it. The picture was of a huge waterfall and lots of crashing waves, but on a branch hanging close to the water was a small bird in a nest resting.  The tranquil scenes we often see and call peaceful aren’t really portraying the full essence of peace.  Like the bird, we must be able to trust Him enough to rest in our nest while all of this chaos is breaking out around us.  Now is the time for us to prepare and learn to trust, rest and be at peace. 

Much love and Shalom to all of you!

~Lydia

Pictures: #1 the kids and me on Purim, 

#2 naptime in the car

#3 The Kodyphant

A Revival in the East

Shalom Friends!

Well, the sun is shining and the weather is just peachy on this side of the world!  Hopefully all of you are staying warm.  I hear we will be getting colder temperatures and some rain in another day or two, so I am taking full advantage of the sun while I can.  We have also found out that Bethany is pregnant with baby number 6! All is well over here.

Obviously Iran did not attempt to wipe Israel off of the map on the 11^th as they said they would. However they never cease to threaten.  This week though, the trouble wasn’t so much the threats from outside people as it was not being able to get mail. Turns out someone received a package that had wires attached to it, so the mail system will be shut down for a few days.  Can’t say that I’ve ever heard of the U.S. Post Office shutting down for several days for any reason, but life is just a bit different over here.  

The Far East has been experiencing revival for the past 2-3 decades.  It has been a continuous thing, not a revival that starts in one location and lasts for a year or two and then ends as suddenly as it began.  This revival has been wide-spread and non-stop with an impact on many areas of life.  Why has this been the case in the Far East but not in the U.S.?  One main reason or key.  It has not been based off of the ministry of one human being or one church.  This revival has been completely God focused.  In the West when God falls in a major way we tend to feel the need to replicate the exact circumstances every night thereafter in the hopes that He will continue to fall since we have now found the correct method for causing Him to come down.  So the same people preach the same thing and the same people sing the same thing night after night until they are all sooooooooo exhausted that they can’t function and then the revival falls apart and ends.

But it really wasn’t about what those particular people did that first night anyway. It was about God coming down and us meeting with Him in an amazing way.  It was about a face-to-face encounter with Him that should never end.  It has nothing to do with us.  In the Far East they understand this, thus their revival has been widespread and not reliant upon one person or group to keep the flames going.  In Indonesia as well as a Korea and others there has been a huge growth in the number of believers who have successful businesses. They are on the road to take over that realm as well as the mission/prayer realm.  This revival has affected all aspects of their lives because it is God focused and not man focused. When we invite God to inhabit us He does so at all times.  Much of the End Times revival is going to come out of and spread from the Far East, not the “great” churches of the West, simply because their focus is in the right place.  We can join in this revival too, if we can change our focus…

It’s time for us to call one another forth into our individual purposes. We have to stop trying to conform ourselves to one specific role, we have different roles and that’s a GOOD thing. Blessings to all of you and hugs from Israel! I look forward to seeing you all soon.

~Lydia 

P.S. I wrote this a few days ago, and now it's raining and freezing cold!!!

#1 My Friend and Me Having Dinner 

#2 Ariel with the Bunny 

#3 Almond Tree