Special Prayer Update From Israel (August 18,2008)
We are including this week a special report from our friend Gene Little, who, with his wife Marylois, oversees the "House of Peace", a ministry of End Time Handmaidens and Servants in Israel. We find Dr. Little's observations on "stumbling stones" to be of especial relevance in navigating the rocky terrain of intercession in today's Middle East.
Sincerely,
Martin & Norma Sarvis
Jerusalem
August 17, 2008
Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense: and whosoever believes on him shall not be ashamed. Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they might be saved. (Rom. 9:33-10:1)
Dear Intercessors:
Greetings from Winnipeg, Canada where Marylois and I are attending the End-Time Handmaidens Canadian Convention and representing the House of Peace. I begin this letter with two quotations from Paul's letter to the Romans. Here Paul is quoting Isaiah's prophecies of the coming Messiah (Is. 8:14-15; 28:16). He will be a stumbling stone to some, a rock of offense to others and for a remnant a sure foundation.
Stumbling stones abound in the Middle East. The loose soil, the dry barren hills and the abundant rock outcroppings make hiking a challenge. You have to be sure footed like the hind in order to surmount these hills. Even then you have to keep a watch out for hidden mine fields, snakes and thorns. Even walking in Jerusalem can be an adventure. There are so many unforeseen dangers: loose steps, uneven stones, dark corners, and slippery worn avenues. You quickly learn to walk with your head down, ever alert to placing your foot on a sure foundation. Even so, accidents occur. Two months ago while on an errand, one of my sandals caught the lip of an exposed electrical outbox on the sidewalk and I took a sudden fall. A second later I found myself laid out on the sidewalk in shock from the suddenness of what had just happened. Thank God, the Lord's angels protected me, and my hands broke my fall. Thus, with the exception of a few small scrapes, I continued on my journey unharmed, but more wary.
The Greek word for "stumbling stone" is skandalon. It means a trap, a snare, a wire to trip you up. More specifically, it is the "bait stick" or "trigger" that lures you to fall. A skandalon is something that causes you to take offense or entices you to sin. I've found that in living life some people take offense easily. Perhaps it is a mark of the culture here, a proof of one's honor, or a just a sign of this present age (Mt. 24:10). There are many skandalons here in the Middle East which, "push peoples buttons" and cause them to react negatively.
The first rock of offense is the Middle Eastern peace negotiations. This has been an ongoing skandalon even before the creation of the State of Israel. Not only has the existence of Israel been blamed for more wars, it is still causing offense within and without. The political parties of the State are divided on how to find peace. Even the "partners" at peace table are at odds with one another. It is no less than a scandal.
Next week United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is visiting the land in order to again pressure Israel and the Palestinian Authority into some sort of peace agreement before the Bush Administration leaves office. Prime Minister Olmert meanwhile has offered President Abbas 93% of the West Bank (Judea and Samaria) with the addition of transferring Israeli lands near Gaza over to PA control. Olmert also offered a land corridor connecting these two pieces, which splits Israel. A senior Israeli official said the Palestinians were given preliminary maps of the proposed borders. Abbas again routinely rejected Olmert's latest tender. He still wants more land and more concessions and is demanding Israel return to its pre-1967 borders.
To complicate matters, recently two CNN reporters gained access to a Hamas arms factory in the Gaza Strip. Here they were shown Popular Resistance Committee (PRC) terrorists busily assembling upgraded Nasser 3 rockets. These missiles have a 17 mile range (25 kilometer) and can hit not only Ashkelon but Ashdod as well. Ashdod is a large port city dotted by oil refineries. A rocket explosion at one of them would cause a mega-disaster and severely cripple Israel's economy.
Religion or the lack of it is another skandalon in Israel. The Ultra-Orthodox religious are growing in political power, popularity and numbers. While they are religious, many of their members do not support the legitimacy of the State, nor do they have to serve in the IDF. Their presence creates a conflict or skandalon with the secular Israelis.
I suppose you could also view the religious differences between Islam and Judaism as another trip wire here. Just this week thirty-six Israeli tourists on their way to Amman for a three-day tour were detained at the Sheikh Ali Hussein Crossing near Beit She'an at 6:30AM. Jordanian border officials notified the tour group of a new regulation which prohibits entry into Jordan with tefillin, talitot (tallits), prayer books, Torahs and Talmud's. The Jordanians informed the group that this was "a safety measure" to avoid potential terror threats. Alan Novetsky, a recent immigrant from New York stated, "Our group was then presented with two options. Either enter Jordan without these religious objects or go back to Israel."
Novetsky said the group's suitcases were thoroughly searched for religious items. "They seemed to know exactly what they were looking for. It was very demeaning to have such a negative experience in what is billed as a friendly country. People in the group, including the tour guides, were quite shocked. No one had ever heard that Jordan imposed religious restrictions," he said. The group elected to return to Israel rather than abandon their prayer books and religious wear. (www.imra.org.il 8/14/08)
Yeshua the Messiah is also a skandalon. He is in Zion for many "a stumbling stone and a rock of offense." Yet there are growing numbers of true believers here who have gone past the skandalon of offense and found that Yeshua is as Isaiah has prophesied "a tried stone, a precious corner stone, and a sure foundation." (Is. 28:16). Messiah is the cornerstone which the builders rejected but He has now become the head and capstone of our faith (Mt. 21:42). Please pray Paul's prayer for Israel, "that they might be saved." (Rom. 10:1)
Blessing and thank you for all your prayers for us!
Gene and Marylois
House of Peace/Jerusalem
