Shalom from Jerusalem.
Shabbat Zachor (Shabbat of Remembrance) just ended, and it will be a shabbat that will always be remembered as the start of the Iran war. We at the AMI Center spent a good part of the day in the bomb shelter in our basement. We are all safe, no one is worried or fearful, and the atmosphere in the shelter was one of faith, thankfulness, trust, and worship to the Lord. While in the shelter we could hear explosions in the skies above Jerusalem as the missiles were being intercepted by the Israeli defenses.
Throughout the day we were joined by Jewish people including families with children and it was a wonderful feeling of family. We worshipped and praised the Lord in Hebrew, and we all shared food, fun stories, and enjoyed being together as a community within Am Israel.
I believe we are in a very significant time in this shabbat before Purim. It’s recorded in the book of Esther how Haman, the Agagite Esther 3:1 (descended from Amalek), tried to destroy the Jewish people. God raised up Esther and Mordecai to stand before the king and give to the Israeli people in that day the authority to defend themselves. God worked a miracle through his people and they defeated their enemies. While Satan tried to destroy Am Israel (people of Israel) through Haman, God reversed the plan and Haman was hung on his own gallows.
Satan is again raising up enemies to destroy Am Israel and it’s interesting that the verses the Jewish people read every year on this Shabbat are from Deut. 25:17-19. Could these verses read today in every synagogue be prophetic about Israel defeating the Amalek spirit of today? Through our prayers before God, He is allowing His people to defend themselves and defeat their enemies of today at this time of Purim.
Continue to pray for Israel that God will protect and bless her. Isa. 45:17, Isa. 62:1, Ezek. 34:25-30, Ezek. 36:7-15. Our faith is that the Lord will continue to fulfill every promise and covenant He has made with the sons of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Ps. 105:8-11. We thank the Lord for His faithfulness.
May God bless all who love and comfort Jerusalem Ps. 122:6 and Isa. 40:1-2
Bruce Larson