So you say you love Israel, huh? Let me ask you a question: Have you considered paying her a visit lately?
One of the most memorable moments from my most recent trip to Israel (in April) came on the day that the group I was with visited Jerusalem. A few of us had just gone to the Western Wall area, and on our way back one of them commented on how the Jewish people so desperately needed healing.
For those of you who are not aware, the Western Wall is the section of the Western-supporting wall of the Temple Mount that has remained intact since the destruction of the 2nd Temple (the Temple that stood in Jesus' day). It is considered the pinnacle of Judaism, and is arguably the most recognizable site in all of Israel. We were there during Passover, so the whole city--including the area around the Wall--was crowded. It was in these surroundings that my friend's eyes were opened to the healing the Jewish people so desperately need.
Two things occurred to me at that moment:
1. Non-Jews have an authority to pray for Israel that many Jews do not have. When my non-Jewish friend made the comment about the Jewish people needing healing, he was making an observation as one who is (in a manner of speaking) an objective, "outside-the-family," third party. I believe that, in a sense, non-Jews who love Israel are endued with a compassion for the Land and the People that we Jews may not always have. They see things as a nurse, a midwife, a loving friend who cares enough to intervene. In this case, the intervention is with heaven, which leads to the next point...namely that...
2. A trip to the Land will cause non-Jews who love and pray for the Land and the People to experience an exponential growth in their ability to pray effectively. This friend of mine was from Poland (where almost all of Hitler's concentration camps were located). Not only that, he was also raised in the Catholic Church (the most violent persecutor of the Jewish people in history). In the midst of a background that could have been a breeding ground for anti-Semitism, the Lord touched his heart with a love for the Land. But he still needed to be in the Land--taking it in, imbibing it, and then being at the place that is deemed the pinnacle of Judaism (namely, the Western Wall)--in order for his eyes to be opened to the gaping hole in the Jewish people's heart.
If the LORD has touched your heart with a supernatural love for His Land, then it is obvious you love Him enough to be intimate with Him. You have gone "beyond the veil," so to speak, and into the chambers of His heart. You have responded to the call to love His people. Now take that next step. Go to the Land. Take it in...imbibe it...embrace it. In doing so, you will be taking in...imbibing...embracing...more of His heart.
As the commercial jingle that many of you have heard says, "you'll never be the same."
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