The following is the text of an email that came into my mailbox from a friend in the USA today (May 19, 2012) containing an message from Rick Ridings of Sukkat Hallel, giving a sense of how we should be praying for.Israel at this time.
In addition to reading the email below, I recommend you also look at The Shift has begun by Rick Ridings.
Text of the message from Rick Ridings, emailed to me by a friend
For weeks it had looked like Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would call for early elections since he was polling quite well and had the potential to strengthen his ruling coalition in the Knesset (Harkov, PM calls).
Then suddenly, in the pre-dawn hours of May 8, Netanyahu brokered a deal to accept what was before this an opposition party, “Kadima”, into his government. This created the strongest unity government in 28 years, holding 94 of the 120 Knesset seats (Hoffman).
Praying for earthquakes
In February 2008, while a group of us at our Jerusalem 24/7 prayer center – Succat Hallel – were seeking the LORD, we felt strongly we were to pray and proclaim an earthquake at the very foundations of the Israeli government that would uproot, expose and pull out corruption.
The amazing thing was that about 20 minutes after we proclaimed this in prayer, there was a literal, physical earthquake in Jerusalem (HaLevi). We felt the LORD was telling us our prayers were on the right track.
We kept praying this over the next months. Ehud Olmert was Prime Minister at the time. There was one scandal after another (All the king’s), but the corruption didn’t seem to shake out completely. So we kept praying that this earthquake would shake things at the very deepest levels in every party and in every politician. We prayed that God would expose and begin to root out areas of corruption and would bring forth more righteousness.
Is this line of prayer scriptural? Let’s look at Jeremiah 1:9-10 (NIV):
Then the LORD reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.”
Many of the great rulers of Jeremiah’s time would have thought that they were making the decisions about the future of their nations, of their empires. However, God granted this power to the intercessors who receive in prayer God’s word and proclaim it over the nations.
Hunger for the Word of God
When God gave us that earthquake prayer in 2008, we saw many shifts, many government people uprooted and new ones planted in their place. The shift culminated with Olmert resigning, and Netanyahu taking the Prime Minister’s office in 2009 (Israeli legislative).
In December 2011, Prime Minister Netanyahu started a Bible study in his official residence, restoring a meeting that was held by his predecessors David Ben-Gurion and Menachem Begin. The study is open to researchers and public officials (Keinon).
It’s an amazing thing that there is still an honoring of God’s word in this Land. We must pray that it will result in righteousness and in justice and in godly decisions.
How to pray
• Pray that God will sovereignly uproot and pull out any He does not want in this newly formed government, especially before there is any major conflict in the Middle East. Pray that people who are in the wrong position and might make wrong decisions would be removed. (Jeremiah 1:9-10)
• Pray for the positioning and rooting in of those that God has chosen for the government in this time. Pray that God would put in place those that would hear and obey the voice of the LORD, even if they do not realize that is what they are hearing and obeying. Pray that they would line up with God’s Word and purposes for Israel and the Middle East at this time.
• The Bible says we are to pray for all who are in authority, whether we agree with them on everything on not (1 Timothy 2:1-2). Pray that these leaders would have a desire and a hunger for God’s Word. Pray that they would have a desire for righteousness and justice, which God says are the pillars of His government (Psalm 89:14, Isaiah 9:7).
• Pray that government officials studying the Bible would have a real revelation of God’s Word. Pray that there would be a revelation of His righteousness justice, as well as a revelation of their Messiah, Yeshua (the Hebrew name for Jesus), as they delve into God’s Word.
Pray with us, that even as the pieces on a chessboard must be moved into the right position to win, that the right people will be placed in the right positions for this very strategic year in Israel. There are huge decisions to be made concerning Iran, among other things. Pray that God will raise up godly, prophetic counsel, as in days of old.
Thank you for your prayers for Israel and for standing with us for this nation and for the Middle East.
By Rick Ridings/Succat Hallel
Works Cited
“All the king’s scandals.” Haaretz. Haaretz Daily Newspaper Ltd. 31 July 2008. 13 May 2012.
HaLevi, Ezra. “Earthquake Damages Temple Mount and Shechem.” Arutz Sheva. 17 February 2008. 13 May 2012.
Harkov, Lahav. “Sept. elections likely; poll shows big Likud lead.” Jerusalem Post. Palestine Post Ltd. 3 May 2012. 13 May 2012.
Hoffman, Gil. “PM, Mofaz form largest coalition in 28 years.” Jerusalem Post. Palestine Post Ltd. 9 May 2012. 13 May 2012.
“Israeli legislative election, 2009.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation Inc. 12 May 2012. 13 May 2012.
Keinon, Herb. “Netanyahu re-establishes PM Bible class.” Jerusalem Post. Palestine Post Ltd. 10 December 2011. 13 May 2012.
“PM calls for early elections on September 4.” Jerusalem Post. Palestine Post Ltd. 7 May 2012.
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