The Prophetic and the Pathetic

 For almost two decades I turned my back on the American prophetic because it of the excesses, lack of accountability to making wrong declarations. Prophets decked out like a Disney soothsayer and on top of all that they were full of themselves instead of God's Word that they couldn't see that a major end times sign was God's restoration to the land of Israel and to spiritual restoration with Him through faith in Israel's Messiah Yeshua/Jesus. How can anyone be a prophet if God without understanding His Word? I turned my back on it all this those "playing church.'

That changed when they one prophet who actually understand God's returning to Israel is a real thing, and a priority to the Christian world was attacked, the House of Prayer room overrun by protesters of MeToo and Cancel Culture - movements with NOTHING WHATSOEVER TO DO WITH GOD. It may of dressed up in religious language demanding righteousness, but none of that was sent by God. And the Christian world flocked to it like moths flying in to the fire. God knows how to correct His children. He sent a prophet to David about his sins, and David and Bathsheba's first born died, but their son Solomon continued the Davidic line that Yeshua/Jesus was born it.

What too many of the younger generation of God's people are following when we see a whole new group of people becoming the new Christian Inquisition - these sinner-seekers are NEVER sent by God and are always motivated by self-righteousness. Nathan was sent by God to confront David, not to do a media campaign to destroy confidence in the institution God set David to head. Those who are majoring in a seek and destroy mission of all sinners in the body of Christ are not doing what they are doing under the command of the Father by publishing a magazine filled with evil reports on Christian ministers? How did that get to look righteous in the eyes of Christians? Doing a 6 hour YouTube program accusing one prophet of data mining and many other more well known ministers guilty of not bringing correction within the confines of the body - where did that precedent appear in God's instruction book for us? Chapter and verse please!

Growing up my parents and grandparents always told me "Two wrongs don't make a right." That isn't explicitly written in the Bible, but it is surely a godly principle of how not to achieve God's justice. Don't be lured into something that almost looks like the righteous path but is it's own highway to hell.

It is a danger of youth to assume that they will not make the mistakes their 'parents' made - and there hasn't been a generation in my lifetime that the young people did not think they would make the better choices than their parents 'failed' them on. EVERY parent fails and every parent was failed by their parents. It is the human experience, as true in the spiritual family as it is in our bloodlines of natural family relationships.

It is humbling to realize when you are finally mature enough to realize that is a fact. Spiritual maturity does not join MeToo and Cancel Culture to see godly correction among God's people. Recalibrate what you are getting behind. Do not sanction evil or coverups, but justice cannot be brought by a lynch mob.

What I Believe About Becoming "One New Man"

 Here is something I believe in. God is looking for a perfected union between Jews and all the nations (gentiles) who are IN THE FAITH of Yeshua/Jesus. Now lots of Christians have recognized from the Scriptures that is what God wants from us, as Ephesians 2:15 communicates - God wants to make out of two "one new man." It is a oneness of unity that is the same way He says He wants to make out of two — husband and wife — to be one in marriage.

So that means in both cases God sees the differences in the two and He wants to preserve the difference even while He unifies them into one. The oneness God wants them be be so committed to each other in this new thing God has created — the oneness of marriage and the oneness of Jew and Gentile in ONE body of the LORD. This means they function together with shared love, respect, vision, and commitment even preserving the unique qualities of their differences.

Don't ever forget that God not only created the differences in male and female, He also created the differences in Jews and Christians! All the things that make a man and a woman unified in God's will for their marriage and family, these are the same things that God wants for Christians and Jews in the faith of Yeshua/Jesus to enter into together as "one new man." We are not MEANT to blend in with each other erasing all of our God-created differences!

There are things that God cannot do to bless us as the body of the Lord in the earth UNTIL we are willing to be that committed to the other. It is the same as marriage - blessing from God is tied to how unified in God's will for their marriage and family a husband and wife are.

One of the issues that troubles me even among Christians who profess love and commitment to Israel because God wills that for us, there is a breakdown in how much we share "love, respect, vision, and commit" to them. We would rather just make them all be like us. That doesn't work with male and female and it doesn't work with Christian and Messianic Jew.

I've always spoken about those Christians who say they love Israel but only unsaved Israel has a seat at their table. I believe the responsibility for that lies in Christian eschatology (vision) and what I believe is a misinterpretation of Christians making Jews jealous that is repeated in Scripture several times.

The rise of Jews coming to faith during the Jesus Movement late 1960's gave rise to Messianic Judaism. This coincided with Jerusalem being retaken by Israel in 1967. It is a fulfillment of Luke 21:24: Jerusalem is no long trodden down by the Gentiles. That day is over.

The view that many Christians has been to ignore the spiritual milestone for Israel retaking Jerusalem in 1967. You will find almost ZERO Israeli Messianic Jews in agreement with that. That fact SHOULD influence Christians to reconsider their eschatological interpretations because God ALWAYS tells His own prophets among the people who need to know for their own sake! He is not going to tell you about me without giving me an assurance about the truth of it.

Do you understand what I'm saying? If you give me a prophetic warning from God about my future, and it doesn't bear witness to me at all, that should make you circumspect. This even more so true when we are talking about a nation of believers raised up by faith in Yeshua, Israel's Messiah. If Christians are not going to listen to what God has spoken to them regarding Israel in the end times what makes us think He has told us instead? If we refuse to reevaluate our Christian-centric eschatology that is a big mistake that hurts both of us.

Husbands and wives with two different visions for marriage and family are not going to make much headway together. There has to be a unity of vision where both are able to speak into the matters and come into an agreement about what God is telling them as a couple joined together before Him. If not, there will be heated arguments, and two who cannot really walk in unity together. If the two cannot reason together with "love, respect, vision, and commitment" then the relationship is superficial. It is a facade not a union.

Very few Christians respect the Messianic Jews - and I am saying Israeli Messianic Jews - enough to believe that God has revealed certain things prophetically about the end times for the body of the Lord in the earth - including them in Israel - that must be received by the whole body. If there is not enough unity between us to sit down at that table, what do we really have? We cannot support each other as we ought to.

My view has long been that the Church has had a hard time accepting the rise of God building the body of believers in Israel with significant purposes in mind. It is almost like most Christians view the rise of Jews that come to faith in Jesus like it is not such a big deal, just like Jewish salvation is like any other people group. No it is not. That is not saying Jews are more "special" than any other people group, but Jews coming to faith is all about God's timing and dealing with the special circumstances He has put on them. To reject that is downplaying the true significance and reality that the increasing Remnant of faith in Israel is meant by God to hold massive significance - to other Jews and all peoples. It is a huge sign that is only going to become more significant with every passing day.

We Christians better let that reality impact us because their existence is towards our benefit too. I don't want a phony relationship in my marriage or in my unity with the body of Messiah in Israel. I am in both to serve God's purposes for both of us.

Arrows 2026 Jan 23 Chronicles 2001 — 2006

 The Centrality of Jerusalem
This just made my day. One of the Israeli ministries just emailed me about getting a picture I had used at some point, of the globe flattened out with Israel at the center of the world. He told me that I had gotten the picture from Eddie Santoro, who passed into glory in 2019. I must have hundreds of emails from Eddie and Jackie Santoro since I got the first one in 2004. AMAZINGLY I found the email that shared the picture Howard Bass wanted from a 2014 Santoro email.

I have history with these people. . .sort of like their "Chronicler" of the 2000's.

By the way, the article I wrote in 2014, The Centrality of Israel, is online. 
Here is what I wrote:

When Eddie & Jackie Santoro of Ahavat Yeshua congregation in Jerusalem were here in the Dallas area a few weeks ago, we were talking after the service about the centrality of Israel in the plan of God - especially here as His plan is culminating. There may be an earthly argument over who possesses the Temple Mount where the Dome of the Rock stands, but in Heaven the issue of ownership has long been settled, Mount Zion belongs to God.

God put His name on that mountain, and it is that mountain where His Son's Throne will be set up to rule the kingdoms of the earth in the Millennium. Why do you think it is inscribed on the Dome of the Rock, "There is no god but Allah" and "he has not begotten a son".

Islam lays claim to that mountain as a direct challenge to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and also to Israel's Messiah Yeshua. This is the real reason for the rage of Islam against the existence of the nation state of Israel - their existence is proof that Allah and the demonized prophet Mohammad are usurpers, laying false claim to the Throne of Righteousness which is destined by God to be situated in a precise geographical location - Mount Zion.

I'm taking the long way there, but Jackie and Eddie remembered during our conversation a picture they were given many years ago by a pastor in a European country. This picture above is that. It shows all of the continents of the world contained within a globe-like circle and here is the kicker: there was only one way that all the land masses would fit inside the circle at once and that was only if Jerusalem was placed dead center in the circle. If Jerusalem was not situated in the exact center of the circle, not all of the nations could be fully contained and visible in the circle.  Pretty amazing, no?

Tell me Jerusalem is not central to God's plan. I'm just going to shake my head and pray that God shows you what He is up to soon.

Arrows from Zion
Summarized from the Prayer Requests Israeli Ministries

   Jan 21 Guy Cohen of Katzir Asher uploaded a teaching to Facebook that he wrote on The Olive Tree, a symbol of Israel. In it he speaks of the characteristics that Israel shares with the olive tree and also how Paul’s Roman’s 11 "uses the olive tree as a model for understanding the relationship between Israel and the nations within faith in the Messiah. . . . This is a parable that neither cancels Israel nor replaces one identity with another."
     I asked permission from Guy Cohen to publish his olive tree teaching on my blog so I could share the full content with subscribers. It is important to read. I believe many Christian leaders have taught their biblical understanding of the end times without the benefit of factoring in God’s spiritual restoration of Israel at this present time. That is a grave error.

Reuven Doron, One New Man Today, writes about wrestling in prayer: “the Lord’s return in Kingdom power and authority is DIRECTLY CONNECTED to the nation of Israel being in her land with Jerusalem as her capital, Jerusalem and the Jewish people will always be the inevitable focus of the shakings. Satan is trying to stop or delay the return of the Son of God . . . . God knows it. The devil knows it. Do you know it?
     “. . . . We pray daily that the grace and protection God granted the Israelites in GOSHEN while He destroyed the Egyptian empire strike by strike will be found upon you and yours as well as the earth is shaking, once again, under the burden of her sin. Goshen, according to scripture, was spared nearly half of God’s ten plagues (ten strikes, “MAKOT” (מכות), according to the Hebrew text) while God’s people were being prepared for the great escape.  Read Exodus 8:22, 9:4, 9:11, 9:26, 10:23, & 11:4-7. This is the Word of God. Take it into your heart by faith and let it work in, through, and for you.
     “. . . .The psychological warfare is increasing. Digital industry leaders and tech experts have been confessing openly that about HALF of all the content found online, and especially on Social Media, is AI generated and broadcasted by bots and fake accounts. They call it “AI SLOP,” and while its driving force is financial gain, it serves to deepen the brainwashing, the confusion, and the dependency of the masses. Please guard your heart and your children. The prince of the powers of the air is appropriately named, and this age is nearing its culmination as the best and worst of humanity will face one another eyeball to eyeball. Prayer in oneness with the Holy Spirit and God’s Word is not only our only shelter in the storm; it is also our strongest weapon of warfare. God will bless your faithfulness and your sacrifice as you wrestle by His side. Subscribe for more including regional breakdowns

At Tikkun we are seeing a baton pass as Ariel Blumenthal leads as Executive Director and invites prayer for Asher and Betty Intrater, founders of Tikkun Global, as they enter a season of rest after decades of faithful ministry.
     VIDEO Teaching by Ariel Blumenthal | Isaiah 19: The Prophecy That Changes How We See the Middle East | What if Isaiah 19:23-25 reveals a side of God’s plan for the Middle East we rarely talk about? In this teaching, we explore one of the most unique prophecies in all of Scripture, where God speaks blessing over Israel, Egypt, and Assyria together. Why does the “Isaiah 19 Highway” stand apart from other prophetic passages, and what might it mean for our prayers today?
     THE TIME FOR IRAN IS NOW! ESTHER CALL | Watch Ariel Blumenthal announce new prayer initiatives at Tikkun Global and Thursday Jan 21 they are launching 40 Days of Prayer for IRAN. This is going ZOOM – Click above to Sign up for the Zoom Link LIVE at 3 PM Israel Time/8 AM USA ET EVERY SUNDAY, TUESDAY AND THURSDAY (Also will be on the internet if you can’t be there live) | Prayer Guide also available at the same link. | We invite you to watch Ariel’s message, where he explains the spiritual significance of this hour and the striking parallels between Esther’s call and the unfolding story of Iran’s liberation. His words help frame why we felt it was important to pause, realign, and give this moment the full attention it deserves.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED Click title to read in full Josie’s Silver’s Persia, Power, and Prophecy
Out of Zion is the Haifa ministry of David & Josie Silver. Josie writes, “. . . . In May 2025, I had a vivid dream just before waking. I heard a bell ring, followed by these words  that were crystal clear: “The Empire will fall.” …“Jeremiah 49 in essence, prophesies of a spiritual revival and restoration for Iran and the people of that nation. This week, I came across a social media article with the headline “Persia Will Fall.”

Tiferet Yeshua’s pastor Moti Cohen writes:  “Right now, Iran is nowhere to be found in the headlines in the west. Less than a week ago, every major news outlet in the world featured what was happening in Iran as its main headline. Even the US president joined in on his Truth Social account on January 14th writing, "Iranian Patriots, KEEP PROTESTING - TAKE OVER YOUR INSTITUTIONS!!!... HELP IS ON ITS WAY."
     “Two days later, Trump announced that he had called off any military strike against Iran, saying that the Iranian regime's commitment to "cancel" planned executions was an encouraging step—it is not clear whether this move is a bluff or an actual change of course. Either way, if Israelis felt whiplash from the rapid turnaround (on the night of Jan.14 we braced for another Iranian ballistic missile attack), we can only imagine how the Iranian protestors are feeling….
     “. . . .We believe that God is calling us to stand in the gap for the people of Iran, to ask for mercy, grace, protection and a great spiritual outpouring for the salvation of many across Iran and the greater Middle East!  Read in full online 

Read all of Cookie Schwaeber-Issan’s daily columns on AllIsraelnews.com but don’t miss this one!
Jan 22, 2026: The Board of Peace with Fiasco Written All Over It

Faithful Galilean VIDEO Chaim Malespin talks the “technocracy” Trump has been talking about for Gaza and why Israel cannot accept a Gaza that allows Hamas to rearm. And he also speaks to other regional issues – like with Hezballah and Iran. Chaim calls for prayer for Iran: “ Join us in praying for Iran: • Pray for God’s will to be done in Iran. • According to Jeremiah’s prophecy, pray that the bow of Elam will be broken. (Jeremiah 49:35 above) • Pray for protection and freedom for the people of Iran. Psalm 82:4 

Beit Hallel’s Pastor Pochtar gives thanks for those who are Walking Faithfully in a Defining Season with the Israeli Ministries. Also sending these videos and article links: Making Room for the Harvest VIDEO Finishing the Evangelism & Discipleship Center | VIDEO A word of Prayer and Encouragement from Jerusalem with Pastor Kostia Tsivin |READ:  Gathered from the Nations: Serving the Return of the Jewish People | A Shabbat Reflection VIDEO with Pastor Pochtar: A Prayer that Reaches You from Jerusalem
     Standing With Israel — Rooted in Yeshua, Aligned With God’s Purposes | This week’s newsletter reflects what it looks like to stand with Israel in a biblical, Yeshua-centered way. (Where Do You Stand on Israel?) You’ll read about discipleship being strengthened from the roots up, leaders being equipped to walk faithfully with others, and a new center in Ashdod being prepared as a place where the Gospel of Yeshua will be proclaimed and the next generation discipled.

Awake Israel’s Shlomy & Miriam Abramov, Martha Stern & Chaya Mizrachi at the October 2025 Israeli Ministry Women’s Conference that Avi & Chaya of Dugit Ministries host annually.  Miriam Abramov posted this photo saying that she has been invited to be a woman’s small group leader for Hebrew speaker in the 2026 conference. It is always a refreshing time for the women of ministry in Israel.    By the way! Avi Mizrachi of Dugit has announced an Israel tour he will be hosting May 3-10, 2026. It is the Dugit Living Stones Tour — an opportunity to connec with the heart of the Dugit ministry, meet living testimonies and walk the ancient paths of the Bible. There is a special deal being offerred through January 31^st, so go here to act now!

Amazon blocked Plant Hope Israel’s Jennifer Guetta’s new book about Jezebel - Buy on Jennifer’s website as an E-book ($12.99) or printed version PLUS ordering 10 books $145) Send her a message. This book is about how Jezebel operates in modern culture and leadership.

Return to Zion pastor Leon Mazin reports on “Or Chai” (Living Light) their “daughter congregation” in a suburb of Haifa established in 2023. Leon writes, “"the past year was a time of growth, new steps, challenges, and many blessings." It "is a true, living family of people striving to follow biblical values in their daily lives. . . . Members and guests enjoyed the Biblical Feasts of the Lord and “Families gathered to read the Scripture, praise God, and, of course, share festive meals and lively fellowship.” For many of the Jewish immigrants from the former Soviet Union, they are very much learning the biblical traditions of faith for the first time —made all the much greater by their faith in Israel’s Messiah, Yeshua. “A high priority is put on children’s ministry but for all are Bible lessons taught in living ways.” For example children serve alongside adults to “learn love, kindness, respect, and responsibility.” This teaches that all are able to serve each other and also those who do not yet know God.
     Leon writes, “We would be very grateful for your prayers that Or Chai would carry out God’s calling.

Heart for G-d Carolyn Hyde has a new worship video  "Odeh Yah" - I’ll Give Thanks to G-d “Come and sing with me on the streets of Jerusalem! |  Upon hearing the young filmmakers’ idea to feature me in each scene, I replied, “I’m too old for that!” But they convinced me by saying, “When we see older people walking in their gifts, it inspires us to know that we’ll do the same one day too.” On Facebook too!
     SERIOUS PRAYER REQUEST: Please pray for Richard's healing as we await test results from recent signs of cancer in his body. We give thanks to G-d as we call into existence perfect health for him. Pray with us Romans 4:17
     Soon to minister in Australia and New Zealand, Carolyn is also urging: continue to lift up the people of Iran during their fight for freedom. May the promises in Jeremiah 49:35-39 be fulfilled!

Revive Israel community discipling ministry is led by Youval & Valerie Yanay. This is a different kind of ministry in Israel, but one that will interest you. Read more on their website or watch on YouTube channel  Youval writes, “| "Valerie met the Lord when she was 16, and that shapes how she walks with young people today. She knows how much it matters when someone takes the time to listen, to be present, and to speak truth with love.  . . .This is why we choose to invest in young people. We want to walk with them, to pour out God’s love in practical and personal ways, and to help them truly come to know Him, not just in words, but in real everyday life. What is planted during these years truly matters.
     "We're happy to begin the year again with Makor HaTikva Messianic high school program, and excited to launch a new program where teenagers study the Scriptures while working in the field. God’s Word doesn’t stay theoretical here. It’s learned while doing, talked through in the middle of the work, lived out in simple, everyday ways, and in the relationships we build.
     "Working the land is something we do together. This week, as we were out in the field, our autistic friends, volunteers, and the rest of the team joined in, each one finding their place. There’s a steady rhythm to it, hands in the soil, quiet focus, small conversations, shared effort. Everyone brings something, and everyone belongs.
     "Valerie also recently taught at a girls’ conference, and it was a meaningful and blessed time. We love teenagers, and we care deeply about walking with young people during these formative and often difficult years of their lives."

Lastly, Sally Shiff with the HaMayaan congregation sends two videos highly recommended. “What is antisemitism? What is replacement theology? How am I as a believer supposed to pray for Israel? Is Israel committing genocide? What is so special about the Jews?  This video is a must listen! The Rise of Antisemitism in Christian and Conservative Circles | Gary Hamrick is a pastor from Virginia that I have been listening to for years.”
     “On a completely different note, I also wanted to add another video about our economy. It is amazing how God blesses us in spite of us, and all for His glory.  As a former recruiter, I marveled that it is the Israelis that are the first choice for a high caliber position. Israel's ingenuity is because of God, and we have no other solution. " Israel’s Wartime Tech Economy”
     “These two video's combined give you a good idea of How God feels about Israel. “

The Olive Tree | Teaching by Guy Cohen, Katzir Asher in Acco

  Guy Cohen leads the Acco, Israel congregation Harvest of Asher.

Acco is located in the land allocated by God for the tribe of Asher. The Hebrew word for Harvest is Katzir. Guy was born and raised in a religious rabbinic family line in the city of Acco where he now leads a Messianic congregation discipling believers in the faith of the Israeli Messiah, Yeshua.

As we approach Tu Bishvat the festival of trees I felt drawn to teach about a tree that stands from generation to generation from kingdom to kingdom. Not a tree of one season or one empire but a tree that remains while borders change rulers rise and fall and cultures come and go. For those from the nations who have come to faith in the Messiah this season invites reflection not only on nature but on roots. The olive tree does not hurry to prove its worth. It simply stays rooted in the land witnessing history without trying to control it. In a world of constant change the olive tree offers a different kind of testimony continuity rather than conquest faithfulness rather than force and life that persists quietly across centuries.

The olive tree is far more than a fruit tree. It carries character. A quiet and resilient character that is not measured by speed or force but by the ability to sustain time meaning and identity. The olive tree does not impress at first glance. Its trunk is cracked its leaves are small and its fruit is bitter. Yet precisely from this modest appearance emerges one of the deepest connections between nature faith and leadership a connection that appears both in the Hebrew Scriptures and in the New Testament.

The olive tree moves at a different pace. It is often planted by hands that will never see its fruit yet it continues to yield for generations after. It is a tree of continuity. It teaches a view of life that is not measured only by personal achievement but by long term faithfulness. When a person plants an olive tree he declares that he is part of a story larger than himself.

Even when the olive tree is damaged it does not disappear. Its trunk may crack twist or even become hollow but from the root new shoots will grow. Identity is preserved even when form changes. The olive tree does not cling to the past yet it does not detach from it. It renews itself from the root not instead of it.

This quality stands at the heart of Jotham’s parable in the Book of Judges chapter 9. The trees seek to appoint a king and their first appeal is to the olive tree. Not to the thorn bush not to a useless shrub but to the one that gives oil light and benefit. Yet the olive tree refuses. It says that it will not cease producing its rich oil by which God and people are honored in order to go and rule over the trees. This refusal is profound not merely political but ethical. The olive tree does not reject leadership because it is unworthy but because it understands that true leadership is not necessarily rule.

The message is sharp. One who seeks power is not necessarily fit to lead. And one who gives life light and healing to others is not always available for struggles over authority. Jotham’s parable presents the olive tree as a model of influence that does not pursue control. It influences through purpose not through position.

That same olive tree appears again in a different yet complementary context in Romans chapter 11. Here Paul the apostle uses the olive tree as a model for understanding the relationship between Israel and the nations within faith in the Messiah. The olive tree is described as a cultivated tree with an ancient root. Some of its branches were broken off and wild olive branches were grafted in their place. Yet Paul emphasizes a principle that cannot be misunderstood. The branches do not support the root. The root supports the branches.

This is a parable that neither cancels Israel nor replaces one identity with another. On the contrary it establishes that Messianic faith is rooted in the covenants the patriarchs the Torah and the prophets. The nations do not begin a new story but are joined to an existing one. Grafting is not ownership but grace.

Paul also warns against spiritual arrogance. A grafted branch can also be cut off if it becomes disconnected from the root. Faith does not exist in a detached spiritual vacuum but within a historical story a people a language and time.

Here the depth of the olive tree as a shared symbol is revealed. In Jotham’s parable the olive tree refuses to rule because it is faithful to its purpose. In Romans 11 the olive tree refuses to be replaced. In both cases the olive tree teaches humility. It does not exalt itself does not claim ownership and does not erase the other. It simply stands gives and holds the root.

It is a tree that teaches that true leadership is not domination and true identity is not erasure. In faith as in nature there is one root yet there can be many branches. Diversity is not a threat as long as it remains connected to the source of life.

From the olive tree oil is produced and oil does not emerge without pressure. Yet this pressure is measured wise and gradual. Not violence but process. From the crushed fruit comes light. In the ancient world olive oil was light food medicine and holiness. The same substance lit a lamp healed a wound and nourished a household.

Here lies another virtue of the olive tree. The ability to transform difficulty into light. Not a blinding light but a steady one. The olive tree teaches that breaking is not necessarily destruction. Sometimes it is a stage on the way to meaning.

In the story of the flood the dove returns with an olive leaf in its beak. Not a large branch not a dramatic declaration but a small sign that life can return. The olive tree symbolizes peace that is not naive. Peace that acknowledges destruction yet does not surrender to it. Peace that is built gradually.

The olive tree connects past and future identity and renewal root and branch. It does not ask who came first but who is connected. It reminds us that faith like the tree is not tested in moments of peak experience but in quiet faithfulness over time.

In the end the olive tree does not demand attention. It simply teaches. Those who are willing to observe it discover that it is possible to live differently. To be rooted rather than loud. To influence without controlling. And to be part of a greater story without trying to replace the root from which all life flows.

Blessings

Guy Cohen

Chronicles 2001 — 2026

This just made my day. One of the Israeli ministries just emailed me about getting a picture I had used at some point, of the globe flattened out with Israel at the center of the world. He told me that I had gotten the picture from Eddie Santoro, who passed into glory in 2019. I must have hundreds of emails from Eddie and Jackie Santoro since I got the first one in 2004. AMAZINGLY I found the email that shared the picture Howard Bass wanted in a 2014 Santoro email.
I have history with these people. . .sort of like their "Chronicler" of the 2000's.

By the way, the article I wrote in 2014, The Centrality of Israel, is online. Here is what I wrote:

When Eddie & Jackie Santoro of Ahavat Yeshua congregation in Jerusalem were here in the Dallas area a few weeks ago, we were talking after the service about the centrality of Israel in the plan of God - especially here as His plan is culminating. There may be an earthly argument over who possesses the Temple Mount where the Dome of the Rock stands, but in Heaven the issue of ownership has long been settled, Mount Zion belongs to God.

God put His name on that mountain, and it is that mountain where His Son's Throne will be set up to rule the kingdoms of the earth in the Millennium. Why do you think it is inscribed on the Dome of the Rock, "There is no god but Allah" and "he has not begotten a son".

Islam lays claim to that mountain as a direct challenge to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and also to Israel's Messiah Yeshua. This is the real reason for the rage of Islam against the existence of the nation state of Israel - their existence is proof that Allah and the demonized prophet Mohammad are usurpers, laying false claim to the Throne of Righteousness which is destined by God to be situated in a precise geographical location - Mount Zion.

I'm taking the long way there, but Jackie and Eddie remembered during our conversation a picture they were given many years ago by a pastor in a European country. This picture above is that. It shows all of the continents of the world contained within a globe-like circle and here is the kicker: there was only one way that all the land masses would fit inside the circle at once and that was only if Jerusalem was placed dead center in the circle. If Jerusalem was not situated in the exact center of the circle, not all of the nations could be fully contained and visible in the circle.  Pretty amazing, no?

Tell me Jerusalem is not central to God's plan. I'm just going to shake my head and pray that God shows you what He is up to soon.

* Because I don't own the picture, I cannot post it here, but I have posted it on my Facebook page if you are interested. 

Relating to Tabitha

 

Relating to Tabitha

by Donna Diorio

Some time in November I came across an article from the Biblical Archaeology Society about Tabitha. Up to that point it had never occurred to me that Tabitha and Dorcas were one in the same.

I knew Dorcas as the woman who made clothes for the poor widows who were Jewish believers living in Israel. I assumed they lived in Jerusalem close the the apostles, but it turns out Dorcas and the widows she made clothing for lived in what is now the Old City of Jaffa, next to Tel Aviv on the Mediterranean coastline. That surprised me. I thought all the believers huddled together in Jerusalem close to apostles teaching, but obviously this was not the case. Some must have returned to their homes.

It is kind of obvious that would be the case, now that I think about it because there were thousands in Jerusalem for Feast of Shavuot when the Holy Spirit descended on those in the Upper Room and they spilled out onto the street speaking in all manner of different tongues. Those were real languages, spoken by the Jews who had come from not just different towns in Israel, but from places that they lived in other nations. They came because of Shavuot, which means Tabernacles. We know that feast as Pentecost because of what happened there that day, is one of the 3 Feasts of the LORD where Jews are commanded to return to Jerusalem to appear before the LORD. Back to Tabitha. She probably got the name Dorcas from the Greek Jewish widows living in the coastal city of Jaffa. Tabitha is the Aramaic for her Hebrew name, Tsebiyâh. So it was likely Jews from Greece living in Jaffa that called her Dorcas. All three mean Gazelle, usually understood for beauty of the gazelle, but I thought it was funny that the Greek version Dorcas is also described as a "wild she-goat." Of course Tabernacles is about the indwelling Spirit of God, what went from symbolism to fulfillment in Acts 3, the pouring out of God's Spirit on the disciples in the Upper Room, who then went into the street where the Spirit continued to pour out on others causing them to come to faith in Yeshua, Jesus.

Maybe that last is part of what I identified with Tabitha for. No, seriously I identified with Tabitha having died, and being brought back to life by the healing prayer of the apostle Peter.

I have been increasingly feeling like my ministry was dying - losing subscribers because of Big Tech not allowing delivery of my emails to subscribers calling them suspected spam. I have watched my lists dwindle for several years and nothing has worked to stop me losing people. I don't even know how many of my emails were getting through - maybe hardly any! I just came to end of watching it die. Something drastic had to change.

It was around November that I began to feel like everything I had been about up to that point was dying and I really didn't know where that left me.

My identity is linked to the Israeli Messianic ministries, but all the frustrations with seeing my subscriber lists continuing to dwindle away was just like seeing the death of what I have been doing for the past 25 years. Even though I have no intention of stopping advocating for the body of Messiah in Israel, I related to being like Tabitha — who had been doing good toward the believer "widows" — then just dying off.

When I say I have been doing good towards the believer widows in Israel, I don't mean they are without God, but they sure have been without spiritual kin to help them in their situation. In the last 25 years it has gotten better, but it sure has not ended their need for those who will appeal to the church and state their case to international Christians for the assistance they need.

In that I do consider that I have done good for the Israeli body of the Lord. There have been times when I knew they could look at me knowing that I knew what God was calling for the Church to do to assist them, and to keep that hope alive that if I knew, then more would come to know. When you are in the trenches of spiritual warfare, any glimmer of hope will boost the heart. I realize I have been small potatoes, but I know what God says about the body in Israel and the one new man. That's not small potatoes.

I have left the article about Tabitha up on one of my browsers for the past months since I first came across it. It's here as a reminder to me that Tabitha didn't stay dead.

It's a good thing to remember because right now I have been feeling pretty stripped down to nothing. Oh, I am feeling good about not being on a weekly treadmill of putting my Israel Prayer lists out every week. I have rested and written more in this first week of going only twice a month with the lists. That is good. But changing my means of the distribution of the email lists, I haven't got a clue how that is all going to work out. I just know I could not stay where I was letting subscribers be picked off without trying to do something better. Maybe that is going to be the same no matter what. If the EU has convinced Big Tech to censor according to their preferences, then I imagine that is just how it is going to be. Tech censorship will increase, not decrease.

Like Tabitha, I sort of feel dead right now, waiting for whatever God has for me to be able to arise and stand up again for the sake of the body in Israel. This part of my life has not "passed away." How could it? It isn't done yet.

Of all the women in the Bible that I have related to in my past, I never even considered that I would relate to Tabitha/Dorcas. I'm not looking at a physical death, but everything I have been about for 25 years spiritually is hanging by a thread right now. I don't know what God is going to do, but I do believe God is going to do something for me here.

 

Christians Who Reject Supporting Israel

Sometimes I think Christians are looking for a way out of God's command to stand with Israel when their respected spiritual leaders — the ones who actually do — tell them God said they need to do that. Instead they want to know which Israelis it is okay to hate: Are they just supposed to support the general Israeli public leaving them free to hate the Israeli government, or what? It always makes me wonder just who they are listening to that they want a clear path to hating the Israeli government for decisions they believe deserve their hatred. It isn't God's Word they are listening to. I heard today that one Christian woman said she would rather go to hell and praise God from there rather than to support Israel. This is a woman who does not know God, does not believe His word is true, and does not respect the FACT that God Himself calls EVERY Christian to love and support Israel. She surely may end up in hell if she doesn't have a change of heart.

The people of Israel are like all human beings on the planet: they need salvation by faith in Jesus. Jesus to English-speakers, Yeshua to Hebrew speakers and his mama.

I don't always agree with the Israeli government especially when the religious Jewish leaders have too much influence on Israeli policy and ALSO when the Liberal parties are running the country. I have very little beef with ANY of Netanyahu's policies - except when he bends to the ultra-Orthodox or Orthodox parties on issues that impact religious freedom among my friends, the Jewish believers in Yeshua in Israel.

I suspect that the woman who said she would rather stand in hell praising God than support Israel has been feeding on the abundance of FALSE narratives about Israel. Maybe she is in the fold of those Christians who know NOTHING about the facts of history regarding the conflicts between the Palestinians and Israel (or the other Arab Islamist states against Israel.

If she doesn't wise up and start loving the truth and trusting God and His Word, I imagine she is going to have a lot of like-minded friends in her corner of hell designated especially for antisemitic haters. Seriously, antisemitism is a form of mental illness. Spiritual mental illness.

My Intolerance in Spiritual Things

 

by Donna Diorio

This morning I have been thinking about my intolerance about spiritual things over the years. First of all was the prosperity message. I was just learning the Word of God but I knew the way it was being taught by the premier prosperity preacher of the day, it was not God.

Then came my intolerance for Christian preaching and prophetic that smacked of replacement ideas (Christians have replaced Israel as God's Chosen people after God rejected Israel). Not what I was reading in my Bible and in the same time frame I was exposed to an Israeli believer who opened my eyes to "one new man."

When I went into a Messianic synagogue next I found I became intolerant of the delight in people as prophets who claimed whenever a natural disaster like a hurricane or volcano or earthquake hit, that the reason was God punishing America for some bad move the President made against Israel.

And I also became quite intolerant that Christians who hung on every word of unsaved rabbis talking about rebuilding the Third Temple. Don't people read their Bibles, or what?! That temple is not the one GOD is building in Israel by faith in His Son. That Third Temple is the AntiChrist temple. Why would Christians delight in the building of that and not in the building of the LIVING Temple. (Yeah, I know, you only embrace that because it means Jesus will be returning soon. Honestly, the salvation of Jews in Israel is a MUCH BIGGER sign of Yeshua's return).

And why don't American Messianic congregations correct that? Maybe because at least Christians are finally supporting Israel. Or,
maybe even because there are some Messianic ministries in Israel that embrace the fascination of rebuilding the Third Temple themselves.

It is disconcerting to me that what the Bible calls things that are earthly symbols of Heavenly realities, that so many Christians get fixated on the symbols, ignoring how the earthly symbols only become idols to people who throw off their focus of the Heavenly reality. Yes, I'm talking about red heifers, 3rd temple, Ark of the Covenant.

When I left the Messianic congregation I went out to find Christian churches in the area that were open to embrace the body of Messiah in Israel. It would have been nice to find some that also operate in the gifts of the Spirit, but mostly they were too focused on gifts to embrace the Israel thing. Other churches, not so spiritual gift focused, did embrace Israel, but much fewer had any vision whatsoever of God specifically committed to raising up of the Body of Messiah in Israel.

Both types were disconcerting because God has made it a necessity of "one new man" unity between Christians and Israel's Messianic believers fulfilling their mandate of bringing Israelis into the faith of Messiah before the end of the age.

That unity is why Israeli unsaved rabbis rally against the Messianic believers and those that support them. Yeah, I have been intolerant of them too, although I am well aware that the apostle Paul was the proverbial forerunner of rabbinic opposition being knocked off their high horse blinded by the radiance of Yeshua.

They are coming too, but they aren't the first ones that are coming to faith. Many Christians seem to think the religious in Israel are closer to God than the worldly, but it isn't so. The worldly will seek His peace long before most of the religious.

I found I could not sit in Christian churches that did not have an inkling of what God is going to do in one new man. Long term for me it would be like going to a church were the gifts of the Spirit are not believed to be for today. Some are called to sit there and pray for that church, but I guess I need to be fed myself more than that. I get that online.

My intolerances about spiritual things. I truly don't want to be abrasive to people who don't see what God is up to with the Church and body in Israel. I never have been a Diplomacy-First writer. I do pray God will help me to be more patient with people so they can learn about the things so pivotal to what we have already begun to walk out regarding one new man. And I pray also that more Christians would Awake and Arise to their calling to unity with Israeli believers.

I searched for a suitable picture to go with the verse in my spirit this morning. In the place that I found this picture of Amos 3:3, I also found this quote which is ultimately the answer.

"The essence of faith is the power of agreement with God and who He is that releases His supernatural power. The Word of God has the inherent power to carry it out (Hebrews 4:12; Isaiah 55:11). Therefore, we must walk in agreement with God and His Word. But we must grow into agreement with God which is a process (Romans 10:17)."

A Deeper Look at the Beit Asaph Netanya Congregation & the State of One New Man

by Donna Diorio
January 10, 2026 
Yesterday I put my Israelprayer Summary and Arrows from Zion out. I want to go deeper into the report of one of the ministries in the Mediterranean seaside town of Netanya. I love the cities along the the coastline so much - just my preference for being near the water - but that is not why I want to talk about the Beit Asaph congregation in more depth. More so it is because of their journey over the past years and what the senior leader Evan Thomas just reported this week.

The Israeli ministries have been living through a 'Great Depression' as deep as the stories I have heard about the American Great Depression (1929-39). Their ministry letters mostly sound upbeat, but also there has been a deep sadness of a people who are dragging themselves through extremely depressing circumstances. The kind of malaise that settles on people experiencing great lack with no end in sight. These are exactly the kinds of depression that most godly people want to keep tucked in so everyone doesn't see it and heap condemnation on them on top of it.

What happened in Israel is that when Covid hit, their government, like the rest of the governments, believed what they were seeing as China pantomimed great disaster befalling them. We should have known it was not real because China would have made sure we didn't see their weakness if it had been real. It was all a show to terrorize the world into shutting down everything completely and giving harmful vaccinations to everyone.

When Israel shut down everything there were few who opposed the vaccines and refused to be arm-twisted into taking it. Most obeyed the government, everything came to a halt and Israelis were given one of the worst of the vaccines available. Approximately 5.1 million Israelis took two doses of the BNT162b2 messenger RNA vaccine (Pfizer–BioNTech) within a year and a quarter after the "pandemic" broke out in January 2020.

I can tell you that the Israeli ministries were already hurting financially before the phony pandemic, but the closure of all public activity was a hard body slam on the body of the Lord in Israel. Yes, they went to Zoom meetings to keep their congregations fed and ministered to, but everything that normally funded the operations of the congregations and ministries came to a full halt. Among their own people few held jobs that kept them earning through the shut down. The need for humanitarian help grew increasingly to include congregational members suddenly without incomes.

There was no tourism - one of the great sources of jobs of many in the congregations. Also that dealt a blow to connecting with international Christians who had been coming to Israel to acquaint themselves with the believer ministries and become financial supporters of them. Staffs had to cut. There was no way to pay them. Outreaches had to be cut with little funding to continue at the levels they had been operating in. It can be quite depressing to make these kinds of cuts.

I want to say right here that most of the ministries I have featured in my Israel Prayer lists for the past 25 years, if not ALL, believe that it is part of the biblical promises of God that in the end times and leading up to them. In Yeshua/Jesus, He is going to bring a unity and cooperation between the Church and the believer body of Messiah in Israel that will fulfill what Paul spoke in Romans 15:27:

"For if the Christians in the nations have been made partakers of the Jews' spiritual things, their duty is also to minister unto them in material things."

What that means is that among Christians, there will be a recognition of the fact that everything we stand in before God, all of the yes and amen promises in the faith of Jesus, came to us through the Jewish lineage and faith. God developed His point of view - His Word - among the called out and chosen people that He has good plans for all the way to the end. It was always in the plan to set them aside for a season where faith would be opened to bring in His promises to all nations, and then return to reclaim His inheritance in Israel. God will do that through the unity of "one new man" that He is creating in Jew and Gentile to be the same sort of beneficial team that a husband and wife are created to be in marriage before God.

Right now, despite the late spiritual hour, "one new man" looks more like Ezekiel's vision of the valley of Dry Bones! Our bones may be assembled and we may be standing, but a living in a unity together does not have much flesh on those bones! The Holy Spirit has breathed life into our unity on only a very few entering into to unity earnestly.

As for the Jewish people as a whole, they operate under the widely believed proverb that they only people that Jews can count on are other Jews. This is a wall between Christians and Messianic Jews and Christians really have not demonstrated we can be counted on - not as a widespread group. Not every Christian will move into the "one new man" relationship that God sees for Messianic Jews and Christians in the end time - but I tell you, those Christians that refuse to enter into it are jeopardizing themselves. It is going to take us both in the faith of Yeshua/Jesus to do what God wants. This is not a cafeteria choice. It is not optional for our futures.

That is why in one way I thoroughly rejoiced at Evan Thomas' news that after two years they had successfully signed the final documents for their purchase agreement for the Beit Asaph Community Center. You see, when the pandemic began, they made the hard decision to close down their congregational meeting place completely. They judged that they had no ability to hang onto it, continuing to wrack up debt. It was tough because the pandemic would lift at some point, then what would they do?

They planned out the best ways to deal with going forward after the pandemic and then worked their plan. I know of no other congregation in Israel who went about dealing with the rough situation as Beit Asaph did, but I know plenty of congregations in Israel that I have sensed a great depression resting upon them. It is the result of dealing with the lacks they have been dealing with for years. When does relief come?

Almost as soon as the pandemic closures ended and travel became available again — IF you took the coerced vaccines — then came the 2023 war because of Islamist hatred. Even more grief, depression, lack, overwhelming of all the Israeli people - including the ministries. If you ever meet ministers who are unaffected by trials like this, that is not super faith, that is not caring. Yes, we hold our peace and continue forward to do the work the Lord has given us, but we are not without the emotions of battering and lack.

What Evan Thomas reported was that since 2023 their Beit Asaph congregation of 90 souls in Netanya has raised the 4.5 million shekels for their congregational Community Center! That is astounding.

Evan writes, "We keep being reminded of God's timing (Kairos) as we live and serve Him in this unique place, Israel. There is no doubt in our minds that this is a 'watershed season' in history. We are reminded of the words from the Apostle's letter to the Romans, chapter 13, verse 11: "And do this, understanding the present time: the hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed."

His citation of "the hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber" is EXACTLY what my changes with my Israelprayer lists are about! I am shutting down the old operation to turn my message into the more demanding message, that it is time to AWAKE and ARISE to the glory of our one new man identity and responsibilities for the coming years.

I want to share with you other things Evan wrote - not everything, but I thought key things he said that Christians need to know. First because I think that both Christians and Messianic Jews in the Diaspora have the idea that 'Ministry is tough all over, why should the Israeli ministries get special treatment in donations?

Let me tell you why: Jews do get saved in the Diaspora, but the promise of God in the end times is that He is regathering Jews back to Israel where He is going to remove the veil so they can see Yeshua/Jesus. Salvation of the Jews is going to be most VISIBLE in Israel - and it is not going to come about because of evangelistic tourism, it is going to be Israeli believers ministering to their own people, discipling them, nurturing them, sending them out in operation of the spiritual gifts and administrations the Holy Spirit gives them. Yeah. Israel is significant, and Diaspora Jews and international Christians should AWAKE to that reality, and ARISE to the calling God has for us to support them - in every way!

So Evan wrote, "We knew we must begin the funding process within the congregation, starting with the pastors and their families. The next step was to send out an appeal to the pastors of the local Messianic and Christian Body in Israel. In both cases, the results were exceptional and the level of giving was truly sacrificial! The final step was to reach out to our international community, with whom we have developed deep personal relationships over four decades of ministry. Everyone’s support and generosity have humbled us.

"The two pastors of Beit Asaph have ‘separate yet connected goals’ for the project. Lev’s goal is to provide a permanent home for the Beit Asaph community for the generations to come. Evan’s goal is self-sustainability – to break the financial dependency on the International Christian community for our existence. Both goals resonate deeply with many of our ministry colleagues around the country. We pray this successful completion of this project will provide a valuable example to the Believing community in the Land – to Jewish and Arab Yeshua followers alike! Pray together with us please towards that end!"

Now what broke my heart is that Evan's goal was "self-sustainability – to break the financial dependency on the International Christian community for our existence" and the fact that many of their ministry colleagues in Israel resonated with that.

I'm sure many Christians and Diaspora Messianics are thinking, 'What's wrong with that? That's how we all have to operate.'

I'll tell you what's wrong with that, first of all it fails to acknowledge the significantly greater hardships that the Israeli Messianic congregations and ministries face every single day and every single year. It also sounds to me like the Jewish adage, "The only ones we can trust are other Jews." That may be the historical case, but it is NOT the prophetic declaration that God has made over us becoming truly "one new man."

I am thrilled with the great blessing that has come to the Beit Asaph congregation. But I have not given up on seeing God's plan for us to finally enter into the kind of relationship that is best analogized as a marriage between a man and a woman. Two differently designed human beings to come together bringing their differences into a unity that makes them together a much greater home for offspring to be born into. Each of them bring how God designed them differently as male and female (Jew and Gentile) into a unifying covenant that benefits them and all the family born because of their love for one another.

That is the answer to Christians of 'What's in it for us?' Because as more and more Jews come to faith, God is going to bring more and more Gentiles into faith too. In the final witness against all the international hatred of Israel — really hatred of God — there is going to be a huge light set upon the hill of Israeli Jews in the faith of Yeshua/Jesus before the end. That's what's in it for us. . .plus the pleasure of God that we could lay it all down in obedience to His word about it.

Congratulations, Evan. God is with you.