What is the secret of persistent prayer? A short meditation.
Luke 2:36 Now there was one, Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity;
Luke 2:37 and this woman was a widow of about eighty-four years, who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day.
Luke 2:38 And coming in that instant she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem.
What could have motivated and animated Anna to dedicate her widowed life to “not depart from the temple, but serve God with fasting and prayer day and night” for such a long time? (If you discount her youth and married years, Anna would have been “at it” for at least 59 to 60 years.) What could sustain such praying? What was she praying for?
We are given the answer in verse 38. When Anna saw (baby) Messiah, she “spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem.”
It was Messiah that her heart yearned and longed for. It was Messiah she was waiting for, aching for, praying, and watching for. Her whole life was consumed with one passion, one desire—to see Israel’s savior. Hers was not some religious habit; it was a longing, planted there, no doubt, by the Holy Spirit, for Christ.
He was the thrust, aim, and subject of her prayers. She never tired of waiting, beseeching God for this One Thing: Christ. Anna was one of the first in her nation to recognize Him even as a baby, while the religious leaders couldn’t/wouldn’t acknowledge His identity despite many signs.
When we pray for salvation, we have the Savior in mind.
When we pray for Redemption, we have the Redeemer in mind.
When we pray to be saved from our enemies, we have our King in mind!
The secret of never tiring to pray for Israel’s salvation is that longing and desire for the Savior Himself.
Never tire of praying for Israel’s redemption and salvation. When you pray thus, it is Yeshua on whom you are calling to return. Do you not long for His return?
***
Praying for Him who is Israel’s Salvation.
Psa. 80:1 Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, You who lead Joseph like a flock; You who dwell between the cherubim, shine forth!
Psa. 80:2 Before Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh, Stir up Your strength, And come and save us!
Psa. 80:3 Restore us, O God; Cause Your face to shine, And we shall be saved!
Psa. 80:4 O LORD God of hosts, How long will You be angry Against the prayer of Your people?
Psa. 80:5 You have fed them with the bread of tears, And given them tears to drink in great measure.
Psa. 80:6 You have made us a strife to our neighbors, And our enemies laugh among themselves.
Psa. 80:7 Restore us, O God of hosts; Cause Your face to shine, And we shall be saved!
Can we even imagine what it was like to see Yeshua’s beaming gracious face looking at those who came to Him for help? Can we even fathom what it was like to see the look of compassion and mercy in His eyes?
This is what is going to turn Israel around. God’s gracious face shining with mercy towards His wayward people. The Spirit of Grace (the Holy Spirit) will alight on this nation again and melt its heart by the Loving Gracious Face revealed to them. In that Light, a great, deep repentance will overtake the nation as never before seen in Israel or the world.
Matt. 4:16 The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned.”
- Come, O Savior, and shine your face upon us again.
- Father, we cry for Yeshua to be unveiled to Israel. Let Him, who is The Light, shine in our darkness.
- Shine and give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Yeshua the Messiah. (2Corinthians 4:6)
- Let the Sun of Righteousness arise in this land with healing in its wings. (Malachi 4:2)
- Come, dear Yeshua, our redeemer, and bring salvation to Israel.
- Let your Spirit sweep the land from north to south, from east to west, bringing light and truth into the deepest corners of human souls to free them from sin, break their bondage, and set them free to turn to you.
- Awaken your people from their spiritual death, dear Lord, breathe life upon them.
Praying for the hostages and the salvation of Israel for the glory of His name.
Psa. 79:9 Help us, O God of our salvation, For the glory of Your name; And deliver us, and provide atonement for our sins, For Your name’s sake!
Psa. 79:10 Why should the nations say, Where is their God?” Let there be known among the nations in our sight The avenging of the blood of Your servants which has been shed.
Psa. 79:11 Let the groaning of the prisoner come before You; According to the greatness of Your power Preserve those who are appointed to die;
- Father, especially as we continue to go through days of war, we pray for Israel’s salvation to be a witness to the nations that you, the God of Heaven, are indeed also Israel’s God. We especially pray that the nations surrounding us, that so hate us and long for our destruction, may witness your intervention.
- Why should the nations say, Where is their God? Show yourself, O mighty God, and bare your arm in the sight of the nations. Save us and deal with our enemies.
- Look at the flood of antisemitism that has filled the world, dear Lord. See how our “neighbors” hate us. Shine out, dear Lord, in great saving mercies upon Israel.
- Arise O God to show your divine nature by great acts of salvation.
- Let the nations tremble with fear at the goodness you display as a witness to them of who you are.
- Father, set the prisoners (hostages) free. We thank you for those who have been released, but we stand before you for releasing every last one of them. We ask for the release of all of them. Hamas has cruelly murdered some of them; let those be brought up for proper burial.
Praying for the salvation of Israel in war as a witness to His supremacy.
Psa. 83:1 Do not keep silent, O God! Do not hold Your peace, And do not be still, O God!
Psa. 83:2 For behold, Your enemies make a tumult; And those who hate You have lifted up their head.
Psa. 83:3 They have taken crafty counsel against Your people, And consulted together against Your sheltered ones.
Psa. 83:4 They have said, “Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation, That the name of Israel may be remembered no more.”
Psa. 83:14 As the fire burns the woods, And as the flame sets the mountains on fire,
Psa. 83:15 So pursue them with Your tempest, And frighten them with Your storm.
Psa. 83:16 Fill their faces with shame, That they may seek Your name, O LORD.
Psa. 83:17 Let them be confounded and dismayed forever; Yes, let them be put to shame and perish,
Psa. 83:18 That they may know that You, whose name alone is the LORD, Are the Most High over all the earth.
- Father, your Word clearly unmasks the intention of the enemy against Israel. It is to wipe Israel off the map, to exterminate it. We believe this hatred is demonic. The Enemy hates your people as much as he hates you, and all his fury is set against Israel.
- Lord, Israel’s enemies are Your enemies (83:2), so the Bible says. Those who hate us hate You. Our enemies have been shrewd in counsel; their wisdom is the wisdom of hell. Arise, O Lord, deal with this evil. Show your greatness in defending and saving Israel from its enemies.
- They have said, “Come let us cut them off from being a nation.” Lord, we pray for the utter failure of all counsel against Israel.
- Pursue them, frighten them, fill their faces with shame, “That they may seek Your name, O LORD.”(83:16)
- O Father, save your nation that they may know that You alone are the MOST HIGH over all the earth.
- We pray for our soldiers in Gaza, Lebanon, and Syria. Keep them and watch over them, dear Lord.
Praying for God to arise as Supreme Judge to bring order and righteousness
Psa. 82:1 God stands in the congregation of the mighty; He judges among the gods.*
Psa. 82:2 How long will you judge unjustly, And show partiality to the wicked? Selah
Psa. 82:3 Defend the poor and fatherless; Do justice to the afflicted and needy.
Psa. 82:4 Deliver the poor and needy; Free them from the hand of the wicked.
*The word “gods” in Hebrew is elohim. Although the word is mainly used to mean God, the word can refer to high officials in government, judges, etc. (See Exodus 21:6 as an example.)
Throughout scripture, especially in the prophets, God is seen as watching closely how His people are treated by their shepherds (leaders). He cares for His people and has never relinquished His place as their shepherd (Ps. 80:1) and King. He declared that He was the Good Shepherd who would give His life for His sheep (John 10:11). When He rode into Jerusalem, He was greeted as King of Israel. See John 12:13, see also Jeremiah 23:1-8, Ezekiel 34.
In Ezekiel 34, the Lord shows his displeasure at the neglect His sheep suffer at the hands of shepherds. The shepherds use the sheep for their own gain, fail to care for the weak and the sick, and fail to seek the lost.
Yeshua, of course, expressed the same concern. “But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.” Matt. 9:36 (Ezekiel 34:6)
In Ezekiel 34, The Lord declares:
a. He will hold the shepherd accountable (Ezekiel 34:10).
b. He will seek out His sheep and bring them to good pasture in the land (Ezekiel 34:11-16).
c. He will send Messiah to shepherd His people (Ezekiel 34:24.)
d. He will make a covenant of peace with His flock and prosper them again.
The chapter ends with these words:
*Ezek. 34:29 I will raise up for them a garden of renown (see * below), and they shall no longer be consumed with hunger in the land, nor bear the shame of the Gentiles anymore.
Ezek. 34:30 Thus they shall know that I, the LORD their God, am with them, and they, the house of Israel, are My people,” says the Lord GOD.’ ”
Ezek. 34:31 “You are My flock, the flock of My pasture; you are men, and I am your God,” says the Lord GOD.
* Ezekiel 34:29 New Living Translation, Second Edition
“And I will make their land famous for its crops, so my people will never again suffer from famines or the insults of foreign nations.”
As you can see, God’s concern for His people is total: their well-being socially, politically, and spiritually, as well as their safety from menacing enemies.
When we pray for Israel’s salvation, we should include the areas that are of great concern to God.
- Father, as we pray for Israel’s salvation, we also pray for you to bring order into the Israeli social and political system.
- Father, you see our infighting and how the system encourages abuse of power, finances, etc. We call upon you, our Great Judge, to bring order, righteousness, and equity to the land.
- Father, we pray you will have your way in our government.
- While we long for Messiah to come and rule over us, till He does, we pray you to give us good shepherds who will protect us from our enemies and, at the same time, bring fairness and relief in so many areas of need in the land.
- Lord, please do not leave us to ourselves. You are the Good Shepherd.
- We pray for our leaders that you will, by your Spirit, make them good shepherds, selfless shepherds, wise shepherds, or give us those who will be. Father, we need you in this area as much as we need you to defend us against our enemies.
- Father, we ask that you be involved in choosing our next Chief of Staff of the IDF. We ask that the selected person be the best qualified and suited to lead the IDF at this perilous time.
- We pray that the choice will not be political but based on merit and ability.
You will accomplish all you have committed Yourself to do, as recorded in Your Word. For this, we thank you; for this, we wait upon you.
Come Lord, and reign over us!
Shabbat Shalom,
Ofer
