There is a unique calling from God on your life—a plan He has for no one else. What you do with it is up to you.

Will you bury it in the ground as did the servant with one talent? (Matthew 25:14-30). Will you come into agreement with the prayers of Jesus and be part of the answer? Or will you continue to live with Self on the throne—with its hurts, ego, deficiencies, selfishness, deception, and its clouded, narrow-minded worldview ruling your life?

Though the issues of knowing and living God’s plan for your life may seem complex, the actual decision is really very basic: Will you live this day—this hour, this minute, this breath—with Jesus as Lord of your life, or do you think you can do better on your own?  This is the moment to make the decision that will influence this and every moment following for the remainder of your life. It may be difficult, but I wouldn’t want to live any other way!

 Recently, I heard about a football player who had the personal motto: “No one will work harder than I do today.” It was a motto that took him to Harvard on an academic scholarship after having been born into a family that could never have otherwise afforded it. This motto brought him to a starting position on an NFL team even though Harvard is rarely a place an NFL scout finds great talent.

We should have a similar motto that is just as simple: “Today I will seek God in order to do His will.”

 One of Satan’s greatest ploys is to make us believe that living the Christ-life is out of our reach. He would have us idolize certain men and women of God just as a teenager might idolize a rock star or sports hero. He would have us think, “Oh, if I could only be like them! But it must take such great talent and determination to do what they do. It is so far beyond anything I could ever do!”

There is the deception: If I could only be like them. Well, guess what? You are like them! If you are a Christian, then you have inside you the same Holy Spirit others have. You too have Jesus Lord and Savior, and you have a heavenly Father who loves you and wants to know and be known by you. In God’s eyes, all that matters is your obedience to His will. Large meetings don’t matter. Big churches don’t matter. Incredible mission outreaches don’t matter.  If they are of God, then they are merely byproducts of Believers who have obeyed Him. The important thing is the obedience.

“Except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so he giveth his beloved sleep” (Psalm 127:1-2).  We can work hard, stay up late, rise early, work at the church 120 out of the 168 hours in a week, but none of it matters if we are building a kingdom unto ourselves rather than unto God. In fact, the opposite is true: If we are obeying God, then we won’t be working impossibly long hours to build His kingdom, because He gives His beloved sleep and rest. The only real work is staying in our quiet place until we learn His will. Then we simply have to live it out. The rest will take care of itself.

We need to come into agreement with God and His Word. We need to come into agreement with the prayers of Jesus.  The works of Jesus—and greater works—will only come to the Church when we as Christians come into agreement with His Word, His will, and the nine prayers from John 17. We need to seek His face sincerely to know what He wants us to do. God is waiting for those who dare to draw close to Him. Are you willing to be faithful to God and press in close to Him until Jesus’ nine prayers are really and truly answered?

1.  “THAT THEY MAY KNOW THE ONLY TRUE GOD,”
 (JOHN 17:3).

We cannot be content with knowing about God or what others think of Him. This is dead religion and self-worship. We have to take the risk of spending time with Jesus and His Word and learn to really know Him, His heart, His ministry, and then just do it. We will never know God, until we seek Him with all of our hearts. “‘You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me
with all your heart.
I will be found by you,’ declares the Lord” (Jeremiah 29:13-14).

2.  “THAT THEY
   MAY BE ONE,” (JOHN 17:21).

Division comes from not being one with Jesus. If we were one with Him then we would take our proper place within His Body. If we are ever to have unity in the Church, it will not be through ecumenical movements that water down the truth in order for it to be more accepted by others. Only when we are one with Jesus will we be one with each other. Each of us must first learn our individual place in His plan. “Under his direction, the whole body is fitted together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love” (Ephesians 4:16).

3. “THAT THEY MIGHT HAVE MY JOY” (JOHN 17:13).

We don’t have His joy because we are trying to live by our flesh and its deceptive desires. His joy is not a fruit of the flesh, but of His Spirit (see Galatians 5:22) and comes from doing His will. When we live by His Spirit and give Him our emotions and desires, there is nothing the devil can do to us to steal our peace and joy. We have “joy unspeakable and full of glory” (see 1 Peter 1:8) because we celebrate the Christ within as we become part of manifesting His kingdom on earth.  “When you obey Me, you remain in My love, just as I obey My Father and remain in His love. I have told you this so that you will be filled with My joy. Yes, your joy will overflow” (John 15:10-11)

4.  “THAT YOU SHOULDEST KEEP THEM FROM EVIL,”
  (JOHN 17:15).

When we become comfortable in our flesh or accept its dictate that we cannot live like Jesus, then we give evil free reign in both our own lives and our communities. We adopt the attitude, “Well, there is really nothing that I can do about it! I wonder what’s on TV tonight.” We accept being entertained rather than fulfilled. This complacency breeds spiritual poverty.  If we are ever to be a threat to evil rather than having evil be a threat to us, then we must learn that our new nature in Christ has obliterated our past, and given us new values and a new life. Because of this, we now supernaturally have a new present and future! Childlike obedience to His direction can usher in His present-day ministry, vanquish evil and establish His will and kingdom around us.  “My brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:10-11)

5.  “THAT THEY MIGHT BE SANCTIFIED THROUGH THE 
  TRUTH” (JOHN 17:19).

Do we live by truth? Are we brutally honest with ourselves at all times? Are we willing to go through Christ’s daily pruning to cut off that which is dead so that we may bear more fruit? (See John 15:1-8.)

Loving the truth is the key to living out the present-day ministry of Jesus. Those who believe or accept half-truths lapse into complacency and self-contentment. They are satisfied with where they are and care little about pressing in to seek God’s will and His desires. People who love truth are not afraid of letting others see their weaknesses or humanity. In fact, they are able to glorify God as His strength can be seen through their weakness! It is not a special anointing that counts, but having been with the Anointed One—Jesus Christ.  “Since God has so generously let us in on what he is doing, we’re not about to throw up our hands and walk off the job just because we run into occasional hard times. We refuse to wear masks and play games. We don’t maneuver and manipulate behind the scenes. And we don’t twist God’s Word to suit ourselves. Rather, we keep everything we do and say out in the open, the whole truth on display, so that those who want to can see and judge for themselves in the presence of God” (2 Corinthians 4:1-2).

6.  “THAT THEY MAY BEHOLD MY GLORY”
  (JOHN 17:24).

God’s glory has appeared from time to time on the earth as men, women, and children have humbled themselves before God, sincerely seeking His presence and repenting of their fleshly lives. But repentance alone has never kept God’s glory and revival growing. It has always been limited to a certain place for a certain time. It has always been quenched as we have turned back to our flesh for answers, thinking we can provide the necessary discipline to reach heaven.  The Bible is clear on this: It is not what we don’t do, it is what we do. It is time for a generation that will forsake the flesh and rise to walk in the Spirit, empowered by His gifts and gifted by His power.  Only then will the fruit of His glory take root and flourish throughout the earth.  All of us have had that veil removed so that we can be mirrors that brightly reflect the glory of the Lord. And as the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like him and reflect his glory even more (2 Corinthians 3:18)

7.  “THAT THEY MAY BE MADE PERFECT” (JOHN 17:23).

The only perfect person is a dead person. We have been crucified, buried, and resurrected with Christ. It is no longer we who live, but Christ who lives in and through us. (See Galatians 2:20.) We must let the Christ-life flow through us so that we can be revived as was the valley of dry bones before Ezekiel. (See Ezekiel 37:1-14.) Are we willing to leave the rotting corpse of our flesh behind and move forward with His Spirit into God’s holiness and perfection, being made into a vessel “meet for the master’s use”? (See 2 Timothy 2:21.)  “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.  But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, establish, strengthen, settle you” (1 Peter 5:8-10).

8.  THAT THE WORLD WOULD KNOW THAT WE HAVE
 “BEEN WITH JESUS”  (JOHN 17:22-23, 25).

The world could see that the apostles had been with Jesus. Even Peter’s shadow had been empowered with healing after he had been with Jesus. (See Acts 5:15.) And, lest we think that walking the earth with Jesus was the only way to qualify for walking in His anointing, remember Paul spread even more of Christ around the world than did the Twelve who had spent time with Jesus before and after His crucifixion. Paul had only met the Messiah after He ascended.  It is time to press into Him until the world sees the love of Jesus shining on our face, and as a result, is born again.  “When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus” (Acts 4:13).

9.  “THAT THE LOVE WITH WHICH YOU LOVED ME MAY
 BE IN THEM” (JOHN 17:26).

As we reveal Christ to a desperate world, we reveal that supernatural love which embraces and heals. We can no longer be content to focus on the outside, polishing, painting, and admiring the container of spikenard as if it were of more value than the perfume of His love from within. It is time to shatter the worship of outside appearances and allow the love of God (see Romans 5:5) within us to flow forth, as well as His righteousness, and His kingdom. We cannot ignore the greater commandment of Jesus: We must love others with the same love with which He loves us.  “Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him” (1 John 4:7-9).

You Can Be the Answer to Jesus’ Prayers

When Jesus returned to heaven after His work here was complete, He sat down.  That’s because He has assigned the ongoing work to us.  Jesus Christ delegated everything He had—His power, His reputation, His Name, His life, His history, His Words, His very Spirit, everything He’d ever been and everything He ever would be—and gave it all to us. Jesus Christ gave His ministry to the weakest Believer in the Body of Christ—the rights to His Name, the keys to His Kingdom, all His authority over the earth, and all power to represent Him on this earth. That person can abuse the power, misrepresent Christ’s Name, exploit His reputation, or choose not to do one thing with what Jesus gave—it is that person’s choice. It is our choice as well.  Jesus knew—beyond any shadow of doubt—there would come a day when the people who are called by His Name will stand up and fulfill all His prophecies and answer all His prayers. 

As we sit in the pews of our churches today, are we more like those who accepted Jesus and saw what was truly in their hearts? Or are we like the Pharisees who clung to their own traditions, opinions, and half-truths rather than changing ingrained, self-righteous concepts? Are we just as wrapped up in our own beliefs, culture, and desires as they were? Do we justify ourselves by learning all of the correct responses, but miss the real answer? Are we satisfied with how we look to others while Jesus stands nearby grieving at our ignorance of Him? It is time we come to really know the Truth and let that Truth set us free.

God’s presence changes things, so if His truth is in us, then His life-changing power should shine through us. Yet, instead, we are often indistinguishable from the rest of the world. Some might call themselves undercover Christians, but the truth is we’re not under cover; we’re unchanged!  I weep when I consider all the energy I’ve wasted over the years seeking the approval of others, becoming intoxicated by someone else’s power, working as an unofficial arbitrator in big-name church cases, engaging in media fist-fights all over the nation. I thought I had arrived and was finally really doing something to help Jesus. But Jesus doesn’t need such help—He needs my humble obedience. I wasn’t carrying out His ministry on the earth—I was blindly exalting Self! I was seeking validation and justification for my flesh. I was allowing it to fight other flesh—and all under the Christian banner! 

Like those drunk with wine, those of us drunk with flesh are unreasonable and bleary-eyed. We do not see things clearly or truth fully; we see things as we want to see them, through the haze of self-centeredness. We can go on like this our entire lives, unless we are arrested for a DUI—being Deceived under the Influence of Self. As Christians, we have a choice: We can surrender to God and permit Him to sober us up, or we can choose to cling to the deception that has so entranced us. If we cling to such pretext, then we become a poster child for the Devil—Christians trying to live out Christianity by the power of the flesh rather than the power of the Spirit.  The truth changes that.

The best definition of truth is that Jesus is Truth personified. (See John 14:6, 1:14, 17; Romans 15:8; and Ephesians 4:21.) Only by truly knowing Him can we really know the truth. Through Him are all things revealed: “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life” (John 8:12). The nature of light is that in it we clearly see every nuance and detail. Jewelers use a magnifying glass and a bright light to examine diamonds for even the tiniest flaw or imperfection. So will the light of Jesus work in our lives to reveal things that are unseen in the darkness or half-light. If we have His Light, it will reveal the truth of what is in our hearts so that we can prune the dead branches and fruitless activities and grow to become more and more like Jesus every day. 

When Self is on the throne, our vision is dimmed by half-truths we accept to justify our ambiguous lives. Even a half-truth is a whole lie. We live in the darkness and shadow of Self not seeing things clearly. It is like walking into a room to find your car keys, seeing them on the counter in the shadows, and upon picking them up only to discover that you have instead picked up a tarantula! We can be so mistaken in the way we see things that we are deceived into accepting untrue doctrines and beliefs. However, since in the half-light they justify our desires and appear to be the very thing we desire, we embrace them wholeheartedly. Thus instead of the truth of God, we build our self-image on the foundation of culture, habit, and environment. We have little time or inclination to examine a thing too closely to determine its true nature. Thus, finding ourselves comfortable, we complacently settle for just a little knowledge of God rather than being hungry for much more of Him. 

We want a religion that justifies us and makes us feel better about ourselves, rather than religion that transforms us into the image of Christ.  We—the entire Body of Christ (especially in the United States)—have become too easily lulled into fleshly complacency—the cause of our spiritual poverty. We are caught up in our accomplishments rather than Christ’s ministry. We no longer love truth, only what the truth can do for us. Thus when truth is inconvenient, we ignore it. Or, as has become the norm today in business, politics, and the Church, we spin the facts the way we want them. Sometimes there is not much difference between putting things in their best light and lying. Those who spin the facts are more interested in appearance than substance. 

Another level of truth is what is actual and factual, plain and simple. We know how difficult being truly objective is in a situation, but those who have been with Jesus should be the most objective people on earth. They should be able to be completely honest with themselves, knowing their own faults and shortcomings, and speaking to their own hurt if necessary, for the sake of the truth. (See Psalm 15:4.) Perhaps education has been a good example of this. In the past, teachers have been instructed to be very critical of students as if the harder they were on them, the better. Yet we found this to be damaging to the self-confidence of students. It follows suit that poor self-confidence leads to poor marks. More recently, teachers are trained to be very positive, no matter what the student does, to build their confidence, hoping that eventually this will lead to overall improvement. What in fact has happened is that we have a generation of students who now confidently make mistakes, and when confronted often scoff at the rebuke. 

It is the truth that will set us free in every situation, and not the truth as seen through rose-colored glasses, which often distorts the facts. I believe this is one of the reasons Jesus told us to judge not. (See Matthew 7:1.) When we add to the truth, we put ourselves in a position to be judged just as executives from big business are judged in our courts for accounting misrepresentations. We need to get back to the basic wisdom of Joe Friday on “Dragnet” so many years ago, “Just the facts, ma’am.” Let your statement be, “Yes, yes” or “No, no”; any thing beyond these is of evil, (Matthew 5:37) Let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation, (James 5:12) 

It is time to reprogram our minds.  Of the thousands of decisions we make daily, how many do we consciously consider before acting upon them? Chances are, very few. What is directing our lives then? Habit—patterns accepted over time—are repeated and justified. They become so ingrained that we don’t even think before we act. We are trained by what we accept as true, and that training becomes an instinctive reaction that directs our every step. Then if those things that we have accepted are half-truths, we stumble around in the dark rather than scrutinizing them through the light of God’s Word! 

Such deception rarely goes from point A to point Z in an afternoon. Seldom does a person start in the ministry one day and the next is in bed with someone else’s spouse! Hardly ever does a hard-working employee begin a new job with the long-range goal of embezzling from the company. Who would even consider marrying someone who they knew would someday commit murder? Though we could never imagine such things in the beginning; these things happen daily in our society—and in the Church! Pastors run off with their secretaries; ushers pocket money from the collection plates; loving spouses murder their mates for one reason or another. “If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” (Matthew 6:23). 

The acceptance of a half-truth is like smoking a cigarette. Little by little as we inhale, the nicotine darkens our lungs. After years and years of this, they turn black and can’t be penetrated even by x-rays. Smoking saps our breath and ages us prematurely. Illness creeps in until we are no longer of use to our families and those who depend on us. Sin, like cancer, grows until it takes over our entire life. Acceptance of these lies sears our conscience to the point that the voice of God no longer can penetrate the heart—the black lump within. However, sin is not the real problem. Just as cancer is the result of taking in smoke from cigarettes, sin is the result of ingesting the half-truths that justify Self on the throne. It is flesh carried away by lusts that brings about sin. (See James 1:15.) Sin is the fruit, flesh is the root. 

When we repent of sin, we’re dealing with the fruit, which is very important. But cutting out the root, which is Self on the throne, is even more important. Most evangelists, myself included, have preached against the fruit of the flesh—drinking, drugs, lying, and lust. Great numbers of people go to the altar, pull the fruit off their flesh, and two weeks later return to the same altar having committed the same sins. Repentance must deal with the root. If we deal only with pruning the branches, allowing the tree to live, we only guarantee a bumper crop of sinful fruit for the next revival! John the Baptist said One was coming to lay the ax to the root of the tree. (See Matthew 3:10.) We don’t just want to prune a little cruelty, unforgiveness, or lying. No matter what we do to the fruit of sin, if the ax is never laid to the root, we miss the reason Jesus came. We must sever the flesh root and become grafted into the True Vine—Christ. Truth is the ax which will separate the root from the rotten fruit! 

It is the person of the Holy Spirit who gives us the power to see our flesh from an eternal standpoint—from the perspective of absolute Truth. Flesh-fed Christians have boasted, “There is therefore no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus,” but never realize that the rest of that Scripture is, “who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit.” (Romans 8:1). We must become absorbed in the truth of God’s Word—renewing our minds. As Paul wrote, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2) that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Habit can be reprogrammed to work in our favor. 

“You have been believers so long now that you ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things about God’s word. You are like babies who need milk and cannot eat solid food. For someone who lives on milk is still an infant and doesn’t know how to do what is right. Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong” (Hebrews 5:12-14). In other words, if we feed on God’s Word and grow up in Him, there will come a time that even our physical senses will know the difference between good and evil and act accordingly without a second thought—this is flesh dominated by the Spirit! This is life with Jesus completely on the throne of our lives! It is time that we grow up enough to accept the meat of the Word and make a lasting difference for His Kingdom on the earth! 

Do you love the Truth even more than your own reputation? Speaking of the end times and those that would follow false prophets, the Bible tells us: “They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved” (2 Thessalonians 2:10). “If we say we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth” (1 John 1:6). Do we truly love truth? Those who risk being one with Jesus will find that His light will reveal much in their life that is harmful and should be abandoned; yet the good fruit that comes from His Spirit will thrive in this light. 

Jesus on the throne will shine this light into every nook and cranny and expose everything that needs to be changed or eradicated. This is exactly what needs to happen if we are to be sanctified—set apart—for His use. This is not something that will happen overnight, neither will we arrive at a place where one day we can sit down and say, “Now I am holy.”  We must go through this pruning process of the truth every day, and that always hurts. But the opportunities to have Jesus truly work through us to touch other lives makes it all worthwhile. 

I can imagine nothing greater than meeting Jesus on that day when I too have finished my race (see 2 Timothy 4:7-8) and hear Him say, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord” (Matthew 25:21).   

This is what the LORD says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.  – Jeremiah 29:10-13

Do you realize that the Good Father takes every circumstance into account as He plans your future? As a Believer, your destiny has already been decided: “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:2–3).

Too often we fret about finding the Good Father’s perfect will for our lives. To no one in Scripture did God lay out a step-by-step plan for their life. Hebrews 11:8 says of Abraham that “He went without knowing where he was going.” No five-year, ten-year, or even a lifetime plan for him! When the magi went in search of the Christ child, they did not have Google Maps or Waze to lead them. They simply followed the star—not knowing where it would lead, but nevertheless certain of what they would find at the end of their journey: “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the East, and have come to worship him.”

Even when David was anointed by Samuel, the shepherd boy had no indication of the path his life would take. He knew nothing of a meeting with the giant of Gath or of his headlong and even years-long rush to escape Saul’s angry determination to kill him. Following the Good Father is not akin to living a novel. There is no introduction, no intervening chapters, no ending neatly tied with a bow. It is necessary to constantly seek His wisdom, conversing with Him through prayer, giving God the time and opportunity to respond to our petitions and praise. It is developing a relationship with Him through the study of His Word.

Walking with Jehovah is not a “twelve-step” program, marching mindlessly forward with no direction. It is living in the light of His Word, loving Him completely, and listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit. There are those who would have you believe that a life of devotion to the Good Father involves no sacrifice, no pain. One need only read Hebrews chapter 11 to discover the fallacy in that: “Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented—of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth” (Hebrews 11:35b–38).

It sometimes behooves us to remember that “Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens” (James 1:17). Psalm 16:11 reminds us, “You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.” Psalm 23 reveals that the Good Father is also a Good Shepherd. He leads us beside the still waters and into green pastures, and bids us partake of His bounty. We are not led to a specific spot on the bank to sip of the clear, cool waters, or to a lush spot beneath a tree to fill our hungry bellies. No, we simply follow Him and trust that He has our best interests at heart and will not lead us to brackish water or poisonous weeds.

According to Romans 8:28: “We know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”  Nothing can stop the Good Father from interceding on your behalf—not pain, not poverty, not your questions, nor your anger. God is big enough to handle that! He can simply turn your pain into power, purpose, and renewed passion for Him. He will never let you down. The Good Father understands every misstep you might have made (or will make) and is simply waiting for you to repent and return to Him.

From my first encounter with God as a child of eleven, I began to learn that God did, indeed, speak to me, and everything He said, no matter the delivery method, was of great importance. It was up to me to stay tuned to His wavelength. It was up to me, as it is with you, to turn off the television, the radio, the iPad, or any other device and listen! The appropriate response when God speaks—however that may be manifest—is, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.”

To hear God, you and I must listen with our entire being: mind, soul, and body. It is difficult to hear His voice over the cacophony that constantly surrounds us—traffic noise, television blaring, electronic devices beeping. Parents sleep with one ear tuned to the nursery, waiting for a babe’s cry in the night. As Believers, we must walk with our ears totally tuned to the Father so that we can hear that still, small voice that calls to us above the frenzied crowds.  What, then, do you think God might wish to say to us once He has our attention? Perhaps, as He did me, He would call you “son” or “daughter.” He might tell you that He had been waiting for you as the earthly father did for the Prodigal Son or searching for you as the good shepherd searched for the lost sheep. Our Lord might possibly warn you that there is danger ahead and you need to change direction.

John, the Beloved, wrote in his Gospel chapter 3, verses 16–17: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” Our loving heavenly Father desires that you and I know we can be overcomers through Him; that if we follow in His footsteps, He will lead us in the way we are to go. Then He will whisper, “Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world” (Matthew 28:20).

That great orator and preacher Charles Spurgeon said: “Having once discerned the voice of God, obey without question. If you have to stand alone and nobody will befriend you, stand alone.” God calls the humble and obedient to fulfill His mission. His power is made perfect in our weakness. Only with the realization that you can do nothing without Jehovah are you then ready to be used by Him. Only then will you be able to fulfill the Good Father’s wonderful plan for your future. 

I want to talk to you about something that’s very dear to my heart, and that is Jewish people in Israel living below the poverty line…and sadly, many are children, and there are a LOT of them.  More than a million precious Jewish children are facing food insecurity.  These precious little ones are wondering where their next meal will come from.  It’s heartbreaking.

And it’s not just children.  There are tens of thousands of elderly Jewish people, many of them Holocaust survivors living in poverty as well.  Some of these people are among the thousands we deliver food to each week, but there are so many more in urgent need of help.

This is very personal to me because I grew up living below the poverty line.  My mother was Jewish, and my father was a raging anti-Semite.  We were living in the projects because we couldn’t afford to live anywhere else.  My father worked at the dump, and he often brought food home from his job.  Much of it was food that the grocery stores threw out because it had passed the expiration date.

I look back and remember those days, and it fills my heart with a desire for other children to have enough food to eat.  I believe you share that heart for others, and that is why I am writing to you today.

The government of Israel has been forced to pour money into defending the country, and there simply isn’t enough to go around.  They cannot meet these needs.  But God is calling us to do something about it together.

The Word of God is filled with instructions for us on how to treat the poor—and what happens as a result.  In Proverbs 19:17, it says, “Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and He will reward them.” And then in Proverbs 22:9, “The generous will themselves be blessed, for they shall share their food with the poor.”

I want to encourage you today to give a generous offering so that we can help the poor in Israel, especially the elderly and the children.  Many of those who have been impacted the worst are the more than a million people who came to Israel from Russia and Ukraine.  Many of them brought only one suitcase—all they owned in the world.

They live near the Gaza border and the Lebanon border, the areas hardest hit by the war, because they can’t afford to live anywhere else.  Some have seen their homes destroyed, and most of them have PTSD.

My heart is breaking for these precious, forgotten poor people, especially the children.  I was one of them.   So I’m asking you to join me in being as generous as you can today as we reach out to them in Christian love.

The Lord said, “When you give a banquet, do not invite your friends, your brothers, relatives, or rich neighbors. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed because they cannot repay you, for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just” (Luke 14:13-14). 

Today I’m asking you to help feed the poor of the House of Israel—the Jewish brothers and sisters of Jesus—and be a light of His love to the whole nation.  Please be as generous as you can with your gift.  The needs are urgent, and we must respond.

As tensions mounted in the period leading up to the American Civil War, many sought a way to avoid open conflict.  Others, realizing that some causes demanded a decision, called on the nation to take a stand.  One of those voices was that of the poet James Russell Lowell who wrote in The Present Crisis this summation of the decision facing each individual:

“Once to every man and nation comes the moment to decide, In the strife of Truth with Falsehood, for the good or evil side.”

What was true in America’s history is true of other nations as well.  In moments of destiny and crisis, some shrink back from the sacrifices demanded, while others step forward and answer the call.  The names of those who shirk are lost to us, but those who devoted their lives to great causes shine brightly from the pages of history.

No family in the history of the modern Jewish state shines more brightly than the Netanyahu family.  For decades, they have been leaders in the fight first for Israel to be reborn and then for the fledgling nation to survive the constant onslaught of enemies.  Three generations of remarkable men have faced the moment of decision—and taken a stand, even at great personal cost.  These are their stories.

Rabbi Nathan Mileikowsky – A Rabbi Who Had a Dream

In a speech to the United Nations a few years ago, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed an episode from his grandfather’s life that says so much about the essential need for the nation of Israel to exist.  Mr. Netanyahu said: “Ladies and gentlemen, one cold day in the late 19th century, my grandfather Nathan and his younger brother Judah were standing in a railway station in the heart of Europe. They were seen by a group of anti-Semitic hoodlums who ran towards them waving clubs, screaming ‘Death to the Jews.’

“My grandfather shouted to his younger brother to flee and save himself, and he then stood alone against the raging mob to slow it down. They beat him senseless; they left him for dead; and before he passed out, covered in his own blood, he said to himself, ‘What a disgrace, what a disgrace. The descendants of the Maccabees lie in the mud, powerless to defend themselves.’

“He promised himself, then, that if he lived, he would take his family to the Jewish homeland and help build a future for the Jewish people. I stand here today as Israel’s prime minister because my grandfather kept that promise.”

Born in what is now Belarus (then part of Russia) in 1879, Nathan Mileikowsky learned early what it meant to be Jewish in an anti-Semitic world.  His family, like most of the Jews living in Russia, was forced to live in a region known as the Pale of Settlement.  In addition to restricting Jewish business opportunities and livelihoods, it made them easy targets for the pogroms as anti-Semites launched waves of assaults against the Jewish people.

Mileikowsky was brilliant even as a young boy and was sent to yeshiva when he was ten for the training that would prepare him to be a rabbi.  During his schooling, he learned of the then-new Zionist movement, and even as a teenager became an ardent supporter of the cause of returning the Jewish people to their ancient homeland.

He made repeated trips across Russia, speaking out in favor of Zionism and encouraging Jewish people to support the idea.  He was a regular at the Zionist Conferences and a vocal opponent of the Uganda Plan—a compromise that suggested setting up a Jewish state in central Africa rather than in Israel.  In 1908, Mileikowsky moved to Poland, where he remained active as a leader in the Zionist movement.

Unlike most Jewish people and rabbis of the time, Mileikowsky presented his sermons in Hebrew rather than Yiddish, and according to his son Benzion, the family spoke Hebrew at home as well.  Two years after the end of World War I, with Great Britain in control of what was then-known as Mandatory Palestine, Nathan Mileikowsky and his family moved to Israel.

There, Mileikowsky taught school and became a prolific author.  It was during this time that he began signing many of his articles with the name Netanyahu.  In the 1920s, Mileikowsky began traveling and raising money for the Jewish National Fund.  He was a popular speaker in both England and the United States.  Hundreds of speeches helped encourage many Jewish people to move to Israel and provided the funds for the purchase of land.  A collection of his speeches was published in 1928 as the book Nation and Land.  Until his death in 1935, Mileikowsky remained a leading voice for the rebirth of Israel.  The driving force of his vision and personality helped shape the future Jewish state.

Benzion Netanyahu – A Scholar with a Warrior’s Spirit

The father of Israel’s current Prime Minister was not born a Netanyahu.  The name was chosen by his father Rabbi Nathan Mileikowsky when the family moved to what was then known as British Mandate Palestine in 1920.  Benzion had been born in Warsaw, Poland, in 1910, but along with the rest of his family took on the name Netanyahu, meaning “gift from God,” along with his brothers.

Benzion was a gifted student who excelled in his studies at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.  Following a stint as the editor for several Zionist papers and magazines, Benzion moved to America just before the outbreak of World War II.  He was active in Zionist circles in New York and served as the executive director of the New Zionist Organization of America.  In addition, he completed work on a Ph.D. at Dropsie College in Philadelphia.

He returned to Israel after the establishment of the Jewish state in 1948 and resumed his teaching and writing work.  He served as editor in chief for the Encyclopaedia Hebraica, a comprehensive Hebrew language encyclopedia, for a number of years.  In the late 1950s, Benzion Netanyahu returned to the United States where he taught Hebrew literature and Jewish history at Dropsie College, the University of Denver, and finally at Cornell University.

He wrote several books, and his best-known work Origins of the Inquisition in Fifteenth Century Spain is still considered one of the landmarks of study in the field.  Netanyahu was a careful scholar, but his work was not always well received by those who did not accept his conclusion that Jewish history was “a history of holocausts.”

Following the death of his oldest son Yonathan in the Entebee raid that freed Israeli passengers from Palestinian terrorists in 1976, Benzion returned to Israel where he lived for the rest of his life.  More than 40 years ago, I rang his doorbell after reading an article about the anniversary of his son’s death.  I introduced myself, and he very politely invited me, a complete stranger, into his home and offered me tea.  It was on that day that I met his second son Benjamin and prayed over him, anointed him with oil, and prophesied that he would serve as Prime Minister of Israel.

Benzion had not been successful in his attempts to enter politics, and his son was not involved in the field at all on that day (he was selling furniture).  But the next day, I met with then-Prime Minister Menachem Begin and asked him to find a place for Benjamin in his administration.  That meeting—which the world would call chance, but which I know was directed by the hand of God—has had a powerful impact on Israel and still is having one today.

Benzion Netanyahu was a clear-eyed man.  He had no illusions about the intentions of the enemies of Israel or their willingness to carry out their evil schemes.  He once said, “There is no doubt that the vast majority of Arabs would choose to exterminate us if they had the option to do so.”  And sadly, he was right.  Benzion did much to call the attention of the world to the evil treatment the Jewish people have received in both the past and the present.  He died in 2012 at the age of 102.

Yonathan Netanyahu –  A Man Willing to Pay the Price

Yonathan Netanyahu, the oldest son of Benzion and Zila Netanyahu, was born in New York City in 1946.  His parents were there to work for the creation of a Jewish state. Yoni, as he was known, was named for a Christian Zionist, Colonel John Henry Patterson.  In fact, he and Benzion Netanyahu were such close friends that Benzion asked Colonel Patterson to be Yoni’s godfather. 

Yoni followed in his godfather’s military footsteps, serving with valor and distinction in both the Six-Day War (1967) and the Yom Kippur War (1973).  In 1975, Yoni was appointed as commander of the Saveret Matkal commando team with which he had served.  Though most of the operations of the Saveret Matkal remain classified almost 50 years later, it is known that Yoni and his unit were very active in fighting against the PLO in the early 1970s, especially after the Black September raid on the Munich Olympics that killed eleven Israeli athletes and coaches.

On June 27, 1976, an Air France flight leaving Israel was hijacked by Palestinian terrorists and flown to Entebbe, Uganda.  The dictator there, Idi Amin, welcomed the terrorists and backed them up with Ugandan troops.  More than 100 Israelis were being held.  The threat was that they would be killed unless the government released Palestinian prisoners. 

On July 1, Yoni was ordered to draw up plans for a potential rescue operation.  He and his top advisers quickly considered options.  They constructed a replica of the terminal building so they could assess different approaches.  The commando unit rehearsed possible approaches for most of the next day, before Yoni went before the leaders of Israel’s military to brief them on the plan.  On July 3, the Israeli government met in secret session and after a lengthy debate approved the plan.  Yoni and his commando team were already on four planes and flying toward Uganda.  They would have been called back had the vote gone against the attempt.

The raid was carefully timed to begin just after midnight, early on the morning of July 4.  The team had procured vehicles like those used by the Ugandan army so that the terrorists would not immediately recognize they were under assault.  Nearly everything about the raid worked perfectly as they had planned.  For example, as the vehicles advanced down the runway toward the terminal, there were two Ugandan guards exactly where they were expected to be.  One of the members of the raid team later said, “When I saw those two guards waiting for us, like the guards that Yoni had placed in the rehearsal, I knew that this operation would succeed.”

As the commandos made their way toward the building, Yoni was seriously wounded by terrorist gunfire.  But his team, in keeping with the instructions he had issued before the battle, did not stop to care for him.  The safety and rescue of the hostages was their priority.  The men made their way inside and killed all of the terrorists.  Yoni was still alive when they returned, but the efforts of the doctors on the plane to save his life failed, and he was pronounced dead on the return trip to Israel.

In his diary, Shimon Peres recounted hearing the news: “At four in the morning, Motta Gur came into my office, and I could tell he was very upset.  ‘Shimon, Yoni’s gone.  A bullet hit him in the heart…’  This is the first time this whole crazy week, that I cannot hold back the tears.”

In the end, 102 of the 106 hostages were rescued alive, and the Israeli commandos only lost one soldier: their leader, Yoni Netanyahu.  Yoni’s body was flown back to Israel, and he was buried on Mt. Herzl.  In 2016 on the 40th anniversary of that raid, a memorial was dedicated in Uganda at the old airport.  At the ceremony, Prime Minister Netanyahu said that there is not a day that goes by when he does not think of his older brother and the sacrifice that he made for the sake of his people.

Benjamin Netanyahu – A Leader for a Prophetic Moment

Benjamin Netanyahu is the first Israeli prime minister to be born in the newly reborn nation of Israel.  He spent much of his youth in the United States, where his father was teaching and writing.  Netanyahu returned to Israel and served with distinction in the Israel Defense Forces.  He joined his older brother Yonathan in the Sayeret Matkal (the unit) special forces, and took part in a number of operations that are still classified.  Benjamin was wounded during Operation Isotope in 1972.

Netanyahu finished a four-year degree at MIT in two and a half years—even with taking time off to fight the Yom Kippur War.  He left the military with the rank of captain.  After a stint as a management consultant with Boston Consulting Group (where he became close friends with Mitt Romney), Netanyahu returned to Israel.  After working in a number of government positions, Netanyahu entered elective politics in 1988.

He became the leader of the Likud political party in 1993, and in 1996, he became the youngest prime minister in Israel’s history. After his first term as prime minister, he held various positions in the Israeli government, including Foreign Affairs Minister and Finance Minister. In 2009, he returned to the prime minister’s office and was reelected in 2013 and again in 2015. In 2022, after he led his party and allies to a resounding victory, his fifth election to the position broke a tie for the record with David Ben-Gurion for most times elected to the office, and he is already the longest serving prime minister in Israel’s history

In a world filled with leaders who value acceptance and praise over truth, Prime Minister Netanyahu is noteworthy for his willingness to speak truths that most would prefer to avoid.  He does not shrink from identifying threats to his nation or to world peace and is willing to call evil by its rightful name.

This has not made him popular among world leaders who prefer to appease and placate evil rather than confront it.  It is not uncommon for his speeches at world bodies like the United Nations to be delivered to half empty rooms as many diplomats and world leaders walk out rather than listening to the pointed delivery of the truth.  Often, I have been at world gatherings where open contempt and hostility toward Prime Minister Netanyahu has been evident.

But there are other more tangible threats facing the prime minister…and his family…as well.  Last year, terror groups targeted the Netanyahu’s three children, posting their pictures in online forums and chat rooms and urging attacks against them.  The daily reality of life in Israel renders every person subject to attack at any moment, but the high profile of his office makes this a special concern.

We met more than 40 years ago for the first time, and ever since that day, I have had the privilege of calling Benjamin Netanyahu my friend.  It is an honor to personally know such a committed leader.  I can tell you from our conversations through the years that the prime minister has a deep appreciation for the prayers and support of Christian friends.

In a 2012 speech, Mr. Netanyahu acknowledged the crucial role Believers have played in the formation and survival of the Jewish state.  He said, “I don’t believe that the Jewish State and Modern Zionism would have been possible without Christian Zionism. I think that the many Christian supporters of the rebirth of the Jewish State and the ingathering of the Jewish people in the 19th century made possible the rise of modern Jewish Zionism. We always had the deeply ingrained desire to come back to our land and rebuild it.  That was made possible in the 19th century, by the resurgence of Christian Zionism.”

Prime Minister Netanyahu remains a staunch friend and supporter of the United States.  Israel has America’s back.  On the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks, the Prime Minister wrote, “We stand with our greatest ally the United States of America and with other partners in the battle against militant Islamic terrorism that spreads its fear, its dread, its murder around the world.  Our memories are long, our determination is boundless.  Civilized societies must band together to defeat these forces of darkness, and I’m sure we will.” 

Forty-five years ago, God directed me to go to Israel…without telling me why. The only thing that I knew for sure was that I was supposed to meet with Prime Minister Menachem Begin, which was ridiculous. I didn’t know anyone on his staff, and there was no reason to expect the leader of the Jewish state to meet with a completely unknown minister of the Gospel from America.

But the Spirit of God had spoken to me through the wonderful promise of Isaiah 43:19 about the new thing He was going to do in my life. I was at a very low point then, suffering from a serious medical condition that made it very difficult for me to speak and minister to others. I even considered leaving the ministry and finding something else to do. But God was about to replace my desert with springs of water that flowed freely.

In obedience, I made the trip. Through a series of contacts that could only have been the result of divine intervention, I eventually did meet with Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin in his office on June 30, 1980. That was my birthday. After a few moments of small talk, he asked why I had come to see him. Of course, since God hadn’t told me, I couldn’t tell him! So I changed the subject as best I could.

After that happened a couple of times, he pressed the point. Reluctantly, I told him God sent me, but hadn’t told me why. I was so embarrassed, but I didn’t know what else to say! The Prime Minister laughed and said to his secretary, “Shake hands with him—you’ve finally met an honest man!” After we talked a little while longer, Mr. Begin told me that when I found out the reason I was supposed to meet with him, I should come back and see him again. I promised him that I would and left his office.

July 4th was the anniversary of the death of Yonathan Netanyahu in the daring raid that freed more than 100 Israeli hostages from the airport in Entebbe, Uganda. As I read the story in the newspaper that morning, the Spirit of God led me to go to the family home and express my condolences. It was on that visit that I met Benjamin Netanyahu for the first time, beginning a friendship that has lasted for decades.

That day as I prayed over him, I prophesied that one day he would be the prime minister of Israel. He was still in his twenties and not involved in politics at all—he laughed. But it was the Spirit of God speaking. On July 5th I met with Menachem Begin again. I told him I had met the prime minister the day before. He said, “You’re mistaken, we met on the 30th.” I told him it was the future prime minister, and asked him to give Benjamin Netanyahu his first political position, which he did.

On that second visit, I also told him that God had revealed His purpose for my trip—to build a bridge between Christians and Jews. With a laugh he asked, “Like the Brooklyn Bridge?” “A bridge of love and understanding,” I replied. “Then let’s build it together,” he said. And for the rest of his life, I had the privilege of working with Mr. Begin and being his closest Christian friend. The great worldwide prayer movement of the Jerusalem Prayer Team was born that day in the Holy City in the office of the leader of the Jewish state.

I was unable to protect my mother from the abuse she suffered at my father’s hands. It is no wonder that she thought Christians hated Jews. In addition to my church-going dad getting drunk and beating her on a regular basis, she lost many members of her family to the Holocaust. Her grandfather was burned to death inside his synagogue in what is now Belarus as those outside celebrated while shouting “Christ-killers!”

When I was just four years old, I was watching cartoons on television one morning. When that program ended, they began airing a Billy Graham special. My mother quickly came in and turned off the television. She told me, “Christians hate Jews. Christians kill Jews. Jesus is dead. Don’t dig him up.” So many Jewish people have never seen an act of love and compassion from a Believer, and we are working hard to change that.

Our first major public event was held in Dallas, Texas, with Jerusalem’s mayor at the time (and later prime minister), Ehud Olmert. Christians from around the country gathered and committed their support to the Jewish state. It was a powerful beginning. Over the years God has opened more and more doors for us to work in defense of His Chosen People.

I had no idea what God had in mind when we started out. I certainly was the last person anyone who knew me would have expected to be meeting world leaders and speaking to thousands on behalf of Israel. I was terrified to speak in public because I stuttered so badly. My life was gripped by fears, and I had horrible ulcers. I didn’t have any hope—but when God has a plan for us, He equips us to do the work to which He calls us.

When He makes a new way, no one can oppose His plan. No physical, spiritual, emotional, or mental opposition can overcome His mighty power. “I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name” (Revelation 3:8).

God has given us unique favor with the state of Israel like no other Christian ministry has ever had. A large part of that is the relationship we have developed with the Netanyahu family—and before we talk about God’s next step for us, the Ambassador Program, it is worth taking the time to look back at the role these remarkable people have played in the creation and survival of the modern Jewish state.