- G-d is a G-d Who answers Prayers | VOL. 34 * NEWSLETTER * MARCH/APRIL 1998 |
Dear OR TZION family & friends,
“Shalom shalom.” May the perfect peace of G-d our Father be yours in our Lord, Yeshua the Messiah.
This letter is an account of miracles, great and small which, I pray, will be a blessing and an encouragement in your life.
Returning Home “Anna, let’s do it. Its time!,” my husband said, ever so suddenly. “Its time to move to Israel!” In that short instant my world changed from ordinary to glorious. We were leaning against our car in the driveway, sipping ice-tea on a warm September evening in Dallas, when this extraordinary miracle occurred — my husband making the decision for our family to make Aliyah.
For this I had prayed to G-d for 10 years. I might as well have asked to take us to the moon. But I believed G-d and desired to obey His command — “Set up waymarks for yourself, make yourself guideposts; consider well the highway, the road by which you went. Return, O virgin Israel, return to these your cities.”1
On May 10th, 1980, one day before receiving my Associate Degree at Dallas’ “Christ for the Nations Institute”, an aeriogram came with Jerusalem on its front. It said: “Thus says the Lord: WAIT! Wait for your husband… your call is not without him…” I had been ready to go and serve the Lord willing to give up everything to obey Him. Oh, I was so ready… I thought. But over 3,000 miles away, in the land of my heart’s desire, G-d moved upon a man I had met only once before when he spoke at Christ for the Nations about
his life and service in Israel. The Lord instructed him to write me on this paper featuring Jerusalem, and tell me to wait and pray for my husband. We were called together.
But nothing in my husband changed concerning Israel. He was an “All-American boy”. He was not about to move anywhere. He liked it just fine where we lived!
In February of 1982 Chuck Flynn, a well-known prophet, taught at our Church. His custom was to prophecy over people after teaching. He pointed to my husband, “You, brother, with the beard, stand up, please.” My husband arose. “Is your wife with you? Please, stand also.” The moment I arose Chuck Flynn broke out into mighty praise of G-d, “O the beauty of husband and wife, flowing together in the anointing!” Then he continued, “My son, the peace that I have given you, and the authority and that vision!”2
“And my daughter, yeah, the authority that I have given – you shall flow together, and I am weaving your hearts together; for you are joint-heirs together of the graces of life.”
“Therefore your prayers will not be hindered and that which – yeah – is working within you: that fresh vision, that fresh glory of authority!” He said much more – things of the present of which he could have no knowledge unless they were shown him; things pertaining to the future; the promise of victory and of “… that anointing of the Lord Jehovah!”
Since Chuck Flynn’s words until this particular evening in 1986, nothing much indicated a fulfilling of this
prophecy. It seemed as far away as ever. Yet suddenly — there it was! The Lord had moved upon my husband’s heart — and he was ready to obey!
For many years I had desired for my husband to become a “true man of G-d.” Of course, only in the sense of what I understood a “true man of G-d” to be. It escaped me, how G-d always moved us together, and never did anything in my life apart from my husband.
When the Lord prompted me to look for a Bible School “…because,” He said, ” it was time to start running the race, to squire skill in rightly dividing My Word and to guide My sheep with a skilful hand,” He also defined the conditions by which the school would qualify as the right one for me: 1) it had to be in active support of the nation of Israel and involved in ministry there; 2) the curriculum was to be not only theoretical, but also provide immediate practical application; 3) my children were to come with me; and 4) my husband had to bless it.
I wrote to many Bible Schools all across the nation, “willing to go wherever He would send me.” But my husband never gave his blessing. The last school I wrote to was this “Institute” in Dallas which had been mentioned to me by three different ministries. I imagined it to be the least and the lowest where I probably would not learn much. When the Institute’s brochure arrived, I did not even bother to read it. My husband, however, when home from work, plunged into his easy chair, saw the brochure and began reading in it. On his way to the shower he said, “If you go to that school, you have my blessings.” I raced to read the brochure.
It fulfilled all four conditions.
During my second year at Christ For The Nations, I besought the Lord to show me how my husband would serve Him, that I could be more sure of our united calling. The Lord gave me Isaiah 60:5, and said that my husband was His chosen vessel to turn the wealth of the Salt (Dead) Sea over unto Israel. Then He gave me Exodus 31:1-5, and 35:30-34 and said, that He had given my husband the anointing of Bezalel son of Uri son of Hur3. He then instructed me not to say a single word about this to my husband. I would know this as a word from G-d by the way He would guide my husband. And the Lord’s first sign would be an immediate manifestation of the anointing.
And so, it happened at my husband’s place of work. From then on he could solve problems no one else could, and seeing mistakes immediately while others worked for hours to no avail. It was truly amazing!
As soon as my husband gave me his blessings to attend Christ For The Nations, the Lord opened a door for him to go to College. We both began our studies in the fall of 1978, and the Lord provided the finances as well as the car I needed to drive to the Institute and back. But if I tell you all these little miracles, how will I ever get to the big ones I feel led to share with you?!
1 Jeremiah 31:21 3 Bezalel means “in the shadow of G-d” 2 “vision”: at that time my husband still knew nothing about the “vision” of turning the wealth of the Dead Sea over to Israel. But the prophet saw it! Volunteers For Israel
page 2 It was in early spring of 1986, when I read about “Sar-El” (“Volunteers for Israel”), 4 a program developed during Israel’s Lebanon Campaign – (Operation Peace of Galilee) 5. It was harvest time when all men were called to serve and the crops would rot in the fields, and young calves would die. General Aaron Davidi had the idea to call on volunteers who responded en masse from abroad. Since then this program has brought in thousands of volunteers to serve in Israel wherever needed.The precious people I worked with in a warehouse on an IDF base in Yafo
I also wanted to serve as a volunteer. Then my husband – who did not want to hear another word about moving to Israel – said: “Go! Stay three months, learn some Hebrew, find out all you can about making Aliyah.” My husband actually sent me! Hallelujah!
But we did not have the finances, even though Sar-el subsidized the airfare. No problem – for when we held our regular home-fellowship on Friday evening, one after another arrived with check in hand saying, “the Lord told me to give you this.” Sure enough, my plane ticket was covered and I knew the Lord would take care of the rest.
One week before I was to return to the States, I sat on a hill Y overlooking Jerusalem (just as the Lord had promised in 1978, and as that picture on the aeriogram had confirmed,) when I clearly heard that still small voice
inside of me say: “The time has come to make the move. This is the time.”
And I knew this was so. So I prayed, “O Lord, if that is You speaking to me and not my own heart talking, then please move on my husband to say exactly that. I will not say one word to him about it, but I will know for sure that You have spoken if my husband says what you have just spoken to my heart.”
I returned to Dallas at the end of August. My husband gave no sign of a change of heart. Until that September evening standing in our driveway, sipping ice-tea.
No manna fell from heaven, nobody brought a large donation. We spoke to a Real Estate agent who was extremely negative about selling our home. But he gave us some ideas how to improve our house, and hard work began: painting cabinets, scraping floors, setting tiles, carpeting, bathrooms, laying new roof tiles, painting the exterior, etc. etc. Having no tools to fix up our yard, I organized a work-bar-b-q party for our friends and supporters who went to work, cutting, cleaning, mowing, you name it and it was done. Our house and yard looked like new. One couple even made and installed a new kitchen counter.WITHOUT FAITH
IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO PLEASE GOD.Meanwhile another Real Estate agent told us that the housing market was really depressed and we should not have great expectations. However, being greatly impressed by our home improvements, she sent us more prospective buyers than anyone else. She felt compelled to get our house sold, “if that’s the last thing I do,” she said. Our contract with her was for 3 months. The house did not sell.
One day after the contract expired a man came by, looked at the house, loved it and bought it — for double the amount we had bought the house 9 years before. Our Real Estate agent was amazed. While houses were selling all over the market at a loss, if at all, we sold ours in only 3 months with a 100% profit. “This has to be the Lord,” she said (she was a believer), “and just to prove it to us, he waited until the contract expired. My dear friends, it is the Lord Who sold your house, not I. It looks like you are on your way to Israel.”
My husband gave his notice to his employer.
4 SAR-EL F.A.Q SHEET (question & answers):
http://www.wzo.org.il/zionet/sar-el.htm
“Volunteers For Israel” homepage: http://www.sar-el.org/
E-mail: vol4israel@aol.com; or write to: “Volunteers For Israel”, 330 West 42nd Street, Suite 1618, New York, N.Y. 10036; Tel.: (212) 643-4848; Fax: (212) 643-4855; ***
FRANCE: 14 rue du Theatre, 750 15 Paris, France; Tel.: 45.75.03.78 ***
ENGLAND: W.V.F.I., Balfour House, 741 High Road, London N 12080;
Tel.: 081-446-1477 ext. 224; Fax: 446-8296; ***
SOUTH AFRICA : Zionist Federation, P.O. Box 18, Johannesburg 2000, Republic of South Africa; Tel.: 0027-11-333-000; Fax: 0027-11-299-596; ***
CANADA: “Canadian Volunteers For Israel”, 788 Marlee Avenue, #301, Toronto, Ontario, M6B 3KI; Tel.: 416-781-6089; Fax: 416-785-7687; ***
MONTREAL: Tel.: 514-735-0272; Fax: 514-744-66025 to free Israel’s Northern border from the constant terror attacks by the PLO Y picture of Mevasseret Zion, near Jerusalem, by http://www.israelimages.com; select “Pictures”, then “Places and Regions”, mark the place or region you want pictures of. Walking in the Footsteps of Abraham
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The Lord gave us 3 steps for starting our life in Israel: 1) enter the Land as volunteers in Sar-El; 2) find a fully furnished aparment in Jerusalem; 3) enroll at the intensive Ulpan “Beit Ha-am” (Gerard Behar Centre, 11 Bezalel Street Centre of town), to learn Hebrew. We applied to
Sar-el, passed all the requirements, paid our share of the airfare and got our tickets, but for the end of April, rather than the end of March.
Next we had a huge garage-sale. Except for the piano we sold all the furniture, even my beautiful plants. We sold it all, with the help of faithful OR TZION friends taking turns at our garage sale while my husband worked and I ran a million errands.
The first of March approached, time for the new owner to move in, while we would leave only in April. The couple who had built the kitchen counter for us once again came to our rescue. Bill & Debbie Morgan invited us to stay with them until our departure. And I want to thank them here and now for all that they have done, and are continuing to do. From the day we met them they have been only a blessing in our lives.
The time came to leave. Bill & Debbie invited us to a “good bye” dinner carefully planned to surpise us with an amazing offer face=”Arial Rounded MT Bold”>: they would keep our boys, take them to school and pick them up until the end of the school year. Then they would personally set them on the plane to Israel.
This is precisely what they did, and much more, overcoming many obstacles to send our children to us. Our sons came to love them dearly.
The volunteer service took us to a base near Beer-Sheva, where we celebrated Passover. When our service finished we only knew to go to Jerusalem. But where to stay? The commander of the base was so impressed with our determination to make Aliyah and our willingness to sacrifice, he gave us a permission slip for the soldiers’ hostel.
Immediately upon our arrival in Jerusalem we began our search for a furnished apartment. We called the first one on our list, and made an appointment for the next morning 9:00 a.m. The place was located in one of Jerusalem’s best neighborhoods. And the Lord gave us favor with the owners, who rented it to us for 6 months at $ 400 a month, ready for moving in the next day. The apartment had everything – pots, dishes, silverware, blankets, bedsheets, TV, telephone, etc.etc. It was “fully” furnished in the truest sense of the word. Moreover, the owners invited me to be their guest in New York any time I would come to the States. At the time I did not realize that I would very much need their help.
Upon returning to the soldiers’ hostel we were informed we would have to move out the next morning as the hostel suddenly had to accomodate a large group of soldiers. How we praised the Lord with tears of joy, for He had already provided our temporary home. Friends familiar with Jerusalem housing conditions would marvel exceedingly! No one has ever found a fully furnished apartment in one of Jerusalem’s best neighborhoods in a matter of only one day. Impossible! But with the Lord nothing is impossible!
We next enrolled for the full 5-months term at Ulpan Beit Ha’am, which we discovered was within walking distance from our new home. Every day we walked through the flower lined streets of Rehavia, then Jerusalem’s elite neighborhood.
In the fall of 1987 I returned to Dallas, making use of the return flight I still had from Sar-el. I would sell our investments to purchase furniture. I sold all our shares, except for the gold upon advice of my husband’s former employer. I then went on furniture hunt with Bill & Debbie’s “Pacer”. Somehow all the furniture stores were celebrating their 50th or 25th anniversary, for everywhere I found “anniversary sales”. The Lord provided sales to fit my budget and the car for transportation. Now all these things needed to be crated and shipped to New York.
The prices quoted to me were outrageous. Bill & Debbie were considering doing the crating themselves for a minimum fee, when the telephone rang. The “sheep lady from San Angelo”, Mary Linthicum, whom I had interviewed on my show during my radio days, asked, if I could spare 4 days to come to San Angelo. The “Women Aglow” chapter and a number of other people wanted to hear me. I felt I could not leave Bill & Debbie alone with the crating, but they insisted I go. I did, and those four days turned into a tremendous blessing. Mary drove me to all the meetings which provided me suddenly with finances I never anticipated having And oh, would I ever need them!
The Lord truly never slumbers nor sleeps! Bill just happened to have bought a huge trailer to transport large pieces of granite and marble. He built the crates on that trailer with wood he found “on sale”. As he and Debbie began the tedious work of filling the crates with all my new purchases and the piano and boxes we had stored with them, Christ For The Nations students “just happened to pass by.” “Can we help you?” they asked. Yes, they could. Thus, while I was away giving my testimony and telling people about Israel’s role in these end times, the Lord sent His servants to help fill up the crates. When I returned, all was ready to be shipped.
6 Romans 4:12 Walking on Water
page 4Bill drove the whole load to a trucking company which would bring it to the shipping company in New York. I could never have done any of this without Bill & Debbie, Mary Linthicum and the students from Christ For The Nations.
Then I flew to New York, where the couple who had rented us our first home in Jerusalem met me at the airport. The next day the man took me downtown to purchase appliances for Israel. There, stores in Manhattan cater to emigrants to Israel. My friend knew exactly where to go. And there, in the heart of Manhattan, we instantly found a parking place. He just shook his head in astonishment.
Next he drove me to the shipping agency whom, I discovered, had quoted me incorrect prices and I found myself stuck with a fee double the amount expected. I had no more time to find another shipping agency. Had it not been for the blessings received during that four-day tour the Lord arranged through Mary Linthicum, I would have had no funds to pay for our shipment.
The following day was October 19th, 1987. It became known as the “black Monday, October 19th,”because on that day the stock exchange crashed. My host lost $ 250,000 that day. I, on the other hand, gained 400x the worth of the gold shares I had not sold, which I could now sell at such tremendous profit. Had I not sold our two other holdings to purchase furniture, we would have lost them.
Oh, don’t ever doubt the Lord! He is true and faithful beyond our wildest dreams!7
Meanwhile in Israel, my husband had already found us a new temporary home, in an even better neighborhood. We required a 3-months’ deposit, which we were able to make, thanks to the money from the gold shares.
The day came, however, when all our reserves ran out and we had only 2 shekels left. I prayed to the Lord, “Heavenly Father, I have just enough to buy one loaf of bread. After that we have no funds. Please, provide.” The next day we received 2,000 shekels. The bank where we had applied for rental subsidy for new immigrants called to say they had a check for us in that amount. It was the subsidy for a full year.
I decided to find a job. What could I do? I was not fluent enough in Hebrew, and totally computer illiterate. I searched the ads in the Jerusalem Post and found a job for a German- speaking person. I enjoyed working
there, the people being so very kind and helpful. I learned my first computer “alphabets”. The working hours allowed me to be at home in time for our boys coming home from school. My salary paid the rent and utilities.
My husband still had no job. It troubled him, as his instincts “to provide” are very strong. He had finished his 5 months course at Beit Ha’am (I never did, because I was the one who went to all the agencies to do registrations, etc. I missed too many classes to be able to finish the course). We enjoyed favor with our teacher, and she arranged for an interview at another Ulpan for advanced Hebrew students, aimed at professionals (my husband is a chemist). The Ulpan paid its students a salary. My husband was accepted, this salary covering our expenses for food and school fees.
The time came for my husband to find work. By now I had shared Isaiah 60:5, and Exodus 30:1-4, and 35:3-34 with him. But how to find his place of work appointed by G-d? We prayed most earnestly. In our apartment building lived two American students. One of them worked for a pharmaceutical factory and provided us with a listing of pharmaceutical and other companies.
My husband was very doubtful. “Pharmaceutics have nothing to do with the Salt (Dead) Sea,” he said (remember, the Lord had appointed him to retrieve the wealth of the Salt Sea). “We won’t find anything in this book.” I reminded him of G-d’s strange and marvellous ways in providing for us, and encouraged him to underline anything that sounded somewhat “chemical”. He underlined six companies. I wrote a letter of application, and his resume. But we needed a cover letter in Hebrew.
Even that the Lord provided, moreover on a day closed for business. The owner of a typewriter rental just happened to open up his office and not only allowed me in, but even typed the letter for me and made me twenty copies free of charge.
I mailed out the job application with resume. In response we received a list of more companies, from among whom one sent us a list of 29 companies with the names of the chief of personnell. Altogelther I sent out 50 applications.
This year my husband celebrated his 10th anniversary at the Chemical company at Ramat Hovav, near Beer-Sheva. Their Logo
is the harvesting of the Salt (Dead) Sea.
7 Psalm 36:5 Aliyah, Returning Home to Zion
page 5IN THE LIONS’ DEN My husband, our boys and I were praying about finalizing our Aliyah, for we came on tourist visas. “Go as tourists,” the Lord had instructed us in America, “and change your status there.”We lived in Jerusalem, and everyone warned us for “heaven’s sake” not to change our status in Jerusalem. “It’s the lions’ den,” they said. “You’ll never make it, especially since you are black listed” (because of my Dallas radio programs). Hence we prayed most fervently. Then my husband said, “O.k., this coming Wednesday we’ll go.” As we sat awaiting our turn at the Ministry of the Interior we heard the woman with whom we were to speak yelling at everyone who entered her office. I saw my husband’s lips move in prayer. But I felt an extraordinary calm. We were “walking on water” now in obedience to the Lord’s directions. We would either make it to shore or drown. We were entirely in His hands. Our names were called. We went in anticipating the shouting. Lo and behold, she spoke ever so kindly, asked us to be seated and treated us with respect. She would expedite our application, she said, and wished us well, with a smile upon her face. When we left we heard her once again yelling at the next person entering her office.
We had no papers to prove our Jewishness. As a second generation Holocaust survivor I am still searching after my family’s records of genealogy. My parents’ birth certificates were falsified to say “Lutheran Evangelicals,” and so my birth certificate also states “Lutheran Evangelical,” despite the fact that we are Jewish. How then could I prove my Jewishness? When I considered conversion, the Lord forbade it, saying, “Don’t produce an Ishmael. I have promised you citizenship, in Jerusalem. Don’t look to the left nor right, only trust Me, and I will do it.”
My husband neither had proof, although I discoverd, when researching his family, that his paternal lineage had come from a Polish shtetl called Raskov (which still exists even today), had emigrated to England, done very well there, and then some members of the family moved to America, entering the U.S. through the Texas port of Galveston. His maternal lineage also was of Jewish origin, but gravely assimilated. However, their names still bear strong witness of their heritage. In any case, G-d obviously reckoned him as belonging to the fold of Israel, because He told us to make “Aliyah”. And He does not encourage nor bless lying, and would not have led us to build our future upon a lie.
I say all this in order for you to understand that every step we took was a step of faith. At that time we had no papers or certificates to prove our right to immigrate to Israel on the Law of Return. And now the Lord instructed us to apply at the “lions’ den,” the Ministry of Interior in Jerusalem.
Three times we were required to present ourselves to the Ministry of Interior, each time being interviewed by a religiously observant man. Religious employees at the Ministry of Interior are customarily more scrutinizing about proofs of Jewishness than others. The man never asked a single question, never said more than was necessary, prolonging our visas not only for 3 months, but for 6 without extra fee. He gave us our temporary residents visa without any difficulties.
Then came that Wednesday morning, when we would change our status from temporary residents to permanent, on the Law of Return. Again we passed through the usual procedures, and came to sit in front of our religious “friend.” He entered each application without ever looking up. When he came to the passport of our youngest, his name reading “Michael Christopher Lee”, the clerk dropped the “Christopher” without blinking an eye, and wrote only Michael-Lee. In this room were two other clerks likewise processing applications. One was very tough, and the other fearsome. She sent almost every applicant to be “fleeced,” as the “special questioning” is called. Her voice was sharp, she never seemed to smile.
On the day we were to receive our passports and our papers with the new status as “citizens” of Israel, it was not our kippa-wearing man who called us in — but this terrible fearsome woman. “Oh Lord,” I cried out in my
heart,”what now? Why did you not watch over who will process us today? You know she sends almost everyone to be fleeced. Please, help!” We went in, she motioned us to sit down, and with a broad smile she said, “Congratulations! You are now citizens of Israel! Welcome home!” And she handed us our completed passports and papers.
My desire to hug the Lord was so intense, words cannot tell!
This is only one account of the many miracles, great and small, the Lord has worked on our behalf and continues to do so. Yes, it takes bold faith to obey. Yes, it takes the willingness to let go of everything with a cheerful heart. Yes, it takes trusting Him completely. Yes, it takes working hard. And yes, there are many difficult obstacles to overcome, and sometimes we fear the Lord is late — but He never is. Sometimes people won’t do or give what He tells them to meet your need, and so you have to struggle a little longer, holding on in trust a little longer. But He WILL provide help from another quarter. He WILL fulfill His promise, no matter how impossible it seems. In the depths, He will part the waters, and through fiery trials, not a single hair on your head will be lost. Whether through storm and tempest, heat of day or cold of night, He will let nothing smite you if you persevere in faith and trust 8. Family, friends and brethren may fail, because they are human beings. G-d never ever fails anyone who entrusts into His hands their whole life and livelihood, and also is willing and ready to obey His leadings“TRUST AND OBEY, THERE IS NO OTHER WAY,”
THE LETTER ONE DAY BEFORE COMMENCEMENT SERVICE HAD SAID.G-d honors the faith of a woman who trusts G-d, even if her husband is an unbeliever. If he supports her, the Lord will bless and use him. If he opposes her and her faith, the Lord will set her free 9.
What a mighty G-d we serve!
So, take courage, all who read this! You can never go wrong when you follow His Messiah, the Lamb of G-d, wherever He goes 10. No matter what the obstacles and hardships, what He promised He also will do11. Only do not doubt, but persevere, and continue following Him without looking back. The reward will make your heart leap for joy!
Be blessed, beloved, and strengthened in your faith, encouraged in your endeavor, and uplifted in your heart. Nothing is too hard for our G-d, the Holy One of Israel, Melech Ha’olam, baruch’hu, and nothing is impossible for Him12, who searches to and fro throughout the earth to show Himself mighty on behalf of those who believe, trust and obey Him without wavering 13. What He has promised He also will do — and He is NEVER too late! 14 Don’t dash forward foolishly, but always wait carefully on Him. Presumption is NOT faith, and it leads to harm. But when He leads and guides you, obey and follow. All work done in His Name and for Him is joy, even though it may be hard.
May the Lord bless you and keep you, prosper you and preserve you in good health.
Yours in Him,
12 Jer. 32:17, 27; Lk 1:37 13 2 Chr. 17: (8)-9 14 Habakkuk 2:3