I Am Prayer

״ואני תפילה״ Psalm 109:4 “I Am Prayer”

In Psalm 109:4 King David declares before the Lord “I am prayer.” Most English translations record David saying, “I give myself to prayer.” However, in Hebrew it simply says “I”, “״ואני, and then “prayer”, “תפילה”, written as a noun. “Give myself to” is omitted in the Hebrew reading.

In this Hebrew structure David could have just as easily written, I am king or I am a child of God. David was feeling the pains of being hated by his friends, and then David strangely states, “I am prayer.” 

What does that even mean that you “are” prayer? That doesn’t even make sense! Prayer is an activity. It is something that you do. Right?

However, King David makes “prayer” his identity, the very essence of his being. The Spirit of prayer flowed in him naturally and gave him a grace to commune with God in intimacy and intercession.

Because David was declared by God to be the man after God’s own heart, it is wisdom and it behooves us to understand what David understood and pursue it. 

David’s revelation of becoming prayer is the high vision of Heaven for each one He created, regardless of individual callings.

From this prayerful communion with God we move into the fullness of our individual callings.

To become prayer is not only for the intercessors and worship leaders. King David himself was a king with many responsibilities. This baptism of the Spirit of Grace and Supplication is for everyone.

Why should we give ourselves to the act of prayer? By praying we, like David, will become prayer and enter into union with God.

Union with God

“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. …If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.”

- YESHUA  John 15:5,7

You were made for fellowship with the Holy, Uncreated God. You were created to become one with Him. Him in you and you in Him. God is looking for the man after His own heart, the ones who seeks Him and desires the high vision of union with Him. 

Yeshua gave His life to save you out of sin and into a sacred fellowship with the Godhead. He never meant for us to settle for only being saved from our sins. He wants to receive all He died for. The invitation is for all to come out of darkness and into the all-consuming light of an abiding companionship with God.

He longs for the two of you to become one flesh, that you would know His heart, His mind, and His emotions, and that your body would be infused with His Spirit and His strength.

The basic means by which He makes us one with Himself is the Spirit of prayer.

To know Him, love Him, enjoy His Presence, to be healed heart, mind, soul and body, to hear His voice speaking - all of this comes through the dance of prayer, the dance of listening, beholding and speaking to the God of your life.

“One thing is needed…” Yeshua.

“…a certain woman named Martha welcomed [Yeshua] into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Yeshua’s feet and heard His word.” 

“But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.” And Yeshua answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”

- YESHUA Luke 10:38-42

One thing is needed. One thing? Lord, that doesn’t make sense.

As I sought the Lord on what He could mean, it dawned on me that it is from this “one thing” that all other things flow. Communion with Him is the source for all other needs being met. 

“The Lord is my Shepherd. I shall not want.” Psalm 23:1

Mary knew how to “abide in the vine,” by lingering long in the presence of the One Who is the Word of God made flesh. She heard His words and conversed with Him about the anointed words that poured forth from His lips. She was captivated.

“One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in His temple.” Psalm 27:4

Yeshua says “one thing is needed.” David, the man after God’s own heart says “one thing is desired.” And it all is centered in the dance of prayer, of sitting and listening to the Word of God, gazing on the beauty of God and asking Him questions. Prayer is the “one thing,” the foundational piece in your life with God.

Ceasefire Scheduled for 2:00am Israel Time

Israel agrees to unilateral ceasefire conditional on Hamas and other Palestinian terror groups refraining from launching rockets. Ceasefire is scheduled for 2:00am Israel time.  

Until then Hamas plans to empty it's arsenal and Netanyahu plans to take out as many of the remaining Hamas targets as possible.

If ever we needed to intercede for this war it is now, for the next hour.

My Revelation on the Island of Patmos: Part 4 of 5

I Can Do All Things

In 2012, while on the island of Patmos, the pain of trigeminal neuralgia became debilitating. Many days were spent lying still on my right side trying to decrease all painful stimulants to the left side of my face.

Surges of pain increased as I continued to combat facial muscle spasms, burning and sensations of electricity. Being wearied by the years of endurance, I was slipping in and out of hope that the pain would end.

Being mentally and physically exhausted, I drew a dangerous conclusion: “I can’t do this anymore.” It seemingly felt easier to not work the muscle of hope nor to believe that God would deliver me.

Oh how deceiving! It was actually harder to live under the dark cloud of hopelessness.

There is life and glorious possibilities within hope and faith. As my hope waned, I found only depression and an internal death.

What I am saying is simple and is an easily forgone conclusion. The necessity of hope and faith are required to remain alive within. Hope is vital to emotional, spiritual and even physical life.

Being intimately acquainted with a hope filled life and a life of despair, I can attest that a life of despair is a much more difficult life to live.

A life of despair is no life at all really. Despair drained me of life.

The horrid reality of trigeminal neuralgia is that many who do not find relief within three years choose to embrace death; thus, it is called the “suicide disease.”

When pain and death are around and within, the answer is not more death. The answer is freedom and life.

“Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom,” and “Yeshua is the way, the truth and life.”

(2 Corinthians 3:17, John 14:16)

Faith

Fortunately, my friend from Israel called while I was in this tailspin. Wearily I confessed my true thoughts, “I can’t do this anymore.”

With all the flare of a true Israeli, my friend responded with genuine honesty, “Where is your faith? Don’t you believe that you ‘can do all things through the Messiah who strengthens’ you?”

Ouch!

As I basked in the deceptive light of self-pity, I expected my friend to stroke me with words of sympathy. Instead, gently the harsh truth and direct words were spoken in love.

My friend’s words woke me up and challenged me in the basic truths of my faith.

Knowing that I believed in Yeshua and the words of the Bible, to my friend without guile it was only logical that I would believe what God says.

My time of suffering and endurance was a life test. Did I believe the Scriptures or not? When I awoke from my stupor and chose to exercise my muscle of hope, the Word of God was cemented into my heart.

Let me just say, many a time I had been the recipient of my friend’s compassions. The compassionate heart made a way for the sword-like tongue to destroy the lies that were destroying me.

After hearing and awakening to truth, I ceased to say, “I cannot do this.” The truth was internalized and my mind was changed. “I can do all things because Yeshua strengthens me.” I can do nothing without Him, but by leaning on my Beloved I will arise.

By changing my internal conversation with God, I was released from the heavy power of despair that had haunted me on and off for years.

“This I know, my Redeemer lives and in the end He will stand on the Earth. After my skin has been destroyed, this I know, that In my flesh I will see God. …Oh, how my heart yearns within me!”

(Job 19:25-27)

He will come and save, and He will remove all tears and pain.

Until the fullness of healing is realized and all the pain is lifted from my face, I know that I can do all things and endure all things through Yeshua my Messiah Who gives me strength.

(Philippians 4:13)