Author: Meridel Rawlings

Interesting read: How Russian Jews helped shape the life of Putin

Published by Meridel Rawlings

“A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” (Proverbs 18:24) In the long history of Jews in Russia, the government has rarely been an ally, and often been the source of persecution. Current Russian president Vladimir Putin, however, is a powerful exception, with Jews playing a significant role in his personal history and his inner circle.  With the Russian army a major player in the potentially explosive multi-national puzzle unfolding in Syria, this personal element could become an important, perhaps decisive, factor in how the conflict unfolds. Read the whole article by Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz on Breaking Israel News.

Hanukkah… a little history

Published by Meridel Rawlings

We celebrate Hanukka in commemoration of the Macabee revolt against the hated Syrian overlords and recapture of the Temple Mount from Syrian Greeks in around 167 BCE. It is the only time in ancient history that the Greeks were defeated and this time by a handful of priests and farmers. The Greek leader Antiochus 1V Epiphanes built a ‘Akra’ (Citadel) which provided oversight onto the Temple Mount. His soldiers spied to spy and keep watch over our rebellious Maccabean ancestors. The Akra was a thorn in their flesh: it was a constant threat with the Syrian Greeks watching all they were doing on the Temple Mont. But where was the Akra, and how could it overlook the Temple Mount, which was higher than all the surrounding areas? In 141BCE Simon Maccabees captured the Syrian Aka and expelled its evil foreign soldiers. The early Jewish historian Josephus also mentions the event. He says that Simon took the Akra by siege, razing it to the ground that it might not serve his Simon’s foes, s a base …

Hanukkah

Published by Meridel Rawlings

“Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love.” Romans 12:10 We are half way through this year’s Hanukkah Feast. Darkness falls by 5 p.m. and the wind is cold. How comforting it is after a demanding day for Jay, our two sons Josh and Daniel and I warm ourselves around a little wood stove in the family room. Yes, someone died because of terror today. No, here is no good news of the TV channels. The world is frightened and Europe is becoming defensive in the face of so many immigrants. Terror stalks us all one way or another. Our hearts are heavy, very heavy.  We read this little piece and it touched us all. There ARE little things that each one of us can do, when the troubles seem so overwhelming.  “There is a story of an old man who carried a little can of oil with him everywhere he went, and if he passed through a door that squeaked,he poured a little oil on the hinges. If a gate was hard to …

Israeli boy describes the coming of Messiah

Published by Meridel Rawlings

This video is not professional and Hebrew is spoken. Only the first portion has English subtitles, Nathan a 15 year old Israeli who had a near death experience in the Shara Tzedek Hospital in Jerusalem. It was on the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles in October 2015. Nathan comes from a secular background and knew nothing of the prophets scriptures written by his own prophets. Here are the main points: Natan felt extremely ill with chills and ‘coldness’ possessed his body. While in the hospital, he shook and was filled with pain. Suddenly he found himself hovering over his body 6 feet in the air. He kept rising and rising until he could see the whole earth and eventually was lead to a tunnel. He was drawn to a light that filled him with a sense of love and security. He can’t find words to properly explain how amazing it was. (His whole life was played before him, there were no secrets. He talks about the extreme importance of ‘acts of loving kindness’. Go …

Meridel – Calling all Partners

Published by Meridel Rawlings

Let us lift our hearts and hands to God in heaven; Lammentaions 41:3a Exploits for the Kingdom of God is what our lives are all about. I am thanking you ahead of time for standing with me in in Nepal this coming January 2016. Please take some Christmas money for a gift for our children in Nepal. Nepal is waiting for us. I am in need of two airfares and our hotel and food costs. I will be working with children rescued from brothels. Our prayer is to complete the filming for the documentary project we are making to help children everywhere! Pray for Daniel, Maya and myself. Also in Kathmandu pray for Indira and her coworkers who care for the children. New Delhi India will be on my route, and I will do TV work there in the field of sexual abuse. This is a new open door and may the LORD add His blessing. Cost of airfare and accommodation, salary for Daniel and gift to Indira’s work: $10,000.00 Your gifts to this work are not …

An Appeal from Jay and Meridel to our Friends and Partners for 2016

Published by Meridel Rawlings

December 2015 / January 2016 Shalom Dear Friends and Partners. Here are three recent quotes from some of our friends and partners.  Just for you, “I can’t tell you how moved I was upon reading Meridel’s “Still Small Voice” letter. I have passed it along to my minister and to many others.” M.P.- Canada “I was seeking the Lord as to what to do with my tithe, and when I came across your last “Jerusalem Vistas/ Israel Vision” newsletter I was prompted to send it to you. (I can’t get out to church anymore.)  I have followed your ministry since the release of your film “Apples of Gold” in 1980.” C.K. – Canada “Congratulations for your 2015 “Nehemiah Award” for a lifetime of excellence in the media from the International Christian Embassy – Jerusalem, appreciating your and Meridel´s untiring work of enlightenment, information, testifying and “mitzvot”!   (Hebrew for“good deeds”)  May the Holy One of Israel bless you further on with wisdom, strength and provision. W. & I.  B. –  Israel. For these lovely Words of Encouragement we …

Joulukuun uutiskirje

Published by Meridel Rawlings

Pieni hiljainen ääni Joulukuu 2015 Shalom, hyvät ystävät!                                                     Siunaan jokaista, joka lukee tätä kirjettä ajatuksella. Vuosi 2015 oli täynnä toimintaa. Jay piti 65 luentoa eri puolilla Kanadaa aiheinaan: Israel, Maailmanlaajuisen terrorin uusi voimistuminen ja Sinä, Israel ja kansakunnat – tulevaisuuden näkymiä. Hengelliseltä kannalta katsoen kaivoimme soraa ja mutaa joenuomista (seurakunnista), mutta Jumala sanoi lähettävänsä virvoittavat sateet ja uuden elämän tulevina päivinä. Rukoilethan Kanadan puolesta! Työskentelimme myös Nepalissa, Saksassa ja Sveitsissä. Adoptoimamme 11 sudanilaista pääsivät vapaasti muuttamaan Kanadaan kahdeksan vuoden taistelun jälkeen. Julkaisimme kirjan ”Love My People, Timeless Secrets” (Rakastakaa minun kansaani, Ajattomia salaisuuksia) 1. osan englanniksi, ja työskentelemme sen 2. ja 3. osan parissa. Nepal tammikuu 2016  Meidän on tilattava 3 edestakaista lentolippua välille Tel Aviv – New Delhi, Intia – Katmandu, Nepal. Jos Luoja suo, työskentelemme intensiivisesti tammikuun Nepalissa. Lippuja ei vielä ole maksettu eikä ruoka-, asumis- ja filmauskuluihinkaan ole varoja.               …