Behold, we are slaves
this day; in the land that you gave to our fathers to enjoy its fruit
and its good gifts, behold,
we are slaves. And its rich yield goes
to the kings whom you
have set
over us because of our
sins. They rule over our bodies and over our livestock as
they please,
and we are in great
distress. Nehemiah
9:36-37
Two directions, Elohim; two choices of where you
would lead on this journal entry: Bless
these words and my prayers to Your purpose and Your glory.
Here I am, living in The United States of America,
but I am preparing properly to reside in a new land – The Land – Your Land. Am
I doing so properly or prematurely? A good friend recently said to me, “If America
is to be restored to God’s purpose; then our focus should be on that purpose.
If this is the time when Israel is to be restored, then Israel should be our
focus. And America’s restoration is irrelevant.”
Wow, so true – so convicting…which is it? Should I
be about my current homeland? Do we have time, as Nineveh once had to truly
repent? Or is our culture already cast aside in Your eyes, YHWH? Is the time at
hand as described by the prophets, for Israel to be commissioned back to her
glory? If so, then what will happen here…in the West? Scripturally speaking, it
appears both restorations are incompatible – it is time for one, or for the
other.
Is this just another part of the double-mindedness
that James spoke about? I confess, I want my current residence and citizen
status to remain cozy and powerful… but honestly, I don’t see things
progressing that way, which means I need to be preparing for a serious cultural
“reset”.
It has happened before; the Babylonians, the Greeks,
the Romans, the Ottomans, the Germans and many others, all saw their empires
unimaginably disintegrate before their eyes.
Nothing is really different this time: This land in the West, that calls
itself a God fearing nation, is not acting as if in awe for God”. Instead we
appear to be assuming that we have a “pass” because of our seemingly unique
history. Hmmm, how did that kind of thinking work out for the Egyptians and the
Assyrians, Lord?
I have to confess that I’d like to think I’m wrong
on this one, Master – that my land still has a chance to receive Your blessing,
prior to Your ultimate restoration of Your Land. After all, there are many
strong believers and advocates of Your Way here. Does that count for anything? The circumstances in another country full of
devout followers, Ethiopia, suggest that strong personal faith has less to do
with Your blessing of a country than I might like to think. You redeem
individually, but history says that You judge cultures collectively. How do we
fair collectively? What about this land which You have blessed in the past, but
which now, as a nation, is rejecting You – not even instructing our children to
pray to You or to obey Your instructions? What of us?
I realize that I’ve strayed a bit from the original
intent of this blog – to present a picture of our experience in The Land, while
we were there. But now that I am back in the States, the comparisons seem too
compelling to pass up. I don’t want to
forget, Adonai, what You inspired me to in the first place – to shine a light
on the culture and conditions of Your people’s ultimate destination in The
Land. But I don’t yet live physically in Israel (as much as I want to!). My heart
cries out for what I see, or don’t see in my birth country, which was so
evident in Judea and Samaria.
Where and when is Your next restoration, Lord? Will the “ruins of our culture be viewed by
other civilizations sooner; or later? I
know I can’t see the times or places that You, Father, have set for these
things to take place and I know I need to keep the oil of my lamp filled and
ready for whatever time You return, but I can’t help ask; is it possible that
we can turn back to You? Or is it time to begin packing my spiritual luggage
for a more immediate and permanent journey to another destination You are ready
to reveal?
Rabbi. I did
my homework, I know that Nineva blew its chance, having repented, but
then within just a very short while reverting back to their version of idol
worship. I know that we’ve also been given second (and many more) chances –
thank you for Your grace! Others would ask You for yet another chance – I would
ask You, on behalf of me and my countrymen, for strength to be obedient only to
Your purpose.
Am I being a doomsayer? Shouldn’t I be proactively
pleading for my neighborhood and city and state and my nation to whole
heartedly turn back to You? Of course, even if this place is not to be
restored, the answer is “yes”. So I will do both – living in the place my
Creator has blessed me with, and praying for the new home I know is to come. But
I will do both, imploring all who dwell in this culture, to live differently, as
if the new kingdom has already come – considering as Jeremiah did, what will
become of me if this place where I am so comfortable is taken away from me (or
I am taken away from this place!)? After all, isn’t that what You taught us to
pray…”Thy kingdom come?”
Come, Lord Jesus,
Mark C.
