W A T C H I N G and P R A Y I N G in J E R U S A L E M

War by Any Other Name

August 24, 2006

And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels.  And prevailed not: neither was their place found any more in heaven.”  (Revelation 12:7-8)

Dear Praying Friends,

Shalom from Jerusalem in the Name of Him Who is both the Prince of Peace and a Man of War!  Truly there is none like Him, forever seated on the Throne and reigning over all the affairs of man.  He is good and His Tender Mercies are indeed new every single morning!

War has a way of producing countless things to remind us of our absolute need for total dependency on Him and Him Alone.  That’s why I will start this alert out by giving Him Praise for the many miracles that were evident everyday…even in the midst of tears.  Close to 4,000 rockets and missiles landed in Israel during this time, with 900 of those rockets landing in populated urban areas full of civilians. One Israeli said that “it seemed as if a giant hand was swatting these rockets away”. The capacity for massive destruction was enormous, especially considering the oil depots within reach as rockets rained down on Haifa.  No one can deny that it was anything short of MIRACULOUS that with all these rockets intentionally targeting civilians (some days seeing more than 200 rockets landing in a 24-hour period throughout the northern region) that no more than 43 Israeli civilians lost their lives out of the more than 2 million within reach of these rockets.  While we weep and sorely grieve the loss of every single life and know that there are thousands who have suffered great physical and emotional pain, we know that it could have been hundreds of thousands more …if not for the MERCY of the LORD. So for EVERY precious life (more than 2 million of them…a third of Israel’s total population!) that was spared in the north we want to lift our voices in PRAISE and Thanksgiving to the LORD God Almighty…the Holy One of Israel.

A summary in numbers of the war’s toll

This alert will be somewhat longer than normal because I want to give you some statistics. The following numbers in brown were posted on the IsraelReporter website: www.israelreporter.com as of August 16^th.

159 Israeli citizens have been killed by Hezbollah rocket fire.  Of those, 43 were Christian, Jewish, and Muslim civilians.  116 were IDF soldiers killed in rocket attacks as well as in combat.

4,262 civilians were treated for injuries in hospitals; of those, 33 were seriously wounded, 68 were moderately wounded, and 1,388 were lightly wounded. Another 2,773 suffered from shock and anxiety.

Over 2 million people - a third of Israel’s population - were within Hezbollah rocket range.
300,000 - 500,000 Israelis have been displaced.
More than 1 million residents were forced to live in bomb shelters.
6,000 homes were hit by rockets.
7,600 damage claims have been filed.

A Snapshot of Hizbullah’s Rocket Attacks:
13,000 rockets are in Hezbollah’s arsenal

3,970: The number of rockets Hezbollah has fired into Israeli cities and towns; 901 of these landed in urban areas.

Of the missiles Hezbollah has fired at Israel:

Over 1,000 have hit the Kiryat Shmona area
808 have hit near Nahariya
471 have hit near Tzfat (Safed)
176 have hit near Karmiel
106 have hit near Akko
93 rockets have hit the Haifa area
81 rockets have hit the Tiberias vicinity
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War by any other name is STILL war.

While the world is touting this political “cease-fire” with Hizbullah, make no mistake that the clock is ticking ever faster toward an all out war with Iran and Syria, the sponsors and suppliers of Hizbullah.   Because Hizbullah was able to wage a month-long battle and not only survived but continued to increase their rocket attacks each day right up to the very end, they have been emboldened to believe that the end is now near for Israel. Left standing and fully armed with more than 9,000 rockets that we know about (and who knows how many more that we do not know about!) still left in their arsenal, it would be naïve to assume that they will not strike again.  The next time with even deadlier weapons unless they, and those who sponsor and send them, are totally and unequivocally rendered incapable of rising again. 

Hossein Safiadeen, the Hizbullah representative in Iran, stated the following just days before the hastily arranged cease-fire. He said, “You will see a new Middle East in the way of Hizbullah and Islam, not in the way of Rice and Israel.  We will expand attacks.  The people who came to Israel, (they) moved there to live, not to die.  If we continue to attack, they will leave.  This war will be remembered as the beginning of the end for Israel.”

Safiadeen is not the only one to have made such false projections.  Down through the ages, the devil has used many to do his bidding where Israel is concerned.  Hitler, Arafat, Yassin, and now Iran (led by Ahmadinejad and company)  have each sung the same song.  But the Word declares, “Let God be true and every man a LIAR! “ And what has the LORD declared concerning Israel?  That He would bring His people BACK to the Land that He swore to their forefathers, the Land of their inheritance, FOREVER!      And that means NOT ONE DAY SHORTER!

While I don’t claim to be a military strategist well versed in offensive maneuvers, I know Someone Who is.  He is the Holy One of Israel …the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.   He is infinitely creative in His battle plans and has a 100% record of Victory! This past week, I have been drawn once again to study the Book of Joshua, especially chapters 6 -12 that deal with the conquering of the Land of Israel.  It truly gives a clear picture of just how INTIMATELY involved with this land the LORD has been…and His “take no prisoner” approach as He directed Joshua in the wars that were fought over it.    

Even if you know these verses by heart, it is worth studying them again now at this time. During the past month, the enemy has targeted you with graphic images (many of them doctored!) of death and destruction in Lebanon; grossly inflated numbers of Lebanese “civilian” casualties; and the aftermath of attack scenes staged live for the rolling cameras all meant to pull on your heart strings and to cause you to buy into the lie of humanism and to waver in your support of Israel.  I provide a link at the end of this alert for you to check out some examples. No doubt in the coming days and weeks, you will see more of the same. These chapters in Joshua will help to fortify you against such attacks and serve to keep you in synch with God’s view of the situation. They will remind you that this Land is not just another piece of real estate, but the place on which the LORD has stamped His Name and where He has been …and will forever be…  intimately engaged in defending.

When natural warfare meets spiritual warfare

While Israel is actively engaged in physical warfare, we are fully aware that the natural is not our battlefield.  As intercessors, our battlefield and warfare is in the spiritual which ultimately dictates the natural…“for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but MIGHTY through Christ Jesus to the pulling down of strongholds.”   For though Satan himself be leading the charge, the enemy has not…will not…CAN NOT win the battle if he is facing an army whose Captain is the LORD of Hosts!

Therefore, there can be no let up, no “cease-fire” in our intercession.  On the contrary.  It is time to go on the offensive. Take your cue from Joshua who prayed boldly for the sun to stand still in order for them to complete the work of destroying their enemies.  And it wasn’t just the miracle of the sun standing still in that battle, but also the great hailstones that the LORD hurled from heaven at them as they tried to flee, that shows that the LORD was an ACTIVE  and creative participant in these battles.

“The earth is the LORD’S, and the fullness thereof…”

During the beginning period of the last intifada, it was clear that these terrorist groups were being financed from revenues received from the sale of oil by certain oil rich rogue States.  Since they were misusing the LORD’S resources in order to “curse and destroy Israel”, I was led to begin to pray asking the LORD to divert the flow and production of oil so that it no longer courses through these countries that are using it to fight Israel…asking Him to dry it up and prevent them from using His oil to finance terrorism.  Efforts have long been underway to find an alternative energy source in the US and around the world.  It is simply pathetic how Iran is toying with world leaders who are trying everything in their power to “sweet talk and bribe” Iran into abandoning their nuclear program;  while at the same time Iran is rushing full steam ahead in pursuit of their nuclear weaponry.  Once completed, there is no doubt that Israel would be their first target.   One sure fire way of stopping this would be to hit them NOW where it hurts…in their oil supplies.  It is time to plug up Iran’s oil tap!!! 

*Pray that the LORD would intervene and deny Iran (and ANY OTHER oil rich nation that is using these revenues to finance terrorism) access any longer to these oil deposits and resources. Pray that He would do so suddenly in such a dramatic way that it is clear that the Hand of the LORD…the Creator of All Things…El Shaddai…has done it!

*Pray that the God from Whom nothing is hidden and from Whom nothing is secret…the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (our God!)  would suddenly, in a moment’s time, cause all the enemies’ hidden things to be unearthed, revealed and made known.  Pray that even the thoughts of their hearts as they are in the midst of planning their evil schemes would be revealed supernaturally to Israel.  Pray that the LORD would send messengers of confusion into the midst of their camp, so that all their ways are confounded.

After the humiliating defeat at Ai, Joshua fell on his face before the LORD with these words: “O LORD, what shall I say, when Israel turneth their backs before their enemies! For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land shall hear of it, and shall environ (surround) us round, and cut off our name from the earth: and what wilt Thou do unto Thy great name?” (Joshua 7:8-9) 

The LORD then revealed to Joshua the ‘sin of the accursed thing’ and Joshua took immediate action to expose it and to rid the camp of it. As soon as they did, the LORD sent them back to fight against this same Ai…this time not only promising them victory but even giving them His battle plans for an ambush!  *Pray that among Israel’s leaders, the LORD would raise up one with the leadership and humility of Moses and the boldness and military prowess of Joshua. One who will have the wisdom to seek the LORD and to ask Him to reveal the mistakes that were made in the last confrontation and whether there be any “accursed thing” that must be exposed and removed so that they are able to hear and receive from Him His battle plans that guarantee victory for the next confrontation that is sure to come.

*Pray for supernatural alertness and divine discernment for all Israeli soldiers and security personnel. They suffered heavy loses amid unselfish acts of heroism in some hard fought battles in this war.  Pray that the LORD would heal them physically and bind up their wounded hearts as they grieve not only the loss of friends and comrades but also what they themselves have just experienced.  Pray that as they must continue in their mission of safeguarding this nation, they would be able to go out and to come in, in the LORD’S strength and under His anointing.  Pray for opportunities for those among them who are strong in their Faith in the Holy One of Israel, to be able to strengthen those around them with the knowledge of Him and His Faithfulness.

*Pray for those Israeli children, wives, husbands, fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers, friends, and co-workers who have lost loved ones in this war, that they would fall into the waiting Arms of the One Who is the God of all Comfort.

In the same way that the LORD was gracious and extended Mercy to Rahab (who hid the Hebrew spies) and to her family, saving their lives when the children of Israel captured the city, *Pray that He would likewise make a way of escape for all those in Iran, Syria, and Lebanon who have come face to face with the fear of the God of Israel and who have chosen in their hearts to identify with Him and the nation of Israel and to reject the stance of their leaders.

*Pray that the Holy Spirit will strengthen, ignite and equip intercessors around the world who are standing in the gap for Israel, to be able to stand firm and to pray those prayers that are birthed in the Heart of God.

Click here to check out examples of blatant media manipulations that have been posted on the excellent website, HonestReporting.com

“For the effectual, fervent prayers of a righteous man availeth much.” (James 5:16)

Brenda Giles in Jerusalem

Note: “Watching and Praying in Jerusalem” is a news update and commentary of current events from a Biblical perspective as they are unfolding in Israel with a special focus on Prayer alerts. Written and compiled by Brenda Giles, the Founding Director of Hugs for Israel, these prayer alerts are meant to offer fuel for your intercession for Israel. Please feel free to re-publish the text of these alerts making sure that you give the proper attribution as to their source. You may also forward them to friends using the link “Recommend this site to a friend” provided on this page. If you are not on our email mailing list already, we encourage you to join our email list by clicking on the link “Receive our FREE newsletter” provided on this page in order to receive additional updates that may not be posted on this website.

Special Note: News reporting agents used include The Jerusalem Post, HonestReporting, IsraelReporter, Haaretz, AP. For photos, you must obtain written permission from the owners of the copyrights as noted next to each photo before you can use them.

Now, may the LORD God of Israel bless you and continue to guide you by His Spirit as you stand in the gap for Israel.