Dugit - fishers of men in the heart of Tel Aviv

For three days (Tuesday through Thursday) last week, I had the honor of visiting Dugit and serving at their outreach center. The word 'dugit' means little fishing boat, like the one used by Jesus' disciples on the Sea of Galilee. Today, Dugit is a Messianic Outreach Center that reaches out to the Israelis with the Good News through three ministries: Dugit Live, a musical event on Thursday nights that offers a free cup of coffee and live music; VIP, prayer ministry located on a tower that overlooks the city of Tel Aviv; and Agape, a distribution center of food and clothing to the city's needy. The outreach center was started by the Mizrachi family, who pastors Adonai Roi, also the congregation I visited at Beit Immanuel mentioned in my fourth post.

Dugit is significant in the narrative of my decision to spend my first week in Tel Aviv. About two weeks prior to my departure for Israel, I was seeking the Lord about where He wanted me to go for the week prior to the start of the city planning program. My original intent was to go to Jerusalem, but God led me to stumbling across Dugit's website and as a result, led me to inheriting His vision and heart for Tel Aviv. Why Tel Aviv, you ask? I had the same question. Read this and you'll know why: Why Tel Aviv is important for the Kingdom of God.


The Outreach Center

The outreach center has a strategic location as a storefront on 1 Ben Yehuda Street, a busy street only a block away from the bustling Carmel Market and two blocks from the beach. It is located adjacent to the Migdalor building, a 16-floor high rise that house various tourist agencies and most importantly, Dugit's office and the VIP prayer room. Also, right outside the center is a bus stop; so one could imagine the heavy flow of pedestrian traffic that frequent the sidewalk on which the center is located.

The outreach center is equipped with a professional coffee machine that churns out foaming cups of cappuccino that are offered free to all that come through the doors. The space is inviting and comfortable as one sits and sips on tea or coffee, serenaded to music in the background. The staff and volunteers of this program use this opportunity to invite guests into conversations about the gospel and to bless them in prayer.


From left: Jacob, Kim, me, Dan


During the time I was there, I met many wonderful faithfuls that sowed time and energy
into the ministry. I was so encouraged by their servant heart and through their dedication, see the glory of God's work in Tel Aviv. Dan, the director of the outreach ministry, had grown up in the East Coast and felt touched by God to move to Tel Aviv a few years ago. Jacob is a volunteer that studies at a bible college in Tennessee and had come to serve in Dugit for the summer. Kim is a middle-age Korean woman who was a long-term volunteer that lives in Tel Aviv with her children. She was like a mother to me during my stay in Tel Aviv, taught me many things about knowing my identity in Christ and acting with dignity in a foreign country, and brought me out to yummy Chinese food!



The people that walked through the doors were extremely diverse, some have never heard of the gospel while others have tainted knowledge of it. Three people come to mind. Wolfie is an Israeli who has traveled throughout the world taking pictures of nature and women. His understanding of God rests hugely in the beauty of nature and of true love as a
successful marriage that requires respect. Jacob and I listened to his views and carefully guided him toward seeing the God as the creator of the beautiful landscapes he so enjoys and a blessed marriage as one that requires sacrifice and commitment, which reflects our marriage to Christ who has died for us and remains committed to us forever. Odelia, whose name means "praise God" in Hebrew, is a young women in her twenties that lives in Los Angeles. She came in to charge her phone but we struck up a brief conversation with her. She claimed to have many Christian friends that she has rarely heard talk about their faith, which saddened me. I

English-Hebrew Bible

pray that she and her friends come to the knowledge of Christ's surpassing greatness and for Odelia to truly live out the destiny of her name as a living Hallelujah. Then there was Edward, a Russian follower of Hinduism and Buddhism that preached to me the gospel of meditation and vegetarianism in broken English (mixed with Hebrew and Russian) when we met. Thank the Lord, he stayed long enough for me to show him a youtube clip on the miraculous conversion of a maharishi (guru) to Christianity. He was entirely absorbed and seemed visibly stirred by the video. Soon after, he left in silence, like one who was touched by the Spirit and could not explain what had happened. I invited him to come the next day so I could show him the entire film. He didn't come. Nevertheless, I pray that what happened that day as the Holy Spirit moved have stayed with him, penetrated his heart with Truth, and satisfied his thirsty soul for righteousness.






The Prayer Room



View of Tel Aviv from one of the windows

The prayer room is on the 12th floor of the Migdalor building and has a commanding view of Tel Aviv as one intercedes for the city, the government, and the residents. One of the most moving experiences I had in the prayer room occurred last Wednesday, when I entered the room to a kneeling and tearful brother and the fervent voice of Lou Engle praying to end abortion and bring revival to America (The Call in Nashville on July 7, 2007). The soundtrack belonged to the brother, who was visiting from Wales and had committed to praying for Dugit, Tel Aviv, Israel, and the nations daily during his stay in the city. My original plans for a quiet time with the Lord evaporated at the heavy spirit of intercession in the room and without hesitation, following the brother's lead, I got down to my knees and wept for my sins and the sins of America. At first, I thought it funny that I was praying for America in Israel. Only later did I realize that as I was praying for America, I was also praying for Tel Aviv and Israel. God used this encounter to tell me the many problems plaguing America -- abortion, homosexuality, human and sex trafficking, etc. -- are also plaguing Tel Aviv and Israel. In fact, Tel Aviv, like San Francisco, boasts in her annual Pride Parade that has become much more defined by debauchery rather than a genuine celebration of love between same-sex couples.

The following day I got to chat with Simon, the director of the prayer room, and he gave me some insight into the spiritual battles being combated through prayer in Tel Aviv. He said that while he prayed the night before the prayer room's opening day, the Lord gave him a word on the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1-9) in reflection of the situation in Tel Aviv -- that the city had been founded and built on the notion that man will achieve whatever he sets his mind and heart on doing. Today, this has come true. Tel Aviv is home to the nation's largest commerce and high-tech industries, as well as the military and the nation's young idealists that live day-to-day to his/her heart's desires. In spite of the city's renown as the epitome of sinful pleasures, I also know that God is powerful to redeem this city for His good purpose and use her to pave the way of salvation for the entire nation. I believe that as soon as God touches this city with His love and holiness, her dwellers will also become some of the most passionate, extravagant lovers of God in Israel.

Please pray! Ministry is hard. Recently, the director of Dugit's Agape Distribution center quit, and today, the ministry is left with no leader. Pray that the Lord will provide loyal leadership and also finances to the ministry so the poor of Tel Aviv could be better served. Also, pray for the outreach center and the people involved in this ministry. They are the frontliners of an intense spiritual battle, and it is easy to become depleted. Pray that God will comfort them and keep them rooted and steadfast in His word and in faith, and that they will put on the armor of God and be strong in body, mind, and soul.

Street scenery on my way to Dugit

Common scenery in the city: (often) dilapidated low-rise
buildings intercepted with modern high-rises

Israel flags everywhere

Kim, eating eye-watering spicy stuffed peppers
at Dragon Palace Chinese restaurant

Arts and crafts booths at the Carmel market

Saw this on a door inside the Migdalor Building.
Kipa-wearing dogs?!

The beach, two blocks away from Dugit

High-rises line beach side

 

Beach-side Promenade

Promenade open space

Young Israeli enjoying the afternoon





Father of Lights in Florentine Hostel

Mediterranean Ocean/Tel Aviv beach at sunset

I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness...For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the sovereign LORD will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations. ~Isaiah 61:10-11

This past week in Tel Aviv has been a blessed experience, I was challenged and saddened, but also encouraged and uplifted. The people I met at the Florentine Hostel were a young, happy bunch--loving life to the utmost--spending the day at the beach and partying the night away. The young Israelis that work and volunteer there were some of the most loving people I've ever met. They doted on travelers like brothers and sisters and by doing so, succeeded in creating a home away from home. While I was there, God revealed to me His heart for this place and His children here.

He showed me broken and suffering souls behind the veil of bright smiles and carefree personalities. I met a woman in her forties from Ohio that have poured most of her life into academic studies and that have come to Israel to find herself and fulfill her dreams. She invited me to watch the sunset at the beach, and there shared with me a piece of her life story. I found out that she had grown up in a Christian family but have never been baptized. She had dreamed for the day of getting baptized in the Jordan River. However, now that she is here in Israel, she doesn't want to do it anymore. I was heartbroken when I heard this, not necessarily because she no longer desired to be baptized, but because she has never truly felt the love of the Father. She told me of the wounds within her family and the painful experiences she went through with her former husband. When I told her about the love of God as from a loving father or the love of Jesus as from a passionate bridegroom, she looked at me with blank, confused eyes. She had difficulty understanding and receiving God's love because she has not experienced the same love from the people around her.

Through this lovely woman, the Lord revealed to me a soul broken by religion and a heart hungering after true love. She is one of the many in the hostel, and in the city, that Abba desires to embrace. He roused in my heart an urgency to intercede, heal, and love--all His children, especially those that don't yet know the promise of salvation through His Son Jesus--even though at first I wrestled with the fear of stepping out of my comfort zone to talk to people. But the Lord spoke to my heart that He has a purpose for me to be in Florentine Hostel. In fact, it was not by chance that I was put in a room with the most Jewish travelers. When I first arrived, the room had no Jewish person that I knew of. However, by the end of the week, almost the entire room was filled with Jewish brothers and sisters--some from US, others from Australia and Tel Aviv. Many were visiting friends and family in Israel. Praise God, I had the opportunity to chat with them and bless them before I left for Jerusalem yesterday. On the last night I was there, God gave me strength to venture out onto the rooftop terrace where there is usually alcohol and loud music, and went around inviting people to watch the Father of Lights film I was planning to screen on my laptop downstairs. When I got to two Jewish brothers, also my roommates, I told them that as a Christian, I love them and see them as family, that it has been my honor to room with them. As I said those words, I felt the love of a Father's heart overwhelm me and flow out of me. One of them cried, and his friend held him and comforted him. I realized, at that moment, that there is a place in every child's heart that longs to meet his/her Father.

I didn't end up showing the film, it was mainly bad timing on my part. I regretted at not having approached people earlier about the wonderful, spirit-stirring film. However, I am touched that God still used the film as a platform of faith for me to step onto for reaching out to His beloved ones in the hostel, and that He still used me--someone who would rather not step out of my safety bubble (I tried reasoning with God for the whole week that I'd only have to pray for them in faith, and not have to actually bless them directly, but He reminded me every time James 2:14-26 and Romans 10:14-15.)--to comfort His people.

I am sure that my presence shifted the spiritual atmosphere there, just as Ravi and the film crew in the Father of Lights were at the witch's hut--the crown of salvation at our heads and the light within all those who believe drive the darkness away. I pray that the Father's love and His light continue to invade Florentine Hostel, the place set apart as holy unto Him and to be raised up as a home away from home where people meet their Creator and Husband face to face.

Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed, that her sin has been paid for, that she has received from the LORD's hand double for all her sins...You who bring good tidings to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who bring good tidings to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with a shout, lift it up, do not be afraid; say to the towns of Judah, "Here is your God!" See, the Sovereign LORD comes with power, and his arm rules for him. See, his reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him. ~Isaiah 40:1-2, 9-10

Tel Aviv beach. Background is Old Jaffa Port

Skyscrapers line Tel Aviv's coastal skyline

 

Muslim man bowing after meditation

Florentine Hostel is the yellow building on the right

Morning devotions:

breakfast - toast with strawberry & chocolate spread

and silan (date syrup) & tahini (sesame seed sauce)

& Turkish coffee

Enjoying breakfast together on the rooftop terrace

Helene, a friend I met at the hostel. We were

standing in front of a make-a-wish pool

Beautiful girl in a beautiful sunken musical garden.

Classical music play from stereos that line

the cement enclosure. So cool.

Proud sole olive tree rest stop overlooking

Habima Sq. and Rothchild Blvd, where Helene

and I sat and had a good conversation.  

Habima Sq. aka the Orchestra Plaza

 

Carmel Market

Mountains of candy

Hills of spices

Immanuel ("God is with us") in Tel Aviv

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. Let Israel say: "His love endures forever." Let the house of Aaron say: "His love endures forever." Let those who fear the LORD say: "His love endures forever." ~Psalm 118: 1-4

On Saturday, I visited Beit Immanuel (Immanuel House), a Messianic congregation and guesthouse in Tel Aviv located only a five-minute walk away from Florentine Hostel, the place I am staying this week. The picture above is taken from the hostel's rooftop terrace, the steeple of Immanuel Church rises conspicuously, rather gloriously I think, against a backdrop of low-rise offices, residences, and warehouses. The church and the house nestle pleasantly in the American-German Colony, a residential neighborhood founded in the 19th century by the "American Protestant, Christian Restorationism movement, led by George J. Adams and Abraham McKenzie." The neighborhood is located in Jaffa, a mostly poor and underdeveloped neighborhood that is otherwise a popular tourist spot for its association to biblical stories of Solomon, Jonah, and Peter. Nearby, the Florentine District resembles much of Jaffa, and is mostly occupied by young students, long-term residents, and foreign workers. So the Immanuel complex serves a rather unique blend of demographics: local and tourist, young and old, trendy and poor. More importantly, the Immanuel's provide a necessary sanctuary for a neighborhood constant with clanging machinery and blaring horns from impatient cars.

Immanuel House and Immanuel Church hold separate services on Saturday. I decided to attend the service in the guest house, conducted by Adonai Roi Congregation's Pastor Avi Mizrachi, who is also the Executive Director of Dugit Messianic Outreach Center in Tel Aviv, a place I'd like to visit later this week. When I entered Beit Immanuel at around 11 a.m., the worship team was practicing and people were trickling in. Pastor Avi went around greeting newcomers. I can't fathom exactly the rush of emotions that flooded me at the moment I walked in the door, being greeted by the sounds of worship and praise in the gospel's ancient tongue. The least I can say is that my spirit soared in having found a home away from home. The congregation was made up of mostly Israelites, and some members and visitors were from abroad (Finland, China, Hong Kong, US, etc.). Praise the Lord that the service had simultaneous English translation, though I wouldn't have minded basking in the beauty of a Hebrew service without understanding the message :P I especially loved the worship in Hebrew. I followed along and tried singing in Hebrew, ah how I love the language! I think the guttural sounds really bring out emotions in worship!

Pastor Avi taught on 1 Corinthians 5, about discipline in the congregation and not tolerating people that sin (i.e. sexual immorality, dishonesty) and that refuse to repent. Paul outlined the process that elders in the congregation should take when they find out someone sinned: first by confrontation, then if that doesn't work, take two or three witnesses with them to face the person; if that still doesn't work, then tell the entire congregation. Lastly, if the person still refuses to repent and correct his ways, he would have to leave the congregation. Pastor Avi spoke about an important thing, that the essence of the process is rooted in the hope of leading the sinner to repentance because  repentance brings about forgiveness from God, which results in personal transformation and the bearing of righteous fruits. My favorite part of the sermon was when we took a look at how Jesus dealt with sin in John 8: 1-8, where a woman caught in the act of adultery was brought before Jesus by the teachers of the law and Pharisees. They wanted to see how Jesus would respond, since in the Mosaic Law adultery was liable to being stoned to death:

But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground. At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. Jesus straightened up and asked her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" "No one, sir," she said. "Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go now and leave your life of sin." (John 8: 6-11)

When Jesus faced the woman, he saw in her a repentant heart so he forgave her and gave her the opportunity to live a new life. Pastor Avi also noted a crucial point about the context of the passage. The incident occurred during one of Jesus' teachings to many people that gathered at the temple courts, so the scene was played out in front of an audience. The incident was immediately followed by Jesus saying to the people,

"I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." (John 8:12)

Jesus had taken this opportunity to teach the people about the importance of repentance, about the light and the new life that repentance will bring about. The message concluded with an important truth: only Jesus can save us from sin. O Yeshua, let me come before You with a broken and contrite heart and to be made new every morning!

Please pray! Ever since 2007, Adonai Roi Congregation has not had a permanent home -- pray that the Lord will provide the perfect location at the perfect time. Also, there are two congregants that are currently suffering from brain and heart problems and are in the hospital -- pray for healing, resurrection, strength and peace for the suffering individuals and family members. Last but not least, Ari is a new Jewish seeker of the Lord -- pray that he will find a community of love in Adonai Roi and find Christ as his good Shepherd.

Todah rabah!

One of the entrances

 

Faithfuls I met from the service. From left to right: me, Natan, Ari, Jin.

Natan, Ari, and Jin study at Bar Ilan University in Tel Aviv.

 

Worship at Beit Immanuel

 

Tour of Immanuel Church

Airport prayer

"All the nations you have made, will come and worship before you, O Lord; they will bring glory to your name." ~Psalm 86:9

On my way to Tel Aviv, I had an 8-hour layover at Frankfurt am Main Airport, a major international airport in Frankfurt, Germany. I had come across the information that airports around the world are equipped with prayer rooms, and to my delight, Frankfurt am Main is one of them. I had not anticipated a pilgrimage to an airport chapel/prayer room would be included in my to-do list during this trip, but I'm so glad it did!

Protestant chapel in Frankfurt am Main

Even though I ended up sleeping there, it was a unique experience nonetheless (the sleeping was actually the best part). While I curled up on the chairs and drifted in and out of consciousness, I had dim recollections of a steady flow of faithfuls coming in and out of the chapel, all very quiet and respectful of the tranquil space (or my sleeping). I was very much refreshed, touched, and encouraged after my nap (no one woke me up or shooed me out!) and left a prayer of thanks on their guest book. I pray that more people would come to the knowledge of this wonderful facility during their stay in the airport, that the people I approached to ask about the whereabouts of the chapel (only one out of five people I asked knew about it.) would be provoked to curiosity about the place and set out on a mission to find it, and perhaps upon finding it, enjoy an undisturbed nap there. :) And may the prayers that flow out of here bless the nations.

As if I couldn't get enough of airport religious facilities, I ended up staying for a night in Ben Gurion Airport's synagogue while I waited until daytime to catch a taxi to my hostel. The place was quite nice. There was no one there, but I took a seat at the female section behind the mechitza and selected at random a book out a vast array of Hebrew texts before me. Just in case someone came in and spotted me sleeping, not praying. ;)

Synagogue at Ben Gurion Airport, Tel Aviv

Isaiah 49

Can a woman forget her child
And have not compassion on the son of her womb?
Surely they may forget
But I will not forget you
No, I will not forget you

Sing all you heaven, be joyful all the Earth
Break out in singing ah, you mountains
The Lord has comforted his people
And He will have mercy on his afflicted
He will have mercy on his afflicted

Though Zion has said "I've been forsaken"
Zion has said "I've been forgotten"
Zion has said "I've been forsaken"
Zion has said "I've been forgotten"

Can a woman forget her child
And have not compassion on the son of her womb?
Surely they may forget
But I will not forget you, my people
No, I will not forget you, oh Israel
I will not forget you!

See, I have inscribed you on the palm of My hands
Your walls are ever before Me
See, I have inscribed you on the palm of My hands
Your walls are ever before Me

And in that day you will no longer say
"Blessed be the Lord, our God who brought us from Egypt"
And in that day you will no longer say
"Blessed be the Lord, our God who parted the Red Sea"
For though I scattered, you I will gather you
Though I surround you with the nations
Can the axe boast against it's maker?
Why do the nations rage?
Vanity, vanity, ah vanities!

For in that day you will no longer say
"Blessed be the Lord, our God who parted the Red Sea"
Those who survive will find grace in the wilderness
To look upon the one who you have pierced

And in that day you will no longer say
"Blessed be the Lord, our God who parted the Red Sea"
For in that day you will say:
"Blessed be Yeshua HaMashiach"
For in that day my foot will stay upon the mount called olives
And the mount will split in two.
And there shall be a holy procession to Jerusalem
He has set free the captives and those condemned to die

Hosanna, hosanna, hosanna
Hosanna, hosanna, hosanna
King of kings and Lord of lords
Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!
It shall come to pass!

(C) 2003 Forerunner Music

Shema Yisrael: Hear, O Israel

"Love [ahav] the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength." ~Deuteronomy 6:5

"...the Lord loved [ahav] you and kept the oath which He swore to your forefathers." ~Deuteronomy 7:6-8

God ahav Israel. Ahav is love in Hebrew, it means "to love, to have affection, be attached to, delight in, to breathe after." God's ahav for Israel is the essence that flowed through history, documented in the Bible, and the purpose of my trip.

Near the end of 2011, my life was in shambles. I was depleted by a semester of heavy schoolwork that was coupled by poor planning and inner warfare. Though I had received a new life as a new creation in the Lord that same year in February, and though on that day I received the baptism of the Holy Spirit and for that memorable moment, tasted the goodness of the Lord, I was spiritually immature, my flesh and old self warred with the Spirit, and I could not discern between good and evil, and I did not how to fight and win a spiritual battle. Upon a mental meltdown, I decided to "withdraw" for the semester, but lied about the reason. Soon, the Lord convicted me of my dishonesty and I was brought to the cross, kneeling and weeping. There, writhing with shame and fear, my disposition resonated with the harlot in Misty Edward's composition, ready for punishment--the stoning and the cup of Wrath. Instead, the Lord beheld my downcast head and, with His piercing and passionate gaze into my eyes, melted my heart and cast away my fears. I used to play the song many times in a day and just weep. Like the penitent protagonist in the song, I was bestowed by Jesus "a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair" (Isaiah 61:3).

At around the same time, the Lord led me to Israel. A dear sister from church invited me to intercessory prayer for Israel and after the first prayer gathering, I was confounded. Why are we praying about Israel? Why should I care? A couple of weeks passed, God answered my prayer wonderfully through a book: Why Care About Israel (Chinese online version here). Authored by Sandra Teplinsky, a Messianic Jewish believer, the book charted the course of the world's history through the lens of a loving Father's heart for Israel and revealed "how the Jewish nation is key to unleashing God's blessings in the 21st century." I felt born again. The truth about my God's heart for Israel set me free.

Reading the book, I learned about Israel--how she started her life as the "unbathed, helpless, naked and lonely" newborn that was thrown into the open field with no one's pity or compassion. God passed by her, called life into her body and "grew her like lovely plant in the field" (See Book of Ezekiel). He adorned her with jewelry and fitted a crown to her head. She was made into a queen, with the Almighty God as her doting Husband. But Israel responded by turning away from the Lover and prostituted with many other lovers that wanted something from her. Though Israel disgraced herself, God has not and will never rescind His love toward her:

"Yet I will remember the covenant I made with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you" (Ezekiel 16:60).

God speaks to me through his heart and promises for Israel. He also calls me his beloved, his bride. He loves me like he loves Israel. And he loves Israel with the same love he has for me. And so learning about Israel and praying for her have been about plumbing the depths of God's heart for the Jewish people, for the nations, and for me.

So this trip is about my receiving God's heart for Israel, the apple of his eye. I knew that from the beginning, but only vaguely. Until God gave me the grace of re-reading Sandra Teplinsky's book as I waited for my flight to Tel Aviv and I wept as I read about the prophet Hosea. God called him to marry an adulteress named Gomer, whom Hosea must continue to love and keep covenant with despite her unfaithfulness. Hosea's relationship with Gomer comes to represent Israel's adulterous relationship with God, and goes further to reveal God as the long-suffering husband whose heart is "pounding with anticipation for the hour of His beloved's return (Teplinsky 67):

"In that day," declares the LORD, "you will call me 'my husband': you will no longer call me 'my master.'...I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion. I will betroth you in faithfulness, and you will acknowledge the LORD...I will plant [you] for myself in the land." (Hosea 2:16-23).

Reading further, these words hit me: "Hosea loved and therefore Hosea suffered long. Consider the honor--and the horror--to which this otherwise little-known servant was called. Could anyone besides the Lord relate to the betrayal, grief and shame Hosea endured for Israel's sake? The prophet knew the cross, in essence, long before it ever existed. Countless times Hosea must have poured out his pained soul to God who had called him to such intimate identification with His own heart. As together they communed, great grace must have flowed from heaven to earth. Between these two friends deep called unto deep (See Psalm 42:7). In Hosea, Yahweh found a man willing to share His agony as well as ecstasy. In return, I believe Hosea knew God as few others have experienced Him" (Teplinsky 68, emphasis added.)

At that moment, I knew in my heart the Lord's calling for me and for all his beloved ones. I knew that there is nothing more I wanted in this life than to share the "agony as well as ecstasy" of the Cross, to commune deeply with my Creator and Husband, and to know God as few have experienced Him. And that is through loving Israel with God's ahav. The apostle Paul wrote:

"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. I speak the truth in Christ--I am not lying, my conscience confirms it in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, those of my own race, the people of Israel" (Romans 8:38-9:4, emphasis added).

What is that suffering passion, the ahav, Paul has for his people? I cannot understand how he could have wished to be "cursed and cut off from Christ" for the sake of his brothers, for the people of Israel. I don't even have close to the same passion to seeing my own people saved--my family and friends, the Chinese--much less for the people of Israel. Lord, I want what Paul had. I want his passion for his people and my people--for the nations. I want what Hosea had. For the grace and honor to share Your cross and carry Your burden. O Lord, I want to bless Your heart, for what little I can do for You compared to what You have done for me.

Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me. By day the LORD directs his love, at night his song is with me--a prayer to the God of my life. ~Psalm 42:7-8