C4I prayer calendar April - May 2017

April 2017

Saturday 1 April Sabbath

Today pray for God’s peace for the population of northern Israel, for His presence amidst the enmity from Lebanon and Syria. Pray for safety for the population; the threat of terror is always prominently present.

Sunday 2 April

The Bible calls us to stay watchful, stay thankful (Colossians 4:2). Apply this in your intercession for Israel. You will find that it will enhance your prayer life, and give you a better understanding of the Bible.

Monday 3 April

As Christians for Israel, we ask you to pray for the Israeli government and authorities, irrespective of their political background. It is not up to us to voice our opinion about that but to pray for them.

Tuesday 4 April

The Islamic state of Iran continues to provoke Israel. In the city of Mashhad, a theme park has opened, where children are taught to fight against Israel. Wearing military clothes, they fire plastic bullets at a puppet representing Netanyahu. Pray that God will undo this indoctrination and enmity.

Wednesday 5 April

Not only are Jews from other countries returning to Israel, but also special Torah scrolls and prayer books from the 1940’s from Eastern Europe, are showing up in Israel. Thank God for this! Once upon a time, people wanted to burn these scrolls, now they are being read again!

Thursday 6 April

Give thanks for cities like Haifa and Nazareth, where Jews and Arabs live together in peace. Pray that this situation will serve as an example for many other places.

Friday 7 April

Pray for an inspiring preachers’ conference in Kaliningrad (Russia), where Rev. Willem Glashouwer is teaching for three days about the position of Israel in the Bible and about the present time.

Saturday 8 April Sabbath

After all the attacks that the Jews have experienced in France, Belgium, and England, it is wonderful for new immigrants to be arriving in Israel. Thank God that He is bringing His people home, and shows mercy to them.

Sunday 9 April

An anti-Semitic attitude from a group of people towards Israel brings disaster on that nation because it rouses God’s wrath. Such an attitude may include: rejoicing maliciously about Israel’s misfortune (Ezekiel 25:6-7); not respecting God’s election of Jerusalem (Ezekiel 26:2-3); or not being prepared to help Israel (Ezekiel 35:5-6). Pray that your nation will choose the right attitude.

Monday 10 April

Today is Seder evening (Erev Pesach), commemorating the exodus from Egypt (Exodus 12). The Bible says: “This is a night of vigil for all Israelites in their generations, to honour the Lord” (verse 42). We set this evening aside for vigil and prayer. In our

Christians for Israel Prayer Calendar April-May 2017

modern time, this is often inconvenient to us, yet it is good to set aside some time for this purpose.

Tuesday 11 April

On this first day of Pesach, and with our Easter feast in a few days, it is good to realize that Jesus also celebrated Pesach with His disciples (Matthew 26:17-35). It moves one to read in verse 30, that they sung the praise of the Lord (Psalms 113-118), and then left to go to the Mount of Olives. After that, denial and betrayal occurred. Read these Psalms to get a better understanding of Jesus’ Jewishness.

Wednesday 12 April

In Europe and USA, and other parts of the world anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism are growing. Pray for safety and protection of the Jews in Israel and in other countries where they live.

Thursday 13 April

“The several hundreds of Jews in Yemen are caught in an almost impossible situation,” says Yigal Ben Shalom, who once lived there himself. “Because of the war in Yemen, they cannot leave for Israel. The conditions they live in are horrible.” Pray for safety and for a possibility to make Aliyah to Israel.

Friday 14 April Good Friday

Speaking about Jesus’ death, Scripture says: “These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: Not one of His bones will be broken” (John 19:36-39; see also Exodus 12:46 and Zechariah 12:10). John indicates, how thoroughly the Old and New Testament are connected. Thank our Father for His Son!

Saturday 15 April Sabbath

In the past, Easter was often a time of anxiety for the Jews, because of pogroms and persecutions by Christians. Pray that in our present time we show more respect for Jewish history and the way Jews express their faith.

Sunday 16 April Easter

The arrest of the Lord Jesus, His suffering and death and resurrection from the dead, it all happened in Jerusalem (Matthew 20:17-19). Therefore Jerusalem is also important to us. It is in this city that Jesus sacrificed His life for the redemption of mankind.

Monday 17 April

Thank God for the natural restoration of Israel. For it is a foreshadowing of the spiritual restoration of Israel. Pray that we may trust in this. The spiritual restoration of Israel will also happen in God’s timing.

Tuesday 18 April

Thank God that Jerusalem bustles with new life – not only because of the construction of many new roads and houses, but also because of the children who are born there, new immigrants who come to live there, and the visit of countless pilgrims and tourists (Zechariah 8:1-6).

Wednesday 19 April

For many years we have been praying for safety and protection and against terror and enmity. Though sometimes this seems to have little effect, we still continue to trust in our Heavenly Father. It is His Word, His land, His people, He watches over them!

Thursday 20 April

On 22 April Christians for Israel has organised a training and leadership conference for Asian countries in Cambodia. Rev. Willem Glashouwer and speakers from the region will speak to the participants. Pray that the participants and Christians in the Asian countries receive the message as well.

Friday 21 April

The slogan of this school season in Israel is: ‘The year or the Unity of Jerusalem’.

A teaching curriculum is available for each age group. Pray that this theme will bring Israeli students closer to the message of Tanakh.

Saturday 22 April Sabbath

Thank God, that US president Trump dares to clearly identify matters that damage and unjustly accuse Israel. Give thanks that he stresses that Jerusalem is a Jewish city and that this will also influence other politicians.

Sunday 23 April

With regard to Psalm 5:2-4 American preacher Max Lucado wrote: “Father, we confess that it is sometimes hard to pray. We do not see You, nor do we feel that You hear our words. But we have so many experiences in our prayer lives with prayers that You did hear, that we continue all the time to speak to You, so our hearts may be opened towards You because of our prayers.” Let these words be an encouragement to you to pray for Israel.

Monday 24 April

Thank God for the Christians for Israel’s campaign for Israelis who lost their homes in

Christians for Israel Prayer Calendar April-May 2017

the forest fires in November, part of which was started by Arab terrorists, raised over 100,000 euro. We were able to encourage many afflicted families.

Tuesday 25 April

Pray for the safety of the Coptic Christians in Egypt and for Christians in the north of the Sinai desert. Terror groups, especially IS, intimidate the Christians, damage their churches and try to kill them.

Wednesday 26 April

The situation in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria is not as simple as many people think.

Israel has to deal with Ottoman, British, Jordanian and Israeli laws and documents. Pray that justice will be done to all parties concerned.

Thursday 27 April

Pray for the leaders of your country in relation to the Jewish people and the State of Israel.

Friday 28 April

Thank God that at Israel’s request websites like Google and Facebook remove many posts calling for hate against Jews and against Israel. This ought to happen on other websites too.

Saturday 29 April Sabbath

Thank God for Jerusalem and Israel on the basis of Psalm 102:21: “…so the name of the Lord will be declared in Zion and His praise in Jerusalem.” Give thanks for Jerusalem as the capital of Israel: one city, eternal and indivisible.

Sunday 30 April

As a guideline for your prayers for the State of Israel, read Psalm 80:9-12. Pray especially that the ‘vine Israel’ will develop a healthy root-system, and its branches will spread to the limits set by God.

May 2017

Monday 1 May

Today is ‘Yom Hazikaron’, the commemoration for Israeli soldiers who have died in conflicts and wars since the creation of the State of Israel in 1948 and in the turbulent years preceding it. Pray for their relatives and those wounded, who have to live with their situation.

Tuesday 2 May

Yesterday at the beginning of the night Yom Ha’atsmaut, Israel’s Day of Independence started. The Bible phrases the creation of the State of Israel by the vote in the League of Nations thus: “Can a country be born in a day, or a nation be brought forth in a moment (Isaiah 66:8)?” Thank God for Israel as a visible sign of fulfilled prophecy.

Wednesday 3 May

In 1985 in the Gaza strip lived about 500,000 people. In October 2016 this number had gone up to almost 2 million inhabitants! This is a demographic time bomb – how will this end? Take this situation to the Lord God in prayer.

Thursday 4 May

For the last few months, Hamas has a new leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar. He is known as an unpredictable and violent extremist. Take this serious situation to God in prayer, and pray for the protection of (the south of) Israel.

Friday 5 May

Iranian politicians and military continue to make allusions in fiery speeches: “We will destroy the nuclear reactor in Dimona. If the USA attack us, it will only take 7 minutes to reach Israel with rockets.” Pray that God, who protected Israel in the past against Nasser (Egypt), Sadat (Egypt), Assad (Syria), Hussein (Iraq), will again protect Israel in our present time.

Saturday 6 May Sabbath

Pray that the speakers and publicists of Christians for Israel will find the right words and use relevant Scripture passages to explain and defend Israel. There is so much bizarre news from the surrounding countries … Israel is in great danger!

Sunday 7 May

Waiting on the Lord (Psalm 130:5-6) also means listening to the Lord (Habakkuk 2:1).

Pray that in our prayers for Israel we will be patient to wait for Him and take the time to listen and receive clarity about our prayers.

Monday 8 May

Pray that preachers and politicians in the West will listen to the stories of persecuted Christians and take action, especially now that IS has been driven away from more and more regions in Syria and Iraq. If they do not act now, soon the Church will vanish from the Middle-East!

Christians for Israel Prayer Calendar April-May 2017

Tuesday 9 May

As you will have noticed we include the Jewish festivals in our intercession, like Pesach and Independence Day. Through this, we connect with Israel and the Jewish people.

May the Lord bless you in your prayers for them.

Wednesday 10 May

Israel has to be continually alert to the enemies at its borders. Hamas (Sunnite) in Gaza, Hezbollah (Shiite) in Lebanon and the (Shiite) ayatollahs of Iran. Psalm 35 is a long Psalm, but extraordinary for your prayers for Israel.

Thursday 11 May

Pray for the Jewish villages and the outposts in Judea and Samaria. There is so much commotion about them. In the UN, but also within Israel. Pray for rest and justice for all sides concerned, and pray especially for the preservation of Biblical territory.

Friday 12 May

Thank God for Israel and for the Jews who return from the Diaspora, on the basis of Psalm 145:1-7.

Saturday 13 May Sabbath

Most Messianic congregations in Israel meet on Sabbath, while nearly all Arab Christians have their services on Sundays. Whatever the differences, pray for the Christians in Israel – that they will meet and respect each other.

Sunday 14 May

Watchfulness means: not giving into temptations (Matthew 24:4,5,11,23,24). But also: seeing that your spiritual house is not broken into (Matthew 24:42,43). Stay vigilant and pray for strength to stand against temptation, so that in our intercession for Israel we receive understanding from God, and know how to pray for these matters.

Monday 15 May

In spite of the joy of the upcoming celebration of the 50th anniversary of the reunification of Jerusalem (on 23/24 May), Israel has to continue being watchful. The danger of terrorist acts with knives, firebombs, stones and vehicles is always there.

Please pray for safety.

Tuesday 16 May

Pray and give thanks for politicians in the European Parliament and the United Nations who stand for Israel and the Jewish people. Doing this is courageous, and is usually not easy… they are faced with much opposition and enmity.

Wednesday 17 May

Pray for the water supply in Israel. Fresh water is obtained from rainwater and by desalinization. The level of the Sea of Tiberias (Kinneret) is too low, the Dead Sea is drying up, and Israel has commitments to supply Jordan with water.

Thursday 18 May

In May the 50th anniversary of Jerusalem’s reunification is celebrated. This is a good opportunity to read the Psalms of Ascent and to pray for the City and its inhabitants (Psalms 120 - 134).

Friday 19 May

A high commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard declared that “If the enemy does anything at all that does not please us, we will rain missiles on them.” Israel feels this fierce hatred daily.

Saturday 20 May Sabbath

Today please pray for the workers of Christians for Israel. We are faced with many issues: theological, political and social matters. Anti-Semitism troubles us deeply; we are called Christians for Israel for a reason.

Sunday 21 May

The Middle East is in great chaos, so pray for the Israeli government and authorities (Isaiah 44:21-28). Do realize that God shows mercy: “I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist…” (verse 22), but also wrath: “[The Lord] foils the signs of the false prophets and makes fools of diviners…” (verse 25).

Monday 22 May

Pray for Prime Minister Netanyahu, for the Commander-in-Chief of the army Eisenkot and for President Rivlin. All three of them bear a great responsibility as representatives of the only democracy in the Middle East.

Tuesday 23 May

Pray and give thanks for the work of ‘Aleh’, the largest aid organization for people with multiple disabilities in Israel. We want to take care of the weakest through our Jubilee present for the 50th anniversary of united Jerusalem!

Wednesday 24 May

Thursday 25 May

Today is ‘Yom Yerushalayim’; this day is very special because it is the 50th anniversary of the reunification of Jerusalem. Read in Isaiah 65:17-25 what the Bible says about the city and its inhabitants. Thank God for Jerusalem as the capital of Israel!

We can read in Acts 1:4-5 and in Luke 24:49 what took place 2000 years ago in

Christians for Israel Prayer Calendar April-May 2017

Ascension Day

Jerusalem. The disciples were told not to leave Jerusalem but to keep waiting for the promise of the Father, which is the baptism with the Holy Spirit. Thank God, that because of His Spirit we can understand the Prophetic Word.

Friday 26 May

Experiencing the beginning of Sabbath in Israel is always very special. Everything quietens down: traffic, the people; the whole atmosphere in the city breathes rest.

Thank God, that he is faithful to His Word (Zechariah 8:7-8).

Saturday 27 May Sabbath

Through UNESCO the Palestinians attempt to rewrite the history of Jerusalem. Not only Jewish history is being rewritten, but Christian history as well! Pray that all Churches will be alerted to this and take action against it.

Sunday 28 May

The four key words to your times of intercession are time, silence, reading, and chutzpah. Take your time – God will make this time extra valuable. Be still – then God’s silence will settle down. Read the Word – God speaks through His Word. Show chutzpah – daring and courage – to listen and act accordingly.

Monday 29 May

Today please pray for the field workers of Christians for Israel in Ukraine. They often have to do their work in exhausting and dangerous circumstances. Pray also for the groups of volunteers that distribute food parcels.

Tuesday 30 May

Today please pray for the international work of Christians for Israel, for the provision of information through newspapers and websites, books, and DVDs. Pray that people will be touched by this information, so that love for Israel and the Bible will start to grow.

Wednesday 31 May

Yesterday Shavu’ot (Pentecost) started. Pray for inspiring and safe holidays. This is a harvest feast, but also a feast that remembers the giving of Torah.

Christians for Israel Prayer Calendar April-May 2017