Daily devotion – pray for Israel
Psalm 122:6 says, “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: ‘May they prosper who love you.’” This verse is a profound reminder of our call to lift up Jerusalem in prayer, a city at the heart of God’s plan and the center of so much conflict today.
On my laptop, I have a wallpaper of a photo Helen took of the Garden of Gethsemane. It’s a place steeped in deep spiritual significance, where Jesus prayed in agony, where His disciples slept, where He was betrayed, wept, and arrested. Each time I see that image, my heart is stirred with the memories of walking where Jesus walked and a longing to return to the Holy Land. Yet, with the ongoing war in Gaza and tensions on the northern border with Lebanon, that longing is tempered by the harsh realities of the present conflict.
We continue to pray as God commands us, for the peace of Jerusalem and for His blessing upon Israel. The situation in Israel is complex and troubling, with ongoing violence, the potential for a workers’ strike, and the continued captivity of hostages. Without the lens of Bible prophecy, the situation might seem overwhelmingly confusing and depressing.
However, as students of God’s Word, we know that this is not the first time the world has been in chaos and at war. The young prophet Daniel was granted visions of empires and events, both present in his time and far into the future, even beyond our present day. The detailed prophecies given to Daniel were fulfilled precisely as God had foretold, and those yet to be fulfilled will come to pass in God’s perfect timing.
Although the world may seem like a mess, we can trust that the hand of the Creator is guiding all things according to His divine plan. As believers, we have the unique privilege of knowing how it all will end, as revealed in Scripture.
This understanding should lead us to be diligent students of the Bible, discerning the signs of the times with a spirit of calm and confidence. This coming Sunday evening, I will be teaching from Matthew 24, where Jesus’ disciples asked Him about the signs of His coming and the end of the age. In Matthew 24:3, it says, “Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, ‘Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?’”
It is truly a blessing that God has shared with us the events to come so that our hearts may be calmed, and our faith in His plan remains steadfast. Let us continue to pray for the peace of Jerusalem, remain grounded in God’s Word, and live with the assurance that His purposes will prevail.