Winter Garden

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I love walking out in the Embassy Garden.  It is absolutely beautiful.  I’m not from Israel so I have no knowledge as to when things bloom and when they are dormant.  I do know it’s winter season here.  The days are short, and a cool wind often blows rain in from the Mediterranean sea just a few miles away.  The days are still sunny and warm, but the night can put a good chill in your bones.  Draping yourself in a warm blanket in the evening as you spend time visiting with good friends or reading a great book is a good idea.  As I work around in the garden I noticed so many different plants in bloom. There is also new growth all over.  New plants seem to be sprouting everywhere they can; even in the cracks on the stone pathway, under overgrown bushes, and anywhere the warmth of the sun touches for part of the day.  The Embassy has a gardener and his employees come once a month to care for the garden.  This time as they arrived and looked at the garden, they noticed a difference also.  The gardener was shocked to see the rose bushes in full bloom and so many blossoms throughout the garden.  More than 20 plants are blooming at this time.  The new growth of new plants in the yard also shocked him.  And of course with so much new growth, weeds have found their way into the garden also.  So he really had his work cut out for him.  Bushes overgrown had to be trimmed back, weeds were hand pulled so not to disturb the other new growth.  He picked a bouquet of fragrant flowers and brought them to the door for our table.  After 4 hours of hard work, he and his crew were finished and the garden looks great.   After they left I couldn’t help but feel that we are so blessed to have such a beautiful garden.  Then the Lord brought to mind;  The Embassy is a house of prayer, worship and praise.  We do things here with the love of Yeshua in our hearts, whether it’s serving guests from far away lands, or taking care of the garden.  I believe the garden has responded to the love that fills this place.   It is flourishing in the midst of our prayers, our praise, and our worship to God.  We know He is the giver of great gifts and the Embassy garden is a beautiful gift, and wonderful surprise and testimony to many who will come and see it, even in the winter time.  God gets all the Glory for this winter time beauty!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Winter Garden

Lost in a Sea of People

One day on my last tour in Israel we visited the Kotel, The Wailing or Western Wall.  It was a very special Jewish Holiday and thousands of people had crowded into the area.  As the women and men split up to go to their separate areas for prayer, I chose to stay back with my Arch Bishop to wait at our pre designated spot to meet with everyone.  I would soon be returning to Jerusalem for an extended stay and would visit when it was not so crowded.  I have been here and prayed before.  We traveled quite a distance to the women’s restroom and stood in line for a long time waiting.  While at the restroom entrance there was pushing and shoving to try to get past each other, as the hallways were narrow and packed with women.   I was relieved to return to our meeting area and wait for the rest of our group.  As I stood there and watched the crowd and individuals, I noticed an elderly, slender, short woman in the crowd.  She was one of our group!  She was alone!  The Spirit within me spoke, and said notice everything you can about her right now!  I did, I look to see how short she was compared to the people around her, I looked at the color of her cloths, noticed the greyness of her aging hair.  I absorbed every detail I could about her as I watched her disappear into this sea of people.  I also knew where she was headed and knew the struggle of the women in that area.  Finally everyone had arrived at our meeting area.  The guides soon started taking count and found we were short people.  There was more than this one elderly woman missing, but all I cared about at the time was her.  I told the guide I had seen her headed to the restrooms alone and I could go find her and bring her to us, but he said no.  After several offers I talked to Arch Bishop and explained what I had seen and how the Spirit had prompted me to take close notice in detail of her as she walked away.  She said yes I could go get her.  So I took her friend from Texas, we grasp hands and I told her, pray like this precious saint stands out to us like an angel, Don’t let go of my hand no matter what, and pray in the spirit as we walk.  So off we go, my right hand holding a dear woman’s hand who is following close behind, as we walk through this crowd single file; because that was the only way to get through.  I began praying in the Spirit and put my left hand in front of me.  As I began to walk something began to happen. The sea of people in front of me began to split.  It seemed like they were moved by an unseen force.  The crowd continued to open even further in front of us until I could see a clear path for several yards in front of me.  About half way down the long walk to the restroom, our eyes met and she had the biggest smile on her face, I reached my hand toward her and she reached her hand toward me.  We grasped hands in just a few seconds and a few happy steps.  We had found each other, both our hearts felt relief.  Our smiles could have lit up a room the moment our eyes met.  I put this precious woman between her friend and myself and we grasp hands as tightly as before.  Again I put my left hand forward and began to walk and pray and the crowd opened up to let us through all the way back to our group.  How wonderful was the greetings when we all returned together in just a few short minutes.  Everyone had been praying for us and was so excited to see their prayers had been answered.  As I let her hand go, she turned and looked at me with great gratitude and love.  What a blessing for my soul.  We spoke different languages, but her eyes spoke a million Thanks in that split second glance.  I am so happy  I was able to hear the Holy Spirit that day and was obedient.  Yes, because I was able to bring our little lost lady back into the fold, but more so because I witnessed a miracle that day.  I watched the power of God as He opened a sea of people before me.  My heart is blessed and humbled to know I serve a Great God!