Yom Kippur

September 28, 2009
Today is Yom Kippur in Israel. The morning sun is just touching the horizon and not a vehicle is moving in the streets. Only people walking and visiting and praying. I too am in prayer, and arose early to pen these thoughts and prayers to share with you and whomever you choose to share this with. Yom kippur has a very different feel to it here in the Land of Israel. There is a much more somber tone than other places where I have celebrated this time. People are much more reflective here. Yes, on any other day of the year, they are as driven and hyper as anywhere else in the world, but on Shabbat and the High Shabbatons, especially Yom Kippur, everything stops--rests from the harried pace of the world and comes aside to spend time with YHWH. Some people who are not particularly religious use the time to spend with their families and friends. It was wonderful last evening to walk along the streets and see all the families greeting each other and the kids with their bikes and trikes and whatever other means of transport they could muster and take these streets from the cars and turn them into a giant fellowship hall. Kids would push their coasters up the hill and zoom down--smiles pasted on their faces. Once and awhile there was a scolding for a near miss and a wagging finger from Abba to be more careful. I could just see the morning headline, "Trike and Bike Collide at HaBracha Intersection--No Major Injurues Reported".
We have been challenged here to reflect on our lives before the perfect light of YHWH's presence. We have been exhorted to search within and bring our defects before His throne now, voluntarily and receive the cleansing that He offers before we are commanded to appear before Him on the Day of Judgement and allow Him to find our defects. Either way, we appear before Him either in mercy or in judgement. The choice is ours. Mercy triumphs over justice, and that is the way YHWH prefers for us to operate. If we don't think we have defects, He reminds us that "the heart of man is deceitful above all things and desparately wicked". Some of us think we are "good" people, just go to any funeral and hear all the good things said in the eulogy and then listen to the comments made later by those who really knew the person. We may even have the best of intentions, but sometimes, things don't turn out as expected and we hurt people we love. Or sometimes we are just careless and people suffer for it. All of this stuff is what we can bring before the King of the Universe and offer as our worship to Him. Coming before Him to touch our lives and restore our Shalom. Remember, Shalom's full meaning is: destroying the strong leading (authority) that brings caos into our lives. The enemy seeks to rob, kill and destroy, and YHWH seeks to restore, recreate, redeem and bring us to our full redemptive purpose for which He created us.
On this Yom Kippur, I challenge you to bring your life before the throne of YHWH and let him restore you. Let Him recreate you , and let Him redeem you and bring you to that purpose in life for which He created you. Let Him inscribe your name into the Lamb's Book of Life. And that is the blessing that will be said over and over today, here in the Land of Israel---May your name be written in the Book of Life. Chag Samaech and Shalom.

The Galilee

Crossing the Jordan River

Camels Crossing the Road

September 25, 2009
Thursday, the 24th, our team got a much needed break and went touring the Galilee. We had a delightful day, leaving around 8:30 a.m. heading east toward the Jordan River Valley, an exteremly fertile area with all kinds of agriculture going on. This portion of the Jordan Valley is under control of the country of Jordan and I must say they are making good use of this land. We followed the border between Israel and Jordan for awhile going past numerous date plantations and more vineyards and other agriculture we were not familiar with.

Date Palms and Grapes

Our first stop was at the archaeological park of Bet Shean. During its heyday it was the center of the Decapolis region for hedonistic living! The town had spas and hot tubs and cool pools and steam rooms complete with underground plumbing, shopping malls and theaters and arenas for entertainments; like throwing people into the arenas with wild animals. Pretty much like modern-day football! It looks like we aren't so inventive afterall - Solomon did say that there was nothing new under the sun!

Sports Arena at Bet Shean

We proceeded from there up onto the Golan. What magnificient views and what good reasons for the Israelies not to give the Golan Heights back to the Syrians. From the heights you can control the entire Galilee region. The area is full of bunkers built by the Syrians when they controlled the area, from these locations they would fire down on the Israelie towns.

Syrian Built Bunker on Golan Heights

The Golan is beautiful and much agriculture takes place there as well. Tommy directed us to an overlook where we had lunch. A beautiful, quiet olive grove with picnic tables overlooking the Sea of Galilee. We enjoyed humus and pitas and black-bean salad and taboulie, took lots of pictures and then loaded up for the trip down from the Golan and on to Capernaum.

Our Group Looking Over Galillee

They grow a lot of bananas in the Jordan River / Galilee area. On all the ripening fruit of both the date and the bananas they cover with bags to keep the mediterranean fruit fly from destroying the crops. They also put under shade cloth a vast amount of their agriculture. I mentioned to Steve that if we had done that in Bangor, maybe we would have had a better garden. He said probably so but that would have been a lot of work. I agree!!!

Ancient Synagogue at Kafar Nachem (Capernaum)

From Capernaum we went to Tiberias and took a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee with Daniel, a Jewish believer in Y'Shua, who is a recording artist as well as boat captain. Across the lake he was playing Michael W. Smith over the sound system. Then he stopped the boat and demonstrated how the disciples would have fished with their nets, but unlike them we didn't catch any fish! He then led us in a time of wonderful worship, singing and praising and dancing on the boat.

Daniel Showing us How to Fish

All to soon it was time to go back to shore and say farewell. We were set free for an hour to find our own supper - we choose a schwarma stand and finished the day with some gelato ice-cream. Getting back to the vans we soon discovered that one of the vans had a flat tire and it took some doing to get it changed. The lug nut wrench wasn't cooperating with the lug nuts!

Flat Tire!

So a bunch of us played Bible Trivia, jeopardy style while we waited. We finally got home around 10:00p.m., a very full and fulfilling day.

Shiloh and Morning Star Communities

Picking Grapes on Mt. Gerizim

September 23, 2009
This is digressing a bit, but I want to catch you up. Tuesday we finally got to harvest some grapes in one of Nir's vineyards on Mount Gerizim. All of us were on the mountain - aound 80 people - so the 4 tons that Nir needed for that day we harvested fairly quickly.

Grapes!! 35 Pounds per Basket

A rabbi was on hand to make sure we did everything properly. It was an educational experience, he would walk up and down the rows looking at the grapes and if a cluster didn't look mature enough to him he would have it cut off and cast to the ground and when he was finally satisfied with what was left then we could all go in and harvest the grapes that were left on the vines. Nir came along after him and picked up all the grapes on the ground and took them to his personal winery. He sells most of his grapes to other wineries, but this year he is hoping to keep back several tons for his own use. He is quite excited about the yield of his harvest this year.

Weighing Out 4 Tons of Grapes

We came home, cleaned up and headed off to Shiloh for a tour of the ancient Tabernacle sight and a bar-b-que. David Rubin - former governor of Shiloh - was our tour guide, he has written a book titled, God, Israel and Shiloh in which he describes his own personal journey to the west bank of Israel. He told us some of his story - being attacked by Palestinian gun fire late one night as he was traveling home from Jerusalem in 2002 with his three year old son and both of them being shot - a compelling story of YHVH's miraculous intervention that saved their lives.

David Rubin Leading Us Through Tell Shiloh

That evening two other Israelies spoke to us - one talked about the history of the land and the other, a rabbi, told us tales of establishing outposts on the mountains of Judea/Samaria, a real how-to manual he was. Anyone interested!

Any fellow that was interested was invited to camp-out that night in Shiloh. Steve stayed and slept under the stars - only he said there wasn't much sleeping going on as the young boys that also stayed were pretty ramped up from all the evenings excitement and they didn't calm down for quite awhile! Dinner was a grand affair with hot dogs and hamburgers and kebobs and potato salad and cucumber/tomato salad and other things I can't remember and of course chocolate chip cookies of various sorts for dessert.

Steve Flipping Burgers and Dogs

Worship ended the evening and I must admit we were all quite pooped when we got back to Ariel! It was a 5:00a.m. to 11:00p.m. day and we had to be back at it at 5:00a.m. for the next day! Short nights these harvest days are!!!

The next day we were back at Shiloh with the promise that we would finally get to harvest Shiloh grapes. The Shiloh folks are quite cautious about who they let harvest their grapes and so far all we have been allowed to do is pull weeds - they are checking us out, seeing if we'll keep smiling and not turn vulgar - it's a hard job, but so far everyone has maintained a good attitude. True to form, eleven guys were pulled off the team to go pull weeds in the olive groves and the rest of us were driven out the back door of Shiloh over hill and down dale, on roads no one was familiar with, until we got to an entirely new community called Morning Star.

View of Morning Star Outpost and Vineyards

We drove in the gate and through the established community and on to the outpost community. Established communities have permanent housing, outpost communities are mostly "caravans" (travel trailers) on pillar foundations, working to become permanent communities.

Kobe and the Rabbi Inspecting the Grapes

We met Kobe, the vineyard owner, who was excited that we had come to pick for him. As the morning wore on he became more and more excited - for we picked 6 tons of white wine grapes in less than three hours with no injuries! We are sent into the vineyards in pairs of two working each side of the vines. It is quite easy to clip your partners finger instead of the grape clusters especially in the green grapes for they grow much more densely woven in the vines than do the red grapes. Just the other day we were told someone had lost one of their fingers in just this way.

The Harvesters at Morning Star Vineyard

We had lunch around 11:30 and watched them load the bins of grapes on the truck which two rabbis were supervising. The tractor they were using so reminded me of the tractor Steve and I used to own, very much with a mind of its own! Mostly worn out, with little fine motor skills left! The fellow operating it though was a master and the few mishaps we blamed on the tractor not the driver.

After lunch Kobe was so thankful he took us up to a lookout that in all probability no one like us has ever been to. At the end of a dirt/rock road (best driven with 4-wheel drive vehicles) was "my outpost!" It was spectacular! I would love to go camp up there for a few days, the view was to the northern end of the Dead Sea, Jericho, the Judean wilderness, I believe someone said Mount Nebo - it was breathtaking!
Tommy wanted to do a little worshipping up there before we left and he asked if anyone wanted to pray, when no one else offered I volunteered and then the Holy Spirit took over and that mountain top was claimed as Tommy describes it.

Overlook of the Judean Wilderness

When we were in Israel in 2006 for Succot, we visited Masada and the Dead Sea area and at that time I felt such a draw to this part of Israel, again on this mountain top the same inner draw is present. Could it be that our tribal inheritance calls out to us when we are on our land letting us know that we are home? HOME, I can't wait to come HOME for good!

More Lessons from Weeds

Pulling Weeds

September 23, 2009
Today was another lesson from pulling weeds. We were sent out into an olive orchard to pull weeds out from under the trees before they were harvested so that the canvas they spread to catch the olives will lie flat and there won't be any olives roll off and be wasted. It seems like such a simple thing, and the drudgery of pullling the weeds so disinteresting, especially when there are grapes to be picked already. But today, we have been given the assignment of pulling the weeds and that is what we will do--happily; with a smile on our face.

Area Near Shiloh

The first lesson to be observed out of these circumstances is the lesson of following the Master's orders; regardless of what we would rather be doing. As bondslaves of Yeshua, our only concern is, what is the task the Master has set us about to accomplish. It really doesn't matter what we may want to do. What we set our hand to accomplish is what He has given us to do. That's it, period. We must trust that He knows what is needed more than we can know. He has a larger perspective and more information than we do, so even if we don't understand why we are doing what we have been commanded to do, we can go ahead and do it, trusting that He knows why, and that's good enough for us. Just obey, don't worry about the results. Don't get caught up in the solutions, just set about doing the task at hand.

One of Many Olive Orchards in the Land

Another lesson is the lesson of fellowship. As we worked under the olive trees, on our knees, dirt under our fingernails, we visited. We told each other our stories and histories and shared our testimonies. Time passed pleasantly and lunch came around quickly. I was reminded of the passage in Revelation that says that the saints overcame by the word of their testimony and the blood of the Lamb and did not lover their lives even unto death. The power of the "Word of their testimony" took on a new dimention as we shared our testimonies under the olive trees. I could see how we were strengthened as we shared. We gained new spiritual insite and knowledge through each other's experience. We became more unified and formidable in spiritual warfare as we prayed together.

A Local Observes our Work Quality

The other lesson I would like to share is the understanding of how destructive weeds can be. They sometimes intertwine their roots among the olive trees so tightly that it is vertually impossible to get them separated. Others of them snap off at ground level as you are trying to pull them and it is certain that they will return in full force in the spring. These roots that remain, will continue to propgate and pull food and water from the soil, depleting what is available for the desired tree and crop. Some of the weeds are vicious thorns that scratch our arms frequently and sometimes penetrate our gloves, leaving thorns in our fingers and hands that have to be extracted before comfort can return. My left arm that pulls the weeds back so I can get at the roots is a mass of scratches after having pulled weeds for several days now. Sin causes pain and injury. The enemy seeks to rob, kill and destroy.
Tomorrow, we go back to harvest grapes again. This time we go to Shiloh, to a vineyard that we will pick for the first time. They are excited we are coming and amazed that we would come so far, and then cross into the West Bank to help them. We are truely being a blessing to our brothers and sisters of Yahudah and they are visibly moved. It is worth it all!

Yom Terruah--Rosh HaShana--Shabbat

Sound the Shofar --- September 19, 2009
Today is the sounding of the shofar to announce the beginning of the new year. It is also thebeginning of the 10 days of awe leading up to Yom Kippur--The Day of Judgement. Then, 5 days later, we begin Succot.

Our Erev Shabbat Table

This is the time of year of celebration as well as repentence and personal and national reflection. We have welcomed the weekly Shabbat as well and are grateful for this time of rest. We have been very busy this week between work in the fields and tours to historic and holy sites; going to bed late and getting up early. It has been a rich time and we have all been changed in many ways. Our eyes have been opened to new perspectives, our ears have heard new sounds, and our minds have gathered new thoughts. We will not leave here the same as we have come. And now we have this time of Shabbat to reflect and rest. Praise Him!
There is an excitement that is palpable in the air throughout the Land of Israel. The market place is bustling and everyone is out in the streets. There are greetings and salutations permeating the air and smiles on most faces. We took our musical instruments and voices down to the "mercatz" (market place) and began to sing and dance. Shortly, we attracted quite a crowd. One religious Jew was angry with us yelling that we were trying to hide Christian theology under Jewish songs and dance, but he was an abbarency and soon gone, leaving the vast majority of the crowd to enjoy the music and fellowship. Many asked when we were coming back. A local news cameraman was filming us and interviewing us and gave an invitation to come to the studio to do a segment for broadcasting.

David and Ami Ortiz


There was also a Korean camera crew that was filming what we were doing to take back to their church in Korea. They had come to do a documentary film on the bombing of the Ortiz's home 18 months ago when Ami was almost killed. They had received an e-mail to pray for Ami, and Koreans know how to pray! Now, they had come to follow up on the story and bring it back to their church by film. Some of our group got to be actors in the movie. We have also been asked to do some more music and be filmed by them when we go up to Jerusalem. They are also very interested in learning about how to get involved in helping to work in the harvest. The Wallers are going international! Tommy was talking with a group from South Africa this week about the same thing, so much is happening for the Kingdom as we speak.
The Grapes are Ready!

We will be harvesting starting 6:00am on Tuesday morning. The sugar has finally come up to good levels in the grapes and we have done the necessary preparation work so the harvest can clip along at good speed. We have also done the spiritual work of preparation.

Worship Team for Yom Terruah



Yom Terruah Celebration--Food!


Last evening, Shabbat here, Zach lead us all in a time of searching our hearts for those things that still keep us from living to our full redemptive purpose. There was much teshuva/repentence and cleansing as we bared our souls before YHWH. As we came out of the meeting, it was raining great huge soaking drops--showers of blessings! Rimona Frank was there with us and has spent her whole life in Israel. She said she had never seen it rain on Rosh HaShana before and saw it as a great sign of YHWH's favor and blessings.
Continue to pray for us here as we pray for you. YHWH is bringing His plans into reality, and the lessons of the harvest we have been learning and living here are reminding us of where we stand in the time stream of history. Be watchful and pray!

Palestinian Territory--September 17, 2009

Into Palestinian Territory--September 17, 2009
Today was an opportunity that could really be called a once in a life time. We were given the opportunity to go into the heart of the West Bank which is under the administration of the PA. The city of Nablus (known as Shechem in the Scriptures) is home to almost 500,000 Palestinians and as we drove through, we could see the bustling marketplace alive with the celebration of Ramadan, and had a unique experience of being in a traffic jam, surrounded by taxis--you would have thought we were in New York City. On the east side of town we stopped and visited a Greek Orthodox Church that claims to have Jacob's well in its basement. It was beautiful and sadly very lightly attended. We had a group of 61 people and we spontaneously broke out in singing and the acoustics were astonishing--what an experience. The curator was visibly moved. Right in the heart of Muslim territory, we were praising our King with abandon. Wow!
Before Nablus, we visited the town of Sabastia (which is Shamron or Samaria in the Scriptures) where King Ahab and his wife Jezabel reined. There were many Roman ruins there and quite a bit of the ruins of the palace of Ahab. We had opportunity to pray in the ruins of a Bizantine era church and we used the prayer of Daniel 9 as the basis for what we felt was a necessary time of repentance and teshuva for Israel's sins of the past. We are Israel after all, aren't we? Read Daniel 9 and see if like him, we need to own the sins of our fathers. Here too we had opportunity to lift our voices in praise to our King. We had opportunity to bless our Palestinian guide and bus driver, and they were visibly touched. We found out later that there is an underground church, which is very small--less than 20 members. Two of them were executed recently when they were found out. We in America don't even have a clue what it means to suffer for the sake of Yeshua!
Once again the scriptures took on new meaning as we walked on the very places that scripture describes in 1st Kings in its accounting of the reign of King Ahab. Samaria was built on the top of a hill so it has incredible views of the surrounding countryside in all 360 degrees. Any advancing enemy could be spotted by the watchman at the gates well in advance and the elevation gave them a tremendous tactical advantage. Unfortunately, there was no water well within the city and they had to depend on cisterns, so they could be easily seiged and overcome by the effects of not getting any food or water into the city. Good news and bad news you might say. The story of Jehu coming against Samaria really popped out in understanding as you stood on the lookout site and looked out, imagining seeing a cloud of dust in the distance being kicked up by a chariot. The field of Naboth that Jezabel killed Naboth for so that she could give to Ahab made so much more sense because you could see that the lower fields were fertile and there was water available there. So much to see and understand.
I believe much was accomplished in YHWH's plan for His kingdom. We go out into the day, obeying what He commands us and taking the opportunities He sets up for us, walking it out. We were told later that the people who served us lunch (what a sumptuous Mediteranean Style feast it was) were very taken with the way we treated them and the openness we showed towards them. They were also very greatful that we would cross over into their territory and bring good business to them. They have been very isolated from the rest of the world since the intafada of 2002. Any business that comes to them is few and far between.

Weeds and Harvest

September 15, 2009

The official Waller work experience in Israel began Sunday. We are divided into three teams with Zac, Josh and Caleb as team leaders. Steve and I are a part of Team 2 and Josh is our team leader. So far we have pruned 350 olive trees on Mount Gerizim, pulled weeds in the grape vineyards of Shiloh and toured the area of Shechem and Elon Moreh. This is our day job, for our second job we are house parents to 18 women ages 16 to 60. Steve also is one of the designated drivers who periodically is called upon to get up in the wee hours of the a.m. and pick up some excited but weary soul at the Tel Aviv airport. We were told that this would be a working vacation! (They weren't kidding!!!)

Today we were in the vineyards of Shiloh and David Ruben, the former governor of the Shiloh district came and interviewed us. He had a videographer with him and they are making a promotional video for "Christians", mainly in the US, to get involved with the Shiloh community. Steve and I were interviewed as well as others so maybe one day we'll get to see if we made the cut. The rest of the day we spent pulling weeds in row after row of grapes. They are harvesting the fruit, but we are the delegated weed pullers. There are some pretty brutal thistles that have to be removed and something like crab grass and some really stickery grasses that cling to everything and when you do get the grasses removed millions of tiny thorns stay stuck in your clothes and when you walk they scratch your skin. There are lessons here, how about this one; the first shall be last and the last first and maybe this one, he who would save his life shall lose it and he who would lose his life for my sake and the gospel shall save it. Maybe even Y'Shua's story about the bondslave found in Luk 17:7 But which of you, having a servant plowing or feeding cattle, will say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and sit down to meat?
Luk 17:8 And will not rather say unto him, Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself, and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink?
Luk 17:9 Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I trow not.
Luk 17:10 So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.
Or this one:
Luk 16:10 He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.
Luk 16:11 If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?
Luk 16:12 And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own?

So with a happy and joy-filled heart we serve as we are called and rejoice that our Heavenly Father may call us faithful in that which is least.