By Guy Cohen

Yeshua is the high priest through whom our prayers are accepted. As His priests we are tasked with interceding for the people.

This is one of the central messages of the letter to the Hebrews. The terminology and subject matter seen throughout Hebrews involves the temple sanctuary, sacrifice and high priest. The three of these point to Yeshua; for He is all of them and more! If we look at the function of the Temple priests, we see that they were responsible to receive, prepare and present sacrifices before God for forgiveness of sins of the people. Only one day a year, on the Day of Atonement, could the High Priest enter the Holy of Holies.

In the book of Hebrews, we are given the example of Melchizedek who was not only priest of Salem (Jerusalem) but also its king. Abraham gave him his tithe and offering, as they blessed one another. The writer of Hebrews emphasized that Yeshua was a King and Priest, on the order of Melchizedek (Genesis 14:18-20; Psalm 110:4). Unlike the other high priests of Israel who were chosen by man, Yeshua was ordained by God. He is our High Priest forever (Hebrews 5:1-5).

In His three years of ministry here on earth, Yeshua reflected all that the world needs in a leader, and He reflected all that is written in the Word of God about Messiah.

“Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Yeshua the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” (Hebrews 4:14-16)

This is our job; we are priests called to come before God at the mercy seat and intercede for the nation. We must do so with a clean heart before Yeshua. Yeshua is our High Priest, Messiah King, Sacrifice Lamb, the First and the Last, the Faithful One. He is our Temple, our Healer and Deliver, and Prince of Peace.

As I write this, many in Israel are preparing to fast and mourn before God commemorating the destruction of God’s temple in Jerusalem. Our intercession is that even the solemn fast days will become joyful and glad occasions and happy festivals for Judah (Zechariah 8:19).

By Leon Mazin

I would like to begin with a request for prayer. In July, our elder, Dima Lutarevich, lost his father and in the same week became a father for the seventh time. These are intense life changes; accompanied by diametrically opposed emotions, so please keep Dima and his family in prayer as you are led.

Shavei Tzion’s humanitarian warehouse and aid project is at full capacity. Together with Tents of Mercy, we received a large shipping container from Holland full of furniture and other items. What a blessing! This means we have more to distribute to those in need. As you know, due to the war in Ukraine, immigration of Jews to Israel from Ukraine, Russia and Belarus continues at a high rate. Please pray that threats to stop Jewish immigration from Russia will cease, for we believe this verse:

“As the LORD lives, who brought the children of Israel out of the land of the north, and out of all the lands into which he drove them… for I will bring them back to their land, which I gave to their fathers.” (Jeremiah 16:15)

Our ministry was able to assist 80 immigrant families in July. Here is an interesting report on the proportions of migration – 60% from Russia, 30% from Ukraine and another 10% from other countries that comprised the former USSR. As we give tangible aid, we also intercede together that the spiritual eyes of our recipients will be opened!

Our music school for young people, Keshet Tslilim, concluded the school year with a very high-quality concert by its graduates. What a special blessing to see how music and the light of the Lord changes children. Approximately 100 students graduated this year. I ask for your prayers for wisdom and guidance, creativity and anointing for all who invest their time and resources to make this essential establishment a success!

By Hannah Tekle

In 2007, the first *Reshet camp took place. Birthed out of a shared vision between Tents of Mercy and Beltway Church in Abilene Texas, it was the pilot version of what would prove to become a pillar event in the lives of our children. That year Katya Morrison, of blessed memory, and Pastor Randy Turner began a friendship and partnership that soon turned into a finely oiled camp machine – annually housing, feeding, teaching, entertaining, praying for and loving on children for the whole last week of July. Many different challenges were met along the way and overcome by patience, generosity, determination, creativity, teamwork, and most importantly the Grace of God!

Generations of children and counsellors from our network of congregations and hundreds of Texan volunteers have passed through the “waters” of the annual Reshet children’s camp. Every summer the kids wait impatiently for camp to come. For thirteen years the sleepaway camp happened like clockwork every summer, except for 2014 when rockets were flying near our normal venue near Tel Aviv and we had to hold day camp in our congregational building in the Galilee instead. Despite the kids’ disappointment in the alteration of the plan, God brought redemption and blessing that year as we had the privilege of hosting children from the south of the country whose homes were under rocket attack.

In the COVID lockdowns of 2020, camp was yet one more thing tearfully added to the growing list of cancelled activities. In 2021, we began planning and naively thought that it might happen. It did not. Our children were devastated and mourned yet another year of missing camp. All year long, the children kept asking – will we have camp in 2022?

By God’s grace, Reshet 2022 became the second pilot – the first post-Corona Reshet Camp.

After two years without camp, we decided to not only DO camp, we decided to DOOOO camp. In addition to the network congregations, and one or two local congregations from our area, we also invited sister congregations from Jerusalem and Tel Aviv to send their children as well. Even with a handful of last-minute COVID-sickness cancellations, we still were full to the brim with 75 children.

All week long we talked, sang, crafted while playing the camp theme song “Heroes of the Faith” – superhero style, memorizing and internalizing the theme scripture: “Yet in all these things [trouble, hardship, persecution, famine, nakedness and sword] we more-than-overcome through Him who loved us” (Romans 8:37).

In English, perhaps the connection needs a bit of explaining, but in Hebrew the connection is clear: hero and overcome are in the same word family ‘gibor’ and ‘mitgaber.’ I can personally testify that the theme was Holy Spirit-led, relevant and powerful for all of us who were blessed to spend the week together: kids, counsellors, staff and volunteers alike. See pics.

(*Reshet means net or network in Hebrew.)

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