The Water Breaking Moment?

Illustration Featuring a Pregnant Woman Holding a ClockIn Matthew 24, Yeshua (Jesus) makes an interesting correlation between the end of the age and a woman giving birth. [Matthew 24:8]. As the birth of a baby draws near, the birth pangs intensify, and the timing between pangs becomes shorter and shorter, eventually leading to the climatic moment of birth. The world is now in the middle of a prophetic birthing cycle. No one can deny that the birth pangs have been intensifying , but the key to knowing that birth is near is that moments before a baby is born, the WATER BREAKS. I believe we are about to embark on that pivotal moment in history.

We could very well be experiencing a monumental, prophetic, water breaking event in our very near future,  a gushing outbreak of the outpouring of God’s Spirit and a harvest of multitudes.

When the church age began, every believer was Jewish. However, when non-jewish Cornelius came to faith – the Apostles realized the message of the gospel was not only for the Jewish people, but also for the Gentiles. In the first century, the Jewish apostles gathered in Jerusalem to determine what to do about the issue of Gentiles coming to faith (ironically, today the church is trying to figure out what to do with all these Jewish people coming to faith). But it is in the midst of this meeting, James stands up and quotes Amos 9. We read in Acts 15,

Acts 15:13-18 After they finished speaking, James replied, “Brothers, listen to me. Simeon has related how God first visited the Gentiles, to take from them a people for his name. And with this the words of the prophets agree, just as it is written, “‘After this I will return, and I will rebuild the tent of David that has fallen; I will rebuild its ruins, and I will restore it, that the remnant of mankind may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who are called by my name, says the Lord, who makes these things known from of old.‘

When James quotes this passage of Amos 9, it was only PARTIALLY FULFILLED!

If we read this passage in its entirety, we discover these events are now being fulfilled before our eyes.

Amos 9:11-12 In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old: That they may possess the remnant of Edom, and of all the Gentiles, which are called by my name, saith the LORD that doeth this.

Amos 9:14-15 And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them. And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the LORD thy God.

Along with the Gentiles coming into the Kingdom is the promise that God will restore the Jewish people back to their land and rebuild the waste cities and inhabit them. This prophecy could not be fulfilled unless the Jewish people were first expelled from the land, only to return many years later. This passage in Amos is being fulfilled in our generation.

If we look closely, the central theme of this passage is the HARVEST. In verse 13, Amos says,

Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt.

The Keil – Delitzsch commentary on this particular verse explains it this way.

The ploughman will reach to the reaper.” Even while the one is engaged in ploughing the land for the sowing, the other will already be able to cut ripe corn; so quickly will the corn grow and ripen. And the treading of the grapes will last to the sowing-time, so abundant will the vintage be.

Prophetically, Amos declares that the harvest will be so ABUNDANT, that reaping and sowing will take place simultaneously!

Yeshua (Jesus) describes the world as His great harvest field, and in the parable given in Matthew 13, He says,

Mat 13:24-30 He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.‘”

The Lord declared that the wheat and the tares were to grow side by side together. As we see the tares, that is, the evils of this world manifesting, we also need to be mindful the wheat is also ripening right along with it!

Below is a chart of the population of the world since the birth of the Messiah.

population-curve-med

As you can see, the population of the world in the above graph was essentially flat for 1900 years. It took nearly 1900 years to get to the first billion. From the 1930’s to now,  the population grew exponentially to seven and a half billion.

For those first 1900 years, there were an estimated 4-5 billion people that lived on the earth. Let us suppose for a moment, that only ten percent of those 4-5 billion people came to a saving knowledge of the Lord. This would mean for the first 1900 years, an estimated 400,000,000 to 500,000,000 million people in the world came to faith.

Today,  before our very eyes, we are seeing the world’s population grow to over 7 billion people! And if we suppose the same scenario of ten percent, then in our generation alone, there will be 700,000,000 or so people come to faith! This season, we may see nearly double the number of people entering the Kingdom then all 1900 or so years combined! That’s HUGE!

I urge you, brothers and sisters, we are alive for the greatest opportunity that any generation has ever had! Now is not the time to cower in fear — now is the day of salvation! 

I strongly encourage you to listen to my message — This is not the end of the world!

Negev Garden Project

I just wanted you to take little glimpse of my garden project on our roof! With the concept of an earthbox, and since they don’t ship earthboxes to Israel, I created a type of earthbox — the Negev Box — that maximizes the yields of plants while at the same time conserves water.

The Negev Box (my created Earthbox) is 2 constructed of 2 black plastic tubs roughly 24 inches by 30 inches. This is a photo of the bottom box with 50cm cut PVC pipe cut 6.5 cm tall. It holds roughly 12 liters of water in the reservoir. At the side of the bottom box is a water drainage hole roughly 7cm from the bottom.

The 2nd box is laid on top of the bottom box with 2 large holes in the rear that hold a 2 liter bottle cut in half with slits down the sides of them. When the box is filled with soil each of these 2 liter half bottles act as a wick to draw water throughout the box. Additionally small holes are drilled throughout the box allowing the roots to have direct access to the water. On the bottom left corner is a 50cm PVC pipe with holes drilled at the bottom to allow the water to enter the reservoir underneath. This gray pipe is the only place the watering takes place. Once the box is filled with soil then the entire box is covered with plastic to prevent any evaporation of water. Each box depending on the plants they contain take roughly 3-4 liters of water daily.. ”

The plastic removed so you can see the moistness of the soil mixture. The soil is a combination of 60% sphagnum peat moss, 20% vermiculite, and 20% perlite. It’s nutritional source comes from organic fertilizer called Humus.”

Shade cloth covering 1/2 of the garden. It’s totally movable as the base is a 5 gallon bucket filled with cement with a 120 cm PVC pipe in the center. ”

Bases for the Shade Cloth. 5 Gallon buckets filled with cement with 120cm PVC pipe in the center.

A row of cucumber plants under the shade cloth. Each plant produces roughly 3 cucumbers weekly. And there’s 27 cucumber plants growing. However by the end of the season, we’ll probably produce a cucumber per plant daily as the vines grow.

Cherry Tomatoes, Basil, Oregano, Thessaloniki Tomatoes, Bell Peppers

The Thessaloniki tomato plants are yielding roughly 10-15 golf size tomatoes daily. The cherry tomatoes haven’t started yielding yet.

Lettuce is producing roughly 1 kilo (2.2 lbs) every other day.
Cucumbers beginning to ripen for harvest. Each flower will become a cucumber when pollinated.
The cucumber that got away. This 780 gram cucumber was hiding under some leaves! As you can see, my son Obi can’t believe how big it is!

That’s just a glimpse of our Negev Garden Project on our roof. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask!

My Wife’s Tips for Marriage

My wife wrote this earlier today and it was powerful so I thought I’d re-post it on my blog.

In honor of the anniversary of our tenth year of marriage, I awoke this morning feeling peculiarly compelled to write down the the top ten things I’ve learned in my first ten years of marriage. I am sure you could add many things— feel free! These are just things I have learned, personally. Whether you’re single and looking toward marriage or been married ten times longer than I, I believe these will be beneficial to read. My hope is that they will make you think and maybe smile. But most of all, that they will inspire you to hang in there and make your marriage last, against all odds.

The Top Ten Things I’ve learned in my First Ten Years of Marriage…..

1. You gotta LAUGH a lot : We are funny creatures– we all do the dumbest things sometimes. Don’t take stuff so seriously all the time. Laugh it off. It’s good medicine.

2. You gotta LET THINGS GO: There is always something hurtful that was said or done in the past. You may think you are 100% in the right, and you may very well be. Let it GO… and don’t ever bring it up again.

3. DO THINGS YOUR SPOUSE LIKES: Yeah. You know what they like… and you probably hate the thought of doing them. Get over yourself!! Surprise each other regularly.

4. Work every day on getting BALANCED AND HEALTHY: Physically, emotionally, spiritually and (ladies especially) hormonally.

5. BE TRANSPARENT: Don’t lie to each other! Pretty basic. Instead, purpose to tell each other everything from now on.

6. Develop your TRUST in Someone (capitalization in the word “Someone” intended) OTHER THAN your SPOUSE: He /she is only human and cannot possibly fulfill all our needs. Your Creator knows your innermost parts, your every thought, your every word before you say it. Talk to Him. He is listening.

7. GIVE: Give some of what you have to someone who needs it everyday…. your time, your money, your things, your talents… make it a lifestyle. You won’t believe how this makes things better.

8. LET IT ROLL! The Holy Scriptures have some very wise words — you should read them if you haven’t yet, and read them again if you have. One of my favorite Proverbs says “Blessed is the man who overlooks an offense”. (yes, I know it says “man” lol. But I’m pretty sure that includes the ladies too). Seriously though, I think sometimes we look for things to be offended by. Stop that! Let it roll… right off your back. Move on. Forgive and forget.

9. GET AWAY together. If you can afford it, make a habit of going away together for a few days every once in a while. If not, it can be as simple as taking a walk or a drive. But make a habit of getting away from the hustle and bustle of life to spend some quality time together… Look at each other in the eyes and TALK.

10. Last, but definitely not least—TILL DEATH DO US PART: This phrase is top, among some of most powerful phrases ever written or said. And most of us promised each other these very words on that blessed day, way back when. How quickly we forget! When did it become okay to break our promises, no less one so very powerful? Remind yourself daily of these words and hang in there. Don’t take the easy path just ’cause everyone else is. It’s worth the work!

*If this blessed you, please feel free to pass it on :) If you wanna chat about it, visit my website* www.rivkawhitten.com

PA TV teaches kids to make political map that turns all of Israel into “Palestine”

Palestinian Media Watch posted a video captured on Fatah TV which details a map of Palestine without a Jewish State of Israel.

Child host: “Hello friends, today we will learn how to make a model of the map of Palestine so that we continue to remember our country, Palestine…

Of course, all my friends know how to draw the map of Palestine. Here, the map of Palestine is ready, in its historic area.”

How to understand the Federal Budget

Most people have little understanding of what kind of economic situation the United States is in.  Over the weekend, I found an interesting chart that simplifies the budget by removing the zeros, and comparing them to a household budget.  Take a few minutes and get a glimpse of the economic tsunami that is coming!

• U.S. Tax revenue: $2,170,000,000,000
• Fed budget: $3,820,000,000,000
• New debt: $ 1,650,000,000,000
• National debt: $14,271,000,000,000
• Recent budget cut: $ 38,500,000,000

Now let’s remove 8 zeros and pretend it’s a household budget.

• Annual family income: $21,700
• Money the family spent: $38,200
• New debt on the credit card: $16,500
• Outstanding balance on the credit card: $142,710
• Total budget cuts: $385

Are you trusting that God is your true provider?  We’re getting ready to go down a slippery slope!

Reader Question: Why did you post a story about stripping on Worthy News?

Shalom everyone,

Yesterday, there was an article in the UK Telegraph entitled, “Girls urged to strip to support Vladimir Putin as President” which I ran, however we had some people wonder why we would run such an article.  So I thought I would explain my reasoning behind it.

First of all, it was only a text article and absent of any kind of photography that would be a stumbling block for a believer. [Editor’s note: From the time we posted it, they’ve added a video and thus we removed it when this took place!]

I debated whether or not to run the story, but as I prayed about it, all I could think about was the Russian women stuck in brothels in Tel Aviv.  Most people are completely oblivious to the sex trade industry, and until there’s real respect toward women starting from the heads of government, nothing will ever change.   When heads of state endorse such behavior, it’s a reflection of the direction a country is heading.

This is a portion of a report about the exploitation of Russian women by the mafia in Israel.

The non-profit Israel Women’s Network estimates that 70% of prostituted women  in Tel Aviv, Israel’s commercial center, come from the former Soviet republics, and that about 1,000 women are brought into Israel illegally each year. At any one time, as many as 100 women may be awaiting deportation in Neve Tirza women’s prison near Tel Aviv’s Ben-Gurion airport, a prison spokeswoman said. (Elisabeth Eaves, “Israel not the promised land for Russian sex slaves”, Reuters, 23 August 1998)

The Russian mafia has moved into Israel to profit from trafficking and prostitution. Police in Israel have been keeping around 30 organized key crime suspects under surveillance. (Kevin Connolly, “How Russia’s mafia is taking over Israel’s underworld,” BBC, 3 April 1998)

And this is the shocker for many, but prostitution in Israel is LEGAL, but organized prostitution in the form of brothels is prohibited.  –Wikipedia

So when I saw this article in the UK Telegraph about women encouraged to “strip” for Putin, I thought about a possible connection between Putin and the Russian mafia.  The women that would be ‘encouraged’ to do so, would probably be those already connected in some way to the sexual trade industry — which is run by the Russian mafia.  Then it’s plausible that this article is just touching the tip of the iceberg of the corruption within the Russian government.

And so this is why I decided to run the story.

Until next time…

San Remo Mandate

This is a good video detailing the San Remo Mandate, which most people have never heard of — but it answers a fundamental issue that still plagues the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks today.  And answers the question, “Does Israel have a right to the land?”

Worthy Virtual Tours Bloopers

Of course whenever you are putting together a video, there’s bound to be a few bloopers along the way!

So here’s how my son wanted my attention while trying to put together a Worthy Virtual Tour.