Wednesday l May 27, 2009

Shalom Friends and Family,

I apologize that it has taken me so long to get this newsletter out. We landed running when we arrived from Israel. We had one day to rest and then did a three concert weekend. It was a great weekend, at one of our concerts a Jewish man came to know his Messiah for the first time. The next week was spent unpacking, and settling back into the motor home, as well as making many phone calls to family and friends, grocery shopping, etc. The next weekend we were in Las Vegas. It was our first time at the congregation there. It was restful setting up once before Shabbat, and just being a blessing at each service, sharing a few songs, then our concert Saturday night was the topper. Two weekends of blessings.

We have been visiting with Mark's mom here in Nevada. She is alone since pop passed away in December. There will be a memorial service for him in Colorado this June. God has provided for our family to be together again. We will pick the girls up at the airport in Albuquerque on Wed. and Thurs. and then drive up to the four corners area for the service. I haven't seen my grandbaby since she was 3 weeks old, so despite the sad occasion, I'm thrilled!

So What Else Happened in Israel?

We got to see Rotem and her family!

Rotem is progressing very well considering the extent of her injuries. She is very alert to everything around her. She has much more motor control. I have a video of her reaching up and stroking and twirling Natanyah's hair. She nods her agreement, and when someone amuses her she smiles a sweet little half smile. She draws circles and figure eights with her left hand for therapy. She has learned English now and she understands all the conversation going on around her. She can sit for a very short time without support, and is beginning therapy now to learn to walk.

Her Grandparents, and Aunt, Uncle, and cousins were there. We sang songs for the family, and Rotem's mom remembered the songs we had sung 2 yrs ago! She had her requests ready! We also added the new Hebrew songs I wrote while in the land. They loved the music and Rotem's Aunt told me when they were leaving that she really appreciated the spiritual depth of our music and family, God blessed our time together and new bonds were formed. We continue to pray for them all.

We also saw some new tools in play for outreach on the streets that is really having an impact. One is called a "Treasure Hunt" and presupposes that God has certain people that He has prepared for us to share with and pray for. A small group will pray with that in mind and ask God to prepare the person/persons and to prepare people within the group to speak with and pray for the person. Then you ask for direction, ask for God to reveal things about that person (this person is the treasure) then they wait on the Lord and write down what they feel He is revealing to them as "clues" to help them find this person. When prayer time is over the members of the group compare notes, and highlight the clues that more than one person in the group has on their list. These are the clues they use to help them find the person God wants them to speak with and pray for.

Here is an example from a group a friend was in. The clues they got that were on several peoples lists were:

1. A Pizza shop
2. A blue shirt
3. A knee injury
4. the name Yakov

They knew there was a Pizza place nearby, so they went there. Standing outside the Pizza shop was a young man in a blue shirt. They explained that they were on a treasure hunt and that they believed that he was God's treasure. They asked if he had a knee injury saying that God had told them that they were to pray for him. He was blown away and told them that he was a soccer player and had a knee injury. Though he had surgery, it was not very successful and he could no longer play! They prayed for his knee and the young man was healed! Next the guys asked him and his friend who Yakov was. The friend said that his brother's name was Yakov, so they said we need to pray for him, and prayed for him right then and there. Then they showed the guys the lists that they had made with all this info and explained how God loved them and wanted them to know Him and were able to share the Gospel with them. They were wide open because of the miracles God had done both in the revealing to total strangers where he was and what he needed, and the healing of his knee.

The second is just praying and asking God to lead you to people who are hurting and/or who want to know the truth about God and Messiah Yeshua. Approaching people with the question "Do you have a need that I can pray for? Are you searching for answers, for who God is, and who is the Messiah?" and then just praying for those who respond. I used this approach on Ben Yehuda St. and God gave me two people to pray for. One of them actually came straight to me with questions! I didn't even approach her! In the end she prayed with me that God would reveal to her Yeshua His Messiah. Next I heard the crash of a bottle breaking and saw an old orthodox man who was drinking and had dropped his bottle. He shuffled over near a store and my heart went out to him. Mark came with me and I stood behind him and began to pray. He started to walk away and I could tell he was resisting. He got about twenty feet ahead of us and then stopped... and began walking backwards as though God was reeling him in, until he was just a half an arms length away. I continued to pray for him then finished with b'Shem Yeshua HaMashiach, omain. It was as though he was released, he walked away again never even turning to see who had prayed for him.

That was an amazing night.

Another amazing though not so wonderful experience was the night we were driving home to Nes Harim from Jerusalem. We decided to go a different way than usual and on the highway we suddenly saw a motorcycle down.

The man was either hit, or wiped out on the turn. His bike was laying sideways on the highway and he was nowhere to be seen. Mark jumped out of the car, looked at the bike and followed his intuition. Others had stopped by now and were looking along the side where the bike was. Mark crossed the highway a couple hundred feet ahead of where the bike was and found him in the under growth on the other side of the guard rail. He was barely conscious and sweating profusely. It is amazing that he was even alive. Mark was able to direct people to where the man was. It was a miracle from the Lord that we happened to be there, God was able to use Marks gift of intuative mechanics/physics to know just where to look for the man. This saved quite a bit of time which in this type of situation can mean the difference between life and death.

So Where are We Headed?

We are very excited about some new songs we have written, they minister so much to us that we love singing and playing them! We can't wait to share them with all of you. Our Summer tour is taking shape. We will be in Albuquerque the weekend of the 30th and 31st at Calvary Chapel East. Then we pick up Shalisha and Rinah on Wed. and Adrielle and Liorah on Thursday and spend the weekend with family in the four corners area.

Monday the girls go back home except for Adrielle who will ride with us to Kansas City. Our next concert is on Shabbat morning June 13th in Branson Missouri, at Rabbi Jeremy Storch's Congregation, the Tabernacle at 11:00 am. If anyone knows someone in that area you can let them know. We have Sunday free that weekend and are open to ministering wherever the Lord might open doors for us.

June 20th we are all the way to New Jersy (yes, that's a lot of driving!) Jackson to be exact at Beth Zion. We are looking for a Sunday there also and any midweek evenings we can be of service. The 27th we'll have two concerts, one in the morning and another in the evening in Yardley, PA at Lion of Judah, and in the evening at Beth Simcha in Allentown.

At Messiah conference we'll all be teaching classes. I'll be teaching how to teach a dance class, with tips and tools for new and not so new teachers on Monday, Tuesday Kerah and Adrielle will be teaching a silk painting class, Wednesday Mark will be teaching a seminar on harp building, Thursday I'll be teaching a jewelry making class, Friday I will be teaching a choreography class, and Saturday we will be doing a mini concert.

After the conference we will be heading across the country to Washington State where we are booked to play in Vancouver on August 1st and 2nd. We already have several concerts booked in the Pittsburg area the week and weekend after conference as we begin our journey across the country.

If you are along the way between Pittsburg and Chicago, or Chicago and Minneapolis/St. Paul, or Minneapolis and Vancouver, Washington and would like to have us, call Jonathan at the booking number below. We only have three weeks and two weekends in between Pittsburg and Vancouver, so call soon!

We'll be in Washington the month of August, and then head back to Florida to celebrate the end of Sukkot in Pensacola. So if you are in between Washington and Colorado Springs, Colorado (where we will be for Rosh HaShana), and then Florida. Give us a call. Your calls will often define our routes!

I pray that the Lord will bless and prosper your soul, and protect your income. I pray that we will all draw closer to the Lord during this time, and trust Him to be our provider, and keeper. I pray that we will all spend more time seeking His face, and entertain His presence in our lives, and in our households. May the Lord bless and keep you all,

~Shimrit and Family

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