Dear Beloved Soul by Robert Socha

I recently received the following letter and it has stirred my soul toward repentance and listening to what the Spirit is saying to the churches in this hour and being obedient to His call:

Dear beloved Soul,

Sitting by the fire, watching the flames dance in their confinement, I find myself full of gratitude. Grateful to be warm when it’s so cold out. Grateful to live in a beautiful, quiet area. Grateful for loving family, hot water, electricity and soap. Grateful for full cupboards and a network of friends around the world who share my faith and values. This season I am particularly grateful to be in relationship to the God of Israel, attached to Israel and all her covenants and promises. What Joy!

And… what sorrow…

God’s people and the world go through three cyclical stages based on the Word. (See Isaiah 26:20-21) This Hebrew word, chedar, is an acronym for the following three acts:

rachamim – mercy judgement, din – grace, chesed – loving kindness

We’ve had warnings that we are moving out of grace to judgment. There was opportunity to avert disaster, but, unfortunately, we (the nations) and the house of Israel did not do the work to remove baseless Hatred and we have moved into the stage of judgment. I know this isn’t the message you wanted to hear, and trust me when I say I wish it weren’t true.

Israel is the front defense – they are the litmus test for the rest of the world, and their battle isn’t just for them, but for all humanity. They are fighting the Satan and all his powers and principalities – both externally and internally. I do not say this lightly – we must understand the perspective that the real battle and the tactics being used are from the heavenlies. (See: Ephesians 6:12)

Back to how does all this relate to Hanukkah? Hanukkah means dedication. (See: Psalm 30 and John 10:22). Literally, it’s the (re)dedication of the temple after the Greeks defiled it. Figuratively. It’s about rededicating our temples. There are two miracles associated with Hanukkah:

1. Military victory – Israel was a tiny country and military weakling compared with the military superpowers of the day – the Syrian Greeks. After three plus years of guerrilla warfare, the tiny, ragtag Israelis defeated the powerful Greeks.
a. Men – there are stories of bravery, sacrifice and victory for you.
b. Women – there are equal stories of bravery, sacrifice and victory for you. (See: story of Judith).
2. Spiritual victory – many in Israel were assimilating and converting to Greek religion and culture. The war started by Mattityahu and his sons was to turn the House of Israel back to Hashem, and Torah. It was on the 25th of Kislev – during the darkest days of the year – they succeeded in cleaning the Temple. In doing so, they found only one jar of sealed, purified olive oil to light the menorah. In faith, they lit the menorah even though they had no more oil, and it takes seven full days to produce another jar of oil. Miraculously, the menorah stayed lit for eight days until the new jar was ready.

So beloved soul, what are you willing to do?

Will you allow the miracle worker (Isaiah 9:6), our Messiah to help you clean your house?

Will you attach yourself more firmly to him so you can bear much fruit? (John 15:5 )

Will you stand for Israel and denounce Hamas?

Will you learn not to be deceived or seduced by social media into believing the constant barrage of lies?

Will you ask Hashem for more of His spirit to lead you and guide you in faith??

Finally – will you fix your eyes resolutely on choosing life? (See: Deuteronomy 30: 6, and Deuteronomy 19:20)

Celebrate holidays. Celebrate birthdays. Celebrate the graduations and weddings. Break the encroaching darkness by showing one another baseless love, acts of kindness, yelling the truth (in love), helping your neighbor, smiling at a stranger, comforting the distressed, visiting the sick and being willing to receive all that God brings your way in trust and joy.

May the grace of the Master Yeshua, the Messiah, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit abound to us,