As I sit here at the computer, making my 5th attempt to write today's blog, I realize that sometimes there just are no words. There is no precise way to express the deluge of thought and emotion. I will try, with the understanding that all will be a feeble effort at best.
There is a 'Honey' in the Land of Milk and Honey that is not always seen or known to those who walk the streets. There is a sweetness that flavors the atmosphere that is tasted and ingested but those who savor it may not even know they have been a partaker of this hidden nourishment. As in cooking, where the sweetner added is not the dominate taste but that which takes the bitterness out of the finished result, so is this 'Honey' in the Land. Not known, seen or even fully appreciated, but ever present none-the-less and doing its job to take some of the bitterness away.
Now, hopefully, you are asking yourselves what is this 'Hidden Honey'.
The 'Hidden Honey' is the Righteous Gentile. There are those precious Gentiles who have a love for Israel that defies logic. They pray for Israel, not just because it is commanded in the Bible, but because they are committed to the Land and its people. They spend most of their waking hours working on behalf of the welfare of Israel. They invest their time, finances, strength, lives for the betterment of the Jewish people in the Land. They encourage others to love Israel. They speak to their governments to support Israel. They make countless trips to visit and if it were possible, they would give up everything to live here. Their zeal over Zion could put many of we Jewish people to shame. They are spoken of in Isaiah 49:
This is what the Sovereign LORD says: "See, I will beckon to the Gentiles, I will lift up my banner to the peoples; they will bring your sons in their arms and carry your daughters on their shoulders.
To labor, without reward, on behalf of Israel. This is their call. This is their work. This is their joy.
Kristine Luken was just such a Righteous Gentile. Her heart was alive with passion for the Land and for the Jewish people. Her prayers and labors have been a Honey that have sweetened this country in ways that we enjoy but are not aware of. This past Shabbat, while hiking the hills outside Jerusalem with an Israeli friend, Kristine's life was taken from her. She was brutally attacked and murdered. Her crime? The terrorists thought she was Jewish. Her friend barely survived. Dear Kristine, who identified with Israel in life, ended up identifying with Israel in death. She will be greatly missed by all her family and friends. But we believe that the sweetness of the Honey of her life will continue to flow in this Land of Milk and Honey.
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| Kristine Luken~ a Righteous Gentile |
Thank you for this article it is well written. My heart has wept for her and her family throughout the day.
ReplyDeleteGorgeous tribute, and beautiful perspective. A love offering poured out till the end ~
ReplyDeleteWELL SAID>>>BLESSINGS AND PRAYERS FOR ALL!!
ReplyDeleteWell done, my Good , and Faithful Servant........
ReplyDeleteKristine is in the Presence of her Reward!
My heart too is to be a Righteous Gentile. I know many others here in the USA that the Lord has and will also raise up fo this hour. Thanks for sharing this.
ReplyDeleteDecember 20th 2010: (29) 1/2
ReplyDeleteI did not know that in Jewish thought righteous gentiles were regarded as, ‘honey,’ to the nation. That those gentiles who love the land of Israel and her people are regarded so highly is indeed sobering. The wonderful life, yet tragic death, of Kristine Luken is salutary. With the nations today being so godless, such a life and death can only be testament to a life lived closely to the LORD. In a marriage, this closeness is cemented by the, ‘secrets,’ that are shared between the partners. Secrets, though, are to be whispered and not shouted. It is not unnatural, then, as a person gets closer to the LORD, that He shares those secrets that are on His heart with him/her. Secrets are for the child who is close to their parent’s face and not shouted across a crowded room where a million distractions are witnessed. A life lived in obedience to His heart can only start and end on the LORD’s breast.
As we read scripture we can see this high regard for honey: in fact His land, His Words and His healing are so described.
But I said to you, "You will possess their land; I will give it to you as an inheritance, a land flowing with milk and honey." I am the LORD your God, who has set you apart from the nations. [Lev 20:24]
How sweet are Your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth! [Ps 119:103]
Eat honey, my son, for it is good; honey from the comb is sweet to your taste. [Pr 24:13]
As we read of the heroic exploits of Jael and Deborah, two women who did much to aid the settlement of the land, there can be no coincidence that the LORD named them such: Jael (‘a mountain goat’) and Deborah (‘a bee’) for when pressed into His service they gave forth their fruit of milk and honey.
Steve Perry <><
December 20th 2010 (29) 2/2
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, a time is coming when the satanic stench of Replacement Theology, that fills the air of much of the Church today, will be judged and separated from the true Church:
31 "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 34 "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' 37 "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' 40 "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' 41 "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.' 44 "They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?' 45 "He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.' 46 "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life." [Mth 25:31-46]
Today, the healing properties of honey are being rediscovered as an antibiotic and healer of wounds. As we meditate on His Word and live in His presence, let our wholesome witness and words be that Honey Generation to be used for His glory.
Steve Perry <><
I hadn't yet seen a photo of her, only heard the story. My being has been in grieving for her, her family as well as for Kay, her hiking companion that day. Words come slowly, pain is often. Thank you for doing this in acknowledgement of her today!
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