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Summary
This conversation centers on the importance of living in continual awareness of God’s presence and intentionally including Him in every aspect of daily life. Ron shares how his experience in Israel impacted his walk with the Lord, particularly through the Jewish practice of prayer, memorizing Scripture, and keeping God at the forefront of everyday activities. The discussion highlights how prayer is not merely a religious exercise but a way of welcoming God’s presence into every moment.
The family also reflect on a worship service at a Messianic Jewish Kehila in Jerusalem, where people of all ages participated by singing and reciting Scripture. This experience served as a powerful picture of the Body of Christ functioning together, with every member contributing. The conversation further explores the beauty of Israel, the faith and resilience of its people, the security provided by the IDF, and the fulfillment of biblical prophecies visible in modern Jerusalem. Throughout the discussion, the emphasis remains on recognizing God’s faithfulness, cultivating His presence, and allowing His Word to become a living reality in daily life.
Show Notes
• Ron shares how his trip to Israel changed his perspective on prayer and daily fellowship with God.
• The importance of memorizing Scripture and keeping the Word continually before the Lord.
• Dale explains how Jewish culture intentionally includes God in every aspect of life.
• Discussion of prayer as the gateway to living in God’s presence.
• Ron describes attending a Messianic Jewish Kehila where worship centered on Scripture, participation, and community.
• The congregation demonstrated a living expression of the Body of Christ, with every person contributing.
• Reflections on the beauty and fruitfulness of the land of Israel.
• Observations of the security and vigilance of the Israeli people and the IDF.
• Testimonies of feeling God’s peace and protection while in Israel.
• The fulfillment of biblical prophecy seen in the children playing in the streets of Jerusalem.
• Recognition of God’s faithfulness to His promises and His ongoing work among His people.
Key Quotes
• “When you do that, it really brings the Lord front and center in an awareness.”
• “I’m trying to memorize, memorize, memorize so that I can mumble all day long the Word of God.”
• “The drive of our hearts is to be in His presence always.”
• “The best way to welcome Him into our presence is prayer.”
• “To me, it was like an example of the Body of Christ moving where every member supplies.”
• “I never felt afraid at all, not even once.”
• “A lot of it had to do with the presence of the Lord.”
• “The children will be playing once again in the streets of old Jerusalem.”
• “These kids were having a ball. They were just having fun.”
Scriptural References
Psalm 1 (2)
“But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night.”
Referenced through Ron’s emphasis on memorizing and continually speaking the Word of God.
Psalm 119 (11)
“Your word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against You.”
Reflects the discussion of hiding God’s Word in the heart through memorization.
Joshua 1 (8)
“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night.”
Illustrates the practice of continually speaking and meditating on God’s Word.
1 Thessalonians 5 (17)
“Pray without ceasing.”
Supports the theme of including God in every aspect of life through continual prayer.
John 15 (4–5)
“Abide in Me, and I in you.”
Reflects the desire to live continually in God’s presence and awareness.
Ephesians 4 (16)
“From whom the whole body, being fitted and held together… causes the growth of the body.”
Illustrates Ron’s observation of every member participating during worship at the Kehila.
1 Peter 2 (5)
“You also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house.”
Supports the picture of a functioning spiritual community where every member contributes.
Isaiah 35 (1)
“The wilderness and the desert will be glad, and the Arabah will rejoice and blossom like the crocus.”
Connected to the discussion of Israel’s land flourishing and becoming fruitful.
Zechariah 8 (4–5)
“Old men and old women will again sit in the streets of Jerusalem… and the streets of the city will be filled with boys and girls playing in its streets.”
Directly referenced in the conversation regarding Rothschild Square and children playing in Jerusalem.
Psalm 91 (1–2)
“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.”
Reflects the testimony of experiencing peace and protection while in Israel.
Takeaway
Living in God’s presence is not reserved for special moments of worship or prayer meetings; it is a daily lifestyle of intentionally including Him in everything we do. As believers fill their hearts with His Word, cultivate continual prayer, and remain aware of His nearness, they become increasingly sensitive to His presence and His leading. Out of that relationship flows peace, worship, fellowship, and a living expression of Christ through His Body. The more God becomes the center of everyday life, the more His reality is manifested in and through His people.
Transcript
Lessons from Israel: Walking in God's Presence
Ron:
Welcome to Live Behind the Veil. I'm Ron, your host, and today we're sharing some personal experiences from Israel and the profound lessons they taught us about living in God's presence. As we reflect on the Jewish practice of including God in every aspect of our daily life, we'll explore the power of continual prayer, hiding God's Word in our hearts, and cultivating an awareness of His presence throughout the day.
We'll also talk about a unique worship experience in a Messianic Jewish kehillah, where people of all ages participated in scripture, worship, and fellowship, giving us a living picture of the body of Christ functioning together as every member supplies. Join us as we discuss what it means to bring the Lord front and center in our lives and discover how a deep awareness of His presence can transform our walk with Him.
Ron:
Everything, and we did, was preceded prayer. For me, it changed my thinking on my walk with God and the way I approach the Lord. When you do that, it really brings the Lord front and center in an awareness, and you're using His Word. I got about six psalm- six psalms memorized now, and I'm trying to memorize, memorize, memorize so that I can mumble all day long the Word of God
Dale:
What you're saying, Ron, is very important to the Jewish people, and it's something we as non-Jews can adopt very easily, and that is they do it specifically to include God in everything they do.
The drive of our hearts is to be in His presence always. The best way to welcome Him into His, into our presence is prayer.
Ron:
We went Saturday morning to what is called K-E-H-I-L-A, Kehila. Kehila? And basically what that is, is it is a church or a synagogue, however you wanna say that. They never say church in Israel.
A synagogue that is full of worshiping Jewish people that believe in Yeshua. And so we sat through a service that was just amazing service. Each one in the different, in the congregation, young and old, would stand up and begin to either quote the Torah or sing the Torah. To me, it was like an example of the body of Christ moving where every member supplies.
I know it wasn't canned because there were young ones that were probably 10 years old all the way up to probably people in their 90s that would stand up and quote the scripture. And we had a book that they gave you that you could follow along, so we were going down the page. On the left side of the book there was Hebrew, on the right side it was English.
Beside each paragraph would have a scriptural reference to where that was in the New or Old Testament. People would stand up and take their turn. They would stand up and start speaking these scriptures in this book or singing. And then some- sometimes, and I don't know why, sometimes people would s- say something or sing something and the whole congregation would sing with them.
They had a Bible there which was on the right side of where they put the Torah when they bring it out, and that would be a Jewish Bible. And so some of them would get up there and they would open it up to certain scriptures and they would sing the scriptures out of that Bible in Hebrew. And then once in a while they would open up these doors and they'd bring out the scrolls, the Torah, and there'd be three people there.
There'd be a man in front And then two on each side, and the ones on the side, the guy in front would pull the cloth off of the Torah, and then the two si- the one on each side would unroll it. And then somebody would come up, and it could be anybody, and they would come up, and they would read out of the Torah or sing it.
We had one young man get up there, he was probably 19, and he sang for probably 15 minutes, and it was just, his voice was just awesome. Another thing that I thought was really, that really took away from my religious thinking of what a service would be like in Israel was the guy that stood up there at first just had a plain old pair of slacks and a collared shirt on.
Nothing dressed like what I would consider, a rabbi being dressed or long curls on his hair. Just a short haircut and he had a revolver hooked up to his belt. And I just thought, "Man, this is totally different than what I expected." To me, it was fun. We finished up our service. Then we all trekked down-
downstairs, and they have this huge meal prepared for everybody. I don't know if you've ever been to a Jewish meal, but they have overflowing food. They have so much food. They could feed you probably three times. It's all homemade, and it's just tons and tons of food. And so you never go away hungry, or you never go away wanting more food.
The desert, they call it the desert, so there's no desert. It's all farmland. Blooming like a rose. It is. It honestly is. Their crops are just, oh my God, they are a beautiful crops.
Mike
Our foods are poisoned. I know. That's why you have, all these different situations where people are not healthy here, because we're putting stuff in our bodies that isn't healthy food to begin with.
Ron:
You would love Jerusalem.
There are so many birds. They're always singing
Debbie:
Oh, I would love it.
Ron:
And the flowers are just gorgeous. They're just, everything is just beautiful.
Dale:
The prophecies that Jerusalem will be like it is now are really coming to fruition. Yeah. And there's a great deal of rejoicing in the people because the ground there is, has been held in a high quality. The thing they were missing was water.
Ron:
The IDF is everywhere walking the streets. Cameras are everywhere. A lot of the women that join the military, some fight. A lot of them they call watchers, and what they do is all day long they are in these towers with computer screens, and they're looking at all the different areas and sections of wherever they're at, whether Jerusalem or other parts of the country.
They're looking for anything out of the ordinary. They are ready to report and send troops to that area. Now, I never felt afraid at all, not even once, and a lot of it had, I think, had to do with the presence of the Lord, honestly, and the anointing that we were carrying, but I never felt any fear or anxiety about any- anything.
Debbie:
Yeah, everyone that's gone there has said that.
Dale:
Every young man and young woman are required upon graduation of high school to serve two years in the IDF.
Ron:
And honestly, the ones I met, I met quite a few young people that were g- actually going. In fact, four of them ap- approached me when we were at Nova Center where is where the massacre happened in October 7th.
Four of them approached me because they didn't have a phone, and there was areas there that you could scan with a QR code and look at the videos that were actually being videoed when the attack was happening. People were videoing the assault. They had some friends that had been killed there, and they wanted to s- see the videos.
And so they come up to me very nice, and asked me, said, "I don't have, we don't have our phones. Can you come over here and scan these QR codes for us so we can see some of these videos?" Which I did, and they were very thankful, very courteous, very respectful. And I said, "So you guys, you're about the age..."
And they go, "Yep, we're the age. We're actually next week going to be cadets and going into the army."
We came into the square and it's called Rothschild Square. This is a fulfillment of Zechariah 8:5. The children will be playing once again in the streets of old Jerusalem. Wow. And these kids were having a ball.
They were just having fun.
Mike:
Did you see them kicking around the Hacky Sack?
Ron:
Yeah, they were.
Ron:
Thank you for joining us today on Live Behind the Veil. As we share these experiences from Israel, our prayer is that each of us would grow into a greater awareness of God's presence and learn to include Him in every part of our daily lives. Whether through prayer, meditation on His Word, worship, or simple fellowship with Him throughout the day, the Father is drawing us into a deeper relationship with Himself.
May we become a people who continually welcome His presence, allowing His Word to live within us and His life to be expressed through us. As we do, we discover that God's presence is not something we visit occasionally, but a reality we walk in every day. And until next time, keep pressing into His presence and living behind the veil