Tribe of Asher: And Asher House
Asher
Asher was the eighth son of Jacob, and the second of Jacob's two sons by Zilpah, Leah's maid. The other son by Zilpah was Gad. When Jacob blesses his 12 sons in Genesis, chapter 49, he said that Asher would have a life blessed with an abundance of food and delicacies befitting a king (Genesis 49:20). Asher made the journey with Jacob and the family from Padan Aram to Canaan, and then later to Egypt. The Tribe of Asher increased in size from 41,500 to 53,400 adult males during the span of two censuses described in the Book of Numbers.
In Deuteronomy 33:1 and Deuteronomy 24-25, Moses, in his blessing, also predicted prosperity for the Tribe of Asher.
"Asher is the most blessed of sons;let him be favored by his brothers; and let him dip his foot in oil." Your sandals shall be iron and bronze; as your days, so shall your strength be." Deuteronomy 33: 24-25.
The Tribe of Asher failed to drive out the inhabitants of Phoenician towns in the area of Israel that the tribe had been allotted as its inheritance (Judges 1:27). In the Song of Deborah, which is featured in Judges, chapter 5, the Tribe of Asher is reprimanded for not helping out during the struggle against a Canaanite king (Judges 5:17).
The tribe, however, did participate in the expulsion of the Midianites and Amalekites from the Plain of Jezreel. In Revelation 7:7, Asher is among the Tribes who are promised the Seal of God for 12,000 of their members. The name Asher means "happy."
Vision for Asher House
Shortly after the war in Israel of summer of 2006 I was praying about what I could do for the north of Israel and in particular Nahariya. The Lord began to reveal to me a vision of the great return of the Jews to Israel. God took me to Jer. 29: 4-11, which speaks of Israel returning after the seventy years of captivity. He then reminded me of Daniel 9: 1-19 where Daniel was reading Jeremiah’s prophecy of the seventy years of captivity and his prayer for their return. I then remembered that during the end times there will be a great return of the Jews to their land. I read Isaiah 43: 5-7 where God said that He will bring them from the east, west, north and south gathering them from the ends of the earth. (See also Jer.16:15; Jer.23:3) God’s plan to draw His people back to Israel is clear and it is now happening.
With these thoughts on my mind, I had a dream one night describing an apartment building which would house some of these new immigrants to Israel. The building was quite clear in my dream. It looked like an embassy. Looking at the front of the building one can see the form of a "W" which is made up of 3 "V". The two "V" facing up represent worship, as one see the hands raised up. The upside down "V" represents the prayer focus of the building. It had an entrance with 2 large round columns which supported the balcony above. The building was surrounded by a fence approximately 8 feet high with stone posts every 12 feet apart to support the steel fence. The front was ‘U’ shaped, and just inside the front gate was a round water fountain with a flag pole flying the tribe of Asher. There is a full underground with meeting rooms and safe rooms. The main floor has additional apartments as well as meeting rooms and offices. I saw a room for learning Hebrew from the Bible, as well as a prayer room for the needs of the north and the community.
Learning Hebrew from the Bible will greatly affect the thinking, morals, and values of the new olim. Because of this value change, they will seek God and know God’s blessing upon their lives. "And all your children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of your children.
In righteousness shall you be established; be you far from oppression, for you shall not fear, and from ruin, for it shall not come near you".
Isa. 54:13-14.
Historically it is understood that when new immigrants arrive to Israel in large numbers, it is because they are forced to flee their homes due to persecution. They are at the point where they have little resources to start a new life in a new country.
The vision for Asher House is to be an Embassy for the Kingdom of God. The heart and soul focus is to gather together entrepreneurs to explore new ways of assisting the new olim who will settle into Israel. Ideally, the entrepreneur would establish a business, which would hire the new immigrant. With 47 families of entrepreneurs, together with the same goal and vision, we will be able to support many new olim arriving to the land. Additionally, this will be less of a financial draw on the resources of Israel and the local government.
The impact from this will be far greater than I can now imagine. Undeniably, this vision would greatly affect the economy in the area, and would therefore have a positive affect on family life. If we can affect the family life, we can affect the government of the community.
And thus have a great impact upon the community at large.