Last Sunday I traveled from Nashville to St. Louis to meet with the hotel personnel for our upcoming International Conference. I also had the pleasure of meeting with two of our MIA congregational leaders who dwell in St. Louis, Rich Altom and Ed Harris. The meetings produced more than I expected.

Each time we plan an event, we do so in faith. We pray, seek His direction, and then seek the counsel of the MIA leadership team and other interested parties. Finally, we settle on a date and a location. This year we came to agreement on the Millennium Hotel in St. Louis from August 8-11. Even after all the planning, counsel, and prayer, I am always a bit apprehensive. I am the one who gets to put his name on the hotel contract at least a year before the event. I make a personal commitment for many thousands of dollars (that neither I nor the MIA possess) with full confidence that things might work out. It is indeed an act of faith.

My faith comes from the fact that I know how important it is to our Father for His people to gather together. I also know that He is our provider, but still I feel a sense of responsibility for making the right choices so that His blessing will be with us.

During my recent trip, the Father gave me two signs about this conference. On Monday morning at 9, I had a meeting with our hotel conference coordinator, Gad Reisner. I just had to ask him about his first name. Gad informed me that he was born in Israel and is indeed named after the tribe of Gad saying, "it is a family name." I had to laugh as I explained to him that we were cousins!

The hotel tour went well. It is a wonderful facility with plenty of space and a big old Arch across the street. The Arch sits in a beautiful park which rolls down to the Mississippi River. It was a beautiful day. The sun was out and the river was high so I asked Ed Harris (another cousin!) to come and play in the park with me. He agreed and we strolled out of the hotel toward the Arch.

Along the way we passed an old church. The church sits right along the path we will take on our, "March to the Arch" on August 10. I thought that was kind of cool until I looked up. Above the doorway of the church is the Father’s Name in Hebrew – YHWH. Then I knew that it was not just cool, it was awesome!

What are the odds that a native born Israeli named after one of the ten northern tribes of Israel would be our host and that during our march through the Arch we would walk under the Father’s Holy Name... in St. Louis, Missouri? Yes, YHWH gave me two signs for one people.

Pease allow me now to pass on the encouragement I received that day to you. Come and take part in this historic event. I have been to every MIA conference. Years ago, I sat in the back row as an attendee and more recently have been blessed to share my heart from the platform. I have enjoyed every vantage point along this journey. All of the conferences have been good. I am assured that this one will be not just good, it will be SIGNIFICANT. We are stepping out and ramping up. The Father is leading us by His strong right arm, Yeshua. This year we will once again enjoy awesome worship, teaching, and fellowship, but we will also change the course of history!

PLEASE join us and be part of this historic event. We will convene the first Congress of B’nai Ephraim with our brothers in Judah cheering us on. Then together, we will march through the streets of St. Louis and the famous Arch (from the west to the east) proclaiming our return as Israel to the world!

Yes, it was a great trip to St. Louis. I cannot wait until the next one! I'll meet you in St. Louis!