Following The Ancient Paths

Monday, September 10, 2007

Yom Kippur for Believers

The Day of Atonement is a serious and significant thing for all of those who come under the Headship of the G-d of Abraham, the G-d of Isaac and the G-d of Jacob. It was intended to be this way by our Father when He outlined this day in Scripture. It is the most solemn day of the entire year. I wrote about Yom Kippur last year here and would like to expand on a few ideas in this years entry.

Yom Kippur (or Yom HaKippurim) literally means Day of Atonements or Day of Covering. It is commonly known as Judgement Day.

To read further, visit this entry at my main blog here.

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Sunday, September 2, 2007

Feast of Trumpets - Yom Teruah (aka Rosh Hashanah)

Posted in Holidays and Celebrations

Leviticus 23:23 - 25
The LORD spoke to Moshe, saying, “Speak to the children of Yisra'el, saying, ‘In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, shall be a solemn rest to you, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation. You shall do no regular work; and you shall offer an offering made by fire to the LORD.’”

Numbers 29:1 - 6
In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a holy convocation; you shall do no servile work: it is a day of blowing of trumpets to you. You shall offer a burnt offering for a sweet savor to the LORD: one young bull, one ram, seven he-lambs a year old without blemish; and their meal-offering, fine flour mixed with oil, three tenth parts for the bull, two tenth parts for the ram, and one tenth part for every lamb of the seven lambs; and one male goat for a sin-offering, to make atonement for you; besides the burnt offering of the new moon, and the meal-offering of it, and the continual burnt offering and the meal-offering of it, and their drink-offerings, according to their ordinance, for a sweet savor, an offering made by fire to the LORD.

Background
Yom Teruah basically means “day of noise/blasts”. "Teruah” is traditionally understood as the blowing of the shofar, specifically the ram’s horn. In the English Bible is is referred to as the Feast of Trumpets and comes at the end of the agricultural year in Israel. As noted in the verses above, Yom Teruah is on the first day of the seventh month which is called Etanim, or more commonly called Tishri.

Generally speaking, Yom Teruah comes at the time of the last harvest of the year, so in Exodus 34:22 this season is referred to as the end of the year. However, we must remember that HaShem specifically states that the year begins in Aviv, the month of Passover. It is not difficult for us to understand this concept because many of us are in the midst of a “new year” ourselves whether it be a new school year or a new fiscal year or a new year at church. This is why Yom Teruah is also called Rosh Hashanah, meaning the New Year, the new civil year.

Yom Teruah marks the beginning of the moedim, appointed times, that last through the twenty-second day of the seventh month, ending after the eighth day of Sukkkot (Feast of Tabernacles/Booths). This is a joyous time of celebration and worship of our Father.

The Akeidah
Leviticus 23 tells us that the blowing is a memorial but it does not state what it is a memorial of. Many believe that it is a memorial of G-d’s grace to Abraham when He substituted a ram in place of Isaac. This is known as the Akeidah (the binding of Isaac). Traditionally, Judaism remembers the akeidah at Yom Teruah. There are many parallels between Isaac and Yeshua. Both men were sons of promise, both came into the world under miraculous circumstances with their comings announced by angels, through both men the world has been blessed. Both were beloved sons of their fathers who were blameless with neither one deserving any form of capital punishment, both had to carry the materials of their judgment to the mount of their sacrifices and both men were in their thirties. Both Isaac and Yeshua went willingly and without uttering words in their defense or attempting to change the mind of their fathers. And both of these men lived after the event - Isaac being substituted with a ram and Yeshua being raised up on the third day. Some believe that Isaac was indeed slain and that G-d resurrected him in His faithfulness.

The Shofar and Judgment
The blowing of the shofar has special significance on this day. The shofar has a beautiful sound and is sounded in specific repetition during this time. The shofar/trumpet is blown at special festivals and to herald the arrival of special seasons.   Alfred Edersheim wrote that “One of it’s main purposes was to rouse men to repentance. In fact, the commentator Maimonides (1135 - 1204) makes use of the following words to denote the meaning of the blowing of trumpets: ‘Rouse ye, rouse ye from your slumber; awake, awake from your sleep, you who mind vanity, for slumber most heavy has fallen upon you. Take it to heart, before whom you are to give an acount in the judgment.’” In Scripture the shofar/trumpet sounding is almost always a summons, a war-cry, an alert warning (to prepare for something), to hail an arrival, or a wake-up call if someone is sleeping (spiritually or physically). The shofar is sounded today, as I understand, in Israel just before battle as it was in the days of old. One thing to remember is that not every mention of shofar/trumpet blasts in Scripture is in reference to Yom Teruah. We do know that our Master will return with a shout of the shofar/trumpet and I think this is why many people believe that He will return on Yom Teruah. I cannot say if He will or if He won’t, but I do know that He said “No man knows the hour or the day”. This is a common reference used about Rosh Chodesh/New Moon because we must be attentive and watching to see the first sliver of the new moon. We may know when and where to look, but we still need to be waiting and watching. More is written about Rosh Chodesh and awaiting the return of our Master here. Because Yom Teruah falls on the first day of the seventh month, it is also a Rosh Chodesh. Could it be that this is indeed the season, the very day, of His return?

During Yom Teruah the return of G-d is a major concept and in Believing circles it is the return of our Master that we await. This seems to be related to the season of Teshuvah during the month of Elul because we are encouraged to remember the past year and make things right between ourselves and our fellow man as well as between ourselves and G-d. It is a tradition that G-d takes ten days to make a decision about a sinners repentance and to pronounce final judgment on Yom Kippur/The Day of Atonement. It is tradition that there are three books opened at this time: The Book of Life for those who have returned to G-d, The Book of the Wholly Wicked for those who hate Him, and then the intermediary book for those who are “in between”. It is said that these “in between” people have ten more days to repent. But once the books are sealed they are sealed for another year. Hence the theme of repentance and returning to G-d in the month of Elul and in the Days of Awe.

Yom Teruah begins a 10 day period of time known as the Days of Awe in which the blowing of the shofar is followed by a time of introspection, worshipers looking into their own hearts and lives for misdeeds and transgressions. These ten days are days of repentance and preparation for judgment. Yom Kippur (The Day of Atonement) is the tenth day of the seventh month and is known as “Judgment Day”. This is a serious time of restitution and repentance that is celebrated annually. It is a good thing to have a set apart time to really examine ourselves and our lives. It is a good practice to deal with sin and errors right away every day of our lives, that is true, but as we all know, sometimes little things grow into big things and we don’t always deal with them as we should. This is a serious season for us to make things right and to better ourselves because we wear His Name. We should take that seriously enough to gladly inspect our lives at every opportunity.

Traditions
Traditions at Yom Teruah include: Blowing of the shofar, wearing white to symbolize purity, the tashlich ceremony (casting a stone into a body of water), and the exchange of greetings such as “Lashana Tova!” (Have a good year!) or “Lashana Tova Tikatevu!” (May you be inscribed [in the Book of Life] for a good year”. There are also special services and traditions within the Synogague.

Tashlich is an interesting ceremony that is based on Micah 7:19 which states: "And Thou wilt cast (ve-tashlich) all their sins into the depths of the sea" This is generally done with prayer, confession of sin, and a relinquishing of that sin. To cast our stones into the water is a physical reminder of His casting our sins away into the sea of forgetfulness.

Special foods are eaten such as:  Round challah (to symbolize the cycle of life), fruit, apples and honey (for a sweet new year), honey cakes, and carrot tzimmes (one of our family favorites!). Remember that this is a celebration, a festive time. Solemn assemblies can also be joyous ones. This is a holy day, an appointed time. This is a feast.

Resources for activities and more information
Some of these links I can recommend because we have used them as a family. Others I have only recently found and cannot vouch for their credibility. I list them here as resources for my readers to consider for themselves.

Torah Family Magazine: Fall Festivals - Special Kids' Edition
Rosh Hashana Family Celebration Guide from Torah Family Magazine
Feast of Trumpets from BiblicalHolidays.com
Rosh Hashanah activities for children
Customs of Rosh Hashana
Yom Teruah Guide from Messianic World Site

How to celebrate?
In reading the above passages from Leviticus and Numbers we read that Yom Teruah is to be a special Shabbat, a holy convocation where we do no regular work. Psalm 27 and 81 are prescribed for this special time.   There are other readings prescribed as well, which can be easily found online. There are prescribed sacrifices for Yom Teruah but because there is no Temple, we are left with prayer.   Yom Teruah is to be a reminder, a memorial. Though Scripture is vague about what it is a memorial of, as Believers we take this opportunity to remember our Master and His work on our behalf. This is a time for offering forgiveness and reconciliation with family, friends and business associates. The tradition of tashlich is performed by many. There are wonderful foods associated with Yom Teruah, helping to make it a special and set apart celebration so have a marvelous feast. On the “Day of Noise/Blowing” we are encouraged to shout aloud with songs of praise to our G-d, to make a joyful noise unto the L-RD so music is certainly a part of Yom Teruah, particularly if it involves horns or trumpets. Remember, it must be LOUD! With all the noise it will be a difficult day to forget.

May your festival celebration be joyous and may you remember it always!

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Sunday, September 2, 2007

Fall Biblical Holidays

There have been people looking for information related to the fall Biblical festivals: Yom Teruah or Feast of Trumpets (aka Rosh Hashanah), Yom Kippur, The Day of Atonement, and Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles. These links are for articles written last fall. I hope to be able to shed further light on these special holy days this year, as our understanding and knowledge has grown a little more.

It is generally taught that Yeshua (Jesus) fulfilled the spring festivals in His first coming and will fulfill the fall festivals at His second coming. Understand that several months have passed since the spring festivals - Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits and The feast of Weeks. Each of these festivals, spring and fall, are wonderful object lessons where we learn more about the heart of the Father and His will for His children. They are not only object lessons but they are festivals intended to be observed by all of those who submit to the headship of the Creator of the Universe, the G-d of Abraham, the G-d of Isaac and the G-d of Jacob. As we read in the Prophets, we will be keeping these festivals in the future when the Messiah rules from Jerusalem, which stands to reason since G-d did say He intended these special holy days to be kept forever and by perpetual regulation. More than worthy of our study, they are well worth keeping even today.

A good place to start, and a place that we often find ourselves referring back to, is Leviticus 23. This is the chapter where the festivals of the L-RD are outlined by G-d for those who will come under His headship and follow His ways.

I wrote recently about the month preceding the fall festivals, Elul, and in that message listed some resources that are available online. And one resource that is very handy to have is The Holidays of God, the Fall Feasts by the Radio Bible Class Ministries.

I am very interested in hearing what my readers are planning for the fall festivals and what stage of participation they are in this season. This blog has been accessed via searches with "Sukkot celebration in churches", "Succah designs, kits and decorations" and "Yom Teruah" being the most common. I am curious if those coming here from those searches are finding what they are looking for. I hope I can be of help to those searching and a source for ideas and resources as others are browsing the web. :)

Blessings to you all ~

** This is a post from my main blog Following The Ancient Paths and I thought I'd double post it here.

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Friday, July 13, 2007

Friends and Shabbat Shalom!

It was just brought to my attention that the Friends feature now works again! I'm pleased because I haven't been able to keep up with my HSB friends very well without it.

So as I was looking at my friends list, I decided to post a quick note to those who still have me listed on their friends list. :)

Shabbat Shalom, my friends. Our family is really looking forward to this Shabbat. G-d is good and what He does is good - we are so blessed!

Blessings to you all ~
Lisa

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Tuesday, March 6, 2007

Moving to a new blog

Posted in Current Events

Due to technical difficulties here at HSB, I have opted to move over to WordPress. You can find me here
here is the straight link:
http://followingtheancientpaths.wordpress.com/

I have just added a link for the RSS feed over there.

Blessings to you all!!

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Tuesday, February 27, 2007

My Mom is coming to visit - for PASSOVER!!

Posted in Current Events

I'm so excited - and I just can't hide it.... LOL

I just got off the phone with my mom. She is comming up for a visit next month. Last year I sent her a copy of Restoration, see the book review I wrote here, and it caused her quite a bit of concern. It's been a process for her to really begin to wrap her mind around what we believe, how and why. We haven't spoken as much since then and I've been wondering if it would always be that way.

Well, she's coming for a visit. That is great news! We're thrilled to get to see her since we only get to see her once a year, maybe twice. BUT as I looked at the calendar I noticed that she leaves AFTER Pesach. I mentioned to her that we'd love to have her celebrate Passover with us and she said she'd love to! I almost cried, I was so excited!!!!!

What a blessing for us! Reuven & Shmuella's first Pesach and my dear mom's first as well!

I just had to share.

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Tuesday, February 20, 2007

Holiday Preparations

Posted in Holidays and Celebrations

I'm pressed for time at the moment but I wanted to address Purim and Pesach (Passover). So rather than write new stuff today I'm going to give links to what I wrote last year. I'll try to make it back soon to give this years updates.

2006 Passover Preparations and Teaching Plans

2006 Purim

I'd love to hear what other families are doing and hear some new ideas and suggestions, and as always I'd love to hear your comments. Do your congregations do anything special for Purim? When do you start your Pesach preparations (house cleaning and such)?

Blessings to you all!

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Sunday, February 18, 2007

A New Perspective

Posted in Working Out My Salvation With Fear and Trembling

In recent weeks I've been becoming more and more frustrated with a lot of people. Some of these are friends some are people I don't know well enough to consider friends, yet.

It isn't the people specifically that have frustrated me, it is the differing theology and hermeneutics. While wrestling with certain events and situations within our congregation, DH and I have found ourselves increasingly frustrated which makes us easily frustrated all the more by new circumstances that should be more easily tolerated.

This past week while I was looking through a forum that I frequent, I noticed a conversation about how to deal with those within a congregation who might be percieved as heritics. That caught my attention so I thought I'd read what these wise men (most of them are men and I consider most all of them there very wise) had to say on the subject. One man spoke of how it is okay within a body of believers to address the behavior of another believer but their theology is off limits. Their theology is between them and HaShem but their behavior while within the congregation is subject to correction by others (I prefer the leaders) in the congregation. Another man followed that up with a comparison between the handed down and inherited theology (or in some cases, the theology they are new to) and an ancient boundary stone. His point was that it is not for us, as fellow believers, to move their ancient boundary stones (theology). These were very wise and needed comments for me last week!

What I have gleaned from these wise men in their conversation was that while there are some within our congregation and in our lives who do not agree with our hermeneutics, that is okay. We need to be loving and patient with others who do not share the same views as we do. Where the correction needs to come is when their behavior is inappropriate. For example, if a believer stands up within the congregation and shares their understanding of a particular passage or subject, that is perfectly okay even if it does not line up with the majority of the hearers. To express your belief and understanding should never be disallowed within a body of believers. How else are we to learn and grow? We need opposing views in order to assess our own position. But when a believer begins to condemn another because they do not share the same interpretation of a passage or a subject, that is behavior that needs to be addressed. Or when a believer is having 'covert' conversations with others about the understanding of another believer, that needs to be addressed. These things need not be done in secret.

I don't know if there are any others out there who deal with these kinds of subjects in their lives but this has been a constant source of headache and frustration in our home for months now. And of course, as each week goes by more straw is heaped upon the back of the camel and last week (2 Shabbats ago) was the last straw. I lost my patience and needed some serious "cooling off" time. The constant prayer that day was, "Father, am I upset because they don't believe like I do and I am proud enough to think that I am right and they are wrong? All of these issues are really bothering me and there doesn't seem to be very many here who see things like we do. What am I to do? Do I say something? Do I let it go? I need help not to be so irritated with these people because I know that one who conceals an offence promotes love and that love forgives a multitude of sins. You are Love and I want to wear Your Name properly, so please help me."

So finding this gem of an understanding within this message was a true blessing this past week. I thought I'd share it, just because. It might be helpful to someone else.

Blessings!

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Sunday, February 11, 2007

An Attitude of Dishonor and Disrespect

Posted in Working Out My Salvation With Fear and Trembling

An attitude of dishonor and disrespect. This is a serious pet peeve of mine!

I have something stuck in my craw and feel a need to share it with you all. I hope you don’t mind. But if you do, you don’t have to continue reading. LOL

Years ago we used to be complimented often with things like “Oh, your children are so polite!” and “Thank you for having respectful children. I had lost hope years ago that children anywhere were being taught respect and manners.” Usually these comments were preceded by our boys holding a door for someone while we were going into church or a store or the children stepping aside to allow an adult to pass by, or something seemingly small and inconsequential. I vividly remember a gentleman almost in tears when we were at a buffet style restaurant when he saw our family pray together before we ate. I was shocked and disappointed that our simple table manners, respect for G-d, and general mannerism would be so impressive. I am sure that many of you who read my blog have had similar experiences. Over the years we’ve continued to receive comments and I have thanked them for their nice comments while inside being seriously disappointed in our society.

Why aren’t children being taught simple respect and honor? Was my generation not taught? I was. Was my parent’s generation not taught? I find that hard to believe. A shocking statement made my a relative (married into the family) at one point was something along these lines “We weren’t taught that just because someone was older than us that we should treat them differently. We were taught to treat everyone the same.” What? This comes from a “pastors” family. Have they not read the Bible?

Let me give some examples. When a child is in school they are expected to call the teacher Mr., Mrs., Miss, or Ms. When you encounter a police officer you call him or her “Officer --”, a judge is “You honor”, a physician is “Dr”. Why do we do this? It is out of respect and acknowledgment of their position. They are not our peers in those situations, they hold authority. And what are we to do with authority? We are to respect authority, like it or not. Is that not a Biblical concept too?

Our children have all been taught that adults are to be referred to as Mr. and Mrs. Often times the recipient of these titles is uncomfortable with their title. “That’s my mother-in-law’s name! Please don’t call me that.” But our children are to respect their elders and understand that they are not their peers, that adults have a degree of authority over them. DH or I will explain that it is a title of respect and that they are not peers of my children so they are to be referred to in a respectful manner. Generally the other adult concedes but sometimes they flat out tell us no, to which I flat out tell them, “They are my children and will obey what we teach them. You may teach your children whatever you like. Ours will respect and honor you.” Yes, it bothers me to have children refer to me by my first name. But I can’t fault the kids for that, they’ve not been taught what my kids have been. In all honesty there are only a few families that we know and associate with that have a similar standard as we do.

Recently a few of our kids have requested that certain people not come to our house for dinner again until they, and I quote one of our daughters, “learn some manners and how to use them”. This is a friend of our daughter. Another incident is where a wife is constantly making rude comments about her husband in public settings and in front of him. One son turned to a daughter and told her, “If that was my wife, I’d divorce her!” He was so insulted and offended by this wifes lack of respect for her husband that he couldn’t think of any other way to describe how insulted he felt for this man. We will continue to have friends over and have talked about how not everyone has the same standards we do - and that is their own family decision. We need to be tolerant of others when they are different from us. Sometimes it’s hard though. It’s hard to be the “different” ones. But I can’t think of very many areas in our lives where we aren’t different than most. Even still, we are not perfect and our family standard isn't as high as some others. We can fall into disrespectful habits and dishonor one another at times. We are faulty and surely are not perfect. But how is it that our family standard is still seeming to be so much higher than others?

What does this matter? Really, impolite and rude children (and adults) are everywhere. They have no general manners, no respect for adults or authority, and no concept of how disrespectful they are. So what?

Know where I start to loose my patience? When people do not understand the concept or respect or honor treat my G-d in such a way that I consider disrespectful. I wrote the other day about the Name of G-d and touched lightly on what it means to me, after spending a few weeks studying it out and trying to draw my own line in the sand as to what I believe and where I stand. When I am in a group of people who treat my G-d as if He is a genie in a bottle or some common man, I get offended. When they treat Him as if He is some common thing or speak of Him with no reverence, I get irritated. Never mind wearing His Name (reputation) in such a way as to deplete His glory and honor. That is when I start to loose my patience.

When one is approaching an earthly king or president, is there not protocol to follow? Is there not respect to be shown to that individual - even if you don’t particularly like some of the things they do? What would happen if you approached an earthly king and flippantly approached him and said, “Hey George”? You could expect that guards would be all over you if the king himself didn’t have you taken away immediately. How would you enter his presence then? You would be reverent. You would be prepared for the meeting. You would acknowledge his greatness and refer to him by his proper title. And after his taking time to speak with you, you would be grateful and thank him. Is it too much to ask that we treat the King of Kings in such a way?

Yes, I have to admit that the past few months I have swallowed my insult on a regular basis around certain people because, as Proverbs says, “He who conceals an offense promotes love” and “A friend loves at all times”. I have overlooked these sometimes seemingly small offenses for the sake of friendship, but my fuse is much shorter recently. And since I’ve spent time searching and understanding His Name and reputation more, I find myself seemingly more intolerant of those who have little respect and honor for the G-d of Heaven, the Creator of the Universe. I am struggling with people whose children have no concept of manners or respect for others and translate those behaviors to their treatment of G-d Most High. I am deeply insulted that others would treat MY G-d so irreverantly.

So I write this for two reasons - one is that I need to get over myself a little and by thinking through the process I am better able to do that. I don’t just think though, I have to process and work my fingers (sometimes it’s my mouth). The second reason is that I am sure I am not alone in this. Does anyone else see a need for respect in society and how the severe lack of respect and honor translate to how some people understand and treat G-d? Does it insult anyone else?

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Friday, February 9, 2007

G-d and His Reputation

Posted in Working Out My Salvation With Fear and Trembling

After spending some time in deep thought over the Name of G-d and all it entails, I thought I'd write a quick message about what I've been understanding. Remember, this is how I process things in my own head and my own life. I'm not writing to 'convict' anyone or tell anyone what to do. I'm writing to put things together for my own self and in my own life. (how'd ya like that disclaimer? LOL)

G-d's Name - what is His Name anyway? Some say it's Yod-Hey-Vav-Hey, others say there are about 70 different names by which He is known or called. (note - 70 ring a bell? 70 nations? 70 offerings?) But what does it mean to call on His Name? How do we do that if there's so many and we don't speak Hebrew? How do we do that if the pronounciation of The Name is lost? Oh what is a person to do!

First we need to look at "Name" in the Hebrew mindset and understanding. We have an understanding of a name and we tend to jump to that understanding when we read passages that talk about His Name. For example, my name is Lisa. When someone calls on my name, they say "Lisa". Or my kids will call me "Mom". That's what we think of when we read some particular Scripture verses. But is that what the Hebrew mind is thinking when the Scriptures are being written and read "in the old days"? I don't think so.

There is another understanding of "name" that we have but it's not what we tend to think of at first. When one says, "I'm going to make a name for myself" they are meaning a reputation, they want to be known by their reputation. This is more like the Hebrew understanding of what "name" means. In Hebrew the name of a person says a lot about that person. Their name can tend to speak of their character, their nature, their occupation, or even the circumstances of their birth or where their parents where at the time of their birth.

So what does G-d say His Name is? In Exodus 3:14-15 He says this: God said to Moshe, "Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh [I am/will be what I am/will be]," and added, "Here is what to say to the people of Isra'el: 'Ehyeh [I am or I will be] has sent me to you.'" G-d said further to Moshe, "Say this to the people of Isra'el: 'Yud-Heh-Vav-Heh, the G-d of your fathers, the G-d of Avraham, the G-d of Yitz'chak and the G-d of Ya'akov, has sent me to you.' This is my name forever; this is how I am to be remembered generation after generation. So He tells us two somewhat proper names and a LOT about His character. He tells us that He is consant, has always been and always will be, He does not change. Then He tells us that He is the G-d of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He says that He is to be remembered in this way forever. How was He known to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob? He was known as the G-d Who keeps the covenant. Up till this time the relationship between Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Israel) has everything to do with covenant. Yes there were times when He was a personal kind of G-d but His steadfastness and greatness was revealed in His covenant. His reputation was that of a covenant keeping G-d who is holy and righteous.

But we see in Exodus that He is going to be known by something new now, something not previously understood or known by Israel. We see in Exodus 34:6-7 that He reveals Himself to Moshe this way: ADONAI passed before him and proclaimed: "YUD-HEH-VAV-HEH!! Yud-Heh-Vav-Heh (ADONAI) is G-d, merciful and compassionate, slow to anger, rich in grace and truth; showing grace to the thousandth generation, forgiving offenses, crimes and sins; yet not exonerating the guilty, but causing the negative effects of the parent' offenses to be experienced by their children and grandchildren, and even by the third and fourth generations." So we see the Yud-Heh-Vav-Heh again which is intended to remind us of the Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh [I am/will be what I am/will be] that preceeded this name in the previous Exodus passage. But rather than write about how He is known by name (for example, He says His name is Jealous, Holy, etc) I would like to think more about how He is known, by reputation.

At first He is known as the Creator of the Universe. Later He's also known as the Covenant Keeping G-d. Then He is known as the G-d of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This is one and the same G-d. It is known at this time that He is all powerful, holy, righteous, soverign, and mighty. We already know by this time that He is the G-d who sees all and knows all and hears all. But in Exodus He reveals Himself as the G-d Who brings Israel out from bondage, the G-d who hears and sees and then acts on behalf of His children. From the time of the exodus till now He is known as the G-d who brought the children of Israel out of Egypt by His mighty hand and outstreched arm. His Name is recorded in this way in many, many places in Scripture. This is His reputation, this is how He is to be known and remembered. This is Who He is. As a side note, in the past I have written G-d and have used various other forms for His Name. At this point in time I will be returning to G-d and the titles ADONAI and LORD out of respect and honor. I will use G-d (with the dash) out of respect and to show that the G-d I am referring to is the G-d of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob - THIS is the G-d I speak of. I will also use HaShem, meaning "The Name" as a title of reverence and honor.

Now, a quick note regarding the whole sacred name thing. I don't agree that knowing some sacred pronouncation of Yod-Heh-Vav-Heh is all that important. The thought that needing to pronounce His Name properly in order to be saved or that His Name will bring power if spoken correctly is akin to witchcraft and is NOT the purpose of His Name. His Name is holy and sacred - set apart. What is the opposite of holy? Common. To use His Name in casual conversation is unacceptable, in my opinion. That then makes His Name common and unholy. My experience with people who are caught up in the sacred name movement is that they have a tendency to be critical, harsh, and unloving. This is not what His Name (reputation) is about. To use the YHVH in private prayer is acceptable, in my opinion (which is always a work in progress, I am learning and growing), but everywhere else it must be regarded as special and sacred. As far as the Name of Yeshua - if Shaul didn't have a problem being known by his Greek name, Paul, then why would the Master? It was most common in the "old days" for Hebrews to have a Hebrew name and a Greek name. Greek was, after all, the primary language in the world at the time. Linguistics shows us how we get from Yeshua to Jesus and there isn't any legitimate argument that can linguistically link Jesus to the name of any pagan god. I simply use Yeshua because in my own life, I have found that the person I knew as Jesus is vastly different than the Person I know as Yeshua. There is a significant difference between the Jesus I grew up with in flannel graph stories and the Yeshua I find in Scripture.

So, here's where I get on with my point. LOL If His Name is more about His reputation than a certain pronouncation or title, then what does that mean for us today? As children of G-d we wear His Name. We walk around wearing His reputation. Exodus 34:14 tells us that ADONAI - whose very name is Jealous - is a jealous G-d. What is He jealous of? He is jealous of His children and His reputation. He tells us in Exodus 20:5-7 (the 10 Commandments, mind you) that He is a jealous G-d who punishes the children for the sins of the fathers, like He said earlier in Exodus, but that He will show grace to the thousandth generation of those who love Him and obey His commands. He then goes on to say that we are not to use His Name lightly because those who do will not go unpunished. He is jealous of our loyalty and His reputation, His Name. When we walk around saying we are His children and act in ways that go against His character and His Name, we wear His Name in vain - dragging Him and His Name through the mud. This is simply not acceptable. We are to live according to His design, we are to become like Him in how we treat others, we are to acknowledge Who He Is and worship Him. We are to strive to be a holy people because He is holy. Of course we cannot be sinless, but we can live striving for righteousness and holiness.

I sometimes have this particular vision: Something happens to me that makes me stop short and take notice. I look in front of me and see that He is not before me. Something has happened and I have rushed ahead and now My Master is behind me. How is it that I am leading? But look! My Master, My Savior, is bound and gagged and lying in the mud! Who would do such a thing!! Then I realize that the other end of rope He is bound with is in my hand. I have, by my choices, confined Him and tried to keep Him quiet and then I took off running. His pace for me wasn't to run but to walk in His footsteps. Yet I have run ahead and gotten off the path and He has suffered for it. He is now dirty, bruised and confined. What can I do?!? I am so ashamed. All I can do is unbind Him, unstop His mouth, wash His feet and tend to His bruises (that I have caused!). All I can do is ask humbly for forgiveness and be still until He begins to walk again. This time I follow. Do you know how often I need to check myself to make sure that I am following and not dragging Him through the mud again? Do you know how easy it is for me, personally, to knock Him back down and drag Him for miles without even thinking? Oh, how wretched I am!

I wear His Name. He is the Creator of the Universe, the All-Powerful King of Heaven, the Covenant Keeping G-d, the Savior of Israel. I have chosen to come under His headship and through my faith in the Messiah, I am grafted into the lineage of Abraham. I am an adopted child of the King. Who am I that He would take notice of me?!? How blessed I am!

Now with that said, here is something else. Because of this, I choose to accept the terms of the covenant He made with Israel at Mt. Sinai. I choose to agree to the conditions of the ketubah (marriage contract). I do not want to be a rebellious bride of the Messiah or child of the King. What are those terms and conditions? They are written in the Torah. They are known as "the law". I choose to adhere to these commandments and teachings out of my love for my King and my Master, my Father. Do I earn anything? Heavens NO! My obedience is not for my benefit but for His glory, because I love Him.! If I benefit from it, then that is an added blessing. But that is not my motivation. My motivation is to wear His Name in such a way as to bring Him glory, praise, honor, and joy.

You see, Yeshua came in the Name of the Father. He came in the Father's authority and to represent His reputation. Why G-d, the Creator King, would allow Himself to come to earth as a lowly human and suffer for the sins of man as the Perfect Sacrifice is beyond comprehension. Why He would choose to send part of His unity, His oneness, to us and make a way of Salvation I simply cannot understand. It is one of the greatest mysteries! The only way I can understand this is love. He is Love. Who am I, that you should be mindful of me? But oh, how blessed I am! Blessed indeed! Yeshua's very name means "G-d is my salvation". When we call on the Name of Yeshua, we are calling to the very G-d of Heaven in the Name that recognizes "G-d is my Salvation".

I long for the day when everything that has breath, when all of creation, praises and blesses the Name of G-d. I wait for the day when every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Yeshua the Messiah is G-d. Come quickly, LORD...

May you, whoever you are who is reading this

, have a blessed Sabbath and may you wear His Name with dignity and bring Him joy!

Shabbat Shalom!

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Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Phew! Healthy Twins

Posted in Working Out My Salvation With Fear and Trembling

The next ewe lambed successfully this morning - twins. Eliezer and Miriam are thrilled and entirely relieved! Now there's just one more ewe to lamb and she's got a way to go - maybe a month or so. After the last lambing day - 5 days ago - and all the trauma and heartache that went along with that, I thought I'd post a quick note. ONE success!

*update - pictures!* (HSB isn't liking them right now, I guess)

This is Theresa with her new twins.

This is the 5 day old ram lamb meeting one of the new lambs this morning. You can see a Mama looking on - making sure that they play nice.

Blessings~

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Tuesday, January 30, 2007

The Didache

Posted in Book Reviews

AcceptanceWithJoy, a dear friend, reminded me of a treasure that I came across about a year ago. I'm going to give the links to these documents and articles, so please take the time to look at them - they are quite worth it!

First there's the Didache itself. This is a writing that is attributed to the teachings of the apostles. The Early Christian Writings site says this: "It bears no date itself, nor does it make reference to any datable external event, yet the picture of the Church which it presents could only be described as primitive, reaching back to the very earliest stages of the Church's order and practice in a way which largely agrees with the picture presented by the NT, while at the same time posing questions for many traditional interpretations of this first period of the Church's life."

It is a quick read that is worth the time to digest. Of special interest to me tonight upon re-reading it was the backward quote of the teaching of Rabbi Hillel, "Whatever you do not wish to happen to you, do not do to another." It is striking how it, along with the rest of Scripture, admonishes believers to train up their children: "Do not remove your hand from yoru son or daughter; rather, teach them the fear of God from their youth." Speaking of the way of life vs. the way of death and how to discern a false teacher, and even the admonition to pray "the Lord's Prayer" three times daily. Rather than list everything that I find interesting to be in an "early church" document, I think I'll stop and let you look for yourself.

As for writings about the Didache, here are some interesting articles to go along with the Didache itself. These are from a variety of sources, to give a variety of input. I'm curious what others think...
What The Teaching Can Teach Us
An Ancient Jewish-Christian Eucharistic Prayer
The Didache from Wikipedia

This is a very good resource for those who would be studying the early years of the common era and the early church.

Blessings ~
Lisa

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Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Prayers and Blessings

Posted in Working Out My Salvation With Fear and Trembling

A bit ago someone asked me what blessings we use to bless the children on Shabbat. And another person recently askes me what prayers we use at meal time. I thought it might be fun to post them and see what others do.

Upon rising in the morning and laying back down in the evening, most of us say the Shema. Here is what we have printed above our doors and what we say as we lug ourselves out of bed most morinings and fall back into it most evenings: (I have to admit that sometimes I fall asleep while meditating on these words so I often don't finish the Shema in full...)

"Hear and obey, O Israel,the LORD (YHVH) is our G-d. The LORD (YHVH) is Unity. And you shall love the LORD (YHVH) your G-d with all your heart, all your soul, and with all of your resources."
“And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart; you are to teach them carefully to your children. You are to talk about them when you sit at home, when you are traveling on the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them on your hand as a sign, put them at the front of a headband around your forehead. Write them on the door-frames of your house and on your gates.”

Or an alternate rendering for some:

Sh'ma Yisrael ADONAI (YHVH) Elohaynu ADONAI (YHVH) Echad.
Hear and obey, Israel, the LORD (YHVH) is our God, the LORD (YHVH) is Unity.

Barukh Shem k'vod malkhuto l'olam va-ed
Blessed be the Name of His glorious kingdom for ever and ever

V-ahavta et ADONAI (YHVH) Elohecha b-chol l'vavcha u-v-chol naf'sh'cha
u-v-chol m'odecha.
And you shall love the LORD (YHVH) your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.

At meal time we pray this before eating together:

Blessing God for our Bread
Baruch atta ADONAI Eloheynu melech ha-olam ha-motzi lechem min ha-aretz.
Blessed are You, LORD, our God, King of the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth.

(side note - did you notice lechem - bread? As in beit lechem - the house of bread. You may recognize this as Bethlehem. Who was brought forth from the house of bread? Who was brought forth from the earth by His resurrection? Who called Himself the Bread?)

Blessing God for our Fruit
Baruch atta ADONAI, Eloheinu melech ha-olam, borei p'ri ha-gafen.
Blessed are You, LORD our God, King of the universe, who brings forth fruit from the vine.

(side note - I read the other day that wine is most often used in Scripture to refer to joy and gladness. We have used this prayer even when we have no fruit or juice at our meal because we take them together to refer to all our food in general.)

Our family prays "HaMazon", the traditional prayer after a meal, after we eat. It is from this passage that the command to thank the Almighty after eating comes.

Blessed are You, LORD our God, King of the Universe, Who nourishes the whole world with His goodness, with favor, loving-kindness and compassion. He gives food to all flesh because His loving-kindness endures forever. And through His great goodness we have never wanted for food, nor shall we ever want for it, for His great Name's sake. For He feeds and sustains all beings, does good to all and prepares food for all His creatures which He has created. Blessed are You, LORD our God, Who gives food to all.

For all this, O LORD our God, we thank You and bless You; blessed be your Name by the mouth of all living things constantly and forever, even as it is written, "When you have eaten and are satisfied, you shall bless God, your God, for the good land which He has given you." Blessed are You, LORD our God, for the land and for the food.

Then there's the Sabbath blessings for the children every Friday evening. DH blesses the children with this:

May the LORD protect and defend you. May He always keep you from harm. May the spirit of G-d rest upon you with a spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of counsel and heroism, a spirit of knowledge and fear of G-d.

My Boys:
May you be like Efrayim and Manassah: Fruitful for Y’shua’s kingdom, and forgetful of the hard things of life. May He make you good husbands and fathers with wives and children who love and respect you. May you teach your children the Word of the LORD that they may teach their children. May you be devoted leaders like Daniel and Joshua, and devoted followers like Peter and Paul.

My Girls:
May you be like Abigail and Esther. May you bring joy to the Father and shining stars for Y’shua’s kingdom. May He make you good wives and mothers with husbands and children who love and bless you. May you be the keepers of your homes and the teachers of the Word of the LORD to your children that they may teach their children. May you be devoted like Sarah and Ruth, Martha and Mary.

May YHVH bless you and keep you. May YHVH make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. May YHVH lift up His countenance upon you and give you His shalom.

Amen

DH has been working on a regular blessing for me but it is different each week as he works out the kinks and gets it to where he wants it. I am not privy to a copy of his 'work' just yet. LOL

Now it's time for me to go study Psalm 145 to 150 and begin my morining prayer routine. This has been a pivitol part of our day in recent months. I know that others are being led in the same direction, we we've talked about these things. :) I'd be interested to hear more about what you're all doing with your families.

Blessings
Lisa

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Friday, January 26, 2007

HaShem's Commandos

Posted in Working Out My Salvation With Fear and Trembling

There is a site I really enjoy, called Lazer Beams A while ago Rabbi Lazer posted this entry and it has been on my mind a lot today. So I thought I'd share part of it. The link above will take you to the site in general and the link in the title below will take you to the article in full.

HaShem's Commandos

Dear Rabbi Lazer,

I've been a Baal Tshuva for 3 years now. I didn't make tshuva because of a trauma or anything, but because I became firmly committed to the Torah and its timeless truth. Yet, ever since I made tshuva, my life keeps getting harder: I lost my job (6-figure plus salary that required working on Shabbat), my wife has had a miscarriage, and both my parents and inlaws are against me. We moved to a religious neighborhood, and the neighbors are suspicious and standoffish. Why is my life so difficult? Hashem doesn't give me a rest - one test leads to another. I feel like He's displeased with me and I'm about to crack. Please give me some urgent advice and/or encouragement.
With appreciation, Menachem from USA

Dear Menachem,

Imagine that you get thrown out of bed at 3:30 AM by a drill instructor with the growl of a Doberman. With one eye open, you get loaded up with equipment on your back that weighs almost as much as you do, and then get sent up in a C-130 to an elevation of a couple thousand feet over the cold wintry ocean in early March. The side door of the plane opens, and another sergeant kicks you in the seat of your pants. Before you know it, you're in limbo on your way down to the chilling waters in a parachute. You smack the water and you're sure your heart will stop beating. Here's where the "fun" starts - now you have to cut loose from your chute and swim six miles back to shore...

Grueling? That's the morning routine of a naval commando in training. The commanders make him suffer, for that strengthens him. Sure, his life is excruciating, with test after test, but he's the most respected and well-loved soldier in the armed forces. He's the one that will be called upon to perform all types of missions behind enemy lines, for he's the one that has the best chance of success. The commanders are confidant that he'll make it back to base.

Baalei Tshuva are Hashem's commandos and very favorite sons. Hashem puts them through grueling tests because He knows they are capable of tremendous achievement. Hashem throws them behind enemy lines - in Texas, Colorado, Oregon, Alabama, Australia, Kibbutz Degania or Hong Kong, for he knows that they'll find their way back to Torah. Hashem tests their faith every single day. Hashem puts them through tribulations that would break another person's back. Why? He gives them the strength and potential to cope. You are one of them.

King David says (Psalms 11:5), "Hashem tests the righteous." He gives difficulties, trials and tribulations to those that He loves, for their ultimate benefit. The tough training builds the best commandos. Hold on, Menachem - the more you develop your faith, the more you'll realize that your difficulties are not only for your very best, but they also help atone for all of Israel and thus hasten the full redemption of our people. You have my guarantee that you are one of Hashem's commandos and favorite sons.

The thought that I may be experiencing what Rabbi Lazer speaks of here is encouraging to me. I hate it, but I'm willing to accept what is given if it means it's growing in me good things and strengthening me (though I really don't want to know what might require this kind of strength). There are more things going on than what I've written about concerning yesterday, but that was enough. Honestly, I'm tired of the constant "never catching a break". I've been listening to some old CD's lately - mostly Chris Rice and Rich Mullins. I like in one of the Chris Rice songs how he says in Naive "I believe You hold an exclamation point for every question mark." And One of Those Days was constantly going through my mind yesterday. *sigh*

Shabbat Shalom and may you all be blessed abundantly.

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