Category Archives: Celebrations

Celebrations, Salvation

Remembering

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We are remembering Veterans today; as well we should.
Many lives have been given; much blood has been spilled and, we are deeply saddened.

And while we look to mortal men and women who have given blood for temporary freedom, let us look to the ONE who gave His Blood that we may have Eternal Freedom.

And YESHUA said:

11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 

14 I am the good shepherd; I know my own, and my own know me — 15 just as the Father knows me, and I know the Father — and I lay down my life on behalf of the sheep. 

17 “This is why the Father loves me: because I lay down my life — in order to take it up again! 18 No one takes it away from me; on the contrary, I lay it down of my own free will. I have the power to lay it down, and I have the power to take it up again. This is what my Father commanded me to do.”  John 10 [source]

Luke 4:17-19

17 And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written,

18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor.
He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives,
And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set free those who are oppressed,
19To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.” [source]


Thank You, ADONAI YESHUA, for eternal freedom, for eternal liberty; ONLY You could set us the captives eternally free and You did. Just words are not enough to say thank You. And thank You for men and women who loved freedom so much that they would lay aside their own lives. Help us celebrate today with gratitude, peace, praise, honor, and dignity for them and most highly for You, LORD JESUS.

Kathie

Assurance - Promise, Celebrations

Celebratory

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Reflecting I think my family has not been celebratory people. Each day was in good part esteemed as any other day. Of course, Christmas Day there was a gathering for special foods and gift giving; Thanksgiving – turkey and dressing, green beans, cranberry sauce, for starters and perhaps a ham too; Easter – chicken and dressing and again perhaps a ham; birthdays would come and go with hardly a notice; Sunday was Sunday School, preaching, lunch, a nap or a ride in the truck, back to church for Training Union, preaching, home for roast beef sandwiches with mustard and Bonanza.  (Word on Google is that Bonanza aired for the first two years on Saturday night then moved to Sunday nights.)  Such ramblings this morning to get to my point.

I don’t recall us being a celebratory people as to certain days being high occasions. I’m not so sure that was good but I’ll not proceed too far down that road with you today.  What is done is done. What is to come can be anything we enlist ABBA’s help to make it.  The fact is ABBA is celebratory.  Want proof? How many Feasts – Festivals a year did He give to His people as HIS FEASTS?  Seven.  That’s a lot of celebrating.  And there are reasons. One: family. Celebrating with family is designed to promote love and harmony. The trouble is celebrating without GOD often brings disharmony and even hatefulness in families.  That is not ABBA’s will. Celebrating according to His Feasts fixes our hearts on His Messiah to the world –  we call Him JESUS. Some call Him YESHUA.

Passover

Unleavened Bread

Firstfruits

Pentecost

Feasts of Trumpets

Day of Atonement

Feasts of Tabernacles

[source]

But celebrating is not limited only to His Feasts.  Look at a portion of Psalm 47 with me. I read every day celebrating! Do you?

(1) Clap your hands, all you peoples!
Shout to God with cries of joy!
3 (2) For Adonai ‘Elyon is awesome,
a great king over all the earth.

[source]

And further into the Psalm we read:

(6) Sing praises to God, sing praises!
Sing praises to our king, sing praises!
8 (7) For God is king of all the earth;
sing praises in a maskil.

[source]

For GOD is king of all the earth! Amen and amen. I can celebrate that! Not only can I celebrate, I can rest, be glad and KNOW I am secure since HE is KING!

Let the celebrating begin!!

Thank You ABBA. Teach me to be celebratory. Teach me to lead others to be celebratory. To celebrate You and what You have done for us and who You are making us to be in CHRIST JESUS. Thank You. I am remembering people in my heart today with doctor visits and petitions that You heal them of cancer; another grieving the loss of a beloved husband – she misses him so much; a parent with an estranged child – the hurt is so deep, we pray for reconciliation; and there are many more and Readers who come here, come with petitions of their own and so we collectively and individually bring our requests with our praise and we thank You in advance for Your Perfect answers in perfect time. Amen and amen.
Kathie

Celebrations, Christian Living, Forgiveness, Repentance, Salvation, Something Jewish

Humor Me with a Honey Cake

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Perhaps you will humor me today; or perhaps by post’s end you will have adopted an appreciation for an uncommon to us Observance.

Yom Kippur, also referred to as The Day of Atonement, begins at 6:00 pm tonight.  I can think of nothing we need more than to be reminded of our need for Atonement.  As I said, humor me.

[source] (I encourage you to read the article in its entirety from which I took this paragraph.):

Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement) is one of two Jewish High Holy Days. The first High Holy Day is Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year). Yom Kippur falls ten days after Rosh Hashanah on the 10th of Tishrei, which is a Hebrew month that correlates with September-October on the secular calendar. The purpose of Yom Kippur is to bring about reconciliation between people and between individuals and God.

Reconciliation between people to people and individuals to GOD. Can you think of anything needed more? Neither can I!

And if you want a more ‘religious’ view of Yom Kipper, I invite you to the Bible Gateway Blog. There you will read in part:

While most Christians today don’t observe the Day of Atonement, it remains significant because, like many events and ordinances in the Old Testament, it foreshadows the redeeming work of Jesus Christ.

The Day of Atonement was an annual reminder of God’s grace and of man’s need for forgiveness. Reading it in the light of the New Testament, seeing it also as a signpost pointing ahead to Christ, lends it even more significance. With the sacrifice of Easter well behind us and the promise of Christmas still months away, Yom Kippur is a good opportunity for Christians to reflect on the atonement God offers to us through Jesus Christ.

Am I advocating a 25 hour fast beginning this early evening? Not necessarily. But I am advocating that we who are Christians would be blessed to commemorate Yom Kippur with reverence, with something out of the ordinary to call attention to JESUS our Savior, our ATONEMENT; to carefully, lovingly and with cheerfulness bring JESUS to the minds of our family and friends; to pray aloud together as a family; to read the Scripture together detailing this most Holy Observance. Something to honor JESUS and represent to our families that HE is our Atonement and we are indeed grateful!!

Another tradition I just learned about today that I wish I had known earlier – I would so like to do a modified rendition of this Observance. I’d have to get it prepared and delivered before 6:00 pm tonight. It is the baking of Lekach (Honey Cake) and giving it to your family as a symbol and a reminder of God’s SWEET provisions for His people in the coming year.  Read more HERE.

I even have some links for recipes. I hope you will read and enjoy. Perhaps even bake a honey cake for your family today.

Rosh Hashanah Recipes

Honey Cake for Rosh Hashanah

Easy to make Honey Cake

 11 And not only that, but we shall also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement. [source]

ABBA, thank You. Thank You LORD YESHUA for becoming our Atonement. Thank You HOLY SPIRIT for quickening this Revelation of Salvation to us and thank You for allowing me to hear and learn of this rich and blessed and wonderful Observance and not just this one but all of them. Thank You for blessed and holy traditions. And help me as a Christian, non-Jewish by birth, but at my re-birth coming into the family of Abraham to give You and Your Feasts reverence and honor.  I suspect I am not saying that just right but You know what I mean; I have said it so many times, I mean to me being a Messiah Jew would be the best of both. So thank You for allowing me to learn and thank You for increasing my AWE of You; for You are indeed AWESOME; smarter, wiser, more wonderful and glorious than I have yet to see and experience. But I am learning and I am so grateful. Thank You LORD.

Kathie