AN APPLE A DAY - SHARING YOUR CONVICTIONS WITH OTHERS

DAY 113 OF 365 DAYS TO A HEALTHIER LIFESTYLE

 THE JOY OF SHARING YOUR CONVICTIONS WITH OTHERS

(Written by Sheila Gail Landgraf)

Have you discovered the healing quality of sharing yet?  Try it; you will love it!  Sharing is the gift that always comes back to you.  Share something that you are passionate about that is beneficial to others and the odd thing that happens is the sharing actually gives you a sense of wholeness and usefulness. That has to be healing in many ways. Yet another way to improve our lives and keep them healthy is to share what we have learned with those that we know and love.  

Does that sound hard to you? 

It all really depends on how you go about it. 

It isn't easy if you just blurt out all you know and walk off to let someone try to digest what you just said to them. That might leave people shaking their heads and wondering how sane you are!  Still, there are more appropriate ways which are pleasant and fun to make this happen. You just have to think about how you want to share and add a little creativity.

There are so many ways to share the good news that your body is the temple of God and the fact that we should enjoy the knowledge of keeping our temples holy and honorable for the glory of God.  

I have chosen to blog my comments and ideas and discoveries.  That is my choice of a way to share.  All of us are different.  You may choose a different form of art to share with the world.  You could use painting or drawing or singing about the things that you have discovered in relation to health and nutrition.  It isn't that difficult, and it is actually a lot of fun.  People who would never listen to a "sermon" or participate in a "discussion" or even a "conversation" about health will be glad to discover the hidden meaning behind a painting or a sketch, a dance, or a photograph, or a song, or a story, or a play.

One form of story that I have come to really appreciate and enjoy is the use of drama to make a point.  I've explored this avenue of the written word and the art of drama with a wonderful missions minded group of people called Christ To The World.  They provide and act out scripts that preach the gospel both in church gatherings and on radio around the world.   They use the art of drama as a mission tool and they help others learn to do the same.

Christ To The World’s main focus is evangelical; to bring people to the saving knowledge of Christ.  Sometimes though, people that are interested in a subject (take "health" for example)  come into the knowledge of God through what I call "the back door."   In other words, they gain knowledge about God as they explore the things in life that interest them.  

A person interested in good nutrition could naturally come to realize how awesome it is that God made foods a certain way and for certain purposes.  They would sooner or later come around to the fact that our bodies were meant to be nourished because they were made to give glory to God.  It is a wonderful way to discover God through everyday life.  That is what Christ To the World has done with many of their mini-dramas, and I have had the pleasure of writing some of them.

So if you are interested in sharing some of the things you have learned about health with others, one good way would be to use scripts on your subject and have a group act out the script for an audience.   Maybe that audience could be a club, a youth group, a bible study group, a church home group, a family gathering, a school group, or any group of people that would benefit from learning about God's way of eating and living a healthy life. You could write your own script and cover whatever subject is on your heart, or you could use scripts that are already written and published elsewhere.  

Just to get you started, I've included one of the scripts I wrote for Christ To the World (I have their permission to share it) that relates to this blog and the subject of nutrition. Feel free to use it with your group if you like.

If the script turns out to be successful for you in sharing the gospel and good nutrition; please remember to thank Christ To The World by sending them whatever donation you can afford to give, and keeping their work in your daily prayers.  You can mail any donations to Christ To The World at CTTW Ministries, P.O. Box 360, Judson, TX 75660-9989. They would love to hear of how you have used the script!

What a good way to share your health convictions without preaching a sermon or forcing your friends to follow you around to pick up your new habits! Drama really is a wonderful outlet and a great tool for sharing with the world.   

So here is a sample script for starters! I hope you enjoy reading it and using it, and I hope you will find it very helpful!

5 MINUTES WITH GOD

DRAMA

Theme:  Does God desire for us to be healthy and physically fit?

Description:  When we open the scriptures to read God’s Holy Word and we come to 1 Corinthians 6:19,  we are asked a question; and then given a very interesting fact;    “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of The Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?  You are not your own.” 

If we belong to God and our bodies are not our own (but they are houses for God’s Holy Spirit) how then should we be treating our physical bodies?  Our story today will deal with part of the answer to this question which is often asked by those seeking to further understand God’s will for their daily lives. 

Purpose:

(1)  To emphasize that God has given us good instructions in the bible for living a healthy life.

(2)  To encourage people to realize and respect the fact that God’s people’s bodies have become His modern-day temple.

(3)  To help others to see the practical benefits of following God’s dietary laws.

CHRIST TO THE WORLD MINISTRIES

Writer: Sheila Gail Landgraf                             Christ to the World Ministries

Editor:  Dr. Art Criscoe                                      Copyright © 2015

DIRECTORIAL INFORMATION

CAST OF CHARACTERS: (note voice quality required)

·        Each voice should be recognizably different than any other character.

          HOST:                                    Voice of a mature man.

          MOTHER:                     Voice of a thirty two year old woman.

          WILLIAM:                             Voice of a ten year old boy

         

Notes to translators:

·        Use names that are culturally appropriate.

·        When Scripture is used, the print is in italics, and it is the NIV (1984). Scripture references are given to aid the translators and should not be read as part of the script.

Director’s notes to readers:

·        These are audio dramas. The actions and emotions are in the words. Remember that the listener will only hear these words once. Speak distinctly with appropriate emotion. Carefully observe all punctuation (i.e., pause at commas, stop at periods, intensify at exclamation points, and give special emphasis to words in bold type.)

5 MINUTES WITH GOD

HEALTH AND FITNESS

(Music: Theme Music gradually fades to underscoring as host begins to speak.)

HOST: Welcome to 5 Minutes with God, brought to you by Christ to the World Ministries.

Long before Jesus came to walk this earth within a physical body just like ours; God was already teaching His people about the very best ways to live.  On one of the annual festival days that has now come to be called Pentecost; God descended upon the mountain and spoke with Moses face-to-face about things relating to this very subject.

Moses and God spoke for many days up on the mountain.  After God gave Moses the Ten Commandments; He also gave Moses further instructions to use for educating the people in the very best ways to live.  Part of those instructions became known as the dietary laws.  They are written down in the book of the Holy Scriptures we call Leviticus.  God’s people passed these instructions down from generation to generation and everyone who kept them faithfully honored God. 

It seems that these same dietary laws are also very important today; at least to the typical modern housewife and mother we meet in today’s story.  She has been faithfully honoring God by teaching all of God’s stories to her son.  Hopefully, he will grow up to pass them on to his children.  So let’s start this story out right:

Once upon a time there lived a ten year old boy named William who detested eating carrots; or any other vegetable for that matter.

MOTHER:  William you can’t leave the table until you finish eating your vegetables!  

WILLIAM:  Awwww Mom!  I hate vegetables, especially carrots!  There is just nothing good about carrots, and I don’t see why I have to always be eating them.

MOTHER:  Carrots help your eyes to see.  Well, that is funny!  Obviously you are not seeing EVERYTHING there is to see here.  I suppose you have never heard about what happened to Daniel?  If you had; you would not be making such a silly statement.

WILLIAM:  Daniel?  Who is Daniel?

MOTHER:  Daniel was a young man living in Jerusalem who got captured by The King of Babylon.  He was forced to grow up inside a prison far from his home and separated from his parents. He was one of many of God’s people brought over from Jerusalem and held captive in that far away land.

WILLIAM:  Oh, that must have been terrible for him!

MOTHER:  Well, it didn’t STAY terrible.  God was looking after Daniel.  The king decided to make use of the young captives for service in his royal courts. He appointed one of his top officials to pick out the best, most intelligent and most handsome young Hebrew captives and groom them for service in the palace.  Those who got picked were able to leave the prison, go to school under some of the top educators in the land.  They were also taught to speak the language of Babylon.  When they were well trained and ready, the King intended to pick the best-of-the-best for service in his royal palace. 

Life in the palace would have been highly preferred over life in prison.  Those men chosen would even get to eat from the King’s table every day.  They would have all that they wanted, and have it any time that they desired to eat.  The palace was always full of trays and trays of tasty goodies to nibble on in between meals; and three times a day a major feast was served with rich foods and lots of wine and many sugary flavored specially concocted drinks.  There were lots and lots of sweet decadent desserts at the end of every course. 

WILLIAM:  Alright!  Now that is what should be happening to me!  I would never eat vegetables again!  Every meal would be chocolate cake and ice cream. 

MOTHER:  Well, not Daniel!  He had been raised on God’s dietary laws for young Hebrews.  He did not wish to eat in that way!

WILLIAM:  Mom, I’ve never heard of God’s dietary laws.  I didn’t know God gave laws about what we should eat and drink.  Did God choose ice cream and cake too?

MOTHER: (Laughing)  No!  He chose all the things that I’m always teaching you to eat; like broccoli, celery, spinach, asparagus, beans, avocados, all kinds of lettuce and cabbage, almost everything green and then some squash, onions, garlic, tomatoes and many spices and lots and lots of carrots!  He recommends that we drink mostly clean pure water and lots of it.   There was no mention of chocolate cake and ice cream in the Hebrew’s diet plan, nor were there any cokes or soft-drinks allowed, especially not diet cokes, nor any of the other sweet sugary drinks you sometimes ask for.

WILLIAM:  Mom, I think you are just making this up to get me to eat my carrots…..aren’t you?

MOTHER:  Absolutely not William!  I would not do that.  What I am telling you about Daniel and the way God requested that the Hebrew people eat is absolutely true.  I promise.  It all really happened a long, long time ago.  Now, eat some of those carrots!

WILLIAM:  Okay, but I’ll bet Daniel didn’t eat carrots!

MOTHER:  Well if you listen to the rest of the story you will find out that Daniel requested just fruit, vegetables (which would include carrots) and water for his diet.  He did not want to eat all the other junk that was being served at the King’s table which the others were quickly gobbling down. 

WILLIAM:  Really?  How dumb!  Daniel must have been crazy.

MOTHER:  Actually, Daniel was very, very smart, William.  You could say he was one of the smartest men that ever lived.  When the King’s official picked Daniel and several of his closest Hebrew buddies to go to school and learn how to run the palace; the thing that the official noticed about Daniel that stood out above the others was how very smart he was, and how eager to learn he was.  The official just could not understand why he kept insisting on eating only fruits and vegetables and drinking only water; but everything else about Daniel seemed to be exceptional. The King’s Official favored Daniel because he liked him so much; and he found himself listening to what Daniel had to say.  After awhile the official tried to reason with Daniel. 

The King’s Official told Daniel, if he did not learn to eat the food from the pagan king’s table, he would never grow to be strong and healthy like the other men who had been chosen.  Daniel strongly disagreed with him, but instead of arguing with the king’s official, Daniel decided to persuade him another way.  Daniel convinced him to run a test.

WILLIAM:  A test?

MOTHER:  Yes.  Daniel asked the official to allow him and some of his friends to eat only fruit and vegetables and drink only water for the next ten days.  Then he asked the official to compare their health to the health of the others who were eating and drinking as the King and his court. 

WILLIAM:  Wow, I guess Daniel WAS pretty smart.  He figured out how to get his way when it didn’t seem to be possible; but I still don’t understand why he insisted on eating only fruits and vegetables and drinking only water.  Did God really tell the people to eat this way?

MOTHER:  William, God really gave His people dietary laws.  God wasn’t just trying to rule over them with a bunch of unnecessary rules; He was just loving them, the same as any good Father would do, by teaching them the best ways to live.  You know; all of the ten commandments actually do affect your health in some direct or indirect way; and there were many other instructions that God gave to Moses on that mountain which pertain to how we should be eating for good health. 

Someone; probably Daniel’s dear old Mother, had taught and trained Daniel well!  By keeping God’s dietary rules, Daniel was also honoring that commandment to honor his father and mother.  He was remembering the things that they had taught him about living God’s way, even though they were not physically there to remind him and to reinforce that he follow God’s ways.  Keeping all of these things in mind, Daniel was very wise to resist the temptations to eat the pagan king’s delicacies. 

WILLIAM: Mom, I want to know how the end of the story turned out.  What finally happened with Daniel?

MOTHER:  Well, the king’s official agreed to let Daniel and his friends perform the test.  All of the other men were fed from the King’s table and Daniel and his friends were given only fresh vegetables and fruit with pure clean water.  That was all they ate or drank for 10 days.  For Daniel and his friends it was just a healthy and normal way to live, but for us living in the modern world today, eating that way would amount to a complete body detox.  That is because in our modern day diets we eat so many things that are unhealthy and loaded with chemicals and sugar and unnatural food products.  Nothing is served simply the way God made it.  So, when we eat the way that Daniel and his friends did; our bodies get cleansed of all these unnatural toxins and our cells get renewed and become healthier, especially if we follow this plan for up to 10 days at a time.  William, you probably won’t hear about any of this on the local news or even read about it if you look up “diets” on the internet.  It isn’t any more popular today than it was in the days of Daniel.  Still, this is a plan that comes directly from God, one that His faithful people had learned to use to their benefit for good nutrition and health for a long time. 

WILLIAM:  So; I guess the test worked in Daniel’s favor?

MOTHER:  Oh, yes William!  Any time you do what God has recommended instead of following the crowd, it usually works in your favor!  Remember that!  At the end of the testing, the official of the king was shocked to learn that Daniel and his friends were a whole lot healthier and stronger than all of the other men who had been eating from the pagan king’s table. 

By eating from GOD’S TABLE of natural foods, Daniel and his friends had managed to keep their bodies healthier.  They had many more nutrients in their systems that were busy replenishing their cells every day.  By not snacking on the sugary sweets they had kept harmful chemicals out of their bodies, and they had remained disease free.  By limiting their food intake to three meals a day of only fruits, vegetables and pure water, they had improved the health of their bones and muscles much more than the men who had been eating the other food.  Those men had become chubby and lazy while Daniel and his friends had maintained high energy levels and stronger muscles with greater strength and they had a better mental attitude to boot. 

It was finally decided that Daniel and his friends could continue their food preferences throughout the rest of the program.  When it was all over; Daniel and his friends excelled far above all the other men.  The time came for the King to inspect all the men and chose who would get the top positions in the royal palace. Daniel and his three friends were picked first and given the top positions!  You know William; I tend to think it was ALL because their parents had listened to God and taught them how to eat for good health!  Now; eat your carrots!

WILLIAM:  (Laughing)  Okay Mom, okay.  I think I want a little more spinach too.  I’m going to give this “Daniel thing” a try!  I’ll make my own test.

MOTHER:  Would you mind if we prayed about that right now?

WILLIAM:  I think that might be the best way to start this test!

MOTHER:  Dear God, please guide William as he learns your best ways to live.  Teach him, as you taught Daniel; just what it takes to live a good, long, wise and godly life.  I thank You God for the blessing of my precious son!  Amen.

HOST:  William’s Mom smiled and dipped more spinach onto his plate.  It was the last time she ever had to remind him to eat his carrots.   William read that story about Daniel as well as the many other stories about Daniel that were written down in his bible.  He also read about God’s dietary laws for the Hebrew people and eventually he incorporated them into his own daily life.  

William grew into a fine young man and went on to serve, not in a palace, but in an important high government office.   Like Daniel, he developed great and wonderful friends from all parts of the world.  He loved each of them, listened to their stories and shared their ideas.  He was picked to be one of the land’s highest officials because of his great wisdom.  William lived a very long and healthy life because he continued to maintain good health by paying attention to God’s dietary laws.  

COME AS A CHILD LESSON 134 A TIME OF THIRST, TESTING AND QUARRELS

A TIME OF THIRST, TESTING AND QUARRELS

(Written by Sheila Gail Landgraf)

Exodus Chapter 17 only contains sixteen verses; but those few verses say so much!  

The first thought is the fact that the people of Israel had been traveling through the Wilderness of Sin and keeping the LORD’s commandments as they had promised.  All was well for a little while, then they came to Rephidim.  Once again they found themselves in a place with no water.  How quickly we forget our high and lofty spiritual thoughts and ambitions when our flesh suffers. 

As they became more and more thirsty, they forgot the ways of God and they forgot about all that had happened to them in Marah.  They had no drinkable water there either; but God had provided.  They did not chose to remember this and hold on to the hope of God providing again. 

The only thing the people remembered was how to complain to Moses!  They griped and complained on and on to Moses; saying that he had brought them out to the wilderness in order that they might die.  Moses reminded them that it was God that had brought them there, and asked why they were not calling out to God instead of complaining against him.  The people did not seem to be listening though, and Moses all alone once again had to be the one to cry out to God. 

Poor Moses.  As I read about this I wanted to play him that song called “Alone Again Naturally!”  I’m thinking of the lyrics that Gilbert O’Sullivan wrote and sang back in 1972.  They so fit the mood that Moses could have taken!  The lyrics of the first verse started out like this:

"In a little while from now if I’m not feeling any less sour, I promise myself to treat myself and visit a nearby tower, and climbing to the top will throw myself off in an effort to make it clear to whoever wants to know what it’s like when you’re shattered." (Gilbert O'Sullivan - 1972)

In the case of the song lyrics, a bride had left a groom at the altar.  That is sort of the same as here in our story.  The Bride of God (Israel) had totally forgotten the might and power of her groom.  She had turned her back to Him.  In her thirst and discomfort she forgot all about the wedding day she had dreamed of and delighted in at Elim.  

It happens all the time, not just in the days of Moses.  People in The Church of God today (those who have been saved and have God's spirit dwelling in them) often forget how to call on the Name of The LORD, especially if they are feeling discomfort or displeasure at the moment.  So they do not receive the blessings that God has in store for them.  They do not get the water from the rock!   Instead, they act like the Israelites who criticized Moses and they grumble and complain against their leaders.  Not every leader will be as humble as Moses in this story.

Why do the people always depend on their leaders to be the one to cry out to God?  We all have the power of God living within us.  We can cry out to God ourselves!  He is always listening to His people.  He is waiting right now; have you cried out?  The leaders of America have failed us completely; but that is no excuse for the people not to be crying out to God every day!  

Have you been crying out?  

Are you waiting on some magical moment when everything is perfect?  I hate to tell you; but you will never see that moment this side of heaven.  Our only hope is to look to God for our provision and live in expectation that He will save us; even if our leaders completely fail.

But that is how the story usually goes; the people forget to call upon God for help, and it was not any different in the day of Moses.  Moses, being the humble leader that he was, cried out to God and stated that the people were so put out with him that they wanted to stone him!  It was as if Moses were saying “Okay God, whether or not the people realize the facts, this whole thing was your idea; so please come on and help me out here!”

God heard Moses and told him exactly what to do.  He suggested that Moses gather up some elders from the people and grab the staff that he used to get them out of Egypt; that same staff that he used to part the Red Sea.  God instructed Moses to go stand before the people with the elders and the staff.  Then God said:  “Behold I shall stand there before you on the rock in Horeb and you shall strike the rock and water will come out of it, and the people will drink.”

So this is what Moses did before the eyes of Israel and all of the elders.  He took the staff and struck the rock and water flowed from the rock.  The thirsty people drank until they were satisfied.  The grumbling and complaining stopped for a moment as the people began to feel refreshed and Moses felt briefly relieved of the anxiety that comes from caring for thousands and thousands of people constantly.

As they were there drinking the pure healing waters from the rock; Moses named the place two names;  Massah (which means “testing”) and Meribah (which means “quarreling”) because of the quarrel of the children of Israel and because of their testing the LORD in that place.  Moses had stood right there and asked them the most relevant question of the day: “Is the LORD in our midst or not?”

The people had failed miserably by putting all their trust and faith in a man named Moses instead of God; but Moses had passed the test for good leadership; he humbly realized he had no power on his own and he called on the name of the God who had all power.  Many men would have let such false power and trust go to their heads and they would have relied on their own judgments and actions.  This time Moses passed the test.  He stayed humble.  He realized his own limitations.  Could he continue to do this as he kept leading these fickle people through the wilderness?

This incident is very similar to another incident that we will study later.  This was the FIRST time that God commanded Moses to bring water to the people from a rock.  The lack of water always seemed to be a test of faith.  It happened several times in the beginning of the time of the exodus.  Later in the study of the book of Numbers, reading about the times after the people of Israel have been wondering in the wilderness for a much longer time; we will hear of the SECOND time water came from a rock.  

The people of Israel were in two different places at two different times in history when the water came from the rock in the wilderness.  

It is important though to notice how Moses handled this FIRST time that the miracle happened.  This is so that when you get to the study of the SECOND time you will see the difference in Moses’ actions and attitude.  The first time Moses called on God, trusted in Him completely and humbly, listened and carefully followed God's instructions.  He pointed out to the people that all power and might and provision came from God alone.  This first time God was pleased with the actions of Moses.

The rock clearly represents Christ each time.  Jesus told us during the time He walked this earth that whoever is thirsty should come to Him!  John 7:38 - 39 speaks of Jesus as he talks on the last day of Sukkot (The Feast of Tabernacles), instructing the people; "On the last and greatest day of the feast, Jesus stood up and called out in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink.  To the one who believes in Me, it is just as the Scripture has said:  'Streams of living water' will flow from within him.  He was speaking about the Spirit, whom those who believe in Him were later to receive.  For the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet been glorified.  

Do you think the people listened to Jesus as He called out to them that day? Did Jesus experience the same frustration with the fickleness of the crowd as Moses?   Do you think that people are listening now?  How long and how much will it take?  Listening to God is very important.  He doesn't waste words.  Details matter.  

This FIRST time Moses was listening carefully to God and following his exact directions.  He did exactly what God said and his actions were humble and cautious.  He clearly realized all power comes from God.  When Moses struck the rock (as instructed by God the FIRST time this happened) provision for life was given to the people.  It was a great miracle!   There was a greater miracle though; the one this action shadows; that of God giving His Son, Jesus Christ, as a sacrifice for our sins.  This latter miracle is the greatest miracle of all.  

In both incidences; very undeserving people received refreshment and life in abundance.  At both times death was overcome by the power of God, and in this time we speak of today; Moses passed the test and the people failed the test, yet they were given mercy.  They had plentiful water from the rock.

What stands out to me is the fact that God was testing everyone; both the people and the leaders.  They had to endure thirst for a long time.  They needed to turn to God and ask Him for provision.  God was testing them to see if they knew from whence their life came.  God wanted them to always recognize Who He was among them.  He was the source of their strength and their provision, and they needed to learn to call upon Him when times of troubles came.  They needed to turn to Him in ALL times, both good and bad, and be grateful for His awesome provision and presence in their lives.  It is the same for all of us living in this modern world.

At some point, we all come to Meribah.  We all have those long, dry spells when it may feel like God has left us for awhile.  We forget to listen carefully.  We forget how He has already instructed us.  We have to become thirsty for Him and we have to call upon Him and ask Him to provide the nourishment that our souls desire.  In these times we cannot depend on our leaders; leaders often fail; they are all human, just as we are.  We must humble ourselves before God and call upon His name in such times.  He will lead us to that Rock that is faithful and true.  Jesus Christ will take our petitions before God, if we just trust Him with the task.  We must go to The Rock of Our Salvation.  He will heal those long, dry times of our spirits.   He will give us living water to drink!

We can see this in another story about a Samaritan woman who came to the well of Jacob seeking water.  Jesus spoke to her about many things, but one statement found is John 4:13 says:  "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst.  Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life."  

The Samaritan Woman was living in a whole different type of wilderness.  Jesus relieved her thirst by giving her living water!  

If the wilderness of life begins to overtake you; stay calm and call upon the LORD.  He is that pillar of cloud and that pillar of fire that hovers over us; just waiting on us to call out to Him.  He will not lead us in the wrong direction.  

Put your trust in the Rock of Christ and life, even in the wilderness, will always be abundant and blessed.

Come drink from the fountain that never runs dry; receive the living waters from the Everlasting Rock; Jesus Christ, and be satisfied and live forever.

SEASONS ELUL AND THE FALL FEAST DAYS OF 2016

(Written by Sheila Gail Landgraf)

We are now living in the time period of the Hebrew month of Elul.  It is the last month of the sacred year, just before the first month of Tishri when we celebrate The Fall Holy Days of God.  I am a Christian that wasn't born Jewish, yet I chose to  celebrate these Holy Days because I noticed in my bible that God called them HIS Holy Days.  He is my God.  I try my best to live like Him though I fail miserably; so I set aside and celebrate His days with Him.

Notice He doesn't say "the Holy Days of the Israelites" even though He was speaking to the Israelites when He first commanded that these days be kept.  He chose the Israelites to be the first people who laid out the patterns of days that He created for feast and festivals.  Through them, the rest of us may come to know the fullness of truth. 

The first people of God (the Israelites) were great at preserving history, and preserving

His-story.     Anyone following God earnestly may study these observances and keep this beautiful intricate pattern of times He has so precisely sketched out in the scriptures.  Read about the end times and you will come to agree that these days do not belong to a certain people or group; they simply belong to the God of the Israelites.  This is the same God that I worship as a Christian.  He loves everyone.  He is not stingy.  God loves everyone and provides a way for everyone who desires to come into His Kingdom.  Don't get this backwards.  It is about you coming to Him and His ways, not Him changing to fit into your little world.  I am speaking of His Holy Days, not MY days or the Christian's days, or the Jewish days, or the Israelites's days; but God's days.

God did chose the Jewish people as the people who would live out the original pattern and keep and tell His story to the world.  He honored them by letting His Son who chose to be born of flesh to save the world share in their heritage.  What an honor they have been given!   What a loving task they have undertaken to preserve the days.  I have so much respect for how faithful they have been through every generation to honor God with the knowledge they have been given.  Also, what a blessing for Christians to be able to look upon the lessons of these days kept through generations and generations and see the story of Jesus Christ in each season and day.    

When you read about these days you eventually begin to understand that the Hebraic people use many different types of calendars for many different reasons for dates in each passing year.  One calendar is for recording sacred times, another is for recording civil dates.  The number and name of the month you are in  depends on which calendar you are reading.  For instance, the seventh month and the first month are the same period of time on two different calendars when you refer to the scripture passages; one month named is simply the calendar for measuring civil days and one month named is simply the calendar for measuring sacred time.  Both speak of the same time and days in different numerical sequences that start and end at different places.  

Leviticus 23:2 says: Speak to the Israelites and say to them: 'These are my appointed festivals, the appointed festivals of the LORD, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies.


God goes on in this passage to name seven feast and/or festival days that He desires to be kept.  Four of these special times are in the spring and summer, those four are Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits, and Pentecost.  The other three days come in the Fall. 

Here are some of the scriptures that proclaim how we should keep these Fall Feast Days of God:  The times are calculated by the phases of the moon unlike the commonly used calendar which calculates time by the phases of the sun.

FOR ROSH HASHANAH/FEAST OF TRUMPETS: In 2016 - From sunset Sunday, October 2nd through sunset Tuesday, October 4th:


Leviticus 23:24:  "Say to the Israelites: 'On the first day of the seventh month (the first month if you are reading the sacred calendar) you are to have a day of sabbath rest, a sacred assembly commemorated with trumpet blasts.

FOR YOM KIPPER/DAY OF ATONEMENT: 2016 from sunset Tuesday, October 11 through sunset Wednesday, October 12th.

Leviticus 23:26-28:  The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, "On exactly the tenth day of this seventh month (it is the seventh month of the Hebraic civil calendar and the first month of the Hebraic sacred calendar) is the day of atonement; it shall be a holy convocation for you, and you shall humble your souls and present an offering by fire to the LORD.  Do not do any work on that day, because it is the Day of Atonement, when atonement is made for you before the LORD your God.

FOR SUKKOT/FEAST OF TABERNACLES: 2016 from sunset Sunday, October 16th through sunset Sunday, October 23rd, with the Great Last Day ( the eighth day) being on Monday, October 24th.  

Leviticus 23:33-37:  Again the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, 'On the fifteenth of this seventh month (the seventh civil month and the first sacred month) is the Feast of Booths for seven days to the LORD.  On the first day is a holy convocation; you shall do no laborious work of any kind.  For seven days you shall present an offering by fire to the LORD. On the eighth day you shall have a holy convocation and present an offering by fire to the LORD; it is an assembly. You shall do no laborious work.  For seven days present food offerings to the LORD, and on the eighth day hold a sacred assembly and present a food offering to the LORD. It is the closing special assembly; do no regular work.

The official names for these days are not mentioned in the passage above, but they have come to be called Rosh Hashanah (The Feast of Trumpets), Yom Kipper (The Day of Atonement) and Sukkot (The Feast of Tabernacles.) 

With Rosh Hashanah and the Days of Awe (the ten days leading up to Yom Kippur), we enter the new Hebrew month of Tishri, and we also enter a new year on the Hebraic sacred calendar.  Right now though, in Elul we are leading up to these very holy days.  It is a time of getting ready, a time to prepare, a time to think and meditate about the things in your life over the last year.  It is a time to be making amends with your fellow man and a time to be making repentance before God. It is a time for planning for both serious days and festive days to be spent with God.

You can't end a year properly in just one day.  Cleaning up the trail of sins of over a year takes a lot of time, meditation, thought, prayer, and asking forgiveness.  You've had a whole year to make mistakes, to sin, to offend your brothers and sisters.  It will take awhile to remember it all and confess it all. Yes, Jesus Christ has forgiven us for our sins, past, present and future, but He wants us to wash our feet from the journey.  He wants to hear the condition of our hearts as we go from one year of our lives unto the next.  He wants to atone our sins on The Day of Atonement and help us to stand before God lifting holy hands at The Feast of Tabernacles.  He has presented pattern of holy worship to be followed by showing us the feast days.

Of course you can go ahead and take care of this in YOUR OWN WAY and YOUR OWN

TIME every day of your life and keep short accounts with God.   That would be great, if we all were perfect, but honestly, have you done this?  I don't think many would be able to answer yes to that question.  You might have done SOME of it SOME of the time, but have you done a thorough job of it?  If you have, good, your a great exception to the rest of us sinners, but you MIGHT need to look into the subject of self-righteousness a bit.....  Even if you have done a perfect job of it, you still need to take time to stop and examine things GOD'S WAY in GOD'S TIME.  

During Elul we should all set the time aside to ponder and talk with God about where our lives are going and what God has in store for us in the future.  We should all learn to consider how we are living into that picture.  

Be especially sure to take this precious time to listen to God and consider what needs to change in your days.  If you simply take the time out to listen and pray you might be amazed at what you will hear God speaking to your heart.  Hebraic legend has it that God is walking the earth, searching out the hearts of those that He loves, watching, waiting on them to turn and return to Him and His ways. The scriptures speak of how He looks at each of us with loving eyes, because we are all beloved of Him.  He wants us to speak to Him.  He wants us to repent, to change, to turn, to see what is right and learn to follow those ways.  

Maybe you didn't intend to commit a certain sin, and maybe it is all a misunderstanding or a mistake, but you now have this whole month to consider the matter.  You can think it through.  You have time to reconsider what you COULD have done right and to examine the ways to do this right the next time in the year that is to come.  God is not looking to see that you are a perfectly oiled machine performing without missing a beat; No!  He is looking at your heart to see if it is willing to change for the good, to show love and compassion, to be willing to adjust for the good of the Kingdom.    Isn't that great?  

We have all of the month of Elul to get our thoughts straight and clean out the cobwebs

forming around our hearts from sins of the year gone by.   We can take this time to go to our fellow man and make amends, however that needs to be done.  Ask God, He will tell you.    We can go to God to ask forgiveness afterwards.  If we have approached your brothers with the right attitude and true apologies, we can be sure God will blot our sins out of His book and remember them no more.

Yom Kipper is coming.  By Yom Kippur we need to have confessed all of our sins and have spent time with God in communion listening for His sure instructions for our lives and getting ourselves back on track if we have taken a wrong turn or gone a wrong way.  By Yom Kippur, God will seal the state of our hearts for the year we have just past.  He will decide whether to let us go on, or whether we have reached the end of our heart's capacity for growth and maturity.  All Christians should be constantly renewing their spirits before God and participating in the process of rebirth and new life.  

Why is Yom Kippur so holy and why do you need to be so ready?  Because the most precious blood ever was sacrificed to save us all, and this is the day that the atonement of that blood is made in the tabernacle of heaven for the sins of the year.  We have been SAVED by grace and we are ATONED every year, like washing your feet when you have been on a long dusty journey.  We must clean the parts of us that we have soiled on the journey.  It is the most important day in the Christian calendar.  It is when atonement is applied to our sins.  The perfect sacrifice of Jesus has been made once for all.  No more sacrifice is necessary.  You simply need to ask God to apply atonement for your sins this year before Yom Kipper.  God will apply the atonement for you if you have confessed your sins and taken all the steps possible to rectify your sins.  When Jesus saved you, He sent The Holy Spirit into your heart and the Holy Spirit will put this longing inside of you, to always be pure before God.  Through the sacrifice of Jesus and the working of God's Holy Spirit within you, God will continue to give you the gift of being clean before Him as you begin the next sacred year.

The perfect blood of Jesus will blot your sins out of the book of remembrance and they will

be remembered no more.  If you haven't accumulated sins on your account since last Yom Kippur, I would venture to say; you are not human.  God knows how we are; He made us.  He gives us a way to atone.  He gave us the greatest gift of all, His very own Son, Jesus Christ.   All you have to do is ask God with a true and sincere heart and believe in the miracle of the sacrifice of Jesus that has been offered freely for your atonement.  You can start the year out and stand clean before your maker on Yom Kipper. 

In the days before Jesus a new sacrifice had to be offered in an earthly temple every year for the sins of the people.  A High Priest, totally prepared in advance for the special day.  He would stand in the Holy of Holies, himself being totally clean, wearing clean and appropriate clothes and make atonement for himself and the people through the lighting of the menorah, the burning of the incense and finally the offering of 15 different sacrifices. He would sprinkle the blood of a red heifer on the altar.  If the sins of the people were forgiven the white cloth that was tied to the priest would turn red.  This is what Jesus does for us now, He intercedes with God for atonement.  This is the whole meaning behind Yom Kippur.  One day our Jewish friends who haven't discovered that Jesus is Messiah will believe and come to accept this.  Christians must accept it NOW.  This is the day that God has proclaimed that you come before Him with holy hands and thankful and humble hearts.  

Growing up Baptist, it took me years to get this.  I could read the scriptures and see the

words, but other words were screaming back to me and confusing my thoughts about them.  The words were not really confusing though, it was the author of confusion, that old devil that is always working against the kingdom of God that was causing the confusion.  He was using confused people to create chaos in the simple order that God laid out so long ago, preserved through the Israelites, and had faithful scribes record in the holy scriptures.  Today I find that many of the Baptist denomination have come to understand the significance of these days too!  As for me; I simply had to let God re-teach me.  I simply started keeping the fall holy days and honoring the once for all of Christ on The Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur.)  Each year, layer upon layer, God taught me more and more of the concept straight from the holy scriptures until I came to the point of the journey I'm on today, where I set aside time to think, meditate, pray, confess and repent both to God and to my fellowman during the month of Elul. I am always confident of my salvation (salvation is not the issue at Yom Kippur; but confession of sins is a way to honor God and show that we hold the precious blood of Jesus as sacred and powerful to wash away our sins forever), at Yom Kippur I am simply washing my feet for the year, removing the sins of the dusty journey of 365 more days on the earth.  On the sacred day, I want to wear white robes that are not sin stained as I stand in holy worship.  Jesus did this for me.  I honor and respect this.  I do not take it for granted.  I want to have clean feet, this is accomplished with the washing of the days of Awe and Elul.   It is comparable to Jesus washing the feet of the disciples before the Passover meal.  I've found observing Yom Kippur in its fullness is refreshing and good for my soul.  I have more of an awareness of God's Kingdom constantly growing and working in the world.  Now, I see why God so wisely laid out these days for us to follow forever.       

So I observe Elul, The Feast of Trumpets, The Days of Awe, The Day of Atonement and finally The joyful days of The Feast of Tabernacles each year during the fall feast days of God.  I did not go into The Feast of Tabernacles here, but will save it for another blog.  It is the last and most joyful Fall Holy Day period.    It is an awesome way to end the sacred year, and keeping these other days first prepares my heart to receive all the joy it holds.