AN APPLE A DAY - THE WINNING QUALITIES OF BROCCOLI

DAY 111 OF 365 DAYS TO A HEALTHIER LIFESTYLE

(Written by Sheila Gail Landgraf)

Watching the Olympics and seeing the athletes from around the world that are praising God and giving God glory with their bodies has been so very refreshing!  

Sometimes we get bogged down here in America with the bad news of how the culture is caving and doing so much to dishonor God; yet in the Olympics this year I have been surprised to see this is NOT trending in so many other places that are represented; and I’ve also been very grateful for those American Olympiads who have taken a firm stand against the culture and proclaimed their faith out loud in front of the whole world and given glory to God.  

These brave individuals are living examples of 1 Corinthians 6:19-20:  “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, you were bought at a price, therefore; honor God with your bodies.”

I can almost guarantee you that these faithful Olympians know the value of the food they are putting into their bodies every day!

So are you using the three most nutritious vegetables (watercress, bok choy and chard) a lot more often?  I hope so.  They are loaded with nutritious value! 

You probably think you are going to hear about the fourth most nutritious vegetable in today’s blog; but I’ve decided to be random today!  I have no idea where broccoli fits on the most nutritious vegetable list; but I’m pretty sure it has to be close to the top.  I’ve discovered something I want to share here, about broccoli, and about pretty much any other nutritious vegetable for that matter; they all taste better when they are roasted or grilled!

 

I have eaten broccoli most of my adult life.  I hated it when I was a child, simply because I never gave it a chance and never tried eating it.  Finally, it was broccoli salad that first grabbed my tastebuds.  I found that I liked broccoli prepared that way and eventually I found I liked it steamed and mixed with other vegetables.  That is the same old boring way I’ve eaten broccoli since I grew up and started eating like an adult. 

A few weeks ago I was reading through some food blogs and discovered the REAL way to fix broccoli!  You roast it! 

Set your oven to 400 degrees.  Prepare a casserole dish with cooking spray.  Clean, dry and chop your broccoli into flat slices and sprinkle sea salt, fresh ground black pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder all over them.  Toss the broccoli in extra virgin olive oil and arrange in a casserole dish.  Sometimes I add finely chopped onions or mushrooms to the mix.  Roast in the oven for about 20 – 25 minutes.  In the meantime, mix 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil with 1/3 cup lemon juice and 2 Tablespoons soy sauce in a small bowl.  When roasting is done, remove the broccoli from oven and toss in this mix.  Delicious!   

So there is another interesting and tasty vegetable to add to your fast days (when you are only eating vegetables and fruits and nothing else)! 

Are you still alternating fast days and moderate days with one feast day a week?  I’m sticking to this plan and it seems to be working well.   I’m down twelve pounds in spite of the fact that I’ve celebrated this week with birthday food, and will be eating the festive foods from two baby showers this week (I may have to confess more next week).  You don’t have to be legalistic about this diet; it works so well when you follow the weekly patterns of fast/moderate day/feast.  You will have room to stray a little here and there for special occasions as long as you don’t go wild and remember to keep up your exercise routines going.  

I exercise by walking laps around my office building (it is a large building in an office complex.)  The six laps I divide up into twos three times a day probably equal to a mile each day of the work week.  Find something that works for you and fit it into your schedule daily (if you make it like brushing your teeth – you won’t feel the same if you forget it!)  

My daughters go to their gym on a regular basis.  I have a friend who enjoys working with horses and she gets her exercise by riding and training horses.  I have another friend who hikes every weekend.  I know several people who are “mall walkers.”  They are out there every morning, walking the halls of the mall as soon as it opens, getting their exercise and a little window shopping done at the same time.  I've heard a lot of people say they love pilates. Cycling is also a great way to get exercise, either outdoors or inside your own home on a stationary bike.  Just get an exercise routine and follow it faithfully!  Try to make it “doable.”  Something that fits into your day easy and natural, that way you will be sure to keep it up. 

The same "doable" factor should apply to your daily meals.  Try not to prepare recipes that are too complicated or take too much time and effort.  The simpler; the better, that way preparing meals at home do not become a dreaded chore.  The broccoli is easy and “doable” and should be a simple compliment to any of your nutritious meal plans.  

Broccoli is known for its cholesterol lowering abilities.  Broccoli also helps the body with detoxification.  It lowers your retention of unwanted contaminants.    In case you haven’t noticed, America is under a Vitamin D deficiency epidemic.  Almost everyone is deficient in this one vitamin.  Broccoli is full of vitamin D, and it can help to overcome this problem.  Every home in America should be preparing broccoli often!   

Broccoli contains ample supplies of vitamin A and vitamin K which we need to work with the vitamin D in our metabolisms.  This combination of vitamins is a winner every time.   If you are using vitamin D supplements, eating broccoli could only help them to work better. 

Broccoli is rich in kaempferol, which helps stop inflammation as well as wards off skin allergies.  A lot of us are allergic to the unnatural things we are absorbing in pre-packaged foods.  Broccoli can help your body to fight these things. 

So many people today seem to be suffering with problems of the stomach and the lining of the stomach.  Sometimes this happens because of the overgrowth of a bacterium called Helicobacter pylori.  This bacterium forms excessive attachments to the inner stomach lining.  Raw broccoli sprouts appear to provide special stomach support with respect to these unwanted overgrowth and over-attachement circumstances.  Researchers have studied the provision of HG broccoli (high glucosinolate broccoli) in the genetic activities of the stomach lining cells.  The glucosinolates in broccoli are clearly a key part of broccoli’s ability to support stomach health, and they seem to alter gene expression in cells that provide the stomach with its inner lining.  So, if you are experiencing stomach problems, get some ordinary broccoli and eat it without cooking (in salads and with dips) to help provide plenty of those glucosinolate phytonutrients that your stomach may be lacking. 

As well as everything mentioned above, broccoli has good qualities for fighting cancer.  

If all of this information isn’t enough for you; consider that broccoli also provides chromium, folate, dietary fiber, pantothenic acid, vitamin B6, vitamin E, manganese, phosphorus, choline, vitamin B1 and vitamin A (in the form of carotenoids), potassium, copper, vitamin B1, magnesium, omega-3 fatty acids, protein, zinc, calcium, iron, niacin and selenium!  That should convince anyone that broccoli is a perfect addition to your menu at any time or place.

Exodus 15:26 proclaims how God has put healing factors in our foods (such as these nutrients found in broccoli):  He said; “If you listen carefully to The LORD your God and do what is right in His eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all of his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am The LORD who heals you.”

Keep speaking to THE ONE WHO HEALS YOU.  God is always listening and always ready and willing to help us understand these things better.  Who better to consult about your body than the One who created it?

So keep eating that broccoli; because God has given it healing qualities that your body needs!  Keep the Olympic spirit going of those who are faithful and give glory to God for the victories and medals they achieve.  He is our provider and the One who causes us to be champions!

COME AS A CHILD - LESSON 132 - A WONDERFUL PLACE CALLED ELIM

A LONG WALK THROUGH THE EXODUS
A WONDERFUL PLACE CALLED ELIM
(Written by Sheila Gail Landgraf)

In the last COME AS A CHILD lesson, we left the Israelites happily camping at Elim where there were twelve abundant springs of fresh clean water, and seventy flourishing palm trees full of dates providing festive food and providing cool, restful shade for everyone.   (Have you ever noticed how palm trees seem to lift their branches up in worship to God?)  

Elim was quite a contrasting change from the bitter waters of Marah.  Remember the original request of Moses to Pharaoh when he first asked him to let the people go?  He asked that they could be free to go out to the desert to hold a feast before their God.  At Elim, this finally happened.  The people rested, worshipped and were refreshed before God.   

The scriptures that back up what I want to explore in today's lesson can be found in that last short little sentence at the end of Exodus, Chapter 15, verse 27 that states:  "Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees, and they camped there near the water."  

The scriptures state this so plain and simple.  As so often we find there are no elaborate details; yet why were the words even stated in the first place?  There is always a good reason when you take your study deeper.  I think this last statement of the chapter is loaded with hidden meaning.  We touched on this a bit before; but I want to be sure to emphasize the importance of this part of the journey.  Elim was so much more than just a stopping off place along the way.  I think Elim can be compared to the place of safety that we read about in Revelation 12:14.  "The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent's reach."  

The people had been through quite a dangerous and treacherous journey so far; and they were just getting started making their way toward the life God wanted them to have.  They were on their way to meet God; and they were tired and worn out already, in the beginning the journey.  I think God wanted them to have a time of refreshment before they moved on to the BIG important events He had planned ahead for them.  So; He led them to Elim, a wonderful, little known, hidden oasis in the desert.

We begin to read about Elim at the end of Exodus, Chapter 15 right after the dramatic song of Moses and Miriam and the hard time they had at Morah where the water had been bitter.  It is interesting that the biblical meaning of the number fifteen (the number of that chapter in Exodus) is "rest."  Rest is certainly what the people found at Elim.  The number fourteen (the number of the previous chapter where they were delivered from Pharaoh) is symbolic of deliverance, which is also truly what happened just before Elim.  I am always amazed at the fascinating meanings of biblical number sequences.  Only God could have made such orders with such clear meanings, and only He could have put them together in this way!  The mind of God is so vast and so high above anything we could ever think!  

These scriptures at the end of Exodus 15 give the exact number of springs and the exact number of palm trees whenever they speak of Elim.   It is detailed in that way; yet all of the other details are left for us to research and come up with on our own.  You can’t help but wonder why the exact amount of each spring and tree was given; is there a good reason for this? 

The old sages of long ago asked this same question.  Many of them have supposed that the twelve springs correspond with the twelve tribes of Israel, and the seventy palm trees correspond with the seventy elders of the Sanhedrin, and/or the seventy elders who were later chosen by Moses to approach the Mountain of God for the giving of Torah.   

Others even go so far as to say that at the time of creation God was anticipating this day that His people would be wondering through the wilderness with the thought that each tribe of Israel would be able to come to Elim and sit beside their own spring of water and each elder of each family would have their own palm tree for their family to sit under.  They would sit down right there in the middle of a hot dry desert and be comfortable and well watered and give thanks to The One and Only God who had thought of them at the very time of their creation and had even made this oasis in the desert especially for them to rest, enjoy and be restored.  It is a nice little story; and quite imaginative; but what is the real reason that God brought Israel to this very spot after Marah?  Is there any truth to the old imaginings of the sages?

At Marah the people got a “glimpse” of Torah.  As they journey further and further toward Sinai' they are about to discover the WHOLE Torah. God is going to refresh their souls with His word; but perhaps He is refreshing their physical bodies for the journey first.  Many times in the bible when we read of spiritual things there is an equal physical thing that foreshadows the event.  At any rate The People of God will soon begin to understand how significant Torah will be to them.  It would seem that the Torah is a very special gift from God; it is comparable to a wedding gift for a much cherished bride!

The giving of Torah worked in a similar way to the giving of a wedding ring.   It was a commitment and a promise.  God was giving His people Torah as a permanent symbol of His love for them.   Torah was a gift that would embellish the life of the people after they took special vows to live before God forever and to serve Him with their lives.   With the giving of Torah God would be making an official, public statement to the people of Israel as well as the whole world that they were to be His very own special Bride. Torah was their wedding covenant.   So, you might say the journey into the wilderness was the beginning of Israel becoming God’s Bride.  Elim came to serve as a safe and special place where they could rest up for the wedding vows that were ahead of them. 

At Mt. Sinai the Bride of God called Israel would receive The Torah, which was equivalent to her wedding ring.  This is true because the Torah is full of God’s commandments, and there with the great leadership of Moses they would take a vow to obey those commandments given by God forever.   There was to be a type of wedding ceremony between God and His chosen people; Israel, God's beloved; and all of the nation of Israel was invited to attend this special event as the guest of honor!  

I honestly think that was the heavenly perspective of the coming events at the time the people journeyed to Elim.  I'm not sure, on the other hand, that all of the Israelites totally understood the extent and significance or importance of God's BIG plans for them; yet.  Like many young brides, Israel was naïve and unaware of many things.  

I DO think Moses understood the full extent of God's intentions though, and I think Moses tried to communicate this same message to everyone involved.  At this point of the journey God was definitely making plans to make Israel His nation and His Bride.  It was something He had planned from the beginning of creation!  Israel was to become the model nation that would bring all other nations into the family of God.   

So how does this relate to Elim?  The grove at Elim, on the way to Sinai, was like unto an expensive resort hotel where you would put up your wedding guests before a very special wedding took place.  There would be parties and little celebrations and times of refreshments and relaxation before the big event.  This set aside time is to prepare the people for the mood of the wedding.  At most resorts of this sort there is a bridal suite; and it is set aside and reserved especially for the Bride.  It is a place where she can receive her special invited guests and spend festive times with them.  There are wonderful well appointed rooms for everyone.  Is is a super special place!  There are gifts and luxurious days to be had in such a place; especially if you were there as a member of God's family in the making.  

I'm sure you are familiar with these types of establishments of which I am speaking; the one's where special guests get baskets full of wonderful goodies delivered to their room because The Host (knowing all of their own special tastes) has taken special care and planning to have very creative people prepare exotic baskets to be delivered which are filled with delicacies that He knows they will love and adore.  No one else knows you like your beloved!  He knows the things that will bring you delight and He has spared no expense to give them to you! There are rooms full of flowers and gifts just for the Bride.  

There are also other special suites for special guests with selected functions to perform at the wedding.  Maybe each one will even receive their hometown newspaper bought and brought in, delivered especially for them from their own home town which is far, far away from this resort, so that they will not miss any local news or events going on in their homeland, and especially so they will be made to feel right at home and comfortable while they are attending the wedding feast.  I guess little glimpses of Torah COULD read like a newspaper from your own hometown.   Every effort has been made to dot the i's and cross the t's and all the little special things are being put into place right here at Elim for the sake of honoring and cherishing the bride just before the wedding.  The Groom has spared nothing to show His unwaivering love for His Bride.

There is lots of special individual attention given to each guest at such a resort as this!  There is a special place prepared for each one who has accepted the invitation to the wedding.  No one is overlooked or forgotten here; everyone is special!  Nothing is held back.  Nothing is too fine for these guests!  No small favor is overlooked in this wedding preparation! 

After all, this is the upcoming wedding of Isreal to the Ruler of the Universe!  It is no small occasion!  Elim is like that luxurious resort hotel filled with special wedding guests, including the most honored Bride.  All of this is happening on the journey to the wedding; in the time leading up to  the date of the wedding of Israel to God.  What a grand celebration!    Everyone is gathering together in one place at the same time for festivities that go on and on.  Not only have they celebrated great freedom and liberation from the bondage of slavery; they have met their lifelong lover.  They are going to be married to an awesome and powerful King!

At Elim, each head of household of God's future family had their own designated individual stream for drinking and bathing and swimming.   No one was crowded; everyone had just what they needed and more.  

This trip the Israelites took to Elim is comparable in nature to the family trip we take each year on our annual celebration of The Feast of Tabernacles.  That festival mirrors this time in Elim, as well as The millennial reign of Christ in the days to come.   The time in Elim was a refreshing break from the madness of life in the wilderness.  The Annual Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) is a refreshing break for us from the madness of today's fast-paced and stressful world.   Eight days of celebration of our freedom in Christ away from the rest of the world; like a little oasis with God.  

At Elim each head of household had their own special palm tree to sit under.  These are special palms which are in season and each of the trees are filled with luscious palm-dates for good eating.  It reminds me of the scriptures that speak of how it will be in the last days that we read of from the prophet  Micah in Micah 4:4; "Everyone will sit under their own vine and under their own fig tree, and no one will make them afraid, for The LORD Almighty has spoken."  This is exactly what the people experienced at Elim.  They were getting a "taste" of what eternity might be like when they are married to God forever.

Everyone in the wedding party at Elim had been given a luxurious place to stay as they awaited the wedding of the Nation of Israel to God.  God has gone out of His way to impress His Bride before she receives her wedding ring (Torah.)  

Elim is yet another gift from God, a place of rest and refreshment before the special wedding day.  Here the bride is to be pampered and treated like a queen!   Here in this spa of twelve springs and the shade of seventy palms the bride may at last come to act like a bride.  She will be safe from the enemy here.  She will be protected and unafraid.  This will get her ready for the wedding at Sinai where she will get her first full glimpse of The Face of God.  Can you imagine how Israel must have felt?   Can you imagine God's anticipation of becoming more and more intimate with His chosen people?

It does seem as you read between the lines of the scriptures that God had waited and planned for this very special time all the way from the first point of creation!  It is so much like a time in the life of a perfect groom.   Perhaps He was thinking of His Bride, Israel as He created these 70 palm trees and these 12 streams that He knew would be a special oasis for His very own Bride as she waited in route to their very special wedding day.  

The seventy elders who would sit under their own individual palm trees would be the ones who would record the awesome events of the wedding.  They would note each little detail and later they would tell the stories of them to all the earth throughout all of history.  Their job was very important; they were very honored dignitaries; the close and special guests who would perform very special tasks for the Bride and Groom.  One of their jobs would be to make sure everything was up to par with The Kingdom they were representing at the coming wedding feast.  Nothing but the best!  The finest wine, the best food, clean white linen, the most beautiful music, and perfect attire for all of the attendees.  It all would be arranged.  

They; (everyone who made the journey past Marah to Elim;) were to be honored at Elim.  Everyone who arrives at Elim is to be treated as royalty!  God has rolled out the red carpet and chosen the best servants to cater this event!  (Angels guarding the way and the camp; headed up by none other than The Angel of The LORD Himself!)  God has provided for every need!

These wells and water and palm trees speak of a joyous times of sheer refreshment.  Here under the trees and next to the fresh streams of waters the people are healed from their long tiring lives as slaves to another king where they were held in bondage against their will.  They have been rescued and they are on their way home.  They are restored.  They are set free.  They are given back their hope. They are healed and refreshed right here at Elim.  Their eyes are opened to a whole new way of life.  For once; they see they DO have a future; an awesome one! 

The healing at Elim comes from the very voice of the groom; their God.  He speaks through the language of love found in Torah.   It is alive and it resounds long and loud, like the sound of a trumpet blast announcing good news.  The voice of God is now coming into their lives in a very official and permanent way and it brings healing to the whole nation; which eventually, over time will bring healing to all of the earth.

The coming wedding of Israel to God sets the pattern for the coming future wedding of the Church to Christ; God's Only Begotten Son.  It is a family tradition!  The Son will follow in the steps of His Father in choosing His Bride and setting up the plans for His wedding celebration.

With God’s wedding to Israel at Mt. Sinai, there were twelve tribes that made up the Bride and seventy elders that were made up of those who would take God’s word forward and teach the people how to live life God’s way from that point on through time.  This would be their healing; this would bring them joy. 

With Christ’s wedding to the church there are twelve original disciples who taught God’s word and seventy other disciples who committed to come with them.  They were commissioned and sent out two-by-two to preach the word of the gospel of Christ to the world.  They were told to deliver the good news, to cast out demons, to raise the dead and to heal the sick.  This was their time of refreshment from the wilderness of life; this was their joy and purpose!  This time of grace and the giving of the gospel is their Elim.

Jesus is coming back soon!  We are now supposed to be living and waiting like the Israelites who were in Elim; waiting on the royal wedding feast.  It is a wonderful place!  

Are you there yet? 

Are you covered in the blood of the Lamb and waiting on your time of rest and restoration and joy? 

Are you looking forward to that trip to Elim right before the Marriage Super of The Lamb? 

Jesus promised us; “I will prepare a place for you so that where I am, you may also be.”  Just as God had on the day of their creation, prepared a place for his Bride named Israel; Christ too has prepared a place for his Bride; the Church.    

Jesus was there at our creation and He has prepared for our future right from that very day that He created us.  We are His and He is ours; we must get ready to go to Elim.  We will receive new bodies, new clothes, new minds and hearts and in that place is rest and delight.  We will find the time of our healing and restoration there.  We will totally understand our future and our purpose there.  We will no longer be looking through a glass darkly; but we will see and know that God will be with us forever, and we will be wed to Christ and rule and reign with Him in His Kingdom.  As The Son of God, Christ has chosen us to be His.  In describing our relationship He has repeated those famous words of Solomon; “I am my beloved and my beloved is mine!”

We must keep moving on past Marah to Elim. 

As I said before; there is no proof of Elim on the map.  Geologists cannot tell us that it ever existed.  We simply have the scripture references for knowledge.  I believe this is true for a reason; it is because Elim is not a “physical” place but a “spiritual” place.  It is a place we arrive at when we have been through the wilderness and tasted the bitter waters at Marah and kept the faith in spite of it all.  It is a place of overcoming the world and holding on to Christ and His promises for our future.  Whenever this world becomes too crazy and unforgiving and evil; we must hold onto Elim in our minds and wait on our Bridegroom.  Stay ready because He is coming soon!

 

We have spoken of the twelve wells of water at Elim, and the 70 palm trees that grew there.  We have seen how the bitter waters were made sweet at Marah by a tree which we have equated to The Tree of Life that heals the nations.  We have discussed the fact that The Tree of Life relates to Torah.  Torah is the direct Words of Christ.  The only way to the Tree of Life is through Christ.  The Torah was given to Moses to bring the people life and redemption and freedom.  They got an early glimpse of part of Torah at Marah.    The sacred words of Torah have been given to us directly from Christ in the time that He walked the earth.  He was like Moses to us.    

As we read about end times; we come to hear of another place similar to Elim; a place of bountiful water and trees that provides rest, restoration and healing.  It is called The River of Life and it flows from The Throne of God through the City of God.  There seems to be 12 kinds of fruit growing here, a different fruit for each month of the year.   We know that it takes water to grow fruit trees, possibly these trees producing the fruit are found beside twelve wells of water similar to the trees that grow in Elim.  The leaves from the two trees that produce fruit in this city (are the trees maybe Israel and the church?) are for healing; just as the tree in Marah was for the healing of the water.  The 70 nations of the earth (another symbolism represented by the 70 Palm Trees) will receive healing from the leaves of these two trees that grow in this city by the river that is so similar to Elim.    

Here are the words we read from Revelation 22:1-3:  "Then the angel showed me a river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and the Lamb, down the middle of the main street of the city.  On either side of the river stood a tree of life, producing twelve kinds of fruit and yielding a fresh crop for each month.  And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.  No longer will there be any curse.  The throne of God and the Lamb will be within the city, and His servants will worship Him."

Elim was like a replica of this City in Heaven.  It is a special place where God will have us to stay as we await the coming Marriage Supper of The Lamb.  Elim was a special city where God was having Israel to wait on the receiving of the Torah, which would officially wed God to the People of Israel forever.  

Can you see these patterns that develop to show us we have a hope and future?  

God was doing this for Israel back in their wilderness journey; and He is doing the same for us as we await his instructions in the wilderness journey we are now taking through life.  

Enjoy Elim!  Get excited about the wedding day!

SEASONS - THE KING IS IN THE FIELD

(Written by Sheila Gail Landgraf)

Oh, how I love the writings of King Solomon in The Song of Songs! In Chapter 6, verse 3, I can read my favorite words from his writings; "I am my Beloved's and my Beloved is mine."  

When written in the original Hebrew language the first letters of each word form an acronym that spell the month of Elul.  This is the Hebrew month that will be coming up in 2016 beginning with the civil calendar date of September 2nd.  

Elul's acronym, "I am my Beloved's and my Beloved is mine", illustrates this concept; its first letter, aleph, stands for "I" (in Hebrew, "ani") – and the second letter, lamed, represents, "my Beloved's" (in Hebrew, "ledodi") - God. The meaning of this verse is that of being “face-to-face” in expressing one's love for another. This is the idea that the heart of the giver is entwined with the heart of the receiver and vice versa. There is a reciprocal relationship of this love. Each one has the other's heart.  One cannot help but think of the soon coming return of Christ and wonder how much longer it will be before He returns for His Bride, the Church.

On this last month of the Hebrew calendar, many of us try to focus on the past year of our lives.  

It is a time to bring before our Beloved our misdeeds, mistakes, and wrong actions so that He can show us how we can make changes for the new year to come.  

I have come to look at this act the same way you would look at preparing for a wedding.   How do these shoes work?  What veil should I wear?  Is my dress ready?  What should I keep?  What should I change?  What about all of this is in keeping with my heart for my beloved?  Have I spoken to the groom about everything?  

 If you are engaged to be married, you need to discuss all the skeletons in your closet before the wedding.  You wouldn’t want your loved one to discover these from someone else, or to be surprised and hurt by them after your marriage.  You need to confess everything that your future spouse might not yet have heard about you, so that you will know for certain that all past mistakes are forgiven and forgotten, and you are safe with the one that you have chosen to live your life with.  You MIGHT just be surprised at what they know that you don't know they know!  You would, of course, promise them never to revisit these things.  With the love between the two of you, it is possible to begin a fresh new page of life.

This is how I have learned to speak to my Beloved, Jesus, during the time of Elul.  He knows I am not perfect.  He loves anyway.   

In The Song of Songs Solomon speaks of the conversation that is held between two lovers.  

They are not afraid of one another.  

They are comfortable enough in their love that they can speak of their faults and mistakes.  

They are humble enough and so much a part of each other that one can come to the other and ask forgiveness for things done wrong because this one knows that anything they have done will have an instant effect on the other.  No sin is a sin all alone.  Every sin we commit hurts our Beloved.  

This is a time for the healing of this pain.  Healing begins with honesty and confession.  

Healing always comes before joy.

Elul is definitely a time to say “I want to change for you and never put you through such pain again.”   The honesty, love, truthfulness of this confession only makes the bond of love stronger.  The stronger the bond between lovers, the less likely it will ever be broken.  

It is a time of the weaker seeking strength from the stronger.  There will be encouragement that comes from the stronger lover that will change the spirit of the weaker lover from sadness to joy, from being ashamed to being confident and sure of their love.  

Together they will be capable of things they could never achieve apart from one another.  

All of the conversations in The Song of Songs seem to be very relational.  This is the state we should be in during Elul, a relational state, totally in tune to the desires of the One we love the most, looking to see what He will show us, listening to hear what He will tell us.  

If we are out of step, He will help us pick back up on the beat of the dance through the rhythms of life.   

It is a time of bearing our soul to the only One who truly understands our souls.  He truly loves us as we are, and accepts us with all our flaws; even enough that he would die for us and all our imperfections;  but He has a loving desire to help us change into the person that He created us to be.  

When we seek His face and ask His forgiveness, He loves us, flaws and all.  He reaches out to us to pull us up and help us to change.  

One secret to knowing how to change is that of dwelling on the words of the scriptures that tell us; "I am my Beloved’s and my Beloved is mine.”  If you divide this sentence down into two parts you begin to see they each represent a different aspect of our relationship with God. 

The first part:  “I am my Beloved’s” alludes to our main thoughts during Elul, to cry out to God, to communicate our love and loyalty to Him.    This is our speaking.  

The second part; “and my Beloved is mine,’ hints to God’s activity toward us in this time, in which it is possible for a divine revelation to descend upon us from above.  This is our listening.  Good communications involve both speaking and listening.

We speak joyfully to our Beloved during this month, not simply because we are about to begin a new sacred year, but because God is shining forth his attributes of mercy toward us.  

We know that we need to use this time to atone and work on our selves, and God empowers us to do so when we approach Him seeking forgiveness.  

This is the time of us expressing our desire for complete atonement.  At the end of the time, when we reach Yom Kippur, that is the time He expresses His complete desire to atone us, so much that He died to redeem us.  He inspires us and arouses our spirits to awaken to His desires.

There is a beautiful Jewish parable that speaks of this very act.   It is printed below for your reading and meditation:

THE PARABLE OF THE KING IN THE FIELD

A King returns to his city following a long absence. The city's inhabitants stream out to the countryside to greet him. When the king enters the field a new phenomenon occurs. The field equalizes everyone who is found there. Now, for the first time, virtually everyone is empowered and permitted to greet the king. All partitions which usually separate him from the populace are nullified. The king, in turn, graciously receives each and every one. This phenomenon does not take place outside the field. For, within the capital, and surely within the palace, only select dignitaries can access the king.

Is this parable not a beautiful portrait of how Jesus loves us? 

He went up to Heaven to send His Holy Spirit so that we could communicate better with Him and The Father.  So many times when we pray, we are looking up to heaven, seeing him on a royal throne, knowing His kingly power is at work constantly redeeming us, but often it seems we are at a distance, further away than we want to be from Him. We tend to see Him like a King of a city who went away.  We know He is still in control. 

We know He still exists and is coming back, but then one day He does come back!  He walks through the fields of the city.  These are the fields where the common workers toil and labor every day.  This is where they have broken the ground, planted the seeds provided by Him, watered them, weeded them, watched the crop grow to be ripe and ready for harvesting.  The citizens are so proud of the harvest that is just ripe for the picking!  They can’t wait to tell the Master about how beautiful and bountiful it is; then they look up and see Him actually walking through the fields!  They are overcome with joy!  It is Him, The One they have been laboring for all along!  He had returned!  They run to greet him.


As the everyday ordinary people run to great their King who has come down to walk in the field, they all seem somehow the same.  

Their differences are not showing.  

No one is more important.  

No one voice is heard above the other.  

All are equal in the field.  

It is not formal here, like it might be in the royal palace.  No one is announced, or proclaimed.  They all just come toward Him, one at a time, each one special and unique, yet everyone sharing the same honor of greeting the King and having the King recognize them and speak to them of their own particular tasks.

 Here all feel free and comfortable to discuss the physical aspects of the harvest with the King.  Who would know more about harvesting than a King who is also A Creator?  Who could possibly know more about preparing for a good harvest?  

They drink in His advice.  

They sit at His feet to listen to His instructions.  

They freely admit their mistakes and short-comings to Him because they can look into His eyes and see how much He loves them.  It is not hard.  They are not afraid.  They all feel safe. 

The King looks happier here, in the field among the people of His city, maybe even happier than He ever looks on His Royal Throne.  He is glad to be here.  Is it not what He has purposed to do all along?  He is smiling and gracious and generous.  He uses the ordinary existence in the field to explain to all the important principles of His Kingdom and here in the field the lowest realms of existence are transformed into a dwelling place for a King.  

Everyone is excited to know that The King is in the field! 

It is the strangest thing to think about, but even when the King is walking through the field, the primary mundane matters of life must still be carried out!   

It is a time for pausing, but not stopping.  

It is a time of reflecting while still working.  

In our daily lives we concern ourselves with many activities that are not in and of themselves holy, but these things are performed “for the sake of the King.”  Now when we see the King walking through the field, He may stop and talk to us of our activities.   We find out that “little things” are very important to Him.  

He has noted everything, every action, every task that we have done during the times of the seasons before the harvest.  They HAVE mattered to Him.  

He has not overlooked us, or forgotten us when we could not see Him or reach out and touch Him.  He has noticed every little thing!   Suddenly we recognize that in seeking His will in all things, we have made a part of our world His dwelling place, a place where He may come down and walk with us, even in our imperfections, even into the day-to-day activities of “the field.”

Hence, to continue looking after the field of The King in the best possible manner, during Elul we chose to put special emphasis on study of the Holy Scriptures and prayer, because even while The King is walking through His field, we recognize that it IS His field and we honor Him by continuing on with our work for Him.