These are turbulent times we live in, folks. The social and political climate of the world is changing rapidly. As society becomes more progressive, we are encouraged to be more tolerant. Now, don’t get me wrong, I have no problem with that ideal, and I genuinely believe people have the best of intentions with this message. The problem is that I’m afraid those of us in the Body of Messiah have taken the positive aspects of tolerance and spun it to our destruction. So, I have a couple of questions. If you truly love someone, do you allow them to behave in a way or put themselves in a situation that would ultimately harm them? Or, would you correct them out of love and concern for their well-being and prosperity? What I’m trying to say is that there is a HUGE difference between tolerance and compassion. Now, I do want to be crystal clear, so let me tell you what this is not. The word “tolerance” is pretty loaded, but I’m not implying that we should weaponize Scripture to be hateful in any way toward people who do not believe in God or the Bible, or maybe even more importantly, toward people who don’t walk exactly as we walk. See, that’s the irony, tolerance can easily become a vehicle for hatefulness. I’m speaking specifically to and for people who believe in the God of Israel, and for community, for people living life together. For people who know each other well and want what’s best for each other.

     Now that that’s out of the way, let’s examine these terms more closely. I like the idea of the “law of first mention,” therefore, I’ll be looking at the Hebrew here. Tolerance refers to the ability or willingness to accept something, in particular the existence of opinions or behavior that one does not necessarily agree with. The Hebrew word is “sovlanut” (סוֹבלָנוּת/sohv-lah-noot), and is not found in Scripture, not even once. That in and of itself should tell us something. On the other hand, to be compassionate means to have concern, sympathy, mercy, or even pity for the suffering and misfortune of others. There are two Hebrew words most commonly used for compassion: “chamal” (חָמַל/khaw-mal/H2550) and “racham” (רָחַם/raw-kham/H7355). See Exodus 2:6 for the former, Deuteronomy 13:17 for the latter. Although these two words, tolerance and compassion, are often used interchangeably, can you see the difference?

     Because of Western society’s “leap forward,” an inaccurate profile of Yeshua has taken shape. Today, the Messiah is portrayed as a mild and meek martyr who would never do anything to upset anyone under any circumstances, no matter what, even if He disagreed with them. His words, actions, and teachings have been misconstrued in order to be more palatable. The truth is that Yeshua was and is not tolerant. “Huh? Did he really just say that?” Yes, I did, He was not tolerant. He was, however, compassionate. Please, bear with me, and let me explain. Opposed to the traits I already mentioned, Yeshua was not afraid to “step on toes” and make others uncomfortable to teach a lesson. He himself said, “I and the Father are one,” so is it so hard to believe that Yeshua showed His love like that of a father, or more specifically, the Father? When I mess up, my dad is often the first to correct me and put me back on track, even if it requires a bit of a “kick to the rear end,” so to speak. My father does this because he wants what is best for me, he wants me to succeed. It’s done out of compassion and love. Yeshua taught in the same way. There are plenty of examples throughout the scriptures that we could look to, but I want to use one in particular that you may even know by heart. However, there’s an important verse in this passage that is often completely ignored. Please read John 8:1-11. We love to use this passage for verse 7’s sake. We love to use it to justify ourselves and perhaps the behavior of others. Context is key here, though. As incredible as that verse is, it’s just a part of an amazing lesson the Master is teaching, not the whole lesson. This one passage, amazingly, shows Yeshua being compassionate for the woman (verse 7, verses 10-11), and intolerant of her sinfulness. He doesn’t command her to “Just believe in me and love me so that you can continue to live life your way.” No! He commands her to “…go and sin no more…” That might sound kind of harsh, impossible even, depending on how you understand sin. But, do you want to talk about the wisdom, grace, and mercy of Messiah? Here’s what he effectively said: “Hey, so now that you’re ok, take this experience and learn from it to avoid another mess like this.” If that is not compassion, I don’t know what is. He wants better for her, He loves her, and He wants her to align herself with the Word and with the Father. Period. So then, to truly love someone is to not be tolerant of their destructive behavior. We need to start to understand that correcting one another and holding one another accountable with love and tact is not “judgement” or “casting stones.” I know that I’m not always so great at this thing called “life,” and not if, but when I mess up please, help me out, help me get right. I would be more offended if you didn’t, because I’ll be held accountable at some point, and I’ll be worse off by then. In fact, I would argue that tolerance and compassion cannot coexist when it comes to building relationships for the Kingdom. We can’t grow if we’re not corrected. I’ve brought up the Kingdom a couple of times now and this passage is the perfect example of our walk and our responsibility when we come to Messiah and enter the Kingdom. We were all once “adulterous,” deserving of the consequences of our actions, but Yeshua stood in the gap and taught us how to live life correctly, and gave Himself up to save us from said consequences. Once we come into the Kingdom through Him, it becomes our duty to do our best to live as He lived, to do our best to “go and sin no more,” not to be saved, but because He saved us. We need each other for that. The secular ideal of tolerance isn’t completely off. It’s just not complete. If you make a minor change in the Hebrew word for tolerance you get “savlanut,” (סַבְלָנוּת/sahv-lah-noot) a word closely related, meaning “patience.” Its root is “saval” (סָבַל/saw-vahl), meaning to bear (a burden). We have to be patient with one another, help each other with the burdens we each bear, and encourage change in each other’s lives. Patience combined with compassion trumps tolerance any day. You know, there’s a certain commandment in the Torah that Yeshua thought was pretty important, that is to “love your neighbor as yourself.” With this in mind, ask yourself: When it comes to tolerance and compassion, which requires more understanding and maturity? Which would you want for yourself and in turn for your neighbor?

     I continue to hope and pray for unity in the Kingdom, so that we can benefit one another and grow in Messiah. I hope that you understand my heart here, and that this gives you a new point of view that will benefit you, your walk, and your relationships. Feel free to reach out to me so that we can grow together! Shalom

What are our actions doing to His reputation?

I have been noticing a common thread lately floating through my Facebook feed and it really has both concerned and frustrated me. I see some criticized for their generations upon generations of traditions, some are attacked for following Torah, celebrating the Feasts, worshipping on the 7th day sabbath, and  some are screamed at because of their “pagan ways”. I watch how people are mocked or told that because they aren’t a part of a certain group or belief, that they are not allowed to study and understand certain things. Now I know that this is not a new occurrence and will be something that continues on because, as human beings, we are drawn to drama, anger, and aggression. However, I hope that if anything, my post will at least cause one to pause and consider the outcome of such actions.

For the past several weeks, I have read articles, watched videos, read comments threads, etc. on Facebook of different groups of believers that seem to do nothing more than attack each other. I have seen Messianic, Hebrew Roots, Christian, and Jew all attacking one another’s beliefs, understandings, view points and I find myself asking why? What good will come of this?

I heard a wise man once say that it doesn’t do any good trying to discuss or debate with someone that is not in your own family, which is SO TRUE!!! In our home, we have certain rules that our children follow. It is our “Torah” if you will. However, we have several neighbors around us who also have rules that function in their own homes. Now, do we go to their homes and start tearing them down and reprimanding them because they are not obeying OUR rules within THEIR homes? OF course not!!! That would do nothing but cause anger, bitterness, and possibly a broken relationship. So why are we doing that very thing to the different “families” of believers?

Now, we are all passionate about our beliefs, about our faith….and that is awesome. However, when we begin tearing down others because they may not believe or see the Scriptures the same way we do, what is that saying about the Father that we serve? If we are supposed to be walking AS the Messiah walked, if we are supposed to be mirroring HaShem in our lives, then what are our actions, how we handle people and other situations saying about His reputation?

For my Torah observant family, it is NOT our job to open their eyes, to reprimand them of their ways, or annihilate them in public and on Facebook. Our job is to be studied and ready for WHEN Abba opens eyes and draws them to this walk. It is our job to answer questions patiently and gracefully when asked, not debate or attack those who do not study as we do. We are meant to be the Psalm 1 tree, planted and immovable no matter who or what steps in our way. Yes, we will get frustrated when we see Scripture used incorrectly, misquoted, or used partially to justify a certain idea or lifestyle. However, remember we must never group everything into one pot, not all are the same, and not everyone has the same intentions. There are genuine people not following Torah who are loving the Father and serving Him the best they know how….and that IS O.K. Respect them for that and when/if they come asking questions or interested in learning this walk…do not belittle their understanding or mock their beliefs. Do not talk down to them or degrade them for not knowing what you know. Walk beside them, live with them, and be the light that HaShem needs you to be.

To my Christian brothers and sisters, stop labeling and criticizing those who are studying Torah, who are following the Father’s instructions, and who are wanting to live and walk as Yeshua did. The fact of the matter is, Yeshua was/is a Jew (he didn’t convert on the cross) and the Father’s Torah/instructions are still as valid today as they were when He spoke everything into existence….period. Any Scripture that is used to “nullify” this statement is being cherry picked and/or taken out of context. That being said, if you feel that this way of following the Father is not for you, that is o.k. Your relationship with Abba is between you and Him. However, be very careful of what you say and how you treat others in that walk, because the Father COULD draw you into following Torah and you will need someone to help support and walk with you. Stop being judgmental when you hear them speaking the Hebrew language. Stop accusing them or assuming certain things about them or their beliefs before you take the time to personally ask. I have heard many comments about groups in the Torah walk, even OAM, about how we do not believe in Yeshua, that we believe one has to follow Torah for salvation, they we are speaking blasphemy, or mocking/making fun of the Holy Spirit. All of which are furthest from the truth. I understand the way we read, study, and walk out the Scripture looks different, may seem a little weird and uncomfortable. I would have thought the same over 10 years ago before I started studying. I DO also know there are what we call “Torah Terrorists”, who thrive on intentionally attacking those not living/believing as they do. However, as I challenged my Torah observant family, I also will challenge you, do not lump everyone in the same pot.  So please, before you starting making false assumptions, consider the possibility that you might have misunderstood or misheard what they were saying or teaching. Instead of coming to quick conclusions, contact them and ask them to clarify so that way you can fully understand their heart and intent. We get frustrated when people make false assumptions about us….let us know be quick to do the same about others.

So my challenge and plea to you, stop arguing with those who are not walking in “your lane”. Stop attacking, baiting, and intentionally “poking the bear” to try to prove your point. Trying to make the other person stumble in their understanding does NOTHING for you as a representative of the Father, but instead makes you look like a jerk. We hear the argument all of the time “well Yeshua corrected and scolded the Pharisees so we are just following what He did”. My answer….YES HE did….HOWEVER…HUGE difference. Yeshua debated with leadership who were “IN HIS LANE”. He didn’t argue, bait, or poke those who were not living and following the Jewish lifestyle/beliefs. He CALMLY DISCUSSED when asked, TAUGHT and ALLOWED them to draw near, LIVED it before engaging. If we are going to be HaShem’s example until the Messiah’s return, then we have GOT to stop with the drama, anger, and attacking. Stop being “triggered” by those who are not in your “family” and BE the representation that you were put here to be. Remember that if you say you are part of THE Kingdom and are a follower of the Most High, then your actions, your words, how you live are going to affect how other’s perceive who you serve.

Make sure your life is all about the sake of His reputation…..

“In the beginning was the Word. The Word was with God, and the Word was God….And the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us. We looked upon His glory, the glory of the One and only from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Like me, these are probably some of the first verses you ever learned. However, as I reflected on my life this week and asked myself the tough questions, this verse came to mind. I’ve spent countless Sunday school and “life group” meetings pondering the mysticism within this passage. Aside from being some of the most powerful (and poetic) verses in the Gospels, there is some pragmatic application here as well. Now, I’m not offering a new interpretation of this passage here, just a little perspective. What exactly is this passage about? The first chapter of John perfectly sums up the Messiah’s lifestyle; He was the Word made flesh. He was so obedient in his actions that His life was the personification of the Word. Think about that for moment, that alone doesn’t often get its due credit. It really isn’t all that mysterious, the Messiah was just that obedient. So, what exactly does that mean for us? I used to hear all the time that to be a “Christian” means to be “Christ-like.” Ok, perfect, I appreciate the sentiment, but can anyone quantify that concept in and of itself? Lord knows I used to have trouble. Consider the following: 1 John 2:5-6, “But whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God is truly made perfect. We know that we are in Him by this— whoever claims to abide in Him must walk just as He walked.” You see, the whole reason that Yeshua lived and taught was for our instruction, and as previously stated He is the Word made flesh. Interestingly, we are instructed to walk as He walked, to live as He lived. The question I’ve been asking myself this week is this, “Are you living your life in a way in which the Word is seen to be alive?” At work, at school, at home, am I in some degree personifying the Word? Does my life show the one and only of the Father, full of grace and truth? I can postulate, theorize, and study for countless hours, but if my life is no evidence of my study, it is all in vain. That may seem really basic and foundational, but it is also something we should be constantly examining within ourselves. Every day the Father allows us to wake up, we have the opportunity to be personifications of His Word. One of the biggest lies propagated by believers is that obedience is unattainable. That, my friends, is just simply not biblical. We need to stop lying to one another, and start empowering one another; the goal is not perfection, the goal is obedience. The Messiah says in John 14, “He who possesses My commands and guards them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me shall be loved by My Father, and I shall love him and manifest Myself to him.” We show our love for our Savior by keeping the commandments, and in turn Yeshua manifests in us and His love is shown to our neighbors. In this way, the image of God is perfectly transmitted. Be a living example of Scripture by guarding the commandments, this is how we can be like Messiah. I hope everyone has had an amazing Passover, and I hope this week has drawn you closer to the Father. Shalom, everyone!

Have had something on my heart for the past several weeks and was given release today to finally post this in hopes to bring peace and encouragement.

So often we have received texts, private messages, or phone calls from both sides of the spectrum…either people just now coming into this walk, this Way of Truth or those who have BEEN walking in it and have their own fellowships. The common thread is the consistency of community. 

You see, before we began living a Torah observant life, many of us were involved in the mainstream church. It was always bigger is better, doing whatever it took to make people happy, even to the extreme of exhausting the ministry to the point of dry, emptiness just to keep everyone at peace and everything “looking” first class.  However, we HAVE to remember…..THIS AIN’T THAT!!!

Sadly, we are bringing a lot of the drama that we left into this Truth and are becoming the very thing we swore we never would. People are tearing each other apart, bad mouthing, and breaking community because not everyone follows the same calendar, we may not say the Father’s name the same way, the distance is too far to travel, I’m not going back to “church”,  or its just too hard to change “my” schedule to go. The list continues to grow……and it truly breaks my heart.

Here is the deal, Abba wants us to be in UNITY….not uniformity. Are we all going to agree all of the time? Of course not, that is impossible. We are human beings. We  each have thoughts, ideas, imaginations all unique, which the Father instilled in us for a purpose. And that is AWESOME! The main thing is….what is our final goal? That is where the “walking in unity” part comes in. The desire to please our Messiah, to walk AS He walked, live AS He lived, celebrate WHAT and HOW He celebrated, living out the ENTIRE Word….THAT is our common goal. If we can agree on that, then we should be able  to come together, to respect each other’s differences, and join in community to focus on the bigger picture…His Kingdom. And how important that coming together as a community truly is!

All of us remember when the Father began speaking to us, disturbing our shalom, unveiling our eyes. Our first thoughts were “What’s wrong with me? Why isn’t everyone hearing or seeing this? Am I crazy? “ Then as we began to listen to His voice and dig deeper…we began to wonder if anyone else out there was hearing the same. Were we alone?  All we wanted was to talk to SOME ONE who understood and were walking the same path as we were.  You see, THAT is where the community part comes in and WHY it is so vital.

I understand many of us are in rural areas where there might not be a Torah community within 10-20 minutes, many in our own OAM community drive 30 minutes to 2 hours just to be with their OAM mishpacha every Shabbat. You may think that is nuts and there is no way you would travel that far just to be with others….but wait. You HAVE to remember what it was like to be a new person in this Way…the excitement when you realized you were not alone, and that you were able to come together with a community of like minded people to talk, study, worship, to LIVE life. To be able to walk into a room and see so many that are hearing the same voice as you have been, gave you so much peace.

For those that have been walking Torah for a while, your community NEEDS you. They need your smiles, your hugs, your wisdom. But as much as your community needs you, YOU need your community. You NEED to be surrounded by others, digging out and discussing the Scripture together. You need a community of people who MIGHT NOT see the Scripture just as you do, challenging you, causing you to search out what you believe and why….Iron sharpens iron. Life is not easy, this walk is NOT easy no matter how long you have been walking, and we need to be with like minded people living, supporting, and searching out Word together while having the same end goal.

You need to be surrounded by believers who are new in this way, to help guide and walk beside them as they learn, picking them up when they fall and help guide them back when they get distracted.  AT THE SAME TIME, you need to be surrounded by those who have walked longer than you, have more wisdom and experience than you, so that YOU can continue to grow and learn yourself. Someone to help guide YOU back to the path whenever you become side tracked or distracted. A healthy Torah community is where all of that takes place, as a body, as echad (as one)…growing, living, breathing, as one body.

Consistency of the community is SO vital and SO important for the Remnant that is being called out. Whether you can make it every week or once/twice a month, those new people NEED to see you there, they NEED to see your face, HEAR your story, and FEEL your understanding and encouragement. Many of them either have or will find that this walk is not easy and can be very lonely. Family, friends, church members and leadership will cast them aside and break all ties and they need to see they have a community to run to for support, wisdom, understanding, and to share similar stories and experiences with. Your participation in your Torah community is so much bigger than you and is so important for the Kingdom.

So I encourage each of you across the country, the world or maybe just in our area. If you are hearing His voice calling you out to live a Torah life, a set-apart lifestyle, find a like minded community to celebrate with. Be active, be consistent, be supportive, but most importantly….BE THERE.  Whether it is every Shabbat, every Feast, or (due to distance) just once or twice a month….be there. This is a preparation season and it is all hands on deck. We have to prepare ourselves for what the Father is doing, to be ready for what He has coming, and there is no way we will be able to do that alone!!!

Shalom my Torah family and Shavua Tov

How many times have you cried out to the Father for direction or an answer. In the midst of a storm or chaos, we cry out to Abba, many times for Him to simply give us a sign that He is still there, that He is listening. It seems many are those dry seasons where our valleys are deep, the air is silent, we have no direction, we seek and speak to the Father however, all we hear are crickets…and all we want is for Him to make His presence known and to remind us that we are still His, that His hand is still upon us. Those times can be some of the loneliest, most frustrating, empty and anxious times that we walk through. Many of us become desperate, taking matters into our own hands…HOPING that at some point…Abba will step in and move.

All we are asking for…..is a sign….

Through studying the weekly Torah portions, recently digging into the episode of the golden calf, the Father began walking me through some of my own scenarios that are not too much unlike those of the Hebrew children. You see….for so long we have taken this golden calf incident and began throwing stones at the Hebrews. What in the world would cause them to do such a thing? How evil were they to turn their backs on God. How could they forget all that they had been delivered from and go to that extreme level of forming an idol? They must not have loved Him as much as they “proclaimed”….the list goes on.

HOWEVER, we must (as we should do will ALL scripture) put what is going on into context, into perspective. Put yourself in THEIR shoes, understand WHO is a part of the equation, understand their culture and remember their experiences. Sooo, let’s go back.

The Hebrew children along with the mixed multitude had experienced plague after plague. What we have to remember is that they had been living in Egypt for hundreds of years. Picture the generations upon generations that lived and died, the whole time becoming more and more assimilated into Egypt and the people living there. It had become a part of their every day lives. They probably formed relationships with the Egyptians. For some, their children might have played together, some may even had married the Egyptians. So with each plague that went through, they watched places they used to go, people they had befriended, their neighbors animals and lively hoods be destroyed. Yes, they knew the reason for the plagues and that they were chosen for the Father’s master plan, however, they were human, they had emotions. So I have to believe, they still felt guilt, pain, and  sorrow for their loved ones. As Noah before them, I am sure many of them pleaded for their friends and family to follow them. Traditions tell us that there were only around 20% of the Hebrews that actually left. Many studies I read said that one reason they left in such a hurry was so that the ones who DID leave were not given time to begin second guessing and end up staying behind. So you can imagine…yes they were excited and ready for freedom and a new life…yet the pain and sorrow they felt of leaving family, friends, and their comfort behind was very real.

Fast forward through the many miracles they experienced as Pharaoh chased after them, the miracle of the manna that was supplied for them to eat, the many times they ran to Mosheh (Moses) for wisdom and direction on what the next step was to be. Now they are at Mt. Sinai and after hearing the commandments, the Torah given straight from the Father, asked Mosheh to go up and speak to God for them. THEY created a mediator between them and the Father, something which God had never wanted in the first place.

So Mosheh is up on Mt. Sinai, speaking with the Father, and the people begin to grow concerned by his delayed return. One study I read was that they actually had miscalculated the days of his return and that is what caused them to act. So, they go to Aaron for help, he tells them what to do, and the golden calf incident takes place. There is SO MUCH more happening here, and MUCH more study as to WHY Aaron would follow through with this…but that is another blog.

This is where many of us have gotten all high and mighty. We would NEVER do that, we would NEVER disobey God to the point of creating an idol to worship. But wait….let’s back up a moment. Let’s back up to the very beginning and put ourselves in their shoes.

Like them…many of us have had to leave our comfort zones. We have many family and friends that may not be living for God, and no matter how much we try to warn them…they refuse to follow the Messiah. Many of us have stepped into a new season the Father has called us to, having to change lifestyles, jobs, family, friends…..causing us to shed everything that defined us as US, all stepping out in faith that the Father has something bigger for us to do and be a part of.

Then….life begins to hit. You see…we were told when you begin to follow the Father…he will answer your prayers, give you the desires of your heart, and be your everything. Which is true….HOWEVER….#1 those come with requirements of following His commands…and #2 a life walking with the Father is NOT without hardships and sacrifices. So when life begins to rain down, when the storm begins to rage, the winds begin to blow, and our feet get knocked out from under us…we begin to doubt.  The Hebrew children had experienced miracle after miracle and yet, they still struggled with faith and doubt. How many times have we gone to the Father about a problem…needed help in finances, a loved one that was sick and needed healing, farmers needed rain for their crops to grow? The Father comes our rescue, providing the much needed rain, we are blessed with extra finances by an unknown source, our sick family or friend begins to make a full recovery from their illness and we praise Him for all that he is…for a while. Then life hits again…and even though (like the Hebrews) we saw and experienced those miracles…we too begin to doubt.

That seems to be the times where our dry seasons begin, where we hear no answers and feel like our prayers are hitting a brick wall. So like the Hebrew children with the golden calf….we get desperate…needing to KNOW that someone is hearing our pleas. You see, they weren’t forming an idol to worship instead of God. They had JUST come out of Egypt and therefore, in fear and desperation, were falling back on all that they knew. They thought that Mosheh was dead and were trying to create (as only they knew how) another “mediator” to go before the Father on their behalf. Were they in the wrong? Most definitely and they were severely punished for it. However, how much have we done the same? We search and seek out the Father…we pray and get restless. So instead of having faith and believing that the Father has this….we seek out a friend, we seek out a pastor, an evangelist, a “prophet” to give us the answers we need. We spend time and money flocking to conferences in hopes of being told the direction we need to take. Now…I am not saying that seeking your pastor or a wise friend for guidance is taboo, however, when you begin to go to them first before seeking out the Father time after time, when you begin to put the “pastor’s words” above anything and everything else, not checking them with the Word, and setting him up on a pedestal…THAT is where we get off track and are acting no better than the Hebrew children.

You see….the Father knew what was happening with the Hebrew children. He KNEW they were going to get anxious, that they were going to need a “sign” to not only remind them of who they were and whose they were, but also something to remind them that He was close. So he gives Mosheh instructions to give to them tangible reassurance of His presence and our relationship with Him. The last instruction He  gave Mosheh, before He descended with the tablets was to tell Israel that they “must keep My Sabbaths, for this is a sign between Me and you throughout the ages, that you may know that I the Lord have consecrated you.”  God called the Shabbat (the seventh day Sabbath) a sign of the relationship between Himself and Israel. Because of Yeshua, we have been grafted into Israel, so this promise, this “sign” is for us as well. However….WE have to observe it. We have to set it apart and make it as special and significant as HE does.

From personal experience, there is just SOMETHING about setting apart the Shabbat. Now I am not going to get into a debate on “when the Sabbath really is”.  The Father rested on the SEVENTH day. Yeshua observed the SEVENTH DAY Sabbath. Yeshua DID NOT come and die to change the sabbath day…period. That out of the way, when you begin to spend time with the Father, studying His instructions, seeking Him out on the day that HE scheduled to meet with us……WOW. That will be all “the sign” that you need. When you begin to follow His instructions and observe the Sabbath day as HE intended, life may not get easier, difficulties will not stop from coming, storms will still rage from time to time…BUT you will begin to deal with them differently. There will be a peace that comes over you like never before, your head will become more clear and wisdom will begin to spill forth. You will begin to feel more fulfilled and more prepared for WHEN the storms come rather than trying to play catch up when they hit.

So my encouragement…take the step…if you are looking for “the sign” to get you through this next “plague”, this next “dessert”, don’t make the mistake that our ancestors did. Don’t be hasty. Don’t take matters into your own hands. Don’t seek out a person to be your mediator. You have already been given a sign. Observe the Sabbath, seek the Father and spend time with Him on THE DAY that HE has ALREADY set apart and made Kadosh (holy). Come together with fellow believers, as we are commanded, and dig out/wrestle with the Scriptures together.  Celebrate the Sabbath when and how the FATHER said, this in turn will set YOU apart…as His child.

Shalom

As I sit here during my quiet time with Abba this morning, a certain topic keeps circling in my head that truly grieves my heart. As these last days begin to wind down, more and more people are grasping for truth, some sort of peace and stability in KNOWING they are going to be ok. Conferences, sermons, bible studies, “self-help” books are focusing on end times, the last days, the book of Revelation.

However, people are still wanting more and are beginning to dig into the Hebrew Scriptures….longing to know WHO their Messiah is, how He walked, and what He EXPECTS of His children. So, as with before, we are seeing more and more teachings, books, studies, sermons on Hebrew Scriptures, Torah, Feasts, etc.

And that is AWESOME!

I am so ecstatic about the hunger, the desire, the focus that is beginning to rise in my fellow brothers and sisters in Yeshua, wanting to know MORE of our Messiah.

However, here is where my heart begins to grieve….

The danger is that we have pastors, teachers, leaders “teaching” about Torah, the Feasts, the Sabbath, yet they are not LIVING what they are teaching.

I hear people say, we are doing a series on Torah…or we are having a special sermon or mini conference on the Feasts…and my heart begins to cry. For you see…Torah is not “a series” that you can sum up in a month or two. Torah is a life style, it is complete instructions on how we are to LIVE in His Kingdom. It is the very fingerprint of our Messiah on our hearts.

The Feasts are not some “show stopping topic” for one to use in a sermon to gain excitement and interest. They are not this “new thing” for us to use as way to increase our congregation and pocket books. The Feasts are holy, they are rich, they are prophetic. They deserve respect and deep study to TRULY understand the fullness of these “appointed times”.  This is not a “fad or hot topic” you can’t throw a lesson together about it or “wing it”….you can not TRULY teach what you yourself are not walking. By doing that, you are not only cheating the ones you are teaching, but you yourself are missing out on the most amazing, intimate, deep, enriching, and peaceful relationship/walk with Yeshua that you could ever imagine.

So my first question is to teachers, bible study leaders, preachers, etc. who have begun teaching Torah, Feasts, Hebrew Scripture….are you LIVING what you are teaching?  Are you walking as He walked, celebrating HOW and WHEN he celebrated, teaching as He taught, and being a TRUE and WHOLE living witness of His Word? Is your heart beating in unison with our Messiah?

My second question is to those seeking Truth. Those who the Father is beginning to disturb your Shalom (peace), opening your eyes, and putting a hunger inside of you to know Him in a more deeper and intimate way. Are the teachers you are listening to, are the leaders you are following, is the congregation you are a part of….are they LIVING what they are teaching? Does their lives mirror what they say they believe and what they proclaim to be Scriptural Truth? Is the community that you are surrounding yourself with (though at different speeds) all headed the same direction and striving for the same goal?

For you see…Torah is not education…it is transformation. If you “say” you are studying Torah, yet your lifestyle, your beliefs, your thought process is not transforming  and growing you into alignment WITH His instructions….then you are NOT studying Torah.

So my challenge and encouragement…LIVE what you are teaching, MAKE your lives align with your words, SEEK OUT communities that are working as echad (as one) toward the same goal, the same mark….Torah. Because you see this is not some “fad” that will ebb and flow, making way for the next “big thing”. Torah is His instructions, His Tabnith (blueprint) for living in His Kingdom….and He takes that VERY seriously.

Shalom