Watch and See What YHVH Will Do...

                                Be Alert....Watch...and  PRAY!






Monday was the last day of the week of Passover (Pesach), Unleavened Bread (Chag HaMatzot), and the Day of Firstfruits (the second day of the week of the Feast of Unleavened Bread).  It was such a good week of celebration and time with YHVH for me!  I so enjoyed making my own unleavened bread (matzah) and feasting on lamb and bitter herbs (and other good stuff!).  I enjoyed the extra commanded time of restful hours!  I enjoyed the spring time weather in Oklahoma.  I mostly enjoyed time with Adonai rehearsing and remembering His faithfulness to His people!


And now we are "Counting the Omer" (the omer is the sheaf of firstfruits barley waved before Adonai on the Day of Firstfruits).  YHVH commands us to count every day for 7 weeks plus one more day from the day of Firstfruits until Shavu'ot/Festival of Weeks (Pentecost), for a total of 50 days (Leviticus 23).  So I am counting!  Today is Day 9. 


One of the great things about celebrating Passover is that we are commanded to REMEMBER the time of slavery in Egypt and how YHVH brought His people out of Egypt by HIS Mighty Hand!  (Deuteronomy 16; Exodus 12)  So during Passover, we rehearse the story of Moses and the children of Israel and their exodus from Egypt.  I read the story out loud during my Passover Seder meal, and I also read the story at various times during the entire week.  What a great story!  What a great reminder of YHVH's covenant faithfulness to His people from beginning to end!


And this brings me to today's topic...the current times of upheaval in our world (the "end times").
I believe we are living in the "last days", the "end times", the final countdown before the forever reign of YHVH through His Son Yahshua over the entire earth and all that is, was and ever shall be.


One of my favorite parts of the story of the Israelites' exodus from Egypt is found in Exodus 14:


The Passover blood of the lamb had been spilled and applied to the doorways of the followers of YHVH.  
The lambs had been eaten in the meal of haste.  
The people of YHVH had been chased out of Egypt after the death of every firstborn, animal and human, in Egypt.  
The mass of people  had made it to edge of the Red Sea in a hasty retreat from a panicked and grieved nation of Egyptians.  
They were well on their way to freedom, when suddenly they realized that the Egyptians were chasing them.  
They were trapped, cornered against the impenetrable and uncrossable expanse of water..... 
And then.....



Exodus 14:10-18
  And when Pharaoh drew near, the children of Israel lifted their eyes and saw the Egyptians coming up after them. And they were greatly afraid, so the children of Israel cried out to יהוה. 
And they said to Moses, “Did you take us away to die in the wilderness because there are no graves in Egypt?  What is this you have done to us, to bring us up out of Egypt?  Is this not the word that we spoke to you in Egypt, saying, ‘Leave us alone and let us serve the Egyptians?’ For it would have been better for us to serve them than to die in the wilderness.”  And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the deliverance of יהוה, which He does for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you are never, never to see again.   “יהוה does fight for you, and you keep still.” 
And יהוה said to Moses, “Why do you cry to Me?  Speak to the children of Israel, and let them go forward.  And you, lift up your rod, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, and let the children of Israel go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.  And I, see I am hardening the hearts of the Egyptians, and they shall follow them. And I am to be esteemed through Pharaoh and over all his army, his chariots, and his horsemen.  And the Egyptians shall know that I am יהוה, when I am esteemed through Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.” 

And what happened?  Well, you know the story of the dividing of the waters, the walking across on dry land, the demise of the Egyptians who tried to follow....it all happened the way YHVH said it would!


Current Events
How ironic that during the celebration of Passover this year, so many things around the world would come up against Israel and threaten to overtake them:


Let's take a look at a few current and possibly future events unfolding:

• The recent Facebook page that called for a Third Intifada against Israel to happen on May 15th.  (Although the page was finally removed, the plans are still underway for thousands or even millions of Arab civilians to march against Israel's borders on May 15th and "take back the land.")
• The upcoming "Gaza Freedom Flotilla" part 2.  Another fleet of 15+ ships is set to sail sometime in the latter half of May against Israel's maritime blockade.  Many nations are part of this organization.
• The recent bus station bomb in Jerusalem; the recent slaughter of an Israeli couple and three of their children by two teenage Palestinians; the recent shooting of a Jewish man who was visiting Joseph's Tomb as part of his Passover week celebration....(and the list goes on).
• The continued weekly firing of rockets by Hamas from Gaza into southern towns in Israel.
• The recent "reconciliation" of two factions of Palestinians, Fatah and Hamas, with plans to unite and take back the "occupied land" in Israel, creating a Palestinian nation.
• The recent backing of many UN nations for such a "Palestinian nation" to be created without the support or cooperation of Israel (i.e. by force).
• The ongoing upheaval in many Middle Eastern nations, and the underlying support of the Muslim Brotherhood that seems to be coming to the forefront at a rapid pace.
• The constant threats and statements by leaders of various nations saying that their goal is to "wipe Israel off the map."

I could go on with many other additions to this list, but for the sake of space and time I will stop there.

The point is that Israel is very quickly coming to a place of being backed up against a wall, completely unable to defend herself.  (And what happens when she tries to defend herself?  The world complains and cries "Foul!")

But guess what?  

All of this is already laid out in YHVH's plan book...His WORD!

We should not be surprised.

We should not be worried or afraid.

It might get difficult.  
It might get bloody.  
It might be very hard to experience.  

(Perhaps I should just be blunt and say "it WILL" instead of "it might be.")

If you are in the large number of people who think that these "events" won't affect you, that it is all about what's happening in the Middle East, that this is all Israel's problem, I am sorry that you will be sadly mistaken and rudely awakened, probably at a time much sooner than many people realize!

These things are shakings, groanings, warning signs, birth pangs of an event that will affect the whole world, every person in existence, every nation from smallest to greatest.

The truth is that YHVH is and always will be true to His Word...true to His covenant with His people!

We can only count on this one thing.  YHVH has drawn up the plan, and He will stick to it until the end!

We must stand on His WORD and stand with His nation Israel!  We who call ourselves followers of Yahshua are grafted into the nation of Israel.  We must be ready to live every day according to the Word of Adonai.  

Although Israel as a nation (past and present) does not deserve YHVH's faithful everlasting covenant, HE WILL FULFILL IT FOR HIS GREAT NAME'S SAKE!   (Remember, when saying that Israel does not deserve it, we ourselves are in the community of Israel!)

1 Samuel 12:20-22 

 And Samuel said to the people, “Do not fear. You have done all this evil. Only, do not turn aside from following יהוה. And you shall serve יהוה with all your heart, and do not turn aside after worthless matters which do not profit or deliver, for they are worthless.  For יהוה would not cast away His people, for His great Name’s sake, seeing it has pleased יהוה to make you His people. 

Deuteronomy 20:1-4  

“When you go out to battle against your enemies, and shall see horses and chariots and people more numerous than you, do not be afraid of them, for יהוה your Elohim, who brought you up from the land of Egypt, is with you.   And it shall be, when you draw near to the battle, that the priest shall come and speak to the people, and shall say to them, ‘Hear, O Israel: You are drawing near today to battle with your enemies. Do not let your heart faint, do not fear, or tremble, or be afraid before them, for יהוה your Elohim is He who goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.’"

2 Chronicles 20:15  
...and he said, “Listen, all Judah, and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and King Jehoshaphat!  Thus said יהוה to you, ‘Do not fear, nor be afraid of the face of this great army, for the battle is not yours, but Elohim’s. 


What do we do at this time?  We stand and behold the working of YHVH on behalf of His people and His land!
What do we do while we are standing and watching?
We pray!!
We pray YHVH's Word back to Him, asking Him to fulfill it all.
We ask for His mercy in the midst of His judgment.


We can pray just as Daniel did...
Daniel 9:15-19  
“And now, O יהוה our Elohim, who brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a strong hand, and made Yourself a Name, as it is this day – we have sinned, we have done wrong!  O יהוה, according to all Your righteousness, I pray, let Your displeasure and Your wrath be turned away from Your city Jerusalem, Your set-apart mountain.  For, because of our sins, and because of the crookednesses of our fathers, Jerusalem and Your people have become a reproach to all those around us.  And now, our Elohim, hear the prayer of Your servant, and his supplications, and for the sake of יהוה cause Your face to shine on Your set-apart place, which is laid waste.  O my Elohim, incline Your ear and hear. Open Your eyes and see our wastes, and the city which is called by Your Name. For we do not present our supplications before You because of our righteous deeds, but because of Your great compassions.  O יהוה, hear! O יהוה, forgive! O יהוה, listen and act! Do not delay for Your own sake, my Elohim, for Your city and Your people are called by Your Name.” 

Psalm 106:1-12  

Praise Yah! Oh, give thanks to יהוה, For He is good! 

For His kindness is everlasting. 

Who does relate the mighty acts of יהוה? Or declare all His praise? 

Blessed are those who guard right-ruling, 

Who do righteousness at all times! 

Remember me, O יהוה, in the acceptance of Your people; 

Visit me with Your deliverance, 

To see the good of Your chosen ones, To rejoice in the gladness of Your nation, To make my boast with Your inheritance. 

We have sinned with our fathers, We have acted perversely, 

We have done wrong. 

Our fathers in Egypt did not understand Your wonders; 

They did not remember Your many kindnesses, But rebelled by the sea, the Sea of Reeds. 

But He saved them for His Name’s sake, 

To make known His might. 

And He rebuked the Sea of Reeds, and it dried up; And He led them through the depths, Through a wilderness. 

And He saved them from the hand of the hater, And redeemed them from the hand of the enemy. 

And waters covered their adversaries; Not one of them was left. 

Then they believed His words; They sang His praise. 

(also read Psalm 79)

Today, we cry out to YHVH, the Elohim of Israel...

Do it again YHVH!!  Save Your people from the hand of the many haters!  
Do it for Your Great Name's sake!

So what exactly is about to unfold in all these world events?  
Of course, I do not know.
But I know that the Word of Adonai is true, and some things have yet to come about.
It appears that these things are well on the way...


I read and reread the promises of YHVH still to come.  
I cling to them with hope and trust in the Elohim of Israel.


Zechariah 2:4-13
... saying, 'Jerusalem is to remain unwalled, because of the many men and livestock in it.  For I Myself am to her,’ declares יהוה, ‘a wall of fire all around, and for esteem I am in her midst.’ ” 
 “Oh, Oh! And flee from the land of the north,” declares יהוה, “for I have scattered you like the four winds of the heavens,” declares יהוה.  "Oh, Zion! Escape, you who dwell with the daughter of Baḇel.”   For thus said יהוה of hosts (for the sake of esteem He sent me to the gentiles which plunder you): “For he who touches you touches the apple of My eye.  For look, I am waving My hand against them, and they shall become spoil for their servants. And you shall know that יהוה of hosts has sent Me.  Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion! For look, I am coming, and shall dwell in your midst,” declares יהוה.   And many gentiles shall be joined to יהוה in that day, and they shall become My people. And I shall dwell in your midst. And you shall know that יהוה of hosts has sent Me to you.   And יהוה shall inherit Judah, His portion in the Set-apart Land. And He shall again choose Jerusalem.
 “Hush, all flesh, before יהוה, for He has roused Himself out of His set-apart dwelling!” 

Ezekiel 36:22-28
Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus said the Master יהוה, “I do not do this for your sake, O house of Israel, but for My set-apart Name’s sake, which you have profaned among the gentiles wherever you went.  And I shall set apart My great Name, which has been profaned among the gentiles, which you have profaned in their midst. And the gentiles shall know that I am יהוה,” declares the Master יהוה, “when I am set-apart in you before their eyes.  And I shall take you from among the gentiles, and I shall gather you out of all lands, and I shall bring you into your own land.   And I shall sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean – from all your filthiness and from all your idols I cleanse you.   And I shall give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you. And I shall take the heart of stone out of your flesh, and I shall give you a heart of flesh, and put My Spirit within you. And I shall cause you to walk in My laws and guard My right-rulings and shall do them.  And you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers. And you shall be My people, and I shall be your Elohim. 

(read all of Ezekiel 36-39, and of course, so many other places throughout the Word)


Oh how exciting!  I long for the day when this shall come to pass!!


For now, I watch and wait and see the Mighty Hand of YHVH work the salvation of His people!
And I pray!


Standing on His True Word, beholding His Mighty Acts,


Gina

Rosh Chodesh - A Remembrance for His People...

     ...and you shall know that I am YHVH your Elohim!

Tonight , as the sun sets outside my window and the new crescent moon is just visible, I have the joy of wishing you a Happy New Month (Rosh Chodesh..means "head of the month") and a Happy New Year (Rosh HaShanah...means "head of the year")!

(Actually I can't currently see the thin crescent of moon because of the bright city night lights and all the tall buildings around me...but I look forward to seeing it soon!)


"And יהוה (YHVH) spoke to Moses and to Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, 'This month is the beginning of months for you, it is the first month of the year for you.'"  Exodus 12:1-2

This was one of the very first commandments YHVH gave to the people of Israel as He was about to lead them out of the land of Egypt, where the the sun god Ra was worshipped, into HIS land with HIS yearly calendar of months and appointed times, based on the moon's phases.

The sighting of the new moon sets the beginning of each month and is a critical part of determining the proper timing of each of YHVH's appointed times for His people.

This particular new month is also commanded by God in His Biblical calendar to be the first month of the year!  

He made this the beginning of the year to be a perpetual memorial to His people of the time He brought them out of Egypt...a remembrance for all generations of His mighty work on behalf of His people.


"...so that I show these signs of Mine before him, and that you relate in the hearing of your son and your son’s son what I have done in Egypt, and My signs which I have done among them. And you shall know that I am יהוה.”   Exodus 10:1, 2

“And you shall inform your son in that day, saying, ‘It is because of what יהוה did for me when I came up from Egypt.’  And it shall be as a sign to you on your hand and as a reminder between your eyes, that the Torah of יהוה is to be in your mouth, for with a strong hand יהוה has brought you out of Egypt.  And you shall guard this law at its appointed time from year to year."  

Exodus 13:8-10 

 (referring specifically to the festivals of Passover and Unleavened Bread, also part of the departure from Egypt, also commanded in the first month)

The sad thing is that very few people in the world follow this important command of YHVH (as well as many others).  Christians observe another new year.  Many observant Jews celebrate the official new year at the time of the Feast of Trumpets.  Most of the world has a new year date that is other than what YHVH commanded!
But as for me and my house (which is just me at the present time), I WILL SERVE THE LORD YHVH!

Another sad thing is that many people have taken what YHVH gave as a sign, a remembrance that should point His people to focus on HIM, and instead they have focused on the sign itself.  The moon has become a central element in much of the world's idol worship.

But YHVH tells us in His Word what purpose He had in mind when He created the moon...

Psalm 104:19 says, "He made the moon for appointed times; The sun knows its going down."

The word for "appointed times" in this verse is the Hebrew word "moedim."  

Moedim is the word used even today in the Hebrew language for all of YHVH's commanded and appointed times in the Word (such as the Sabbath, Passover, Sukkot, Yom Kippur, and all the other commanded set-apart days).

YHVH tells us in His Word that He created the moon as a sign of the appointed, set-apart times He has commanded His people to observe....and all of this is for one purpose:  

So we will know that He is YHVH our Elohim (God)...so we will focus on Him always!!

But instead, the moon has become for some a symbol of "mother earth" and other pagan ideas and for others it is something to be worshipped in itself.  Many cultures use lunar calendars, but not in the way YHVH has set up in His Word.
And others go the opposite extreme and say that anyone who follows YHVH's commands regarding the new moon, regarding His set-apart, appointed times and feasts, is actually falling into legalism and is not experiencing the "freedom" of a relationship with God (and yet these same people live daily by a calendar that includes names of false gods such as Saturn in Saturday, Frigga in Friday, Thor in Thursday, Janus in January, Mars in March, Augustus Caesar in August, etc).

Read the rest of Psalm 104...see how the creation is treated in YHVH's Word.  It's all about HIM!
Everything He has created and everything He commands and expects His people to do is all about HIM!
He wants us to be in relationship with Him, and He has made clear the way for that to happen.  (Remember, Yahshua, who is THE answer for the way to life with YHVH, also lived His life in complete obedience to YHVH's Word, His Torah, His commands.)

For many years I followed the traditions of man that said I must do certain things at certain times of the year.  I was taught that these traditions and actions and yearly celebrations are signs of God and His relationship with us (such as Christmas, Easter, etc).

BUT...if they do not fit into His commanded way of life, if they go against what He has commanded, then I don't want to have anything to do with them.

I know this could come across as negative (which I do not want to be).
So let me state it another way...

Shout for joy to Elohim our strength; raise a shout to the Elohim of Jacob. 

Lift up a song and beat the tambourine, the pleasant lyre and with the harp. 

Blow the ram’s horn at the time of the New Moon, at the full moon, on our festival day. 

For this is a law for Israel, and a right-ruling of the Elohim of Jacob. 

He appointed it in Joseph for a witness, when He went throughout the land of Egypt; I heard a language that I did not know. 

He says, “I removed his shoulder from the burden; his hands were freed from the baskets. 

You called in distress, and I rescued you; I answered you in the covering of thunder; I proved you at the waters of Meribah. Selah.     Psalm 81:1-7

“And in the day of your gladness, and in your appointed times, and at the beginning of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings and over your peace offerings. And they shall be a remembrance for you before your Elohim. I am יהוה your Elohim.”   Numbers 10:10

In my deliberate study of YHVH's Word over the past few years to seek HIS way of life, while learning about how to keep the set-apart times He has commanded, I noticed how important the monthly moon phases were in many places in His Word.

So, in the past few months I have been reading YHVH's Word to specifically learn more about how He uses the moon every day, every month, every year as a sign of His faithfulness to His people, His desire to dwell in relationship with His people, His plan for LIFE!  

And now whenever I look up in the night (or day) sky and see the moon at various phases, my heart does a little leap of gladness!   At the same time, my mind goes immediately to focus on YHVH, and I say "thank you" for His plans, His faithfulness, His nearness, His mighty works on the behalf of His people!  

In my life up to this point, before I had intentionally read and paid attention to what His Word says about this command of the new month and the new year, seeing the moon in the night sky would not bring any response at all within my heart and mind (except maybe to say "how pretty or how big or how bright the moon is tonight").

But now my heart jumps when I see the moon!  

Why?  

Because I am reminded of so much of His goodness, the perfection of His plan, the intricacy and extent of His love for His people!

What a difference it makes to know and follow the Word of YHVH rather than just following traditions of man!  

His commands, precepts, instructions, purposes are so much richer and meaningful than anything man could come up with!  

Why do I waste my time following anything else in this world other than what YHVH has said?  

(good question)

His Word is full of these signs and remembrances!  So many items, events, parts of creation are used by YHVH as memorials for us to constantly remember Him and His faithfulness and His mighty works!

I won't go into details on any of these...you can research more on your own.
But here is only a partial list of what YHVH has given us as signs pointing to Him, remembrances that remind us that He is Elohim:

A rainbow - Genesis 9:15
Circumcision - Genesis 17:11
His NAME - Exodus 3:15, Psalm 135:13, Hosea 12:5
The Festival of Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread  - Exodus 12 & 13  (coming up soon!!)
The Stones on the priest's garment  - Exodus 28, 39:7
Tzitzit (tassels on garment corners) - Numbers 15:39-40
The Sabbath  - Exodus 20:8-11; 31:13; Deuternomy 5:12-15; Ezekiel 20:12 etc
The Word of YHVH - Deuteronomy 6; 11:18
The 12 stones at the Jordan River  - Joshua 4
Yahshua - His life, death and resurrection...He is THE sign!  - Isaiah 7:14;  Matthew 16;  Luke 2; Luke 11 (sign of Jonah)
YHVH's sustaining of Israel -  Mary's song in Luke 1
Communion... taking the bread and wine, symbolizing the body and blood of Yahshua -  Luke 22:19; 1 cor 11:24-25


So, as you look at the moon tonight, fix your gaze on YHVH...remember the faithfulness of your Elohim and rejoice! 
Let your heart do a little leap of gladness, and thank Him!

If we really know the Word of YHVH and truly live life in Him the way He has commanded, then we should be reminded of Him continuously throughout every day of our lives!

May this be so as we prepare ourselves for the coming Passover celebration.

Under His never-slumbering watch care,

Gina