Monday, March 11, 2024

The Ten Campsites of Israel

The Ten Campsites of Israel

Introduction to the Covenant of Vocation

A rocky cliff area next to blue ocean, waves are crashing on the base of the cliff and rocks. Text overlay reads: Being human is about taking responsibility for creation and worshipping the Creator

Torah Parashah Beshalach – When (He) Let Go

Sh’mot / Exodus 13:17 – 17:61  RSTNE p 58

 

Moshe has just been given permission for Isra’el to leave Goshen/ Egypt.

 The slaves were being set free…

 According to

Numbers 33:5

“And the children of Israel moved from Raamses and camped in Sukkot.”

Then they stopped by and picked up Joseph’s bones.

 

They went on to what we know as

The 1st campsite: Sukkot

Not much is said about this site.

Campsite #2 Etham

Ex. 13:20

“And they took their journey from Sukkot, and encamped

in Etham, in the edge of the wilderness.”

Before we talk much about Etham,

Let’s read

Rev 18:1-4 p 924

 

Again verse 4:

4”And I heard another voice from the heavens, saying, Come out of her, My people -Ami, that you be not partakers of her sins, so that you receive not of her plagues.”


Over and over again throughout Scripture –

YHUH calls us to “come out of her”.

To come out of IDOLATRY.

~~

 

Remember, Brad Scott taught us that

Being Human was to do things of Yahuah.


Our “main task is to be His image-bearer. 

Reflecting the Creator’s wise stewardship into the world

And reflecting the praises of all creation back to its maker.” (N.T. Wright)

 

Being human isn’t just about keeping certain moral standards,

But to take responsibility for the creation,

And to worship the Creator!

 

-          This was what those coming out of Egypt,

camping and Etham, were called to do …

 

BUT this is what we are called to…

Not just

 keep the Book of the Covenant instructions,

But to take care of creation,

AND

To WORSHIP the Creator!!

 

When we look at what is happening in the world today

We can see the full-on intent of evil to destroy creation,

To have all the ones called to live as image-bearers –

Live distracted, not worshiping Yahuah,

But giving our power to small g gods,

This is Idolatry.

And in idolatry – worshiping other gods, not Yahuah…

We lose our freedom and become slaves and will finally die.

This is humans not keeping what Wright calls

“The Covenant of Vocation”

 

Campsite #2

Etham was the place of re-evaluation of Israel…

…how they were going to live.

Etham means “flee from them” and “ploughshares”.

Egypt represents the full darkness of not living how they were created to live

And living in idolatry.

 

It was here they were supposed to learn total surrender and dependence upon Yahuah. 

It was at Etham that many wanted to turn back to Egypt / Idolatry.

Here they had to decide what they were going to do.

It seems to me Israel is confronted over and over again

To “come out of her my people.”

~

It is interesting to note that Yahuah

Went with them as a pillar of cloud by day

And at night – a pillar of fire.


And then they moved to

Campsite #3

Pi-Hahiroth - between Migdol (Tower) and the sea.

 

Pi-Hahiroth means

“to subside, to calm: to be quiet

in the face of wrath.”

 

Migdol – Tower. 

Israel was invited to focus on the tower

Of Yahuah and run into it.

 

Pharoah’s army was bearing down on them…

And Moshe said to the people

Ex 14:13

           “Fear not, stand still, and see the Yahusha

(salvation) of Yahuah, which He will show to you today ….

And goes on in

14:14 “YHUH shall fight for you, and you shall stay still.”

And the waters parted and Israel walked across on dry land.

And Pharaoh’s army was swallowed up by the sea.

14: “And Israel saw that great work

which YHUH did upon the Mitzrim;

and the people feared YHUH

and believed YHUH and

His eved (servant) Moshe.”

 

Chapter 15 is Moshe’s song to Yahuah.

And again, as people traveled…

Things were wrong.

They were thirsty and complaining.

 

Campsite # 4 Marah

Ex 15:23

The camp of bitter water.

Israel had doubted Yah’s love and care for them,

And became bitter.

They just walked between walls of water

And watched their enemies drown…

And now they were thirsty and the water was bad.

 

Exodus 15:27

Campsite #5 – Elim – Palms by the water

Following spiritual difficulties and

times of trial, our loving Abba

promises times of rest and spiritual strengthening.

 

Elim had 12 wells and 70 palms 

70 = “the window to the soul” and

“revelation of the Father’s care”.

Symbolic of the eye of the sheep

being fixed upon its shepherd.

 

Numbers 33:10

Campsite #6 – by the Red Sea

Yam Suph - confusion

 

This was in the marshy region,

And it was difficult to travel.

We have to look beyond the struggle with

Eyes of faith – holding on to Truth.

 

 

Exodus 16:1

Camp #7 In the Wilderness of Sin (the moon god)

Lack of bread – so Yah gave them Mannah.

Israel mixed worship of YHUH with

moon god worship = idolatry.

The first real instructions for keeping Shabbat

 

Israel didn’t do so well – they failed to offer worship of Yahuah and they focused on the mess.

 

Let’s apply this to the end of days…

Where is our focus?

 

Amos 8:11

“Behold, the days come, says the M aster YHUH, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of lechem (bread) nor a thirst for mayim (water) but of hearing the Words of Yahuah.

 

Now you will see that not every camp is listed in Exodus… but they are listed in Numbers 33.

 

Num. 33:12

Camp #8 Dophkah – “knocking”

– a copper mining prison.

Here Israel was called to share Yahuah with other slaves.

The message is – “the knock of grace must be headed soon”…

We have not time to waste, before the opportunity will be gone.

 

*

 

Num 33:13

Campsite #9 – Alush - place of giants

           = leavening or kneading (like dough)

If we walk with Yah – then when hard times come

His presence will totally permeate our struggles.

If we don’t walk with Yah -  bitterness and

rebellion will come.

 

We have to have the Word hidden in our hearts

And we have to worship in order to survive the

hard times and be overcomers!

 

*

 

Ex 17:1

Campsite #10 – Rephidim – “to be neglectful

of the Word of Yah.”

“the weakening” or “the strengthening”

 

Water from the rock.

 

Interesting that the water of life is

offered to those who are worthy and

those who are not worthy.

But “the protection of Yahuah, against

the gathering giants is

promised only to the faithful believer.”

 

 

 

 

Tuesday, August 22, 2023

How To Fight Negative Thinking

How To Fight – some thoughts from “Get Out of Your Head” by Jennie Allen.

 

Woman sitting on rocks by the beach with the quote "“We are not subject to our thoughts. We have a choice because we are conquerors who possess weapons to destroy strongholds.“We are not subject to our thoughts. We have a choice because we are conquerors who possess weapons to destroy strongholds.”

**

Give everyone a paper…

Please write down what’s on your mind…

Was it something you are grateful for or something you are worried about?

Anyone want to share?

Now hold that thought….

**

Aaronic Blessing:

6:22- “This is the way you shall bless the children of Yisrael, saying to them, YHUH bless you and keep. You:  YHUH make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you: YHUH lift up His countenance upon you, and give you shalom. And they shall put My Name upon the children of Yisra’el and I will bless them.”

 

Chapter 7 = 3,6,9 repeating pattern – 369, 417, 528, 639, 741, 852… every 8 verses. 

Remember these chapters were meant to be sung!

369 = Ut – grief and joy

417 = Re – unload situations and facilitating change

528 = Mi – DNA repair/ “the miracle frequency”

639 = Fa – reconnecting and balancing relationships

741 = Sol – solving problems, expressing solutions

852 = La – creates an inner balance, harmony, self-awareness

**~~

 

Let’s go back to thought you were thinking when I asked you to write it down…

Was it positive, or negative?

 

Learning how to capture our thoughts matters a whole lot.

Because our thoughts shape our lives.

75 to 98 percent of mental, physical, and behavioral illness comes from one’s thought life.

The average person has more than 30,000 thoughts per day.

            Of those, so many are negative that “according to researchers, the vast majority of the illnesses that plague us today are a direct result of a toxic thought life.” (Dr. Caroline Leaf)

Our brain is always changing…. Scientists call it plasticity… because it can be “reshaped” so to speak.

Emotions (the byproduct of the way we think) lead us into thoughts.

Thoughts dictate our decisions.

Decisions determine behaviors.

Behaviors shape our relationships with consequences.

 

-All of which takes us back to healthy or unhealthy thinking.

 

Many times, we get on a downward spiral or way of thinking…

And that is where we stay…

 

UNLESS WE INTERRUPT THIS!

 

The Word says we can take every thought captive!

 

2 Corinthians 10:3-5 p 870

 

Allen says

“What we believe and what we think about matters, and the enemy knows it.  And he is determined to get in your head to distract you from doing good and to sink you so deep that you feel helpless, overwhelmed, shutdown, and incapable of rising to make a difference for the Kingdom of God.”

 

We have talked many times about lies we believe.  Lies we tell ourselves.

 

These lies tend to revolve around:  “I’m not enough”

            “I’m helpless”

            “I’m worthless”

            “I’m unlovable.”

 

“These lies – shape our thinking, our emotions, and the way we respond to the world around us.

They trap us in their cycle of distraction and distortion and pain, preventing us from recognizing the truth we should believe.

Most detrimentally, they change how we view (YAH) God.  Every lie we buy into about ourselves is rooted in what we believe about (YAH) God.”

Our very first step in this fight is to pay attention to our thinking.

Hence the reason I asked you what was on your mind.

 

If we can think about our thoughts, we can reset and redirect them.

 

What if we think about YHUH and the things HE says to think about so much that HE is what takes up the space in our thinking?

 

And when this happens, fear cannot stay. 

They will shrink in comparison.

“I’m not enough” cannot stay.

 

This is what I want – to be so focused on the things of Yah that there is literally no room for the enemy in my thinking.

 

But please hear what Allen says…

“The enemy of our souls has no intention of releasing his grip on our minds without a fight.  And let me tell you, he doesn’t play fair.”

Allen relates an experience she had at a church she was speaking at. 

She said, “During my first talk I swung for the fences with the women seated before me.  I was bold and clear in my presentation of the gospel message… There’s a real enemy with demons at his beck and call.  He wants to take you out.  He’s determined to steal your faith…”

During a break – “when suddenly that kind-looking woman was in my face.  Her expression darkened, her warm smile disappeared, and her eyes narrowed as she focused intently on me. – ‘We are coming for you,’ she said in an urgent whisper.  ‘You need to quit talking about us.  We are coming for you.”

At first, she didn’t know what the lady was talking about. 

She even asked her – and the lady just told her ‘You know exactly what I am talking about.”

And she still didn’t get it –

            “Until (she) did.”

She went back to the stage to do her second presentation … Started speaking, and then heard shrieking in the hallway.

I love this story she shared… because it makes a point –

This is WAR. 

We have to recognize it for what it is!

We have to start being on the offense instead of the defense!

Back to Allen –

She then explains that she fell into 18 months of a spiral of hopelessness.

The attack was real.

They came for her, just like their messenger had said.

 

Allen said she was in a pit.

Then she quoted Beth Moore – who is a self-described “former pit-dweller”. 

            “There are three kinds of pits:

 the kind we jump into,

the kind we slip into,

and the kind we’re thrown into.”

 

“This attack was the latter” she said.

 “I had been thrown in. 

The question that haunted me during those sleepless nights was how on earth to get out?”

 

“I’m helpless.  I’m worthless. I’m unlovable.”

Allen wrote -

“The danger of toxic thinking is it produces an alternate reality, one in which distorted reasoning actually seems to make sense.”

Let me read that again…

“The danger of toxic thinking is it produces an alternate reality, one in which distorted reasoning actually seems to make sense.”

 

For eighteen months she was in this pit – until one day… she learned to think differently about her thoughts….

Until she realized -  she had a choice.

We have a choice.

She then talked about this pit…

….and how when we are in it the alternate reality becomes –

The fears

The doubts

The restlessness

The pain

None of it is who we are.

Yah is real, and I am valuable

My life matters

He is real.

I have an enemy, and I let him beat me up for too long.

It was over.

This is war.

 

And then she began to rise by doing some things on purpose that affected her thinking.

I’d like to share them with you today….

 

Allen wrote

“Alone in the dark the devil can tell you whatever the hell he wants.”

“We are going to attack something most sane people wouldn’t dare to fight.  Worse still, the reason they don’t fight it is that they don’t even recognize the fight is happening.  They don’t realize there is an all-out assault against them.  They don’t see the enemy coming for them.  They don’t know they’re about to get trampled.  They’re living completely unaware.”

And then …

“If our thought lives are the deepest, darkest places of stronghold within us, all hell will try to stop us from being free.

This is how we do it:

“Day by day we fight to be the captors of our thoughts, rather than the ones taken captive.”

Allen talked about “Where thoughts are captured”

She said

We need to just work on taking ONE thought captive.

And … then she asks…

“What if one thought held the power to interrupt our spirals and bring peace to our mental chaos?”

Peace to our mental chaos? 

That is a real thing?

Yes.

“We walk around acting as if we have no power over what we allow into our minds. 

If our toddler is throwing a fit in the grocery store, we correct him, redirect him -  yet we have allowed our minds to have outright meltdowns with zero correction.”

So – We need a thought that can successfully interrupt every negative thought pattern.

It’s this: “I HAVE A CHOICE.”

“We are not subject to our thoughts. We have a choice because we are conquerors who possess weapons to destroy strongholds.”

The key is to interrupt the thoughts that are a problem – and recognize we have a choice about what to believe and fixate/ think on.

Do you know, when we think new thoughts, we physically alter our brains?  …We make healthier neural connections, we blaze new trails, … and everything changes for us.

So instead of spiraling downward:

Emotion à  thought à  behavior à relationships à consequence. L


My thinking can spiral upward:

Emotion à thought à behavior à relationships à consequence J

 

John 16:33 p 772

“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you. Might have shalom.  In the world you shall have tribulation: but be of tov courage;  I have overcome and conquered the world.”

Remember Resilience is seeing where we are…. And then turning and looking at Yahusha…

He told us we’d have trouble in this world.

We live in the dragon’s lair…

Okay…

And many of us know from our Discovering Mercy Course – that emotions come as a result of how we interpret experiences in our lives…

And emotions are hard to deal with because they don’t keep our heart safe…

So then PROTECTION comes in… anger, confusion, and anxiety… etc.. 

Allen says “… once we recognize that a prevailing emotion is connected to outright, life-sucking lies, we begin to see that everything we need for life in God has been given to us already… which means we begin to heal and live lives that matter.”

 2 Peter 1: 3-4

Mental story map:

1.      In the center of your paper – write down an emotion that you have been feeling lately.

2.      Draw a circle around the word.

3.      Around the circle, write everything you can think of that is contributing to that emotion. And draw smaller circles around each.

4.      And under each small circle – list how this has been contributing to the main emotion  (Like – lonely, feeling insecure about my body weight, feeling inadequate etc..)

The next step is to talk to Yah about it.

Then look for patterns and common themes in your circles..

            Are you worrying about things you can’t control?

            Are you angry?

This is the slow, mapped out version of taking notice of our thinking….

“We don’t just need our spiraling minds to stop, we need our minds to be redeemed.”

“Bondage necessitates rescue.

Oppression needs to be lifted.

Blindness waits for sight.

Waywardness must be transformed.” 

 

Oh, you might think, this is great self-help.

But we are not about self-help –

We are about following Yahusha…. We are the sons and daughters of the King of the universe and we need to know that our identities are secured by the shed blood of Yahusha haMashiach.

How do we train ourselves to fight?

Proverbs 23:7 p 561

“For as he thinks in his leb, so is he.”

1.      Capture the thought by facing it and recognizing “I HAVE A CHOICE”

2.      Identify Truth

“Every toxic thought involves a wrong belief about Yahuah.”

“Standing between us and victory is one of three barriers – or perhaps all three:”

a.      The devil

b.      Our wounds

c.      Our sin.

“We tend to carry around deep hurt from our brokenness, rarely noticing it, never dealing with it or healing from it.” 

“The most common trouble we face in this life takes the form of sin.  OUR sin.”

-          TESHUVAH!

3.      Spend quiet time with Yahuah! 

We tend to prefer to keep busy….

Allen says – “Because if I slowed down enough to look at my soul, I might be overwhelmed by all that needed fixing in me.  I didn’t want to hear what God might say to me – or take the risk that He would remain silent, hidden, deepening my doubt about His existence, His love.”

 

Fears that keep us from spending time with Yah

a.      The fear of being put to work… I might have to forgive…

b.      The fear of being asked to change… “Worse still, what if solitude reveals not just a specific action you need to take, but rather a broader issue you need to repent of?  If we don’t carve out time when the Holy Spirit can help us assess the quality of our lives, then we convince ourselves we won’t have to assess the quality of our lives.  – Not the best approach!”

c.      The fear that you’re all alone in the world.

“I’m afraid that if I reached out to God, there would be nobody home to take my call.”

“Behind all three of these fears is a lie:  I cannot face God as I am.”

“the antidote to running from ourselves is running to the only One who helps us get over ourselves. The lie is that we will be shamed.  The truth is that God who is creator and sovereign over the universe and the God who conquered sin and death is the same God who wants to be with you in your pain, doubt, shame and other circumstances.  God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance.”

 

“Connection with God is the foundation for every other God-given tool we have to fight with.  We begin here because if supernatural change is what we want, we have to go to our supernatural God to find it.”

Galatians 5:22-23

4.      I choose to be known

“If you want your child to thrive, then make him or her feel seen and loved.”

“We were built to be seen and loved.”

The fear here is – “If anyone really knew you, fear whispers, they’d leave you.”

So people choose self-preservation and isolate themselves.

BUT – “Disconnection, alters our brains.”  - and not in a positive way!!

Choosing to be in community requires RISK

“We must be known, in order to be healthy.”

“Find someone who is following HARD after (Yahusha) Jesus and then ask that person to coffee.”

5.      Choose to surrender my fears to YHUH

This is the place of worrying about things that “might” happen.

The “What – Ifs”

            What if… (bad thing) happens?

This is foreboding joy and it is fueled by scarcity and fear.

“The tool for defeating “what if” is, found in two little words:

            “Because YHUH…”

            “Because God clothes the lilies of the field and feeds the birds of the air, we don’t need to be anxious about tomorrow.

            Because God has poured His love into our hears, our hope will not be put to shame.

            Because God chose us to be saved by His strength, we can stand firm in our faith, no matter what the day holds.”

“Truth is the most powerful weapon we have against the enemy, who is a liar and the father of lies.  So we fight the enemy with whatever is true.”

“ I had to go to war.  I had to read Yah’s Word and find every weapon available to fight.”

We have exactly what we need.

We have a choice to trust instead of fear.

What do we do when we start to spiral?

 

We do the work.

We risk telling someone.

We choose to look at Yah instead of the fear thoughts.

We choose to get in the Word

We choose to worship

We choose to remind ourselves who Yah is and tell Him our worries

We claim His peace as our promise.

But cynicism might be a problem…

 

Allen says

“Cynicism erodes our ability to see Yah rightly.”

Cynicism at its root is a refusal to believe that God is in control and God is good.  Cynicism is interpreting the world and God based on HURAT you’ve experienced and the wounds that still lie gaping open.  It forces you to look horizontally at people rather than vertically at God.”

And then she explains her pit…

“What I couldn’t see then was that hurt was absolutely driving my behavior.  I was so exhausted from everything – the oppression, the despair, the process of trying to find health – that I’d decided true joy probably just wasn’t attainable.  What I thought was joy was really just the delight of chronic distraction.”

“The root of cynicism is crippling hurt.  Cynicism says that nobody can be trusted, that we’re never ever safe.”

Philippians 4: 4-9

Cynicism crumbles in the presence of beauty.

Look with awe at the world around you.  See the beauty.

See His hand in it!

“Beauty interrupts us, it awakens us, it undoes us, it cuts us open, and restarts our hearts. Beauty is God’s evidence of something far more wonderful is coming, a world beyond the one we can imagine, even in the most spectacular moments here.  A God better than what eh hope for.  A God who blows our minds.”

6.      Choose to Serve Yahuah and serve others

Humility

I can never be enough… 

I am only enough in Yahusha.

 

7.      Be thankful/ Gratitude

Philippians 1:1-6

1.      Opens the door to more relationships

2.      Improves physical health

3.      Improves psychological health

4.      Enhances empathy and reduces aggression

5.      Improves sleep

6.      Improves self esteem

7.      Increased mental strength


“Nothing has more impact to shift our minds and lives than knowing who we are and the power and authority we have been given.”

It’s not easy to stop believing lies.

So we train.  We practice.  Over and over again.

It isn’t easy – that’s why they call it a fight.

We choose well –

We have a choice.

We train our minds.

 

Sh’ma Yisra’el

Amein and Amein

Wednesday, May 3, 2023

Armor UP, Warrior

Torah Parashah: Tazria-Metzora

Leviticus 12:1 – 15:33

Armor UP, Warrior

Armour UP Warrior - Harbour Light Ministries

Tazria – Laws of Purity and Impurity.

This parshah starts with laws for new mothers… in regard to niddah and considered impure (tamei) regarding the sanctuary for 40 days of a boy and 80 days if a girl. 

It goes on and talks about tzara’at – that caused the affected person (or thing) to be impure (tamei) and in a state of uncleanness (tumah).  It is not to be identified as LEPROSY – since it was about a person’s skin AND clothes, pottery vessels, and the house.

Metzora: Cleansing of the Leper

If someone was diagnosed with tzara’at (“leprosy”) they were forced to leave the community…  had to cover his face and cry out…

Then it talks about laws for cleansing the lepers.

 

This always reminds me of some of my favorite scriptures:

Yechezkel/ Ezekiel 22:26

“Her kohanim have violate My Torah, and have profaned My Kadosh things: they have put no difference between the kadosh and profane, neither have they shown any difference between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from My Shabbats, and I am profaned among them.”

To me, this parashah is about cleaning things up in our lives…


So let’s start that process.

Last Shabbat I sent you homework:

            (These questions come from “Blessed and Unstoppable” by Bill Alsbrooks, and also myself.)

Start to think/pray about these things for your life and profession.

 

1.       What is your vision?

Vision = What a person wants to be.  It paints a powerful and inspiring picture of what the future will look like.

 

2.      What is your mission?

Mission = Why a person exists in the first place.  It should be a clear and concise statement short enough to fit on a T-shirt.

 

3.      What are your Core Values?

Core Values = What a person stands for.

 

4.      What is your slogan?

Slogan= A catchy phrase that effectively describes a person.  It’s a strong tag line that articulates a brief representation of you and makes you more memorable.

 

5.      What are your Long-Term Aspirations?

Long-Term Aspirations = a person’s top outcomes desired for years to come.  It’s more than just goals.  It’s the consequences, results and after effects of actually achieving them.

This might have been very difficult.

 

CORE VALUES

1.       What are your top 7 core values?

2.      What word best describes who I am at my core?

3.      What value do I want to most represent to others?

4.      What are the principles that I most admire in others

5.      What is my life going to look like when I consistently live through my core values?

10.What kind of character do I look for in my friends and associates?

11. What values do I want my friends/ spouse/ children to have?

 

Self-Assessment Questions:

1.      What do I desire most in my life?

2.      Who do I really want to be?

3.      How do I define true success?

4.      What do I want my body to look and feel like?

5.      What kind of marriage/ friend relationships do I have?

6.      What do I want to accomplish in the future?

7.      How can I make the biggest impact with my life?

8.      What would make me feel most alive inside?

9.      What kind of personal relationships am I looking for?

10.How do I want the world to see me?

11. Are my dreams and desires in line with Yah’s Word?

12.What does success really feel like?

13. How can I make the image of my future more vivid and clear in my mind.

16. What area of my life currently has the most clarity?

17.What area of my life has the least?

 

More Self-Assessment Questions?

1.      What makes me feel alive on the inside?

2.      What really sparks my creativity?

3.      What job or profession would I be willing to do whether I got paid or not?

4.      What are some of my favorite topics of conversation?

5.      What was the last thing I can remember doing that I totally lost track of time?

6.      If money wasn’t an issue, what profession or cause, would I get involved in?

7.      What’s my favorite section in the bookstore?

8.      If I could do one thing to change the world today. What would it be?

9.      What would be my top three dream jobs?

10.  If I could start my own business today, what would it be?

11.  What three skills do I posses that I love and enjoy to do?

12.What’s the worst thing that could happen if I pursued my passions full speed?

 

Even More Self-Assessment Questions:

1.      What does having faith really mean to me?

2.      What’s the difference between having real faith and just hoping something will happen?

3.      How will believing in who Yah says I am, change my life?

4.      Who do I know that most represents faith in their lives?

5.      Who are the biggest dream killers and doubters around me?

6.      How do I keep them out of my mind?

7.      Who are my biggest supporters?

8.      Do I fully believe in my heart, I can achieve my dreams?

10.What’s the body language of someone who really believes they can?

 

And finally, MORE…

1.      Are the words I am speaking in my day filled with faith, hope and love?

2.      Are my words aligned with the Word and who Yah says I am?

3.      Where in my life do I need to be and speak more positive?

4.      Am I declaring daily blessings of health and Yah’s Word over my loved ones and myself?

5.      What level of effort am I using to reach my goals?

6.      Am I pursuing the passions Yah has given me?

7.      How am I putting His Words in my heart?

8.      How am I guarding my heart?

9.      How am I guarding Yah’s Shabbat’s and commands?

10.How am I worshiping each day?

 

How are you working at being more of who Yahuah says you are?

 

**

Moshe – born a Hebrew, raised in the wealthiest home in the earth, had to go to the wilderness 40 years…

Abraham didn’t know where he was going…

And if we look at

B’re’shiyt/ Genesis 11:29-30

“And Avram and Nachor took wives: the name of Avram’s wife was Sarai; and the name of Nachor’s wife, Milcah, the daughter of Charan, the abba of Milcah, and the abba of Iscah.

30 But Sarai was barren; she had no child.

If you study this out –

Abram and his brother Nachor married their nieces… the daughters of their brother…

Abram was the oldest so he would have first pick.

Look at verse 30 – oddly just thrown in there

They would have known she was barren because they knew once a girl had her menses she went to the woman’s tent…

So Abram was supposed to have all these children… but he thought of others and chose the barren one.

King David had to figure out who he was… a shepherd boy who eventually became king.

Jehosheba -the daughter of King Jehoram, took the year old son of the King - Joash -And Hid him in the temple for six years… to save his life so at 7 he could become King. 

Luke 13:10-17 – The Bent Woman…

This woman was desperate. 

Bent – some translations say “bent in half”

Certainly, she was in a lot of pain.

This was Yahusha’s last recorded time teaching in the temple.

Since he was teaching – you can be sure – there wasn’t supposed to be any woman in that room he was teaching in.

But  -- she walked in any way!

It takes a lot of strength and courage to go where you are not welcome!

**

Acts 9:1-21  p 787

Shaul – who had the best teacher of his day, and was the best student…was blinded… and had to figure out who he was and what he was going to do…

Daniel – continued to be himself in a pagan land. His friends were thrown into a fire- and had to decide who they were…. Were they going to worship another god or stay true to yah? 

They had to know who they were.

 

~

 

 

**

I think there is something else…

Matthew 18:21-35  p 693

18:34

“And his Master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers, until he should pay all that was due to Him.”

 

I haven’t understood this for a long time. 

But recently I think I get it more.

I mean, - the “master” – delivering “him to the torturers until he could pay all that was due to him.”

How could someone repay what he owed while in prison.

I heard all sorts of things like – his family had to do it etc…

But that is not it.

 

I am listening to “The Secret of Lasting Forgiveness” by Bruce Wilkinson now.

And Pastor Wilkinson suggests people are in torture when we have unforgiveness. 

He is saying that Yah sends people with unforgiveness to the torturers until they figure it out. 

He tells a story – I think it was his great grandparents…

Great grandma had just mopped the floors. 

She was exhausted, but she did it. 

Her husband, Great grandpa, walked in from the field/barns… and got the floors all dirty.

Grandma had had enough.  She went upstairs … and from then on – they never spoke. 

This lasted 25 YEARS until Grandma died. 

They had to in the torturers. 

This had to be miserable!!

Unforgiveness stored in our hearts leads to bitterness and a cold, stone heart. 

These are some things you need to begin to work on….

Forgiveness:

1.       Make a list of everyone who has ever hurt you.

Another way to think about this is to think who you have locked in your heart’s prison.

2.      Think of everything they did to you.

3.       Ask Yahusha to help you let go of these things.