Letters from Jerusalem
May 14, 2019
"He said therefore, 'A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return.
And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.'"
Luke 19:12-13
"A merry heart does good, like medicine, But a broken spirit dries the bones."
Proverbs 17:22
Greetings, Sisters and Brothers in Yeshua, called, heeding the call, depending upon The Only One Who can ever fulfill that call…GREETINGS! May The Lord Yeshua h'meshiach, Jesus The Messiah, be blessed and glorified. May you be edified, refreshed and blessed.
"You went to the Bank AND the Post Office in the same day?!? WOW! Superwoman!" No one really said that to me, but they WOULD have had they known; and I DID say it to myself. I also added "Now you REALLY need to REST!"
When we made aliyah, that was one of the first warnings that we received everywhere: 'Do NOT plan to do any two bureaucratic transactions in the same day.' We thought that was funny…I mean…it WAS July, and it WAS hot (and there was no air-conditioning back then in most places, just very large ceiling fans)…but…'DON'T' is a pretty strong word.
We soon learned the wisdom of this instruction.
When we first came there were neither lines nor numbers…nor chairs; there were huge pushing mobs! We were used to…well…Western order and courtesy. Nor were we used to the fact that the Post Office also was a 'Postal Bank' and the Bank was also a place where you could do transactions that we were clueless about. Often the person in front of you would be there for an hour. The Hebrew word 'belegan' (loosely translated as 'chaos' - or -perhaps spaghetti thrown at a wall -) was really a perfect description. The 'wave of aliyah' that we immigrated with was the waning season of the Russian aliyah. Living under Communism for so many years, the Russians had mastered the fine art of 'I want to stand in front of you and if I push hard enough I can,', and being from America we had mastered the fine art of 'Well…ofcourse…excuse me…you first…I'm sorry.'
On top of this, the working hours for banks and post offices were sort of a mystery. 'You say the bank will be open Tuesday from 8-12 and the post office tomorrow from 9-2'? EVERYTHING closed between 2-4 and only SOME things opened in the afternoon and we could DEFINITELY NOT figure it out! We would attempt one chore in the morning and IF we succeeded to accomplish it without having to return the next day (or week), we would be ecstatic!
Things have changed.
First: there are signs and sometimes even in several languages which more and more is including English. There are now seats to wait in, numbers to take that are posted AND called over a loudspeaker, air-conditioning (so I take a sweater even during a sha'arav…heat wave off the desert) AND posted hours that I can write down and generally count on. The bank and the post have staggered their hours so that one is open in the afternoons on Sun, Tues and Thurs and the other on Mon and Wed. I have NOT mastered the newest item: making your appointment (to buy a stamp or do a bank transaction) online. I take a number. AND a book!
This Sunday was the first 'normal' day following weeks of holidays, elections, wars, mourning and more celebrations. I studied the schedules and the things that I HAD to do. The bank, which opened at 8:30, was only open until 1. I had deposited my pay check a week ago and it never showed up (fourth time!) so now I was 1,000 shekels in overdraft and they were charging me interest!
I got to the bank at 8:20 (kicking myself that it was so late as by now the line was long) and took a number that said F100. Could I really be FIRST?? YEP! The other people were trying to get in without a number. WOW! I WON! First time ever! The door swung open at 8:30 and we all sat down, eyes fixed on the screen. My number was called and I explained (in Hebrew) what had happened. 'Impossible' was the answer. Again I explained. She shook her head; 'Give me your teudot zehut' (Identity card).' Smugly she opened my files in her computer and called another woman over. 'This is the FOURTH TIME!' I told her as she backtracked embarrassedly . Time passes…adjustment somehow made. 'I want the interest paid back' I told them. Again they looked totally confused. After much discussion I was told 'I'm sorry. We can't do that. We don't have a WAY to do it.' Calmly I replied… 'So you are thieves and are stealing my money…because a person who takes what is not rightfully his is a thief.' That answer usually shakes people up, and it did this time too. These are people with moral standards usually. Thief is NOT a good thing to be. I gave them my phone number and with some re-assurances I left…running over to the post office.
The line was outside and around the building. Not a good sign! I took a number: 109. I looked up at the screen to see that they were up to… 67. I actually found a seat at which point the woman next to me began to scream at someone 'I have been here for an hour and you are taking a number that isn't yours?? Put that back!' She was loud enough that the woman did return the number that she had found on the floor. The tension in the room was palpable, so I prayed for His Peace and soon progress was made and I felt like someone who had accomplished a great feat: I HAD GONE TO THE BANK AND THE POST IN THE SAME MORNING! Ofcourse…I still had to do some shopping and babysit for my Granddaughters (it was my day off) but oh my…I had come of age! I am no longer a 'oleh hadasha' (new immigrant) but a 'vatika' (uh…I guess an OLD immigrant!).
That accomplishment was a good gift following a wonderful Yom h'atz'ma'oot! (Independence Day)
The week that I described in my last letter was capped off by a most wonderful day that I can't even begin to describe as I have in the past. I'm just adding this ONE ANECDOTAL PIECE OF INFORMATION FOR ANY OF YOU WHO COME AS A TOURIST: ALWAYS BRING YOUR PASSPORT AND VISA WHEN YOU GO OUT! (it's the law…and although it IS attached to a funny story, I do have to end here.
At this moment our daughter and two Granddaughters are in a plane headed to London to visit our older daughter for two weeks and we are all so excited (albeit I am ill again and do ask for your prayers that this will not progress into anything more serious. I am still weakened from the winter's hospitalization so am asking for prayer).
So although the balance of scripture tells us that sorrow is of more value than mirth, a time for laughter is still a gift from Him, and as it says in Proverbs 17:22 "A merry heart does good, like medicine…" and I hope that the vignette above left you with a merrier heart.
And oh, by the way, a little 'banking addendum'. I checked my account when I got home and saw that they had deposited the amount of my paycheck …BUT…they deposited it TWICE…3 minutes apart! I began to calculate when I could get back to the bank and convince them that they had made ANOTHER mistake! I did NOT want to be a thief. Monday I received a call from the bank (first time ever): "We are happy to tell you that we cancelled the overdraft charges! Uh…and…by the way…uh…we made a mistake and doubled your deposit so we have to remove half of it…' (she sounded terrified). I laughed. "I saw that, ofcourse you have to; I don't want to be a thief. Does that mean that I DON'T HAVE TO COME INTO THE BANK AND STRAIGHTEN ANYTHING OUT?" We both laughed.
This is just another way of seeing how God watches over this country…we CERTAINLY don't do it by our own wits…and PLEASE don't tell our enemies about this!!
Thank you for your prayers. Thank you for carrying both the weight AND the joy. Loving blessings, your sister
"He said therefore, 'A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return.
And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.'"
Luke 19:12-13
"A merry heart does good, like medicine, But a broken spirit dries the bones."
Proverbs 17:22
Greetings, Sisters and Brothers in Yeshua, called, heeding the call, depending upon The Only One Who can ever fulfill that call…GREETINGS! May The Lord Yeshua h'meshiach, Jesus The Messiah, be blessed and glorified. May you be edified, refreshed and blessed.
"You went to the Bank AND the Post Office in the same day?!? WOW! Superwoman!" No one really said that to me, but they WOULD have had they known; and I DID say it to myself. I also added "Now you REALLY need to REST!"
When we made aliyah, that was one of the first warnings that we received everywhere: 'Do NOT plan to do any two bureaucratic transactions in the same day.' We thought that was funny…I mean…it WAS July, and it WAS hot (and there was no air-conditioning back then in most places, just very large ceiling fans)…but…'DON'T' is a pretty strong word.
We soon learned the wisdom of this instruction.
When we first came there were neither lines nor numbers…nor chairs; there were huge pushing mobs! We were used to…well…Western order and courtesy. Nor were we used to the fact that the Post Office also was a 'Postal Bank' and the Bank was also a place where you could do transactions that we were clueless about. Often the person in front of you would be there for an hour. The Hebrew word 'belegan' (loosely translated as 'chaos' - or -perhaps spaghetti thrown at a wall -) was really a perfect description. The 'wave of aliyah' that we immigrated with was the waning season of the Russian aliyah. Living under Communism for so many years, the Russians had mastered the fine art of 'I want to stand in front of you and if I push hard enough I can,', and being from America we had mastered the fine art of 'Well…ofcourse…excuse me…you first…I'm sorry.'
On top of this, the working hours for banks and post offices were sort of a mystery. 'You say the bank will be open Tuesday from 8-12 and the post office tomorrow from 9-2'? EVERYTHING closed between 2-4 and only SOME things opened in the afternoon and we could DEFINITELY NOT figure it out! We would attempt one chore in the morning and IF we succeeded to accomplish it without having to return the next day (or week), we would be ecstatic!
Things have changed.
First: there are signs and sometimes even in several languages which more and more is including English. There are now seats to wait in, numbers to take that are posted AND called over a loudspeaker, air-conditioning (so I take a sweater even during a sha'arav…heat wave off the desert) AND posted hours that I can write down and generally count on. The bank and the post have staggered their hours so that one is open in the afternoons on Sun, Tues and Thurs and the other on Mon and Wed. I have NOT mastered the newest item: making your appointment (to buy a stamp or do a bank transaction) online. I take a number. AND a book!
This Sunday was the first 'normal' day following weeks of holidays, elections, wars, mourning and more celebrations. I studied the schedules and the things that I HAD to do. The bank, which opened at 8:30, was only open until 1. I had deposited my pay check a week ago and it never showed up (fourth time!) so now I was 1,000 shekels in overdraft and they were charging me interest!
I got to the bank at 8:20 (kicking myself that it was so late as by now the line was long) and took a number that said F100. Could I really be FIRST?? YEP! The other people were trying to get in without a number. WOW! I WON! First time ever! The door swung open at 8:30 and we all sat down, eyes fixed on the screen. My number was called and I explained (in Hebrew) what had happened. 'Impossible' was the answer. Again I explained. She shook her head; 'Give me your teudot zehut' (Identity card).' Smugly she opened my files in her computer and called another woman over. 'This is the FOURTH TIME!' I told her as she backtracked embarrassedly . Time passes…adjustment somehow made. 'I want the interest paid back' I told them. Again they looked totally confused. After much discussion I was told 'I'm sorry. We can't do that. We don't have a WAY to do it.' Calmly I replied… 'So you are thieves and are stealing my money…because a person who takes what is not rightfully his is a thief.' That answer usually shakes people up, and it did this time too. These are people with moral standards usually. Thief is NOT a good thing to be. I gave them my phone number and with some re-assurances I left…running over to the post office.
The line was outside and around the building. Not a good sign! I took a number: 109. I looked up at the screen to see that they were up to… 67. I actually found a seat at which point the woman next to me began to scream at someone 'I have been here for an hour and you are taking a number that isn't yours?? Put that back!' She was loud enough that the woman did return the number that she had found on the floor. The tension in the room was palpable, so I prayed for His Peace and soon progress was made and I felt like someone who had accomplished a great feat: I HAD GONE TO THE BANK AND THE POST IN THE SAME MORNING! Ofcourse…I still had to do some shopping and babysit for my Granddaughters (it was my day off) but oh my…I had come of age! I am no longer a 'oleh hadasha' (new immigrant) but a 'vatika' (uh…I guess an OLD immigrant!).
That accomplishment was a good gift following a wonderful Yom h'atz'ma'oot! (Independence Day)
The week that I described in my last letter was capped off by a most wonderful day that I can't even begin to describe as I have in the past. I'm just adding this ONE ANECDOTAL PIECE OF INFORMATION FOR ANY OF YOU WHO COME AS A TOURIST: ALWAYS BRING YOUR PASSPORT AND VISA WHEN YOU GO OUT! (it's the law…and although it IS attached to a funny story, I do have to end here.
At this moment our daughter and two Granddaughters are in a plane headed to London to visit our older daughter for two weeks and we are all so excited (albeit I am ill again and do ask for your prayers that this will not progress into anything more serious. I am still weakened from the winter's hospitalization so am asking for prayer).
So although the balance of scripture tells us that sorrow is of more value than mirth, a time for laughter is still a gift from Him, and as it says in Proverbs 17:22 "A merry heart does good, like medicine…" and I hope that the vignette above left you with a merrier heart.
And oh, by the way, a little 'banking addendum'. I checked my account when I got home and saw that they had deposited the amount of my paycheck …BUT…they deposited it TWICE…3 minutes apart! I began to calculate when I could get back to the bank and convince them that they had made ANOTHER mistake! I did NOT want to be a thief. Monday I received a call from the bank (first time ever): "We are happy to tell you that we cancelled the overdraft charges! Uh…and…by the way…uh…we made a mistake and doubled your deposit so we have to remove half of it…' (she sounded terrified). I laughed. "I saw that, ofcourse you have to; I don't want to be a thief. Does that mean that I DON'T HAVE TO COME INTO THE BANK AND STRAIGHTEN ANYTHING OUT?" We both laughed.
This is just another way of seeing how God watches over this country…we CERTAINLY don't do it by our own wits…and PLEASE don't tell our enemies about this!!
Thank you for your prayers. Thank you for carrying both the weight AND the joy. Loving blessings, your sister
May 7, 2019
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates."
Deuteronomy 6:4-8
(SO HOW WAS YOUR WEEK?)
May The Lord be glorified and may each of you be blessed. May all of our words, yours and mine, be before Him for His glory alone. Greetings, brothers and sisters in The Name of Yeshua h'meshiach, Jesus Christ, The One we long to know and follow with our whole hearts.
"Did you ever think that maybe it IS 'all our fault' after all?" I suddenly asked my boss, sort of out of nowhere. He looked up at me totally surprised and stuttered: "What do you mean?" Actually I had taken myself aback. It surprised me that I said those words out loud to him. "When you were young, didn't you ever think that maybe without us the world would all get along and there would be no problems, just like they say all the time?" He actually looked startled… but deeply stirred…uncomfortable and yet I sensed that this was not an unfamiliar thought to him…there was a deep and cloudy look that came across him…a familiar look. The next patient arrived and we were spared continuing the existential conversation that my sudden blurt had begun.
The short, impromptu conversation took place this past Friday, (is that REALLY only 4 days ago??) the day after 'Yom h'Shoah' or 'Holocaust Memorial Day' and…uh… I think the day BEFORE 'the sort-of-war'…(I mean if 4 people get killed by rockets - on our side - and 131 end up in hospital because of those rockets and people duck into shelters while air raid sirens sound…when 700 rockets strike our territory…is that a 'war' or well…definitions are mightily confused these days) It was an 'emotional moment' following an emotional day or so, as Israelis open their hearts and collective memory to share in the burden borne by those who survived the unsurvivable and the unthinkable. A powerful body of drama…recording…documentation has sprung from it and Israel has perfected the way to 'never forget', and, indeed it is necessary that we not forget. The stories are again shared…many for the first time and many for the last by those nearing 100 years old. I have asked for prayer before, specifically for the Holocaust survivors who have literally MAJORED in 'SURVIVAL'…having promised loved ones who didn't 'I will survive at any cost…for you and for them.' and now do not know HOW to 'let go'…to shed the painful decaying shell…they CAN'T…and they are suffering terribly, yet again. I was PLANNING on sharing with you some of the testimonies and some of the scenes that I witnessed. I wanted to share with you some new, amazing 'tools' to help teach the next generation (for example, a powerful tool to speak to teens called eva.stories - PLEASE 'google' eva.stories especially if you know teenagers. The diary of a young girl who died in the Holocaust was recently found and taken and transformed by the question 'What is there was Instigram during WW2?' and her diary was portrayed as instagram postings…and it is a powerful teaching tool as well as a touching docu-drama). I was "PLANNING" all sorts of things to share as we enter 'the week' between Holocaust Memorial, Soldiers and victims of terror Memorial - Yom h'zicheron - which runs into Independence day (Yom h'atz'maoot). It is the sort of 'DRAMATIC WEEK' that I really do not imagine takes place anywhere else.
All of our television stations stop their regular programming and either have a memorial screen or air testimonies, personal stories or powerful dramas concerning those who were part of the Holocaust and a week later those who perished or were left behind through our wars.
Three times within the week our sirens wail and the country stops and stands still…buses stop and people file out to stand along with those exiting cars, taxis or trains or stopping mid stride to bow their heads for a minute or two (depending upon the siren)…a nation bows in remembrance.
Restaurants and places of entertainment close and music is subdued.
On Friday, R, whose husband E I have asked for prayer for, ran in and gave me a BEAUTIFUL homemade challah (the special Shabbat bread usually a braid) in the shape of a key and told me that this was the beginning of the month of Iyar and the heavens would be open to all of our prayers and she was praying for His key to open heaven before us. (She is of Moroccan descent and this is one of their traditions. I was very touched and I want to tell you that E is so much better and has left his room for the first time in 4 months - even leaving the house! God answers prayer - Amen! Thank you for praying for him!)
To record and share so much with you…those were my plans.
HA!
That was BEFORE Saturday.
Remember. Holocaust remembrance day was Thursday and today is only Tuesday.
ROCKETS! Again.
Radios and computers on. When I woke up on Saturday morning, Shabbat, our quiet day, I heard that there had been 30 rockets in the south. Then 50. Then 120…the numbers rose fast and our planes began answering…bombing Gaza as tanks moved south and troops were mobilized. Those neat little devices that show the 'red alerts' sounding in different areas around the country were beeping nonstop. 'Red Alert in Beit Shemesh'??!!?? That is 'nearby'. Our Pastor lives in that area. The home front command reported shelters opened in Beer Sheva, Ashkelon, later Tel Aviv and Netanya. 'I think that we should sleep with our clothes on tonight.' I said to my husband, as I remembered everybody running for shelters here in Jerusalem in their nighties, trying not to look at one another while we all joked about remembering to sleep 'modestly'…was that only 3 or 4 years ago? By Sunday morning there were 4 dead on our side, killed by rocket shrapnel or direct hit - 131 had been hospitalized, many homes and cars damaged or destroyed, a school hit as well as Barzelai Hospital. Six hundred and ninety to seven hundred rockets had been shot at us over the exhausting two day period…and it wasn't even Yom h'zikeron yet!
It was Sunday and already the week was getting long.
I went to work on Sunday and R said 'Where is the shelter here? We need to have it ready.' My boss trekked out to the shelter counting how many seconds it takes to get to it. Another 'cease fire' was announced. Ramadan began last night. People are angry. How many times will this happen? Each time they start this their 'reward' is bigger…Grumbling begins 'They tell us when to start and they tell us when to stop! We are too weak! We need to :…' you fill in the blank a) wipe them out b) negotiate again c) …'maybe it is all our fault?' I thought about having said that to my boss on Friday…having watched Holocaust witnesses and remembering my own childhood and my own wonderings …'Are we so bad? So obstinate? Are we the worst? Why do they hate us so much? Just go away and the world will work just fine.'
I remember meeting The Lord and recall "He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him." Isaiah 53:3 'WHY LORD? HOW CAN THEY NOT KNOW HOW WONDERFUL YOU ARE?' I wept. It is bigger than I am…WAY bigger. So He gives me a small patch to stand on and says 'Be My Peace right there and do not look to the right or the left or try to figure it all out. STAND!'
'We will fight even if it is yom h'zikeron' or 'yom h'atz'maoot' I heard a general say on the news last night. 'There will be other times to celebrate and remember but defending our land and our people comes first. Always.' They were good and strengthening words…even as the flag laying ceremony was taking place 2 blocks away from our apartment at the Mount Herzl Military Cemetery and as families began to come from around the country to sit and wail at the graves of beloveds snatched away, so many in their youth…young mothers bringing tiny children to show them their father and to show their father his children…only they can not touch one another. This was spoken as the flags were being hung all over the city of Jerusalem.
Our younger daughter and two small Granddaughters are going to London next week, Lord willing, to visit our older daughter and family and we went gift shopping today (Tuesday, my day off). In a small store a beggar came to the owner. As he left the owner said to this ancient weathered man, 'Chag atz'maoot Sameach!' The old man countered 'How can you wish us rejoice when we have buried so many dead? How can we rejoice?' What a fascinating passionate half hour speech followed in RAPID Hebrew! 'How can we rejoice, you ask? How can we NOT rejoice! We have a country and we have our God and we MUST rejoice!' As the beggar left he told us that he grew up right nearby, on rehov h'nevi'im (the Street of the Prophets) and he was stoned for the first time (by rock throwing Arabs) when he was just 4. 'How could anyone deliberately stone a 4 year old child?' he asked us incredulously. 'I had an Arab friend and he told me one time: You Jews do us a great favor. If we didn't join together to hate you and kill you we would be killing each other. My people have to kill…I don't know why.' He went on for a LONG time. My daughter and I were both touched by his passion; for God, for life, and for this nation to survive. 'Do you know how many pegu'im (terror attacks) have taken place right in front of my shop? I can not count them all! It is our God Whom they hate, but He is stronger…Bless His Name!'
Second Kings 18 and 19 describe so powerfully how God defended the nation (Judea anyway) when the heart of the King (Hezekiah in this case) truly sought HIM! I LOVE this portion…it screams to me 'He has SHOWN you, oh man, what is good and what He requires of you!' His ways are truly so simple…and yet past finding out…and yet simple! Oh that our people would turn to Him! Oh that my own heart would be fixed on Him!
It is almost time for the siren announcing the beginning of Yom h'zikeron. The flag will be dropped to half mast… the weeping and comforting and telling and re- telling of stories…and it will miraculously end…oh WILL they do it again? tomorrow (Wed.) night at 8pm with the transition ceremony from weeping to rejoicing and dancing in the streets and gathering and singing and recounting stories and yes, praying …oh my!
And this one 'year-long-week' is also in The Hands of The God Who IS ABLE! May He perfect those things that concern us…you and your family, me and mine…your nation…my nation…HIS body…He is well able. I am seeking for my opinions and my heart to be silent and to look to Him for all direction. I know that you are too. God BLESS you and KEEP you! Lovingly, your sis.
"For the Lord spoke thus to me with a strong hand, and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying: “Do not say, ‘A conspiracy, ’Concerning all that this people call a conspiracy,
Nor be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled. The Lord of hosts, Him you shall hallow; Let Him be your fear,
And let Him be your dread."
Isaiah 8:11-13
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates."
Deuteronomy 6:4-8
(SO HOW WAS YOUR WEEK?)
May The Lord be glorified and may each of you be blessed. May all of our words, yours and mine, be before Him for His glory alone. Greetings, brothers and sisters in The Name of Yeshua h'meshiach, Jesus Christ, The One we long to know and follow with our whole hearts.
"Did you ever think that maybe it IS 'all our fault' after all?" I suddenly asked my boss, sort of out of nowhere. He looked up at me totally surprised and stuttered: "What do you mean?" Actually I had taken myself aback. It surprised me that I said those words out loud to him. "When you were young, didn't you ever think that maybe without us the world would all get along and there would be no problems, just like they say all the time?" He actually looked startled… but deeply stirred…uncomfortable and yet I sensed that this was not an unfamiliar thought to him…there was a deep and cloudy look that came across him…a familiar look. The next patient arrived and we were spared continuing the existential conversation that my sudden blurt had begun.
The short, impromptu conversation took place this past Friday, (is that REALLY only 4 days ago??) the day after 'Yom h'Shoah' or 'Holocaust Memorial Day' and…uh… I think the day BEFORE 'the sort-of-war'…(I mean if 4 people get killed by rockets - on our side - and 131 end up in hospital because of those rockets and people duck into shelters while air raid sirens sound…when 700 rockets strike our territory…is that a 'war' or well…definitions are mightily confused these days) It was an 'emotional moment' following an emotional day or so, as Israelis open their hearts and collective memory to share in the burden borne by those who survived the unsurvivable and the unthinkable. A powerful body of drama…recording…documentation has sprung from it and Israel has perfected the way to 'never forget', and, indeed it is necessary that we not forget. The stories are again shared…many for the first time and many for the last by those nearing 100 years old. I have asked for prayer before, specifically for the Holocaust survivors who have literally MAJORED in 'SURVIVAL'…having promised loved ones who didn't 'I will survive at any cost…for you and for them.' and now do not know HOW to 'let go'…to shed the painful decaying shell…they CAN'T…and they are suffering terribly, yet again. I was PLANNING on sharing with you some of the testimonies and some of the scenes that I witnessed. I wanted to share with you some new, amazing 'tools' to help teach the next generation (for example, a powerful tool to speak to teens called eva.stories - PLEASE 'google' eva.stories especially if you know teenagers. The diary of a young girl who died in the Holocaust was recently found and taken and transformed by the question 'What is there was Instigram during WW2?' and her diary was portrayed as instagram postings…and it is a powerful teaching tool as well as a touching docu-drama). I was "PLANNING" all sorts of things to share as we enter 'the week' between Holocaust Memorial, Soldiers and victims of terror Memorial - Yom h'zicheron - which runs into Independence day (Yom h'atz'maoot). It is the sort of 'DRAMATIC WEEK' that I really do not imagine takes place anywhere else.
All of our television stations stop their regular programming and either have a memorial screen or air testimonies, personal stories or powerful dramas concerning those who were part of the Holocaust and a week later those who perished or were left behind through our wars.
Three times within the week our sirens wail and the country stops and stands still…buses stop and people file out to stand along with those exiting cars, taxis or trains or stopping mid stride to bow their heads for a minute or two (depending upon the siren)…a nation bows in remembrance.
Restaurants and places of entertainment close and music is subdued.
On Friday, R, whose husband E I have asked for prayer for, ran in and gave me a BEAUTIFUL homemade challah (the special Shabbat bread usually a braid) in the shape of a key and told me that this was the beginning of the month of Iyar and the heavens would be open to all of our prayers and she was praying for His key to open heaven before us. (She is of Moroccan descent and this is one of their traditions. I was very touched and I want to tell you that E is so much better and has left his room for the first time in 4 months - even leaving the house! God answers prayer - Amen! Thank you for praying for him!)
To record and share so much with you…those were my plans.
HA!
That was BEFORE Saturday.
Remember. Holocaust remembrance day was Thursday and today is only Tuesday.
ROCKETS! Again.
Radios and computers on. When I woke up on Saturday morning, Shabbat, our quiet day, I heard that there had been 30 rockets in the south. Then 50. Then 120…the numbers rose fast and our planes began answering…bombing Gaza as tanks moved south and troops were mobilized. Those neat little devices that show the 'red alerts' sounding in different areas around the country were beeping nonstop. 'Red Alert in Beit Shemesh'??!!?? That is 'nearby'. Our Pastor lives in that area. The home front command reported shelters opened in Beer Sheva, Ashkelon, later Tel Aviv and Netanya. 'I think that we should sleep with our clothes on tonight.' I said to my husband, as I remembered everybody running for shelters here in Jerusalem in their nighties, trying not to look at one another while we all joked about remembering to sleep 'modestly'…was that only 3 or 4 years ago? By Sunday morning there were 4 dead on our side, killed by rocket shrapnel or direct hit - 131 had been hospitalized, many homes and cars damaged or destroyed, a school hit as well as Barzelai Hospital. Six hundred and ninety to seven hundred rockets had been shot at us over the exhausting two day period…and it wasn't even Yom h'zikeron yet!
It was Sunday and already the week was getting long.
I went to work on Sunday and R said 'Where is the shelter here? We need to have it ready.' My boss trekked out to the shelter counting how many seconds it takes to get to it. Another 'cease fire' was announced. Ramadan began last night. People are angry. How many times will this happen? Each time they start this their 'reward' is bigger…Grumbling begins 'They tell us when to start and they tell us when to stop! We are too weak! We need to :…' you fill in the blank a) wipe them out b) negotiate again c) …'maybe it is all our fault?' I thought about having said that to my boss on Friday…having watched Holocaust witnesses and remembering my own childhood and my own wonderings …'Are we so bad? So obstinate? Are we the worst? Why do they hate us so much? Just go away and the world will work just fine.'
I remember meeting The Lord and recall "He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him." Isaiah 53:3 'WHY LORD? HOW CAN THEY NOT KNOW HOW WONDERFUL YOU ARE?' I wept. It is bigger than I am…WAY bigger. So He gives me a small patch to stand on and says 'Be My Peace right there and do not look to the right or the left or try to figure it all out. STAND!'
'We will fight even if it is yom h'zikeron' or 'yom h'atz'maoot' I heard a general say on the news last night. 'There will be other times to celebrate and remember but defending our land and our people comes first. Always.' They were good and strengthening words…even as the flag laying ceremony was taking place 2 blocks away from our apartment at the Mount Herzl Military Cemetery and as families began to come from around the country to sit and wail at the graves of beloveds snatched away, so many in their youth…young mothers bringing tiny children to show them their father and to show their father his children…only they can not touch one another. This was spoken as the flags were being hung all over the city of Jerusalem.
Our younger daughter and two small Granddaughters are going to London next week, Lord willing, to visit our older daughter and family and we went gift shopping today (Tuesday, my day off). In a small store a beggar came to the owner. As he left the owner said to this ancient weathered man, 'Chag atz'maoot Sameach!' The old man countered 'How can you wish us rejoice when we have buried so many dead? How can we rejoice?' What a fascinating passionate half hour speech followed in RAPID Hebrew! 'How can we rejoice, you ask? How can we NOT rejoice! We have a country and we have our God and we MUST rejoice!' As the beggar left he told us that he grew up right nearby, on rehov h'nevi'im (the Street of the Prophets) and he was stoned for the first time (by rock throwing Arabs) when he was just 4. 'How could anyone deliberately stone a 4 year old child?' he asked us incredulously. 'I had an Arab friend and he told me one time: You Jews do us a great favor. If we didn't join together to hate you and kill you we would be killing each other. My people have to kill…I don't know why.' He went on for a LONG time. My daughter and I were both touched by his passion; for God, for life, and for this nation to survive. 'Do you know how many pegu'im (terror attacks) have taken place right in front of my shop? I can not count them all! It is our God Whom they hate, but He is stronger…Bless His Name!'
Second Kings 18 and 19 describe so powerfully how God defended the nation (Judea anyway) when the heart of the King (Hezekiah in this case) truly sought HIM! I LOVE this portion…it screams to me 'He has SHOWN you, oh man, what is good and what He requires of you!' His ways are truly so simple…and yet past finding out…and yet simple! Oh that our people would turn to Him! Oh that my own heart would be fixed on Him!
It is almost time for the siren announcing the beginning of Yom h'zikeron. The flag will be dropped to half mast… the weeping and comforting and telling and re- telling of stories…and it will miraculously end…oh WILL they do it again? tomorrow (Wed.) night at 8pm with the transition ceremony from weeping to rejoicing and dancing in the streets and gathering and singing and recounting stories and yes, praying …oh my!
And this one 'year-long-week' is also in The Hands of The God Who IS ABLE! May He perfect those things that concern us…you and your family, me and mine…your nation…my nation…HIS body…He is well able. I am seeking for my opinions and my heart to be silent and to look to Him for all direction. I know that you are too. God BLESS you and KEEP you! Lovingly, your sis.
"For the Lord spoke thus to me with a strong hand, and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying: “Do not say, ‘A conspiracy, ’Concerning all that this people call a conspiracy,
Nor be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled. The Lord of hosts, Him you shall hallow; Let Him be your fear,
And let Him be your dread."
Isaiah 8:11-13
April 24, 2019
“The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.”
NUMBERS 6:24-26 Shalom from Jerusalem dear sisters and brothers. May THE LORD be blessed and glorified and may you be encouraged toward Him. LORD…ALL for YOUR glory!!
That is a SHORT greeting from me, but I don't want to forget the sweet things that I have to share.
I have just gotten home from work and scarfed down an Israeli salad while still grinning on the inside from the scenes I have just enjoyed.
I'm SO glad that I didn't write yesterday when I had the time and have put it off until today when I definitely DON'T have the time or energy, but oh, come along with me because if I would have written yesterday I would not have had the window of hope and joy that I have today.
Tomorrow night at sundown, we will again sit down to our last Passover feast as the commands are to set apart the first and last day of Passover as a Holy day unto The Lord. This year Passover will end Friday at sundown…just in time for Shabbat to come in, effectively lengthening the holiday by a day as there will still be no bread…buying or selling (except for those who go into the Arab and more secular areas) until Sunday morning. That's fine with me as we have WAY TOO MUCH MATZO left!
I read a lovely true story yesterday of a young immigrant who didn't have anywhere in particular to go for Passover Seder and while taking a taxi home was asked point blank, by the taxi driver what she was doing for Seder. When she said that she would be home…alone…he INSISTED that she come to his home and join his family Seder, which she did, with the many generations of Yemenite Jews…and how at home she felt.
My experiences today made me feel…well…'at home'…and that is not always the way immigrants feel.
Until today, the weather has been unusually cold and wet, but today a hot dry wind blew in and the scenes that do warm my heart began to take place before my eyes.
'Nahag,(driver) nahag! How much longer until we arrive?' I looked to see what child would have called out to the bus driver, but, no! A grown woman with a sleeping baby in her arms, two or 3 other children and her husband had called out. The answer came: 'Solvanut! (be patient) I will tell you when we get there. It is a long while yet.' The driver sighed as they poured over the map and reminded him that they wanted to get off at the museum at Givat Ram. I quickly understood that this was NOT the first time that they had asked him (nor would it be the last!). I smiled at one of the sons who appeared to be about 9, all excited, bright eyed and bushy tailed as we used to say. 'Givat Ram! Doesn't that say Givat Ram? Are we here now?' The mother said again as the bus driver rolled his eyes, visible in his mirror. With my eyes, I took in the family with delight. They were an Israeli family but visiting Jerusalem from another area. They had a thick book about all of the places to visit in Jerusalem and were reading it intently. Religious families usually have several things in common. One is that they believe in very large families and I enjoy watching the dynamics. Secondly, they lead, by choice, a much more sequestered -sheltered from the world - life so have a (in my opinion) a delightful naiveté. It shows in their excitement at things that are often boring to more secular families.
Our own children were raised on the remote Alaskan Tundra and our village was very tiny with one road.The only way in and out was by plane. They also retained a naiveté that was made so apparent when we took a trip to the 'lower 48' one year. We were blessed to own a washing machine, but it was a 'top loader'. On the trip down we stopped at a Laundromat in a 'big town' and our (then) 8 year old daughter saw a front load washing machine for the first time in her life and got so excited yelling 'Mama look! The clothes go this way and now that way!' She was totally enthralled! I suddenly noticed people looking at her with a look of 'poor child…' and realized that they had no idea that this was such a brand new experience for her. It was the same when we stopped in a restaurant and she experienced 'real milk' instead of 'powdered milk' for the first time and we pointed out the cows in the field while the waitress stared on shocked. But what can I say when our older daughter was 6 and we had to stay 'in town' (a big city) for awhile and her 'bush school teacher' took her on a field trip to a 'car wash' and was she ever blown away! So naïve is - yes- delightful to me…watching people who are able to be enthralled by simple pleasures seems rare these days.
Well let me get back to this little Yemenite Religious family on the bus. We arrived at the science museum and they checked their guide book and decided that they had to get off so they all rose and filled the aisle in unison. The driver slammed the door. 'AAHHH' squawked the Mama. 'Isn't this 'IT'?' Shaking his head he said 'Nope! I said I would tell you. It is the next one.' They all sat down, but as the next stop came into sight what excitement filled the bus! 'Chag Semaech!' (Joyful Holyday!) we all chorused to the family. 'Chag Semaech!' they chimed back at us in the bus, smiling from ear to ear.
As they got off, another religious family got on after leaving the museum. This one had 7 teenage 'children' who were equally excited and naïve. They were not sure how to use their bus passes and tried unsuccessfully several different ways. Finally I watched as the father took the 9 passes to the driver who explained to him 'In Jerusalem THIS is the way that you have to do it.' One of the brothers began reading from a tour book about something that they had just seen to his sisters and brothers and they were all fascinated. Such excitement continued to increase at each stop as more large families got on and off, the scene replayed again and again. I noticed that I was smiling from ear to ear. People were moving all over the city, learning, enjoying, as families.
It changed a bit as I got on the train. The bus had held all religious families but on the train I was met by groups of secular families with tired, yes, noisier children. One woman stood for me to sit and insisted. Her husband stood beside her and her brother, sitting across from me held 3 squirmy little ones ranging from maybe 2-6 years. He was singing 'Shabhai, Yerushalym' (from Psalm 147). Soon another took up a rendition of Jerusalem of Gold (Yerushalym shel zahav). 'Are we in Haifa?' He asked one of the children mischievously. They laughed 'No Abba! We are in JERUSALEM!' they said jumping up and down. He began asking them questions about Jerusalem and they answered with excitement.
It was my stop…but I didn't want to get off. The scenes were so tender! The population was indeed loving Jerusalem…coming 'up' to worship in different ways…to wonder still at the ancient city…'OUR' city….GOD'S city! 'Chag semaech vay brachim h'baim l'Yerushalym' I said to them as I got off (Holiday joy and WELCOME TO JERUSALEM!) and they smiled and waved back 'todah todah! Chag semaech!' (thank you thank you! Holiday joy!)
Monday was the Blessing of the Cohenim…the time of the 'High Priestly Blessing' when thousands gather in front of the Western wall as those who trace their heritage to the Cohenim (or priestly tribe) extend their hands and recite the Ahronic blessing prayer printed at the top of this letter over the rest of the congregation of the house of Israel. In spite of the cold rain many thousands were there. It is a time to be in the Old City walls…the place where the Temple stood as Passover is one of the 3 feasts that all Jewish men are commanded to come 'up to Jerusalem' and to present themselves before The Lord.
I am thankful to see this beauty and report it to you…beauty in my eyes anyway.
The heaviness of the political and simply human situation in the world threatens to overwhelm me on occasion and the awful bombings in Sri Lanka laid a shared blanket of grief over Israel. Many of you have written to comment on our elections and it reminds me that our political system is complicated and awfully hard to understand and we haven't as yet 'elected a Prime Minister' exactly. Both the Likud (Prime Minister Netanyahu's party) and the Blue and White lead by Yair Lapid and Benny Gantz, received the same number of votes, but Likud had the 'stronger coalition' therefore it has been recommended that Prime Minister Netanyahu be charged with 'forming a new government'. IF he can do it within the prescribed 28 days, THEN the Prime Minister needs to be selected (yes, likely him) from within the governing ranks. If he can't succeed, then Gantz and Lapid will be given a go at it, but they are mostly backed by the Arab parties and the far left which is far smaller a coalition. I hope that explanation did not complicate it more!
My heart is full finally. I wondered if it would fill up this Pesach as it seemed as if fatigue was overwhelming me yet still. I am thankful that The Lord IS INDEED ALIVE AND ABOVE ALL and that He has give me yet another glimpse to share. GOD BLESS YOU AND KEEP YOU AND MAKE HIS FACE TO SHINE UPON YOU! Lovingly, your sister
shabechi Yerushalayim
“The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.”
NUMBERS 6:24-26 Shalom from Jerusalem dear sisters and brothers. May THE LORD be blessed and glorified and may you be encouraged toward Him. LORD…ALL for YOUR glory!!
That is a SHORT greeting from me, but I don't want to forget the sweet things that I have to share.
I have just gotten home from work and scarfed down an Israeli salad while still grinning on the inside from the scenes I have just enjoyed.
I'm SO glad that I didn't write yesterday when I had the time and have put it off until today when I definitely DON'T have the time or energy, but oh, come along with me because if I would have written yesterday I would not have had the window of hope and joy that I have today.
Tomorrow night at sundown, we will again sit down to our last Passover feast as the commands are to set apart the first and last day of Passover as a Holy day unto The Lord. This year Passover will end Friday at sundown…just in time for Shabbat to come in, effectively lengthening the holiday by a day as there will still be no bread…buying or selling (except for those who go into the Arab and more secular areas) until Sunday morning. That's fine with me as we have WAY TOO MUCH MATZO left!
I read a lovely true story yesterday of a young immigrant who didn't have anywhere in particular to go for Passover Seder and while taking a taxi home was asked point blank, by the taxi driver what she was doing for Seder. When she said that she would be home…alone…he INSISTED that she come to his home and join his family Seder, which she did, with the many generations of Yemenite Jews…and how at home she felt.
My experiences today made me feel…well…'at home'…and that is not always the way immigrants feel.
Until today, the weather has been unusually cold and wet, but today a hot dry wind blew in and the scenes that do warm my heart began to take place before my eyes.
'Nahag,(driver) nahag! How much longer until we arrive?' I looked to see what child would have called out to the bus driver, but, no! A grown woman with a sleeping baby in her arms, two or 3 other children and her husband had called out. The answer came: 'Solvanut! (be patient) I will tell you when we get there. It is a long while yet.' The driver sighed as they poured over the map and reminded him that they wanted to get off at the museum at Givat Ram. I quickly understood that this was NOT the first time that they had asked him (nor would it be the last!). I smiled at one of the sons who appeared to be about 9, all excited, bright eyed and bushy tailed as we used to say. 'Givat Ram! Doesn't that say Givat Ram? Are we here now?' The mother said again as the bus driver rolled his eyes, visible in his mirror. With my eyes, I took in the family with delight. They were an Israeli family but visiting Jerusalem from another area. They had a thick book about all of the places to visit in Jerusalem and were reading it intently. Religious families usually have several things in common. One is that they believe in very large families and I enjoy watching the dynamics. Secondly, they lead, by choice, a much more sequestered -sheltered from the world - life so have a (in my opinion) a delightful naiveté. It shows in their excitement at things that are often boring to more secular families.
Our own children were raised on the remote Alaskan Tundra and our village was very tiny with one road.The only way in and out was by plane. They also retained a naiveté that was made so apparent when we took a trip to the 'lower 48' one year. We were blessed to own a washing machine, but it was a 'top loader'. On the trip down we stopped at a Laundromat in a 'big town' and our (then) 8 year old daughter saw a front load washing machine for the first time in her life and got so excited yelling 'Mama look! The clothes go this way and now that way!' She was totally enthralled! I suddenly noticed people looking at her with a look of 'poor child…' and realized that they had no idea that this was such a brand new experience for her. It was the same when we stopped in a restaurant and she experienced 'real milk' instead of 'powdered milk' for the first time and we pointed out the cows in the field while the waitress stared on shocked. But what can I say when our older daughter was 6 and we had to stay 'in town' (a big city) for awhile and her 'bush school teacher' took her on a field trip to a 'car wash' and was she ever blown away! So naïve is - yes- delightful to me…watching people who are able to be enthralled by simple pleasures seems rare these days.
Well let me get back to this little Yemenite Religious family on the bus. We arrived at the science museum and they checked their guide book and decided that they had to get off so they all rose and filled the aisle in unison. The driver slammed the door. 'AAHHH' squawked the Mama. 'Isn't this 'IT'?' Shaking his head he said 'Nope! I said I would tell you. It is the next one.' They all sat down, but as the next stop came into sight what excitement filled the bus! 'Chag Semaech!' (Joyful Holyday!) we all chorused to the family. 'Chag Semaech!' they chimed back at us in the bus, smiling from ear to ear.
As they got off, another religious family got on after leaving the museum. This one had 7 teenage 'children' who were equally excited and naïve. They were not sure how to use their bus passes and tried unsuccessfully several different ways. Finally I watched as the father took the 9 passes to the driver who explained to him 'In Jerusalem THIS is the way that you have to do it.' One of the brothers began reading from a tour book about something that they had just seen to his sisters and brothers and they were all fascinated. Such excitement continued to increase at each stop as more large families got on and off, the scene replayed again and again. I noticed that I was smiling from ear to ear. People were moving all over the city, learning, enjoying, as families.
It changed a bit as I got on the train. The bus had held all religious families but on the train I was met by groups of secular families with tired, yes, noisier children. One woman stood for me to sit and insisted. Her husband stood beside her and her brother, sitting across from me held 3 squirmy little ones ranging from maybe 2-6 years. He was singing 'Shabhai, Yerushalym' (from Psalm 147). Soon another took up a rendition of Jerusalem of Gold (Yerushalym shel zahav). 'Are we in Haifa?' He asked one of the children mischievously. They laughed 'No Abba! We are in JERUSALEM!' they said jumping up and down. He began asking them questions about Jerusalem and they answered with excitement.
It was my stop…but I didn't want to get off. The scenes were so tender! The population was indeed loving Jerusalem…coming 'up' to worship in different ways…to wonder still at the ancient city…'OUR' city….GOD'S city! 'Chag semaech vay brachim h'baim l'Yerushalym' I said to them as I got off (Holiday joy and WELCOME TO JERUSALEM!) and they smiled and waved back 'todah todah! Chag semaech!' (thank you thank you! Holiday joy!)
Monday was the Blessing of the Cohenim…the time of the 'High Priestly Blessing' when thousands gather in front of the Western wall as those who trace their heritage to the Cohenim (or priestly tribe) extend their hands and recite the Ahronic blessing prayer printed at the top of this letter over the rest of the congregation of the house of Israel. In spite of the cold rain many thousands were there. It is a time to be in the Old City walls…the place where the Temple stood as Passover is one of the 3 feasts that all Jewish men are commanded to come 'up to Jerusalem' and to present themselves before The Lord.
I am thankful to see this beauty and report it to you…beauty in my eyes anyway.
The heaviness of the political and simply human situation in the world threatens to overwhelm me on occasion and the awful bombings in Sri Lanka laid a shared blanket of grief over Israel. Many of you have written to comment on our elections and it reminds me that our political system is complicated and awfully hard to understand and we haven't as yet 'elected a Prime Minister' exactly. Both the Likud (Prime Minister Netanyahu's party) and the Blue and White lead by Yair Lapid and Benny Gantz, received the same number of votes, but Likud had the 'stronger coalition' therefore it has been recommended that Prime Minister Netanyahu be charged with 'forming a new government'. IF he can do it within the prescribed 28 days, THEN the Prime Minister needs to be selected (yes, likely him) from within the governing ranks. If he can't succeed, then Gantz and Lapid will be given a go at it, but they are mostly backed by the Arab parties and the far left which is far smaller a coalition. I hope that explanation did not complicate it more!
My heart is full finally. I wondered if it would fill up this Pesach as it seemed as if fatigue was overwhelming me yet still. I am thankful that The Lord IS INDEED ALIVE AND ABOVE ALL and that He has give me yet another glimpse to share. GOD BLESS YOU AND KEEP YOU AND MAKE HIS FACE TO SHINE UPON YOU! Lovingly, your sister
shabechi Yerushalayim
April 20, 2019
Greetings with grace and mercy in The Blessed Name of our Lord, Yeshua h'meshiach… DELIVERER…SAVIOUR… BLESSED PASSOVER LAMB. May HE be truly glorified and blessed and may you and I be fruitful in our walk with Him, bringing to Him the offering of the glory and honor and praise that HE deserves … abundantly.
Today is Passover here…and tomorrow morning; the Resurrection is recognized…but I must go to work. WHAT A TIME!
Our Seder is now past (last night) and it is a well needed day of rest for me today. We now have 7 days of matzo before us…no leaven to be seen and a full holiday for much of the country (although I get to work as my boss - the Doctor - continues to have clinic) with children out of school and oh so many tourists mingling with the happy crowds.
DELIVERANCE into LIFE is what The Holy Spirit seems to be pressing into my heart this year…both the Exodus from Egypt and the Exodus from sin and death…great DELIVERANCE worked not by man's hands but by God's outstretched arm! No…I can't grasp it…it is too great for me…but I can worship and weep and bask in the truth that we serve The True and Living God and He has made the way through! WOW!
It is cold (by our standards here) and rainy and we are not planning on going to the Garden Tomb tomorrow morning. Last year we could barely see through the cell phones and other technology lifted high to record the yearly service and the chatter of people prevented our ears from hearing as well. I now also work on Sunday so years and patterns and traditions change…but HE doesn't!
Our Seder last night was small but wonderful. We had a pastor friend and his wife and another lovely couple newly arrived from England and the fellowship was rich and free and there was a sense of the body and of being pleasing to The Lord. We recounted the ancient story of Divine Deliverance from slavery into Life along with the commandment to remember and never forget…to pass the story from generation to generation and reading the ancient texts and the haggadah we spoke about how it was the same when celebrated by Yeshua, Who also remembered AND fulfilled…and how the story was ancient when HE called the disciples together and told them:
“Go into the city to a certain man, and say to him, ‘The Teacher says, “My time is at hand; I will keep the Passover at your house with My disciples.” ’ ”So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them; and they prepared the Passover." Matthew 26:18, 19
It is now 2,000 years MORE ancient and still being told…AGAIN in the land of Israel…unbroken, the story recounted in word and song… generation to generation. Would we crucify Him afresh this year as a people? How will Zechariah 12 play out? How will it look this time around? How will the eyes of all of the people be open and once again…'ALL ISRAEL WILL BE SAVED…' Not this time from the Pharaoh or slavery into our own promised land, but into the fullness of Life in Messiah? How will it look? And will we be found faithful to be and do and pray our part?
These are not the traditional 'Passover Questions' but the ones that fill our hearts and minds this year as we gathered around the table together. Today I heard of so many other wonderful Seders around the country as believers met in homes of other believers, gathering to recount the history and pass it down to the children…gathering to pray and worship The Lamb…that we may be a faithful part of the history leading from deliverance to DELIVERANCE.
Our tables are laden with the goodness and faithfulness of The God Who provides. "Let all who are hungry come and eat" says our haggadas and so it is. It should not be that anyone is alone on Passover. Exodus 12:4 says
"…a lamb for a household. And if the household is too small for the lamb, let him and his neighbor next to his house take it according to the number of the persons; according to each man’s need you shall make your count for the lamb."I personally know of families who gather 70 or more. Ours was small…just 6 of us but enough to be gathered and rejoice together. Our Pastor friend always brings some insights that speak to my husband's heart. The Spirit of Joy lifts our hearts and it is the joy of Psalm 133 "Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity!’
I will keep it short. I had wanted to share (and hopefully will share more later this week) with you at this time when the two dates fall together, some of the flavor here but I keep coming back in my heart to the total focus being The Deliverer Who has brought us Deliverance… and how MUCH the full revelation of HIM HIMSELF is needed today…here…and where each of us are. May the focus and concerns of HIS heart be all that occupies ours. And may He Alone get ALL OF THE GLORY! (and to borrow the words of the old song) Because HE lives, we can all face tomorrow.
Lovingly, your sister here.
Greetings with grace and mercy in The Blessed Name of our Lord, Yeshua h'meshiach… DELIVERER…SAVIOUR… BLESSED PASSOVER LAMB. May HE be truly glorified and blessed and may you and I be fruitful in our walk with Him, bringing to Him the offering of the glory and honor and praise that HE deserves … abundantly.
Today is Passover here…and tomorrow morning; the Resurrection is recognized…but I must go to work. WHAT A TIME!
Our Seder is now past (last night) and it is a well needed day of rest for me today. We now have 7 days of matzo before us…no leaven to be seen and a full holiday for much of the country (although I get to work as my boss - the Doctor - continues to have clinic) with children out of school and oh so many tourists mingling with the happy crowds.
DELIVERANCE into LIFE is what The Holy Spirit seems to be pressing into my heart this year…both the Exodus from Egypt and the Exodus from sin and death…great DELIVERANCE worked not by man's hands but by God's outstretched arm! No…I can't grasp it…it is too great for me…but I can worship and weep and bask in the truth that we serve The True and Living God and He has made the way through! WOW!
It is cold (by our standards here) and rainy and we are not planning on going to the Garden Tomb tomorrow morning. Last year we could barely see through the cell phones and other technology lifted high to record the yearly service and the chatter of people prevented our ears from hearing as well. I now also work on Sunday so years and patterns and traditions change…but HE doesn't!
Our Seder last night was small but wonderful. We had a pastor friend and his wife and another lovely couple newly arrived from England and the fellowship was rich and free and there was a sense of the body and of being pleasing to The Lord. We recounted the ancient story of Divine Deliverance from slavery into Life along with the commandment to remember and never forget…to pass the story from generation to generation and reading the ancient texts and the haggadah we spoke about how it was the same when celebrated by Yeshua, Who also remembered AND fulfilled…and how the story was ancient when HE called the disciples together and told them:
“Go into the city to a certain man, and say to him, ‘The Teacher says, “My time is at hand; I will keep the Passover at your house with My disciples.” ’ ”So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them; and they prepared the Passover." Matthew 26:18, 19
It is now 2,000 years MORE ancient and still being told…AGAIN in the land of Israel…unbroken, the story recounted in word and song… generation to generation. Would we crucify Him afresh this year as a people? How will Zechariah 12 play out? How will it look this time around? How will the eyes of all of the people be open and once again…'ALL ISRAEL WILL BE SAVED…' Not this time from the Pharaoh or slavery into our own promised land, but into the fullness of Life in Messiah? How will it look? And will we be found faithful to be and do and pray our part?
These are not the traditional 'Passover Questions' but the ones that fill our hearts and minds this year as we gathered around the table together. Today I heard of so many other wonderful Seders around the country as believers met in homes of other believers, gathering to recount the history and pass it down to the children…gathering to pray and worship The Lamb…that we may be a faithful part of the history leading from deliverance to DELIVERANCE.
Our tables are laden with the goodness and faithfulness of The God Who provides. "Let all who are hungry come and eat" says our haggadas and so it is. It should not be that anyone is alone on Passover. Exodus 12:4 says
"…a lamb for a household. And if the household is too small for the lamb, let him and his neighbor next to his house take it according to the number of the persons; according to each man’s need you shall make your count for the lamb."I personally know of families who gather 70 or more. Ours was small…just 6 of us but enough to be gathered and rejoice together. Our Pastor friend always brings some insights that speak to my husband's heart. The Spirit of Joy lifts our hearts and it is the joy of Psalm 133 "Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity!’
I will keep it short. I had wanted to share (and hopefully will share more later this week) with you at this time when the two dates fall together, some of the flavor here but I keep coming back in my heart to the total focus being The Deliverer Who has brought us Deliverance… and how MUCH the full revelation of HIM HIMSELF is needed today…here…and where each of us are. May the focus and concerns of HIS heart be all that occupies ours. And may He Alone get ALL OF THE GLORY! (and to borrow the words of the old song) Because HE lives, we can all face tomorrow.
Lovingly, your sister here.
April 7, 2019
Dear brothers and sisters: Shalom! "Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." May HE ALONE be glorified…and may you be blessed and edified…May The Lord receive JOY in His children!
This will be a short email about a day long on deep feelings: It is a day that I step back and understand more of what it is to be an Israeli…and wonder. "Mamash m'rageshet!" (very much deep emotion) said my seat mate on the train this morning as we approached the shuk. I had held the seat down beside me for a lovely, dignified looking lady, about my age, making it easier for her to sit (when someone holds the 'pop up' seat down for you). She had thick black hair and just a lovely countenance. I don't remember HOW we opened the conversation…but there it was…all of those 'feelings'!
You know…I MIGHT have 'missed it' had it not been for a friend of mine, a sister in The Lord, who tirelessly worked to support the families of soldiers missing in action for all of the years that I have known her… and the Baumel family in particular. She worked behind the scenes but also right in there, personally, face to face with the families…filling needs…being there for them…and so through her I began to see some of the pain and understand some of the suffering. Hers was the first message that I saw this morning. "What? Do you mean it? Zachery Baumel's body (or rather his bones) returned to be buried here after THIRTY SEVEN YEARS?" Zachery is really coming home? It seemed like a fantastic dream, but as I write, still unsure if I have the strength to make it just up the road a ways to the Herzl Military Cemetery on the top of the hill and join with the thousands coming to the funeral…37 years late.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Well…I DIDN'T have the strength so I watched the emotional ceremony that joined the entire nation, on our television. (and this is being written 3 days later and this letter will not be so short) The operation had been called 'Operation Bitter Sweet' and it was appropriately named for sure. Gathering a few more details from my friend several days later, I learned that it all happened 'suddenly'. The family did not know until they were told 'He is home'…and the funeral in our military cemetery had to be planned in hours, and thousands came. I heard some of the behind the scenes nearly unbelievable intrigue and marveled in the fact that He indeed calls us as we are…WHERE we are…chooses unlikely vessels not long on talent, but 'WILLING'. 'Here I am Lord. Send me.' So as a small body of believers here in the land, He plants us in the midst of places we would never have guessed…you shall be My witnesses…before kings and presidents and oh my…Esther was, after all, just a Jewish orphan but The Lord brought her into the heart and house of the king. I guess, after all of these years, it does not surprise me - and yet it always does afresh - that He can and will and does use the small things, the despised things to confound the rich and famous and wise… because it is Him…and perhaps He displays Himself best through the weak.
So Zachery Baumel has come home from the war in Lebanon via Syria and Russia, through the blunders of isis and their atrocities, and with the help of the Russians…I will be happy to forward YNET news articles to anyone interested. For one amazing day…Thursday…that was all that we read…and wondered. It was humbling.
And then the news switched again to elections.
Our national elections are to be held on Tuesday and I am touched and thankful that I know of some of you who have been praying for them. Thank you so much! One more day…May The Lord have mercy and may His choice be ours. There just is no hope without God and yet we are not yet a 'saved' nation…and we know that the government is upon His shoulders and that He puts up and pulls down leaders. May our lives be precious in His sight and may He have mercy.
But ofcourse…none of this goes on in a vacuum and while all of these dramas play out around us (not to mention wars riots and floods) everyone's main focus is PASSOVER PREPERATIONS!
For your convenience, I'm going to include the full text of Exodus 12 (NKJV) at the end of this letter, should you be inclined to read it and refresh your memory. It is only one of literally hundreds of places in the Bible that speaks of the Exodus that Passover commemorates and I find yearly that I am humbled more and more by the depth of the revelation of Himself that God has given to us in and through the Passover…even unto Yeshua h'meshiach, Jesus Christ being The Passover Lamb. I encourage you to study and to search the scriptures…not teachings…but the Scriptures themselves. You will find much reference to the Passover in nearly every book of the Bible…search and see if it is not true.
So how is it celebrated by the children of Israel today, to whom it was given as an EVERLASTING commandment? Well…pretty much as it has been down through the ages. The house is cleansed of leaven and leavened products…matzo is eaten…the feast is prepared : The Seder… and the entire story is recounted in singing and reading and demonstrations during the special dinner (Seder)…and surely this is the time to be meditating on the miraculous events that GOD HIMSELF preformed before our eyes to set us free…and this extends itself fully into the death and resurrection of The Pure Passover Lamb.
And PREPARING we do!
That was GOD'S choice for us and His pattern of preparation is clear.
Where we put our minds and our hearts as we make our physical preparations is OUR choice. The leaven of the heart comes into focus as we search out the things leavened and the leavening agents in our homes. Judaism is full of opportunities to separate the 'holy' from 'the profane' and as we clean it is an opportunity to search out the cracks in our armor…the mold growing in secret corners of our hearts and minds.
Over the years I have described the extent that the religious in Jerusalem in particular go to to make certain that their homes are 'kosher for Pesach'. I remember one year that there was a rash of suicides… young women who scrubbed the ancient stones of their apartments and the cracked window casings, afraid that there might be still a crumb of leavened bread somewhere…it became an obsession and the rabbis began to address the matter. I was impressed with how gently they spoke of God looking on the heart and how, yes, we need to do our best to have no leaven in our homes, but that God was merciful and would hear our prayer that we had done what we could and ask Him to cover anything that remained. At the same time they encouraged each one to search for the leaven in their hearts and banish that. How did I hear this from the Rabbis? you might ask? Well…the rabbis speak over the radios and television…they are published in the newspapers. The 'weekly portion' (prescribed reading for all of the sons of Israel) is published and expounded upon everywhere. The rabbis speak and all of the nation hears. NOT all LISTEN…but they consider every Jew as a member of the congregation.
As a child growing up in New York, my Mother would clean out the leaven and we would buy matzo and special Pesach macaroon cookies. Our food was limited for the week to eggs and tuna, matzo and butter, chicken and potatoes, fruit and vegetables and little more. There weren't very many 'kosher for Passover' foods in NYC back then. That was ok with us. NOW, however…you name it and it is made 'kosher for Passover', meaning that a Rabbi has certified that it has not been leavened nor in contact with leaven in any way. Soon HUGE cauldrons will appear on street corners, boiling over fires, and for a small fee you can bring your pots, dishes and other items to be 'koshered' (boiled in a prescribed manner). My Mother would open a box from a high shelf that contained my Grandmother's Passover dishes…precious to us…we children would gaze at them in wonder. They seemed like 'holy items'…set aside for this one time of the year; no leaven had ever touched them and that was a wonder to us. When The Precious Blood of The Pascal Lamb washes our hearts, aren't we as if the leaven of sin has never touched us? And isn't that a most holy wonder??
I must go to bed…and yes, I still clean the leaven out. I know others that don't but to me this symbol is beautiful and He gave it as a commandment to the children of Israel FOREVER. It is a small thing to do it with joy for His glory and honor and in memory that 'The Lord has done great things, whereof we are glad.' I do not do it to be saved…I do it because I am saved and I love to find out His ways and as a part of the house of Israel, may it be a witness.
So: Elections on Tuesday…Wonder over the operation to bring Zachery Baumel home…PASSOVER… God is SOOO GOOD! I send you my love and my prayer that The Lord would be glorified in you and in me and that we would be found among the faithful…only for His glory! Lovingly, a sister here.
EXODUS 12 "Now the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, 2 “This month shall be your beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you. 3 Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying: ‘On the tenth of this month every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household. 4 And if the household is too small for the lamb, let him and his neighbor next to his house take it according to the number of the persons; according to each man’s need you shall make your count for the lamb. 5 Your lamb shall be withoutblemish, a male of the first year. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats. 6 Now you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month. Then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight. 7 And they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses where they eat it. 8 Then they shall eat the flesh on that night; roasted in fire, with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs they shall eat it. 9 Do not eat it raw, nor boiled at all with water, but roasted in fire—its head with its legs and its entrails. 10 You shall let none of it remain until morning, and what remains of it until morning you shall burn with fire. 11 And thus you shall eat it: with a belt on your waist, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. So you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord’s Passover. 12 ‘For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord. 13 Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. 14 ‘So this day shall be to you a memorial; and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord throughout your generations. You shall keep it as a feast by an everlasting ordinance. 15 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses. For whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel. 16 On the first day there shall be a holy convocation, and on the seventh day there shall be a holy convocation for you. No manner of work shall be done on them; but that which everyone must eat—that only may be prepared by you. 17 So you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this same day I will have brought your armies out of the land of Egypt. Therefore you shall observe this day throughout your generations as an everlasting ordinance. 18 In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread, until the twenty-first day of the month at evening. 19 For seven days no leaven shall be found in your houses, since whoever eats what is leavened, that same person shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a stranger or a native of the land. 20 You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your dwellings you shall eat unleavened bread.’ ” 21 Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Pick out and take lambs for yourselves according to your families, and kill the Passover lamb. 22 And you shall take a bunch of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and strike the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. And none of you shall go out of the door of his house until morning. 23 For the Lordwill pass through to strike the Egyptians; and when He sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to strike you. 24 And you shall observe this thing as an ordinance for you and your sons forever. 25 It will come to pass when you come to the land which the Lord will give you, just as He promised, that you shall keep this service. 26 And it shall be, when your children say to you, ‘What do you mean by this service?’ 27 that you shall say, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice of the Lord, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt when He struck the Egyptians and delivered our households.’ ” So the people bowed their heads and worshiped. 28 Then the children of Israel went away and did so; just as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did. And it came to pass at midnight that the Lord struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of livestock. 30 So Pharaoh rose in the night, he, all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where there was not one dead. 31 Then he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, “Rise, go out from among my people, both you and the children of Israel. And go, serve the Lordas you have said. 32 Also take your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone; and bless me also.” 33 And the Egyptians urged the people, that they might send them out of the land in haste. For they said, “We shall all be dead.” 34 So the people took their dough before it was leavened, having their kneading bowls bound up in their clothes on their shoulders. 35 Now the children of Israel had done according to the word of Moses, and they had asked from the Egyptians articles of silver, articles of gold, and clothing. 36 And the Lord had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they granted them what they requested. Thus they plundered the Egyptians. 37 Then the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides children. 38 A mixed multitude went up with them also, and flocks and herds—a great deal of livestock. 39 And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they had brought out of Egypt; for it was not leavened, because they were driven out of Egypt and could not wait, nor had they prepared provisions for themselves." 40 Now the sojourn of the children of Israel who lived in [j]Egypt was four hundred and thirty years. 41 And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years—on that very same day—it came to pass that all the armies of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt. 42 It is a [k]night of solemn observance to the Lord for bringing them out of the land of Egypt. This is that night of the Lord, a solemn observance for all the children of Israel throughout their generations. 43 And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the ordinance of the Passover: No foreigner shall eat it. 44 But every man’s servant who is bought for money, when you have circumcised him, then he may eat it. 45 A sojourner and a hired servant shall not eat it. 46 In one house it shall be eaten; you shall not carry any of the flesh outside the house, nor shall you break one of its bones. 47 All the congregation of Israel shall keep it. 48 And when a stranger [l]dwells with you and wants to keep the Passover to the Lord, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near and keep it; and he shall be as a native of the land. For no uncircumcised person shall eat it. 49 One law shall be for the native-born and for the stranger who dwells among you.” 50 Thus all the children of Israel did; as the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did. 51 And it came to pass, on that very same day, that the Lord brought the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt according to their armies."
Dear brothers and sisters: Shalom! "Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." May HE ALONE be glorified…and may you be blessed and edified…May The Lord receive JOY in His children!
This will be a short email about a day long on deep feelings: It is a day that I step back and understand more of what it is to be an Israeli…and wonder. "Mamash m'rageshet!" (very much deep emotion) said my seat mate on the train this morning as we approached the shuk. I had held the seat down beside me for a lovely, dignified looking lady, about my age, making it easier for her to sit (when someone holds the 'pop up' seat down for you). She had thick black hair and just a lovely countenance. I don't remember HOW we opened the conversation…but there it was…all of those 'feelings'!
You know…I MIGHT have 'missed it' had it not been for a friend of mine, a sister in The Lord, who tirelessly worked to support the families of soldiers missing in action for all of the years that I have known her… and the Baumel family in particular. She worked behind the scenes but also right in there, personally, face to face with the families…filling needs…being there for them…and so through her I began to see some of the pain and understand some of the suffering. Hers was the first message that I saw this morning. "What? Do you mean it? Zachery Baumel's body (or rather his bones) returned to be buried here after THIRTY SEVEN YEARS?" Zachery is really coming home? It seemed like a fantastic dream, but as I write, still unsure if I have the strength to make it just up the road a ways to the Herzl Military Cemetery on the top of the hill and join with the thousands coming to the funeral…37 years late.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Well…I DIDN'T have the strength so I watched the emotional ceremony that joined the entire nation, on our television. (and this is being written 3 days later and this letter will not be so short) The operation had been called 'Operation Bitter Sweet' and it was appropriately named for sure. Gathering a few more details from my friend several days later, I learned that it all happened 'suddenly'. The family did not know until they were told 'He is home'…and the funeral in our military cemetery had to be planned in hours, and thousands came. I heard some of the behind the scenes nearly unbelievable intrigue and marveled in the fact that He indeed calls us as we are…WHERE we are…chooses unlikely vessels not long on talent, but 'WILLING'. 'Here I am Lord. Send me.' So as a small body of believers here in the land, He plants us in the midst of places we would never have guessed…you shall be My witnesses…before kings and presidents and oh my…Esther was, after all, just a Jewish orphan but The Lord brought her into the heart and house of the king. I guess, after all of these years, it does not surprise me - and yet it always does afresh - that He can and will and does use the small things, the despised things to confound the rich and famous and wise… because it is Him…and perhaps He displays Himself best through the weak.
So Zachery Baumel has come home from the war in Lebanon via Syria and Russia, through the blunders of isis and their atrocities, and with the help of the Russians…I will be happy to forward YNET news articles to anyone interested. For one amazing day…Thursday…that was all that we read…and wondered. It was humbling.
And then the news switched again to elections.
Our national elections are to be held on Tuesday and I am touched and thankful that I know of some of you who have been praying for them. Thank you so much! One more day…May The Lord have mercy and may His choice be ours. There just is no hope without God and yet we are not yet a 'saved' nation…and we know that the government is upon His shoulders and that He puts up and pulls down leaders. May our lives be precious in His sight and may He have mercy.
But ofcourse…none of this goes on in a vacuum and while all of these dramas play out around us (not to mention wars riots and floods) everyone's main focus is PASSOVER PREPERATIONS!
For your convenience, I'm going to include the full text of Exodus 12 (NKJV) at the end of this letter, should you be inclined to read it and refresh your memory. It is only one of literally hundreds of places in the Bible that speaks of the Exodus that Passover commemorates and I find yearly that I am humbled more and more by the depth of the revelation of Himself that God has given to us in and through the Passover…even unto Yeshua h'meshiach, Jesus Christ being The Passover Lamb. I encourage you to study and to search the scriptures…not teachings…but the Scriptures themselves. You will find much reference to the Passover in nearly every book of the Bible…search and see if it is not true.
So how is it celebrated by the children of Israel today, to whom it was given as an EVERLASTING commandment? Well…pretty much as it has been down through the ages. The house is cleansed of leaven and leavened products…matzo is eaten…the feast is prepared : The Seder… and the entire story is recounted in singing and reading and demonstrations during the special dinner (Seder)…and surely this is the time to be meditating on the miraculous events that GOD HIMSELF preformed before our eyes to set us free…and this extends itself fully into the death and resurrection of The Pure Passover Lamb.
And PREPARING we do!
That was GOD'S choice for us and His pattern of preparation is clear.
Where we put our minds and our hearts as we make our physical preparations is OUR choice. The leaven of the heart comes into focus as we search out the things leavened and the leavening agents in our homes. Judaism is full of opportunities to separate the 'holy' from 'the profane' and as we clean it is an opportunity to search out the cracks in our armor…the mold growing in secret corners of our hearts and minds.
Over the years I have described the extent that the religious in Jerusalem in particular go to to make certain that their homes are 'kosher for Pesach'. I remember one year that there was a rash of suicides… young women who scrubbed the ancient stones of their apartments and the cracked window casings, afraid that there might be still a crumb of leavened bread somewhere…it became an obsession and the rabbis began to address the matter. I was impressed with how gently they spoke of God looking on the heart and how, yes, we need to do our best to have no leaven in our homes, but that God was merciful and would hear our prayer that we had done what we could and ask Him to cover anything that remained. At the same time they encouraged each one to search for the leaven in their hearts and banish that. How did I hear this from the Rabbis? you might ask? Well…the rabbis speak over the radios and television…they are published in the newspapers. The 'weekly portion' (prescribed reading for all of the sons of Israel) is published and expounded upon everywhere. The rabbis speak and all of the nation hears. NOT all LISTEN…but they consider every Jew as a member of the congregation.
As a child growing up in New York, my Mother would clean out the leaven and we would buy matzo and special Pesach macaroon cookies. Our food was limited for the week to eggs and tuna, matzo and butter, chicken and potatoes, fruit and vegetables and little more. There weren't very many 'kosher for Passover' foods in NYC back then. That was ok with us. NOW, however…you name it and it is made 'kosher for Passover', meaning that a Rabbi has certified that it has not been leavened nor in contact with leaven in any way. Soon HUGE cauldrons will appear on street corners, boiling over fires, and for a small fee you can bring your pots, dishes and other items to be 'koshered' (boiled in a prescribed manner). My Mother would open a box from a high shelf that contained my Grandmother's Passover dishes…precious to us…we children would gaze at them in wonder. They seemed like 'holy items'…set aside for this one time of the year; no leaven had ever touched them and that was a wonder to us. When The Precious Blood of The Pascal Lamb washes our hearts, aren't we as if the leaven of sin has never touched us? And isn't that a most holy wonder??
I must go to bed…and yes, I still clean the leaven out. I know others that don't but to me this symbol is beautiful and He gave it as a commandment to the children of Israel FOREVER. It is a small thing to do it with joy for His glory and honor and in memory that 'The Lord has done great things, whereof we are glad.' I do not do it to be saved…I do it because I am saved and I love to find out His ways and as a part of the house of Israel, may it be a witness.
So: Elections on Tuesday…Wonder over the operation to bring Zachery Baumel home…PASSOVER… God is SOOO GOOD! I send you my love and my prayer that The Lord would be glorified in you and in me and that we would be found among the faithful…only for His glory! Lovingly, a sister here.
EXODUS 12 "Now the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, 2 “This month shall be your beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you. 3 Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying: ‘On the tenth of this month every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household. 4 And if the household is too small for the lamb, let him and his neighbor next to his house take it according to the number of the persons; according to each man’s need you shall make your count for the lamb. 5 Your lamb shall be withoutblemish, a male of the first year. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats. 6 Now you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month. Then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight. 7 And they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses where they eat it. 8 Then they shall eat the flesh on that night; roasted in fire, with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs they shall eat it. 9 Do not eat it raw, nor boiled at all with water, but roasted in fire—its head with its legs and its entrails. 10 You shall let none of it remain until morning, and what remains of it until morning you shall burn with fire. 11 And thus you shall eat it: with a belt on your waist, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. So you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord’s Passover. 12 ‘For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord. 13 Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. 14 ‘So this day shall be to you a memorial; and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord throughout your generations. You shall keep it as a feast by an everlasting ordinance. 15 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses. For whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel. 16 On the first day there shall be a holy convocation, and on the seventh day there shall be a holy convocation for you. No manner of work shall be done on them; but that which everyone must eat—that only may be prepared by you. 17 So you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this same day I will have brought your armies out of the land of Egypt. Therefore you shall observe this day throughout your generations as an everlasting ordinance. 18 In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread, until the twenty-first day of the month at evening. 19 For seven days no leaven shall be found in your houses, since whoever eats what is leavened, that same person shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a stranger or a native of the land. 20 You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your dwellings you shall eat unleavened bread.’ ” 21 Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Pick out and take lambs for yourselves according to your families, and kill the Passover lamb. 22 And you shall take a bunch of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and strike the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. And none of you shall go out of the door of his house until morning. 23 For the Lordwill pass through to strike the Egyptians; and when He sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to strike you. 24 And you shall observe this thing as an ordinance for you and your sons forever. 25 It will come to pass when you come to the land which the Lord will give you, just as He promised, that you shall keep this service. 26 And it shall be, when your children say to you, ‘What do you mean by this service?’ 27 that you shall say, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice of the Lord, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt when He struck the Egyptians and delivered our households.’ ” So the people bowed their heads and worshiped. 28 Then the children of Israel went away and did so; just as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did. And it came to pass at midnight that the Lord struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of livestock. 30 So Pharaoh rose in the night, he, all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where there was not one dead. 31 Then he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, “Rise, go out from among my people, both you and the children of Israel. And go, serve the Lordas you have said. 32 Also take your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone; and bless me also.” 33 And the Egyptians urged the people, that they might send them out of the land in haste. For they said, “We shall all be dead.” 34 So the people took their dough before it was leavened, having their kneading bowls bound up in their clothes on their shoulders. 35 Now the children of Israel had done according to the word of Moses, and they had asked from the Egyptians articles of silver, articles of gold, and clothing. 36 And the Lord had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they granted them what they requested. Thus they plundered the Egyptians. 37 Then the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides children. 38 A mixed multitude went up with them also, and flocks and herds—a great deal of livestock. 39 And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they had brought out of Egypt; for it was not leavened, because they were driven out of Egypt and could not wait, nor had they prepared provisions for themselves." 40 Now the sojourn of the children of Israel who lived in [j]Egypt was four hundred and thirty years. 41 And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years—on that very same day—it came to pass that all the armies of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt. 42 It is a [k]night of solemn observance to the Lord for bringing them out of the land of Egypt. This is that night of the Lord, a solemn observance for all the children of Israel throughout their generations. 43 And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the ordinance of the Passover: No foreigner shall eat it. 44 But every man’s servant who is bought for money, when you have circumcised him, then he may eat it. 45 A sojourner and a hired servant shall not eat it. 46 In one house it shall be eaten; you shall not carry any of the flesh outside the house, nor shall you break one of its bones. 47 All the congregation of Israel shall keep it. 48 And when a stranger [l]dwells with you and wants to keep the Passover to the Lord, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near and keep it; and he shall be as a native of the land. For no uncircumcised person shall eat it. 49 One law shall be for the native-born and for the stranger who dwells among you.” 50 Thus all the children of Israel did; as the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did. 51 And it came to pass, on that very same day, that the Lord brought the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt according to their armies."