Hiding His Word in My Heart

Sanctuary

"I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit inside you;  I will take the stony heart out of  your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.  I will put my Spirit inside of you and cause  you to live by my laws, respect my rulings and obey them."  Ezekiel 36:26,27

I'm embarking on a new adventure of sorts, something unlike anything I've ever challenged myself to do before.  I'm taking a Torah tour.  Yes, for the next year, I will be traversing through the Torah from Genesis to Deuteronomy, not only reading through it but copying it in my own hand!  My goal is to fill one side of a notebook page per day, which takes me about twenty minutes.  That sounds like a do-able goal, but at this rate I'm sure this journey will take about a-year-and-a-half to complete.....which is perfectly ok.

I was inspired by a very godly mentor, my friend Marianne, who began this Messianic journey many years ago.  She, like I, was so excited to learn and study the parts of the Bible that are often dismissed as irrelevant.  The translation that I will be copying from is the Complete Jewish Bible.  I like that it uses Hebrew names for the books of the Bible and the biblical characters and places.  To me it accentuates the cultural context in which the Bible was written.  So another thing I will be learning as I copy, will be Hebrew words and spellings.

Today, after writing out my page of scripture in a notebook, I had an idea which, I believe, is what I'm going to do with my copied pages.....I will make my very own, hand-written Torah scroll!  I recently discovered that each king of Israel was instructed by God to write out his very own handwritten copy of the Torah scroll!  It was something that he was to keep close and read every day, so that he would learn to revere, obey and rule according to God's ways.  (Deuteronomy 17:18-20)


Over this past year I have begun to learn that the Torah is truly the foundation of the entire Bible.  It is a story of origins explaining the origin of sin, the creation of the world, etc.; it is a training manual for godly living; and it is a covenant and a document, like unto a marriage contract, between God and Israel.  Torah reveals sin, reveals the wrath of God, and acts as a teacher to lead us to Messiah.

My Heart's Treasure

Torah, which some translate as "law",  is really God's instruction book on how to live with each other and how to approach God.  Torah means "teaching".  What makes these first five books of the Bible so infinitely valuable is that Moses was the only author of the Bible with whom God talked face to face when giving out his Word.  The enduring quality of stone on which God, by his own finger wrote out the Ten Commandments, is yet another indication of the permanence of God's Word. 

Although not every part of the Torah is applicable in our current time and place, the Torah is good for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16-17).  I've always especially loved Psalm 19 in which David, under the influence of the Holy Spirit, describes God's Torah as perfect, trustworthy, right, radiant, pure, sure, righteous, precious, sweet and more.  Another song of Torah, Psalm 119, is the longest continuous poem in the Bible, written by David to express his love for God's teachings.  The painting to the left portrays, among many things, that God's commandments are My Heart's Treasure and the way of Life!

The thing so fascinating about the Old Testament, is that it is the New Testament concealed, and likewise, the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed.  So even though I will be focusing on these ancient books of Moses, I will be learning much about the very words which Christ came to fulfill (Matthew 5:17-20).  Jesus, Yeshua, is the Word made flesh (John 1:14), therefore he is the living Torah! 

Truth be told, I'm a little apprehensive about this endeavor.  It's quite overwhelming to see those 241 pages of words which I've committed to write out for six days each week.  At the most, this endeavor will cost me time and about ten dollars, since I estimate that I will need about eight notebooks and a couple of wooden dowels to complete my task......but I believe I will be investing in something that money can't buy.  Through reading, writing, and speaking the words of scripture quietly as I copy and hear my own voice, I will be investing all five of my senses into hiding God's Word in my heart.....and that will be invaluable!

"Your word is a lamp for my foot and a light on my path."  Psalms 119:105

Home Sweet Home

Home Sweet Home

Home Sweet Home hangs above my bed as a representation of my family; my husband, myself and our three sons.  It's idyllic portrait to be sure; loving, sweet and peace-filled, representing my dreams to be a wonderful wife and mother bird.  But real life is quite a bit more messy.  Real life is woven with ups, downs, joys, conflicts, sweet memories and imperfections.

In real life, there comes a time when the birdies leave the nest, when all that's left inside are memories and empty rooms.....an empty nest.  We're not in that stage yet, but we're getting a taste of it.  It's a good thing, to be sure, for birdies to grow, and try their wings, and fly, but it's a hard thing too.

For the ones leaving home and the ones being left, saying "good-bye" is painful.  We realize that the time we had together was short - it just flew by.  We may experience regret for what we did or didn't do.  Reality strikes, and we realize it wasn't meant to be that we all stay nestled together forever.  Our babies were made to be able to fly.....away.

Home Sweet Home also represents something much deeper, something much more profound, something akin to a parable.  Home Sweet Home is not just limited to a  place.  It's not just a family unit.  It's not just a short little span of time that we have together.

Home Sweet Home is a state of being.....loved.  It's knowing that no matter where we go, who we're with, no matter what we do or don't do, we will never find ourselves forgotten, abandoned or alone.....because we have a Home with our Father who is always with us.  He is our Sweet Home.

Long ago, the LORD gave His people a golden symbol of His holy presence.  He wanted His beloved ones to know that they would always be with Him;  protected, loved and.....at Home.....if they remained under His wings.  The Ark of the Covenant testified .....The LORD was their Sweet Home.

Beneath the slogan and painting above my bed, the Golden Rectangle Quilt covers me with silent reminders of  God's covenant promises.   These visuals remind me that God's presence is always near no matter where we go, because He has made His Home in the hearts of those who love and trust Him.  Our hearts are His home.

When my birdies venture off and leave the nest, I have the assurance that wherever they fly, Abba Father is always near, and under His wings they will find......Home Sweet Home!  In this promise, I will rest. 

   He will cover you with His feathers, 

and under his wings you will find refuge.

Psalm 91:4

Celebrate the Light!

Two recycled candle holders newly adorn my dining room table.  I admit, they're kind of big and awkward, but that's OK, they have a story to tell.  These are souvenirs from my first Passover Seder.

Because the Seder I attended was such a memorable occasion for me, I decided to take home the empty Manischewitz wine bottle from my table, as a souvenir.  The sweet tasting wine brought back memories to me of when my church used to serve this brand of wine for communion.  I liked the connection it signified to me between what I had always known and what I was learning.  A friend encouraged to take home two bottles and use them for candle holders, so without any qualms, I plucked a second bottle from the trash.

Hmmm.....what to do?  As usual, I pondered over ideas for a while before deciding how to decorate the bottles that I would use as candle holders.  I decided to cover them with the names of God, both in English and Hebrew.  On the body of the bottles, I decoupaged tissue paper and pictures representing some of the names of Christ.  The images came from the Adornaments that my boys had learned from each year, when we had celebrated Christ at Christmas.  

The bottles also display the beginning and ending letters of the Greek and the Hebrew alphabets.  This is to depict what Jesus, Yeshua, says about himself in Revelation 22:13,  "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End."  

In the Paleo-Hebrew alephbet , the first letter, the aleph, meant "strength" - depicted by the symbol an ox head. The last letter of the alephbet, tav, had as its letter picture, an X or a cross - a symbol or sign of "covenant". Consequently, aleph-tav literally means, "strength of the covenant".  So Yeshua is declaring here, "I am the strength of the covenant!"  The implications of this statement go deep, and this understanding has been life-changing for me.

Decorating each candle ring, is a Star of David.  With six points, it symbolizes God's rule over the universe in all six directions: north, south, east, west, up and down.  It speaks to the hope that we find when we place our trust in the LORD.  I also see it as representational of the promised, anointed, King of Righteousness, the Son of David.

Just as the names of God shed light on His character, so  shall these candles shed light on our table as we dine and fellowship together.  I pray that they will spark many a conversation about our LORD.  He is worthy of our conversation, our wonder, our praise and worship!

The Light of the World has come.....in the form of Yeshua the Messiah!

Let's celebrate Him!

  


 

Seeds of Life

"Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds."

John 12:24  

The story of this painting starts from the beginning.....in the book of beginnings.  The setting was a garden, the garden called Paradise.  There was, in that garden, a seed of promise that was given shortly after the "Great Divide", the time when the sin of God's firstborn brought a disastrous separation between a holy God and the man and woman that He loved so much. 

It was at this time that God pronounced curses and a promise in these words that He spoke to the Adversary of man;

" And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; 
it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel." Genesis 3:15


The biggest teardrop shape you see in this  painting represents the seed, or the offspring, of Adam.  It was a seed of promise.  The promise of the seed was that somewhere down line in Adam's family tree, there would be a Seed that would crush the enemy of all mankind.  This was a promise renewed by God to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and to King David.

Within the large seed is pictured Jesus, the Seed of that ancient promise, the one whose very name, in Hebrew, Yeshua, means "The LORD's Salvation".  He would be the one who would save His people from their sins.  He would take the curse of Adam upon Himself, and in so doing He would reverse the curse.  He would conquer the enemy.  He would brings seeds of Hope.

"If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise."  Galatians 3:29 
 

How ironic that in order for this Promised Seed to impart Life, He must endure death!  It is the lesson of the seed.  If you look carefully at the texture in the painting, you will see that there is a difference in the texture above the wavy  horizon line and the surface below it.  On the lower portion of the painting, I added sand to the paint.  It is just one more representation to show the division between Life and Death.  Above the ground represents Life, while below the ground represents Death.   

 

The Son of Man took the curse of humanity upon Himself, when He was crucified upon the cross.  He then, was buried in the heart of the earth where He rested like a seed that "sleeps" under the ground.  Then, after three days and three nights, according to prophecy, Jesus sprung forth from the tomb, like a seed that burst forth from the ground.  Death gave way to Life.  
  

"But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep."  
1 Corinthians 15:20

 A life for Life.  The Firstborn over all creation, gave His perfect life to restore the fallen firstborn man to Life forevermore.  As a seed produces many seeds through its "death and resurrection", so too, Christ became the Firstfruits of many who would be raised to eternal Life after dying with Christ to their fleshly, fallen, Adamic natures.

Pictured in Christ is a seed, representing all believers who are rooted and established in Christ.  Not just Adam, but all Adam's seed, who are in Christ through faith, will rise again to new Life.  The seed of Yeshua, "The LORD's Salvation", is multiplying to produce a great and bountiful harvest!  
 

 

" Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, 

he is a new creation; 

old things have passed away; 

behold, all things have become new." 

 2 Corinthians 5:17 

"For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God."  1 Peter 1:23  

Inspired by:  The Divine Romance by Gene Edwards