Sabbath Music - Will There Be Any Stars In My Crown?

Oh, how I'm looking forward to the Sabbath tonight. I've been busy as a one-armed paper hanger for the past week getting my new office / woman cave finished.  I'm far from finished, but have made considerable progress and am already enjoying sitting in there for my morning meditations.  Tomorrow, I'll have a whole day to enjoy the peace-full atmosphere.  (I'll do a blog post about it later to fill you in on what we've done.)

This past week, Jem and I watched the movie Will There Be Any Stars in My Crown and it brought back sweet memories of singing the hymn by the same name while growing up in the Baptist Church. The song is an integral part of the movie, and is interspersed throughout the plot.  It's a sweet, lovely movie that teaches a good moral lesson and I highly recommend it.   I've been humming the song all week, and knew I had to share it with you.  I found many versions on YouTube, but this is my favorite --  I hope you enjoy this rendition by Allison Krauss It's a good meditation for the Sabbath, too.  

I hope you have a good Shabbos filled with rest, refreshment, praise, worship, and focus on our wonder-full Heavenly Father, The King of the Universe, who gives us the gift of His Sabbath.

Blessings to you all, Gail-Friends.

God Loves Feasting

I read this article on Facebook and I loved it.  It also  inspired my own thoughts which follow the article.

GOD LOVES FEASTING

Can you believe it is only four days to Thanksgiving? Help! So much to do as I prepare a sit-down dinner for about 80 of us. What a great time it will be. There is nothing more wonderful than gathering together as a family to fellowship and feast together. Did you know that God loves feasts and celebrations? Yes, they are very biblical.

Psalm 89:15 states: “Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O LORD, in the light of thy countenance.” Once again, we notice that these “blessed” people are the “happy happy” people. Some translations say: “Oh the happiness!” Others say, “Oh the joy!”

This happiness comes to those who know the joyful sound. What is this joyful sound? The Hebrew word means “the trumpeting of trumpets and shouts of joy.” Most Bible commentators state that it speaks of the trumpet calls to the annual feasts of Israel. It’s a call to feasting and celebration.

Let’s read Numbers 10:10 (NLT): “Blow the trumpets in times of gladness, too, sounding them at your annual festivals and at the beginning of each month. And blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings and peace offerings. The trumpets will remind the LORD your God of his covenant with you. I am the LORD your God.”

It is obvious that the early children of Israel were a trumpet-blowing, joyful shouting people. Not only did they rejoice and blow the trumpets on their feast days but over their daily burnt offerings!

Psalm 27:6 (NLT): “At his sanctuary I will offer sacrifices with shouts of joy, singing and praising the LORD with music.” This speaks of the daily morning and evening sacrifices, encouraging us to also come before the Lord with our families each morning and evening. We don’t do it out of religiosity, but with joy, and even shouts of joy. As the people of God, we are not meant to be a boring people, but filled with joy and praise to God. Oh, the happiness of those who know the joyful sound.

Here’s something else God says about our feasting times. In Deuteronomy 14:26 we read: “And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink (help, can’t believe this in the Bible, yes, the King James Version), or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the LORD thy God (in the presence of the LORD), and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household.” **

The conclusion of our Scripture today says: “they shall walk O LORD, in the light of thy countenance.” God wants us to really celebrate and rejoice when we feast together. And it’s not separate from God. We do it IN HIS PRESENCE. God wants to join us. He loves to celebrate and feast with us. This is the heart of God. Many people have a totally wrong concept of God.

Prepare to feast in God’s presence this Thanksgiving and may you know the joyful sound.
Love, from Nancy Campbell

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Yes, as Nancy said, feasts are biblical.   They are also commanded in Leviticus 23, and Nancy's article reminded me of how I love the Feasts of Adonai.  What joy they've brought to my life since I began to observe them in the 1990s.  His holy, appointed times are as follows:
Passover
The Feast of Unleavened Bread (a part of the eight days of Passover)
The Feast of First Fruits  (a part of the eight days of Passover)
Shavuot - The Feast of Weeks
Rosh Hashanah - The Feast of Trumpets
Yom Kippur - The Day of Atonement ( a day of fasting )
Sukkot - The Feast of Tabernacles
Shabbat is also an appointed time weekly

These two feasts are not commanded, but are traditionally observed:

Hanukkah - The Feast of Dedication
Purim - The Feast of Lots

You can learn more about Adonai's feast and festivals here on my blog by clicking on the links on the right side of this page.  

If you are a believer in Yeshua HaMashiach, you've been grafted into the blessings of being a part of the house of Israel.  That means you're also grafted into the responsibilities of observing His Shabbat and His Feasts and Festivals.  If you'll study the New Testament, you'll find that Yeshua and His disciples also observed them.  I hope you'll study Leviticus 23 and learn more about Adonai's feasts because I know you'll find abundant and overflowing joy and blessings in keeping them, too.

I'm thankful for each one who stops by Gail-Friends, and want to say a great big Happy Thanksgiving to you all.  May your celebrations be blessed with joy.

** Deuteronomy 14 is another chapter that most current Jesus followers ignore because they've been wrongly taught they no longer apply, but there are great blessings to those who observe these commandments.  The 14th chapter ends with these words:  "so that Adonai your God may bless you in all the work of your hand that you do."  His ways are the ways of life and blessings.  This I know from personal experience! 

Sabbath Music - Even So

Do you long for the return of Yeshua Ha Mashiach?  I do.  It seems the world is growing more and more evil.  My heart grieves over it.  I identify with Lot whose soul was vexed over the things he saw in Sodom and Gomorrah.  I pray over my country, and the world, all day long.

I remember older believers in my life saying how they longed for His appearing.  They referred to the second coming of our Messiah.  They also would say how they longed to go on to heaven because they were world-weary.  I've begun to feel that way more and more.

Don't get me wrong . . . I love my life, and I'm grateful for every day He gives me.  I'm excited and driven by my mission:

 "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, 

immersing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Ruach ha-Kodesh, 

  teaching them to observe all I have commanded you."  (Matthew 28:20)

But, I long for Heaven and often say, "Come, Lord. Come quickly."  This was also the prayer of John, who wrote the vision described in the book of Revelation, and comes from Revelation 22:

"The Ruach and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!”

“The one who is testifying to these things (Yeshua) says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon!’”

Amen! Come, Lord Yeshua!

This song Even So by Paul Wilbur is based on Revelation Chapter 22, and I love to sing it and meditate on it.  I think the chapter and the song make a wonder-full meditation for Shabbat. 

Shabbat Shalom and blessings to you all, Gail-Friends.