Where to begin? I’ll tell you what happened to us last week. For awhile now have I been wanting for us to grow our own vegetables. Not in the least because I only seem to tolerate organic vegetables and it is not always possible to get hold of these for a good price or at all. So you probably know what it is like, everyone now and then I bring up the topic of us growing our own vegetables. This brings all kinds of challenges. Such as we need to keep the dog off it, the pony, the hares, the possums and possibly the kangeroos.
Do we have kangaroos in our yard? No. But we do have kangaroos right outside our fences munching away on the grasses and challenging our Mastiff/Dane cross. We wouldn’t at all be surprised if mums and their joeys would hop in for a visit once the greens get up to a decent height.
The upshot really is that building garden beds and protection around it to keep the wildlife at bay costs a certain amount of money which we would have to save up for. So we talk about it more than we do about it.
Clean fill
Although one day, a couple of weeks ago, one of my daughters decided to browse Gumtree to see if there is any ‘clean fill’ available. The answer was no.
The next day, midday, we hear all kinds of noises coming down our drive and the noises are so loud and big that both girls look at me to see how we’re going to deal with this. As I stick my head out of the window, I can see this M A S S I V E, as in H U M O N G E O U S monster truck coming down our drive. He stops and starts pouring out soil, smack bam on our drive.
So I go, ‘Oi, Oi , what ye doing?’ A big smiley face beams up at me and says, ‘As ordered ma’am, first left, down the drive.’
I smile back, telling him that I may have placed an order (up high) but hadn’t been told about any delivery, nor any cash to be paying for that amount of soil either. Mr Smiley climbs back in his truck to talk to Mr Boss guy who had told him to deliver ‘first left, down the drive.’
A minute or so later Mr Smiley once more descends from his truck, bigger than my house, and tells me that he cannot get hold of Mr Boss but is very happy to follow his instructions and deliver as he was told.
Yes I want it
‘Do I want it?’
‘Yes, I want it.” I don’t know how much it is but we live on an acre and after years of drought a lot of the soil has pretty much disappeared and the rocks are showing through. For years now have I been wanting to plant cuttings of our May bushes and Dracaena and Frangipani around the borders of the property to replace the bushes which keeled over in the drought. But as we all know .. no soil .. no planting.
I repeat ‘ Yes, I want it but I won’t be writing out any cheques for it.’ Mr Smiley then continues doing what he does best with this massive smile on his face he once more pulls the lever to release a minimum of some twenty if not thirty trailer loads of beautiful, beautiful soil on our drive.
No, my girls didn’t order this soil, nor did any of my neighbours. I put in a humble request and send it sky high. Wow!
O taste and see that the Lord is good!
O taste and see that the LORD is good! Blessed are they that trust in Him.
Thank you also Mr Peter Horne who owns the truck and sent his friendly worker to our place.
We once ordered and ate a cake which had the words ‘O taste and see that the LORD is good’ written on it. According to my nephew it was the best cake he ever tasted in his life and you can read about this here and here.
footnote
As I’m writing both my girls are shovelling the good earth into our garden beds. My youngest just told me earlier that there is 14 shovel loads in a wheel barrow and 10 wheelbarrows in a garden box. One of our neighbours has been helping her with giving her sticks and drilling them in the sides of our boxes as well as mesh wire to place around our boxes to keep the wildlife out. How blessed are we with a Father who hears our prayers and neighbours and local operators as fine as that?
ABOUT THE CONTENT – All content on this website is copyrighted and you can read more about this here.Please also read the disclaimer about my authority and qualifications.
ABOUT THIS BLOG – We’re researching the truth of living forever according to GOD’s Holy Word; Sola Scripture. Popular opinion tells us that everyone who ‘believes’ and has ‘faith’ will go to heaven. Is this true? I decided to ask the prophets about the truth of it all.
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What is the Feast of Weeks? I asked Google. Thank you Google!
Tomorrow will be the biblical Feast of Weeks for all of us who accept invitations and commandments from our Creator and Father. How do I know? Because His Holy Word tells me so. Thank you Bible Gateway!
Thou shalt observe the Feast of Weeks
And thou shalt observe the feast of weeks, of the first fruits of wheat harvest,
and the feast of ingathering at the year’s end. Exodus 34:22
Thou shalt keep the Feast of Weeks
And thou shalt keep the feast of weeks unto the Lord thy God with a tribute
of a freewill offering of thine hand, which thou shalt give unto the Lord thy God,
according as the Lord thy God hath blessed thee … Deuteronomy 16:10
Do not appear empty
Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the Lord thy God
in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread,
and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles:
and they shall not appear before the Lord empty … Deuteronomy 16:16
According to the commandment
Even after a certain rate every day, offering according to the commandment of Moses,
on the sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the solemn feasts,
three times in the year, even in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks,
and in the feast of tabernacles. 2 Chronicles 8:13
A Holy Convocation … a statute for ever in all your dwellings
Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals; they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baken with leaven; they are the firstfruits unto the Lord
… And ye shall proclaim on the selfsame day, that it may be an holy convocation unto you: ye shall do no servile work therein: it shall be a statute for ever in all your dwellings throughout your generations. Leviticus 23:17-21
How do Jewish people celebrate the Feast of Weeks or Shavuot?
One of my favourite biblical scholars, Nehemia Gordon, tells us that ‘Shavuot is a pilgrimage-feast, in Hebrew chag. As a chag, Shavuot is one of the three annual biblical festivals on which every male Israelite is commanded to make a pilgrimage to the Temple.’ Nehemia then continues to explain in depth what Shavuot is all about on his website Nehemia’s Wall in an article called The Truth About Shavuot. As an aside, there is no temple today to make a pilgrimage to. More about that later.
Additional information about this wonderful Feast can be found on the Chabad.org site which tells us that ‘The Torah was given by G‑d to the Jewish people on Mount Sinai more than 3300 years ago and every year on the holiday of Shavuot we renew our acceptance of G‑d’s gift, and G‑d “re-gives” the Torah. On this day G‑d swore eternal devotion to us, and we pledged everlasting loyalty to Him.’
[edit] Also Jewish people read out the Book of Ruth during Shavuot. The story of the Book of Ruth is set during harvest time. Ruth is the ancestor of King David and Jesus as well as an example from the Bible of a Gentile who choose to join the God of Israel. According to the Karaite Jews, “Anyone who 1) is circumcised [males only], 2) accepts the God of Israel [YHWH] as their own God, and 3) accepts the People of Israel as their own people is a full-fledged Jew [Israelite], see Exodus 12,43-49 and Ruth 1,16.[finish edit 25/05/2015]
More info still on the Wikepedia site. Thank you Wikepedia!
Should or shouldn’t we celebrate Shavuot?
I’ve heard ‘Christian’ people say that they don’t feel it is necessary to celebrate any of the Feasts after Jesus’ crucifixion. And I’ve heard ‘Jewish’ people say that because there is no temple there is nowhere to celebrate or give the sacrifices. I also hear Bible students say that only males are to celebrate these Feasts and that God doesn’t like sacrifices.
Whose Feasts are these?
With regards to any of the Feasts: this is what The LORD says about them. He doesn’t call them Christian Feasts and He doesn’t call them Jewish Feasts and the Lord doesn’t call these Feasts Biblical either. No, what He says is instead that these are ‘The Feasts of the Lord, holy convocations, my Feasts.’
For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
Accept the invite or decline?
Sacrifices or not, temple or not, male or not; what I read in the Bible is our Creator telling us to celebrate His Feasts f o r e v e r and OBVIOUSLY in the right spirit. Sure the LORD said that He is not interested in hypocrites who are trying to bribe Him by offering Him slaughtered animals. He also said that ‘His Feasts are a Holy Convocation, a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.’
The excuses given for not showing up to the party remind me of the wedding party story. In a nutshell: The King invites guests to his party and everyone has an excuse. All the initial guests end up in a bad place and a whole new crowd is being invited. Guess what? It appears that only those not wearing the right wedding garment are kicked out.
Sure you can decline and sure you can have an excuse. No doubt a very legitimate excuse too, just like the guests who couldn’t make it to the wedding and declined the invitation.
But when my Creator invites me, I brush up and I show up. And everyone else can do whatever their heart tells them to.
On this occasion we are to bring a gift (freewill offering). You can read about my favourite charity here. I’ve been told that Feed the Hungry.org provides one hundred meals to hungry kids for six bucks only! It’s the best value around. And not only that but 100% of donated funds ends up with the kids because all services such as transport as well as all food and administrative work are donated by volunteers.
To argue that we’re not to bring a freewill offering during this Feast strikes me as a bit, dare I say it? Pharisaical maybe?
The timing of this Feast coincides with the giving of the Law so what better time to commemorate the giving of the Law? A Pact of Love as far as I’m concerned. So here goes once more.
ABOUT THE CONTENT – All content on this website is copyrighted and you can read more about this here. Please also read the disclaimer about my authority and qualifications.
ABOUT THIS BLOG – We’re researching the truth of living forever according to GOD’s Holy Word; Sola Scripture. Popular opinion tells us that everyone who ‘believes’ and has ‘faith’ will go to heaven. Is this true? I decided to ask the prophets about the truth of it all.
ABOUT SCRIPTURE CARDS – If you want to send free Scripture Cards to your friends click here and you you want to buy hard copies of Scripture Cards you can click here. To download a free copy of my Story of Survival click here.
In one of my past lives as a child, my parents owned a beach shop in Hoek van Holland and I helped them in our shop and grew up on the beach. Apart from all the ordinary mayhem, I had a wonderful childhood and my Mum was there for us always, we were very blessed. Neither of my parents was overly ambitious, both were happy to take each day as it comes and just to raise their kids.
Working too hard … too many masters
Later on in my life as a wife to a medico, I managed the medical centres which we owned and this was an extremely stressful and hectic life. Neither one of us did this for the money. My husband as a doctor simply did what he did best and I as the wife helped out where I could. Because of our position, money flew in readily and out just as easily.
I never actively pursued money. In fact I chose to be there for my kids like my Mum was there for my brothers and sisters and I. This meant that I had a full-time job managing our clinics at the same time as being a full-time Mum educating our kids myself. This no doubt contributed to my crumbling health.
What I learned during the dark times is that no-one can perform two full-time jobs at the same time. I tried and I did and eventually I failed and paid for this dearly with my health.
Even though I was not pursuing wealth I was serving not two but three masters. My husband, our clinics and my children and all pretty much 24/7.
If you find yourself playing catch-up from dawn to dusk, have a quiet moment and ask yourself, ‘Who are you serving?’ and ‘Is this who you want to be serving?’ Do you have love, peace and balance in your life?
Seek ye first the Kingdom of God
The excerpt from the sermon on the mount then continues to tell us that it makes no sense to worry about anything at all other than seeking the kingdom of God first of all. The chapter in Matthew 6 finishes off with,
ABOUT THE CONTENT – All content on this website is copyrighted and you can read more about this here.Please also read the disclaimer about my authority and qualifications.
ABOUT THIS BLOG – We’re researching the truth of living forever according to GOD’s Holy Word; Sola Scripture. Popular opinion tells us that everyone who ‘believes’ and has ‘faith’ will go to heaven. Is this true? I decided to ask the prophets about the truth of it all.
ABOUT SCRIPTURE CARDS – If you want to send free Scripture Cards to your friends click here and you you want to buy hard copies of Scripture Cards you can click here. To download a free copy of my Story of Survival click here.
There are quite a few occasions in the Bible where we are told that an angel of the Lord will clear the way or bring a message or save someone from harm. For instance Abraham told his servant that an angel of the LORD would go before him to help find his son Isaac a wife (Rebekah). Moses was told that an angel would go before him to deal with hostile nations. God sent an angel to shut the lion’s mouth so that Daniel would not get hurt and Jesus sent an angel to his followers with warnings and admonitions. You can read about some of these occasions when you click here.
These are only some of the angel stories, there are plenty more and later on I plan to do a study on this. If you want to contribute to this (future) post you can send me your angel stories. Because of these Scriptural references we can be assured that there are angels watching over us and keeping us from harm.
I remember reading a story of a family praying that no-one would be hurt, and for angels to please protect them, during a violent storm where the wind was threatening to take the roof of their house. Sure enough, the turbulent wind delivered as threatened. Afterwards one of their neighbours, surveying the damage and listening to their stories, scoffed saying, “Where did all that prayer get you, mate?”
To which both mum and dad replied with a smile that their prayers were answered because indeed no-one was hurt and the damage could have been a whole lot worse.
Years ago, my car stalled whilst I was in a busy traffic jam and all I remember is getting out of the car to pull up the bonnet, you know to look like I was doing something to remedy my precarious situation. And then I went back in the car because really, what the heck was I supposed to do about it on my own? I honestly cannot recall seeing anyone at all but in no time was my car pushed to the side of the road and in no time did a RACQ vehicle appear behind me to give me assistance. I cannot remember who, what, where but I remember thinking, if this isn’t the work of angels helping me out, I don’t know what is.
I’ve been in a number of car crashes and each and every single one could have finished me off but this did not happen, praise the LORD. I firmly believe that the Lord’s angels kept me from serious harm.
I think that it is good practice to pray before going out the door, “Thank you Father for sending your angel before me.’ Amen.
Meanwhile, if you have an angel story, please share!
ABOUT THE CONTENT – All content on this website is copyrighted and you can read more about this here.Please also read the disclaimer about my authority and qualifications.
ABOUT THIS BLOG – We’re researching the truth of living forever according to GOD’s Holy Word; Sola Scripture. Popular opinion tells us that everyone who ‘believes’ and has ‘faith’ will go to heaven. Is this true? I decided to ask the prophets about the truth of it all.
ABOUT SCRIPTURE CARDS – If you want to send free Scripture Cards to your friends click here and you you want to buy hard copies of Scripture Cards you can click here. To download a free copy of my Story of Survival click here.
What makes me say that we’re commanded to love one and other? Lots of different bible verses tell me that the ‘loving component’ is not optional for those who decide to follow Yehovah and His Son.
Loving Struggle Street
Last week a wonderful example of this ‘loving’ was shown in and around Mt Druitt in NSW Australia.
The SBS, which is a government funded TV broadcaster, decided to air a show called ‘Struggle Street.’ This show is a portrayal of around ten locals who are doing it tough. After watching a preview of the show, not only the mayor but also the local garbo’s got ‘trucking mad‘ and a blockade was formed to stop the broadcasting of the show because they considered the portrayal of their fellow citizens ‘garbage.’
This is an heartwarming true story of locals getting up in arms to defend their fellow citizens who are from less privileged areas. As one local radio broadcaster put it, ‘He was pi***d off deluxe,’ when he discovered what was going on.
Love the Stranger as yourself
The Scripture Card for this week commands us to love one and other. And not just love God and those we feel close to. But love everyone, including the strangers. Strangers meaning people we don’t understand, with cultures different from ours.
Verses from the Prophet Moses
The verses on today’s Scripture Card are from the prophet Moses who is considered God’s friend.
To read the Scripture verses in context click here.
ABOUT THE CONTENT – All content on this website is copyrighted and you can read more about this here.Please also read the disclaimer about my authority and qualifications.
ABOUT THIS BLOG – We’re researching the truth of living forever according to GOD’s Holy Word; Sola Scripture. Popular opinion tells us that everyone who ‘believes’ and has ‘faith’ will go to heaven. Is this true? I decided to ask the prophets about the truth of it all.
ABOUT SCRIPTURE CARDS – If you want to send free Scripture Cards to your friends click here and you you want to buy hard copies of Scripture Cards you can click here.
There have been so many fulfilled promises in my life that I’ve pretty much lost track of a lot of them but I certainly remember all the big ones including the ‘upgrade in residential comforts,’ because I enjoy these comforts every single day.
There were a lot of factors that came into play for this promise to be fulfilled, such as right time, place, residence, fine friends giving appropriate references, receptive and kind landlord and so on.
And don’t forget faith. Lotsa prayer and lotsa faith. Whilst we were on the Sunny Coast we couldn’t find a suitable place for love or money and I remember telling the girls not to fret. I distinctly remember saying that these kind of things have a way of turning around quickly and I said, “Before you know it, the tide may turn and people will offer us somewhere to stay for free or something like that.”
Soon after a family member as well as a very kind ‘health professional’ friend offered us accommodation. When we arrived in our new town there were offers for rentals ‘free for the first month’ and so on. We had faith, we committed all to Our Father and we trusted that everything would work out well and, Praise The LORD, things worked out really well for us.
Trust in THE LORD and His SON.
When Jesus gave his famous sermon on the mount he told his listeners that if we knock, it shall be opened unto us. But this wasn’t all he had to say about this wonderful promise. There was plenty more. And I wonder if other prophets said a similar thing. After all Jesus, as a Jewish prophet, taught from the old Scriptures. Let’s have a look to see who else told us about this promise.
Promises, promises.
Promises made in Psalms
The following verses are, apart from one, all credited to King David. King David mucked up plenty times but he was confident, that as long as he repented and continued to commit to and trust in the LORD, GOD would hear him. no matter what his situation or his failures, David would always eventually turn to the LORD for repentance and forgiveness and strength to keep on going despite his failures and inadeqacies.
Asaph, with his verses from Psalms, contrasted the trust and commitment shown by King David with the nonchalance and entitlement of the (wicked) pretenders and hypocrites.
Till I read the Ten Commandments I didn’t even realise what I had to be remorseful for. This had much to do with the circles I used to move in and the fact that western societies celebrate covetousness. Around the concepts of stealing and lying there were many blurred lines in my life. And what about honouring your parents, sure I was nice to them, but ‘honouring’ them? What? Honour God and Go(o)d alone. Huh? I used to mix all religions and thought this was a smart thing to do. Swearing … why not? Doesn’t everyone? And hating is akin to killing? Oops.
When I started to read the bible and I came across the word wicked I initially thought this meant murderers and the like. It wasn’t till later that I realised that the pretenders and hypocrites were referred to as ‘the wicked’ as opposed to those who make a genuine effort to do the right thing according to the guidelines set by our Holy Father.
Reading the Commandments made me realise that it is a good thing to follow my gut instinct over and above society’s norms and guidelines and peer pressure. So, yes I have plenty to be remorseful about. The Commandments are literally a godsend to me because they are transparent, easy to follow and set a universal standard for human morality and decency.
I just love them!
Promises made by prophet Jeremiah
Prophet Jeremiah prophesises that when people look for God, they will find Him; with mighty promises attached for doing so.
Prophet Amos makes the connection of seeking THE LORD with eternal life.
Jesus reiterated what the Prophets said
As we can see above from the quotes by the prophets, what Jesus said was nothing new and He merely reiterated what the prophets had been saying all along. The above scriptural references made by the prophets of old was likely the kind of text that Jesus quoted from. I am only quoting a few references here; there are plenty more quotes in GOD’S Holy Word about seeking Him and how to go about it to get marvellous results. After reading all these promises I can see a pattern emerge and some kind of formula appear.
Promises made by Jesus
It is good to keep in mind that the promises are made to followers of Yehovah and His Son. And we should also remember that any of us at any time can choose to be part of God’s posse. Faithful believers who make a genuine effort to do all the right things can expect good results when they apply the teachings from the Holy Word and live by the rules which are set by the Creator of our universe.
Applying ‘positive thinking’ without the ‘faith component’ does not work for me. It may work for others. But for me, life is more about the intimate relationship I have with my Creator and His Son than it is about ‘wanting this and/or wanting that.’ Anything that flows from the relationship I have is an extra, a bonus and very much welcomed and graciously accepted. But these extra’s and bonuses are certainly not what motivates me.
I like how Keith Johnson puts it; “When we have vision, God will make provision.”
So what else did Jesus say?
Jesus said, if you remain true to me, I’ll be true to you.
The ‘Knock and it shall be opened unto you’ promise is well known and no secret at all. But few people realise that there are many components to this promise that need to be heeded if we want a positive result. Some people think that it is possible to get something for nothing but as we just read, if we want a positive response when relying on this promise we need to make sure that we do our part to the best of our ability.
What is our part? The above verses tell us to trust, commit, call, seek and ask humbly. We’re told to do good and call upon Him in truth with all our heart. If necessary return to Him, if possible be in agreement with your nearest and dearest. Keep His words and commandments and ask according to His will. We’re told to pray and to believe. There is a minimum of sixteen steps to this formula.
1. Trust.
2. Commit.
3. Call.
4. Seek.
5. Ask.
6. Be humble.
7. Do good.
8. Call in truth.
9. With all our heart.
10. If necessary, return to Him.
11. Be in agreement with nearest and dearest.
12. Keep His Words.
13. Keep His Commandments.
14. Ask according to His will.
15. Pray.
16. Believe.
As you can see, there are many components to the knock-and-you-shall-find promise. If you have been knocking for a while with limited results maybe check if all the boxes are ticked before you start banging that door down.
ABOUT THE CONTENT – All content on this website is copyrighted and you can read more about this here.Please also read the disclaimer about my authority and qualifications.
ABOUT THIS BLOG – We’re researching the truth of living forever according to GOD’s Holy Word; Sola Scripture. Popular opinion tells us that everyone who ‘believes’ and has ‘faith’ will go to heaven. Is this true? I decided to ask the prophets about the truth of it all.
ABOUT SCRIPTURE CARDS – If you want to send free Scripture Cards to your friends click here and you you want to buy hard copies of Scripture Cards you can click here.
1. There is an afterlife which according to rabbinic tradition is known by various names.
2. Heaven has an open door for the righteous of any people and any faith.
3. The afterlife can take many forms, for instance as diverse as, living on in grandchildren.
4. Afterlife is here on earth … for more visit Rabbi Moffic’s website.
Jewish author Tracey Rich from Judaism 101 mentions the afterlife as Olam Haba and states that traditional Judaism firmly believes that death is not the end of human existence. However, because Judaism is primarily focused on life here and now rather than on the afterlife, Judaism does not have much dogma about the afterlife, and leaves a great deal of room for personal opinion.
Seventy possible interpretations for each Bible verse.
How does that sit with you? Seventy possible interpretations for each Bible verse? The argument is that multiple interpretations of each verse of Scripture can be correct, even if they contradict one another.
I’ve often argued that there are as many religions as there are people and I still believe this. We all interpret according to our understanding and believe according to our heart. Therefore I think it is futile to ever have any kind of argument about religion as far as it concerns people’s ‘beliefs.’
Bible is a how-to manual
The Bible is however, as well as the history book of our earth and the Jewish people, also an instruction manual. The Bible teaches us about morals and principles and righteous living and love and how to live forever. None of the how-to manuals that I ever have come across allowed seventy different interpretations for every line in the book. Let’s face it, if any of them did, all the instructions would fall in a heap. I have a feeling that it is the same with the Bible and the instructions in the Bible should not be interpreted in many different ways. It’s fine if this works for other people but for me personally, no.
I believe that essentially Scripture is a message of love and that we’re not just told, but we’re commanded to love one and other. It is the message of love that I am keen to get across and the connection of this message with the promise of everlasting life. That’s why I will continue to post all that God’s Holy Word has to say about love and about living forever as mentioned in Scripture, so that everyone can come to their own conclusion about the truth of it all according to God’s Word.
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ABOUT THE CONTENT – All content on this website is copyrighted and you can read more about this here.Please also read the disclaimer about my authority and qualifications.
ABOUT THIS BLOG – We’re researching the truth of living forever according to GOD’s Holy Word; Sola Scripture. Popular opinion tells us that everyone who ‘believes’ and has ‘faith’ will go to heaven. Is this true? I decided to ask the prophets about the truth of it all.
ABOUT SCRIPTURE CARDS – If you want to send free Scripture Cards to your friends click here and you you want to buy hard copies of Scripture Cards you can click here.
Mimi Emmanuel 