Memory Verse: Judges 4: 8 Barak answered her: “If you go with me, I’ll go; but if you won’t go with me, I won’t go.” 9 She replied, “Yes, I will gladly go with you; but the way you are doing it will bring you no glory; because ADONAI will hand Sisra over to a woman.” Then D’vorah set out and went with Barak to Kedesh.

Introduction: Strong Enough for a Man, but Made for a Woman (Secret Deodorant) I am woman hear me roar.. Or.. If you’re not going to do the job, someone has to.  We live in a society that thinks any strong woman is a “woman’s Libber” but that’s not what God has to say. D’vorah (Deborah) was a strong woman, she was appointed as a judge over the Israelites by God.. .. and yet she was a wife 4 Now D’vorah, a woman and a prophet, the wife of Lapidot, was judging Isra’el at that time.This is no Woman’s Libber, this is a woman who is strong in Character and Wisdom, and her strength doesn’t humiliate her husband, it glorifies him.

Assignment: OK my strong, wise, brilliant friends. Glorify your husbands! I want you to study this story of D’vorah and see if you can follow her path, from the Palm between Ramah and Beit-El, in the hills of Efrayim; to Mt Tabor, and then follow Sisera as he flee’s  to oak at Tza’ananim and is finally brought down by Ya’el.. Find out where Kadesh is too…study this story with a map in front of you, look at the terrain, look at the setting of the battles Look at the players of this battle, who are they?.  Now..Tell me the story as if you were D’vorah - tell me your travelogue, your sightseeing, your emotions on your journey. Tell me of the dangers and the thrill of victory. Tell me of your strength. Tell me of your response to Barak.. bring this story to life in the first person, as if you were there and living it.

- Find some maps to show where you are, your route etc.

The Private Journal of D’Vorah, Wife of Lapidot, Judge of Yisrael

I’ve been working through some really tough cases these Israelites bring to me. Sometimes it baffles me how they can not see the simplicity of Adonai’s instructions, why they can’t resolve these things themselves. None-the less, Adonai has called me to serve him in this capacity. I’m amazed at how many of Adonai’s chosen people have not kept themselves pure, His Am Segulah, His set apart people. They have married in with the peoples of this land and have take on worshipping their false gods instead of worshipping the One True Adonai, and following the first of the HaDibrot, the Ten Words from the tablets Moshe brought from Mt. Sinai.

Last night I had a dream, a message from Adonai. I am to call Barak from Kadesh in Naphtali. I have sent a messenger this morning, they should arrive in a day or so.

Barak arrived late this morning. I told him of the revelation I’ve had from Adonai. I gave him the instructions to gather warriors from the Tribes Zebulon, and Issachar, and gather at Mt. Tabor in order to do battle with Sisera and the army of King Jabin of Hazor.  Can you believe the unbelief of this man Barak!  He has such little faith. That’s what happens when our society is so watered down in the ways of Adonai that even a man like Barak, one hand picked by Adonai, would not have the confidence to go into battle even when the instruction comes directly from The Holy One.  Barak insisted that I go with him. We leave in the morning.

Barak and I traveled north through the winding hills of the territory of Benjamin and Manassah, keeping to the east of the Canaanites. Barak has sent messengers out to the cities of  Zebulon and Issachar to meet us at Mt. Tabor and to avoid the Jezreel Valley to avoid being spotted by Sisera’s troops sitting over the valley at the streams between Ta’anach and Megiddo.  As we passed through the valley of Herod, we met with the man Hever, a Kenite who has pledged allegiance to Jabin. Hever was Moses Father-In-Law.  Did he not consider himself our kin? His wife and I chatted, I told her the History of Our People, the stories of the Children of Israel at Mt. Sinai, and how Hovav had been the one to encourage Moses to set up the system of Judges, and how I had come to be on this journey with Barak.

We’ve gathered here at Mt. Tabor.10,000 men have gathered here None-the-less, Adonai has promised to go before us in this battle. OH.. As I write this in my journal, we see, way on the other side of the Jezreel valley, the army of Jabin, King of Hazor, led by Sisera of  Haroshet HaGoyim driving across.

So here’s what happened. We spotted the Canaanite army heading for us, they must have heard we were gathering for battle on Mt. Tabor.  They seemed to have an easy trip of it, as they drove their chariots over the dry riverbeds in the flat valley.  We divided out troops warriors into two groups and sent one down to the west and south around Mt. Tabor to meet them at the riverbed, and the other group went down and south and west to meet up at the same location from the other side.  As the battle began, we on foot, they on horse and in chariots, we were significantly outnumbered, they had 900 iron chariots alone, besides all their men on horses and men on foot. As the three groups came together on the battle field, they fought with swords and spears, and Adonai sent the rain – the hand or the Lord was with us. The chariots and horses were caught in the floodwaters, the Israelite warriors gained the upper hand and slew every last Canaanite soldier as they headed back to Haroshet HaGoyim. Sisera fled on foot, and ended up at the Oaks of Zaanannim

We later caught up to Sisera. Victory for Adonai, Baruch HaShem, Praise His Name, for He has liberated Israel from the hand of the Canaanites!~  Glory be to the woman, Yael, the wife of Hever, who gave refuge to Sisera in her tent, giving him hospitality due a man of “such honour”. Little did Sisera know that Hever was away with us on the battle field, his wife brilliantly planned to battle along side her husband, and hammered a tent peg through his temple into the ground while Sisera slept. Our warriors are dancing and singing in victory, for they have seen the Hand of Adonai move in their defense, they have witnessed their salvation. We remembered how God had done something similar at Seir in Edom, when Jacob returned to this land.

Oh this land has been so oppressed by the Canaanites, for the last 20 years we have not been able to travel these roads, for the last 20 years we have been in financial distress as the Canaanites controlled the transportation routes and hindered us from trade. Now we are FREE, now we can control our own lands, our own markets, our own transportation. May Adonai turn our hearts towards Him and bless our nation.

A few months has passes since the battle with Sisera. The land seems at peace, the people have turned their hearts back to God and are walking according to His Torah.

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Now I have had some help on this study. I have been following the study guide by Biblical Backgrounds Inc by Steven Lancaster and J Monson.  The "study guide" is available online, and I'd encouraged you to go read through pages 30-32 of the Study Guide to read some of the details I've had benefit of. This map study employs topographical maps like this one which show us cities with ancient names and ancient highways. The instructions in the Study Guide are for marking up these maps, so that we can see the story as it appears on the map.  There is another "text" is called Regions on the Run and it gives us more information such as time lines and other historical information to give us a picture of what was going on during each time period. You can take a tour of the 4000 year time line here

This course is a College Level Course, but I truly think a homeschooling family could do this during the highschool years. My boys are all doing it, they all have their own set of maps to do the lessons, and my oldest Trent, 16.5 has led our congregation through some of the lessons. If you ever have a chance to attend a conference or class by Steven Lancaster, please make the effort. He truly brings scriptures alive -

Memory Verse: Genesis 2: 20 The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam[g] there was not found a helper fit for him. 21 So the LORD God caused a(U) deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. 22 And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made[h] into a woman and brought her to the man. 23 Then the man said,

“This at last is(V) bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called Woman,
because she was(W) taken out of Man.”[i]

Introduction: Does She or Doesn’t She (Clairol Shampoo)The world sees Christianity as a male dominant religion. It’s seen as a religion dominated by men, for men. But we know that God loves women - God created woman, and has used women to bring about His plan for the world.

Assignment: Tell the world about your favourite woman in the Bible. Who is she? How did the world judge her? How does God see her? How did God use her? How has this woman affected your life? How does she inspire you to walk out your relationship with God?

Photo: Has some great artist through history painted or depicted your Bible woman? Show us your Bible woman through art.

This moon is the Moon of Abib - the Barley Moon. Scripture says we are to celebrate a  Feast to the Lord on the 14th of the Barley Moon, the it is to be the first moon of the year.  We know it's the Barley moon because it's the moon when the Barley is ripe and ready to be harvested.

Ruth at this point in time was in the Promised Land, in the land alotted to Judah. Ruth was a Moabitess. Naomi and Ruth probably traveled south of the Dead Sea to enter the land of Judah, or through the land of Rueben, across the Jordan river and then down into Judah.  Their destination was to the area around Bethelem. - we know this because King David was born in Bethlehem - otherwise known as the city of David, and Boaz was the grandfather of King David.  Ruth is a foreigner, a woman of no means, a widow, daughter in law to a widow, Naomi, another woman of no means. Their only hope is to return to Naomi's ancestral lands and hope that family will take care of them.

They find themselves near the farm of Boaz, at the time of the Barley Harvest - which is the season of Passover. Just like the Israelites who cossed the Red Sea at Passover, Ruth crossed the Jordan into the Promised Land. God delivered the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, Ruth too was delivered from a life of suffering in Moab. She was a Gentile.. a pagan, lost and without God.. but when she decided to stay with Naomi, she declares, Your God will be My God, Your Land will be My Land. In crossing over from her Moabite life, she becomes a Hebrew - on who has crossed over - and becomes adopted into the House of Israel, the Bride of Messiah - the Children of God.  Ruth isn't forced to, Ruth's sister in law makes another choice, to return to her pagan Moabite gods.

Sisters, we are just like Ruth. We have chosen to follow the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac,  the God of Jacob.. .. the God of Naomi. We too were once Gentiles, lost  - but now we have entered into a relationship with God - the God of Naomi, Her people are our people, Her God is our God.

Boaz is the Kinsemen Redeemer.  That kind of means the family protector...  Yeshua is our Kinsmen Redeemer.  When Boaz makes provisions for Ruth to be able to gleen the barley and have sufficient for her and Naomi to eat, he is taking on the responsibility for the two widows.  Torah tells us to take care of widows and orphans, it's a Mitzvot, a good deed.  Naomi recognizes this kindness and calls for Ruth to go to Boaz and "lay at his feet". Doesn't our Messiah call us to come lay our burdens at the foot of the cross.. Ruth does this - recognizing that her whole life is a burden.. she has NOTHING of her own to provide for her. Boaz accepts the roll of Kinsmen Redeemer, and marries her - bringing her from the position of foreigner, poor, defenseless.. and restores her to a position of wife, loved, adopted.

We too are the Bride to our Messiah. We were once nothing, lost, helpless, alone. But now He has drawn us near to Him.  He has redeemed us

Tonight is the Passover.  It's a very special Passover as it has the same timing as the Passover when Yeshua was hung on the cross.  It is nearly 3pm my time.. it is very near the hour of His death. It is also very near the hour when the Passover lambs were slain.  The Israelites will soon take home their slaughtered lambs, roast them and prepare the Seder mea and a High Sabbathl. Yeshua will be taken off the cross, wrapped in linen cloths and laid in the tomb before Sundown, and will spend the first "night" in the grave.  Tomorrow morning, while the Messiah lays in the grave for his first "day" we'll rest for this Shabbaton - Sabbath like day. This Sabbath is the first day of the Feast of Unleaven Bread. We'll have another regular day, a day to prepare the spices for the washing of the body of our Lord, and a day to prepare for the regular weekly Sabbath Our Lord will be in the grave for this whole day of preparation, a "night and a day".  Then it's the  Weekly Sabbath, again, the Lord is in the grave for a "night and a day". Following the Sabbath, on what we consider Saturday night, the women will go to the grave, and find the stone rolled away, the Messiah is Risen - having layn in the grave for 3 nights and 3 days.This day is also the beginning of the Feast of First Fruits - for our Messiah IS the First Fruit of our Lord.

Ruth will celebrate her first Passover with this new Israelite Familiy.

How does the story of Ruth affect MY life? How has she influenced me? She has taught me the lovely submission to my Messiah - in love I have come to his feet

Memory verse:
“And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” – John 8:32

Introduction:
This is a spin-off of last week as we went searching for what “Hear” means. This is a hunt for the Truth about who we are as believers, how God views us and how we can rest in that Truth.

As before, use any Bible or Bible study tools to help you in your search. Sometimes it can be intimidating to do these kinds of studies. I was a little nervous about the last two assignments. But these assignments can be a way to learn how to do this kind of Bible study. Don’t feel you have to know it all in order to do this. We aren’t Bible professors here, but we are all in need of learning and understanding God’s message to us. God, our Abba, our Daddy, wrote this Book, the Bible, to us! Let’s see what He wants to share with us about all the wealth that is ours as His children.

Assignment: Dig around in the Word and share what you find about any or all of the following:
Who is Jesus Christ? (Yes, the obvious, but dig around, what are some of His names?) What God has given us in Christ, what benefits are ours right now?  Because of Christ’s work on the cross on our behalf, what can we count on from Him in our daily lives?

If you need some ideas of where to get started check out these chapters in the New Testament and see where they take you:
John 15, Romans chapters 6, 7 and 8, Galatians chapters 2 and 5, Ephesians, Colossians, 1 Corinthians and 1 Peter are also great. I can’t wait to see what everyone finds!
Happy Digging.

Passover is nearly upon us, so I'd like to put my focus in searching for Messiah Yeshua in the Feast of Passover - in Hebrew Pesach.

The obvious understanding of Messiah in Passover is to see Him as our Deliverer. The children of Israel - the Bride of Messiah - are Delivered from their captivity in Egypt. Likewise we too are delivered from our captivity to the law of sin and death.  Exodus 12:2 says  "You are to begin your calendar with this month; it will be the first month of the year for you.  Look at that - a new beginning, just like we are new creations in Messiah - Messiah gave the Israelites a new Spiritual Calendar Beginning. It's commonly understood that Messiah created the Heavens and the Earth at Yom Teruah - Rosh Hashanna in the fall, and after the Creation Week, and the Fall of Man, we have our first Yom Kippur - day of Atonements when Adam and Chavah are judged, and cast out of the Garden of Eden - but atonement is made for them and their sin is covered by Messiah - symbolized by the covering of their flesh with the skins of lambs.  But now at The Exodus we have a new beginning, another "New Years's Day" so to speak, just like we have a physical birth from our mother's wombs, so too we have a spiritual birth in salvation.

Verses 3-5 tells us to choose a lamb and bring it into the house to inspect it. Over the four days from the 10th of the month of Abib/Nissan we are to inspect it, search for defects, care for it, be involved in a relationship with it. By the end of that 14 of Nissan, we love that lamb, we know every inch of that lamb.  Likewise, as our Messiah came into Jerusalem on that 10th of Nissan along with all the other Pesach lambs, we too in Israel got to take a closer look, inspect Him, search Him for defect, and by the end of the 14th of Nissan, we found Him without sin - He is the perfect Pesach Lamb.

Verse 6 says we are to keep it until the 14th and then slaughter it at dusk.  That whole day of the 14th was just that for our Messiah, a day of close inspection, we call it the day of his judgment.. and He was found sinless, faultless.. there was no cause to condemn Him.. and yet we did. Even in that event, He was the substitute - for a guy who's name is Barabbas - his name means the son of the father.. the Son of the Father was a substitute for the 'son of the father'. Likewise, Yeshua Messiah is our substitute - He took our sins in our place, and paid the price for our sins - He took upon Himself the law of sin and death, that we might be free to live and not die.

Verse 7 is very interesting. The Israelites in Egypt were told to put the blood on the door frames of their houses in order to protect them from the plague of death. Later when we're taught how to keep this feast year after year, we're taught to put the blood on the altar.  So what could that mean for us with regard to Messiah? Where was His blood put?  When we think of the Tabernacle/Temple as an earthly picture of what's going on in Heaven - then if the commandment is to put the blood of the lamb on the altar.. then so too must the Blood of the Lamb be put on the ALTAR. What does that mean?  Here's a thought - a question - from someone on an e-group I'm on that got me started thinking about this this week "Then Yeshua is the lamb that was slain before the foundations of the earth. ( I think I get the whole thing about him being sacrificed at the same time - ninth hour - as the prayers/sacrifices.  And I think that I can get to the place where "before the foundations.

BFS #126 - Can You Hear Me Now? (Verizon Wireless)

Posted By MrsNancy on March 24, 2009

Memory Verse: Mark 12:28-34

28 And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” 32 And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him. 33 And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34 And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And after that no one dared to ask him any more questions.

Intro: When Jesus starts his response with “Hear O Israel”, he’s referencing back to the Shema - from Deuteronomy 6-4 - Hear O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One and Only, Blessed Be his Glorious Sovereign Name for ever and ever. Jesus says this is His greatest commandment.  Like.. if you asked your child(ren) to clean a room.. and it wasn’t done.. they responded to you and said.. I heard you. What good is it if they heard you.. but didn’t DO it. So for us to say, we heard God.. but ignored his instructions.. that’s not good enough.

Assignment: What does God mean when he says HEAR.. he says it often.. if we don’t have an auditory reception of His voice. why is he saying HEAR.. what does it mean, what are we losing in translation? The word Shema doesn’t just mean Hear.. like what your ear receives.. it means more. Tell in your assignment what you think Shema means whether it’s active hearing or auditory hearing.  I’m very anxious to read your thoughts on this.  I hope you will all enjoy doing this assignment, as we are trying to dig deeper into the Word and have a better understanding of what the Bible really is about.

No photo opps this week.

Shema-ing took me by storm some 4.5 years ago.  I found myself really confronted with scripture.  Lets back up a second.  16 years ago I became a Christian.  I was told to start reading in rhe book of John.  That was strange to me, why start in the middle of the book? why not start at the beginning?!?  I did, started with Gen 1, and soon found myself confronted with something my mind couldn't figure out - Methuselah - he was 969 years old. WHAT?  how could that be? I called my mom, who is not a believer, and she said it was because they counted things differently back then, by months or seasons. I did the math, it still didn't work out to 969.  I decided to give it up, give it back to God, Trust that His word was right and my understanding was fallible, I would trust that Methuselah really was 969 years old and wait for God to lead me to understand HOW that could be possible.

IN that moment, as a month old Christian, I decided I would SHEMA God, not man, even if I didn't understand.

TIme went by and new challenged cropped up.  I was taught that perfection had already come, therefore we no longer needed the gifts of healing, prophecy and tongues.  Another red flag went up, that didn't sit right with my spirit - but I was a 2 year old Christian, how could I possibly know more than the pastor who'd been teaching this stuff for decades?

Then came the issue of Passover.  Passover was my catalyst for change.  My pastor 5 Passover's ago told me that we no longer do sacrifices because Jesus is our ultimate sacrifice.  Again, I had no idea what the real answer was, but I didn't feel that was right.  I bet you're all reading this and agreeing with what my pastor said right.. that's what we're all taught. Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice, no sacrifices are nessary now... Not a sacrifice of Thanksgiving, because Jesus was that sacrifice, nor a sacrifice for Joy, not any sacrifices right.. Jesus did it all?

But that's a false teaching. Jesus didn't fulfill ALL the sacrifices, just the sin sacrifice.  How do I know that?  Well.. that's where this Shema-ing thing comes in.   4.5 years ago I was introduced to this idea that God didn't change when Jesus died on the Cross, he's the same today as He was at Creation, the same as He was at Mt. Sinai.  You're saying OF COURSE He is.  So you agree with me on that point, but at what point then.. do we agree that if He said to keep Passover, that at some point He said to stop keeping Passover and keep Easter?  We'll not agree, because He never said it.   How do I know?  Well, Paul kept Passover, and Paul is the example of the Christian we follow.. Paul was post-crusifixion, post -ressurection - Paul has been our teacher - teaching us to keep God's Word. And so what did Paul do?  Well, Paul was a Nazirite and Paul renewed his Nazirite vows at the Temple, offering sacrifices. His actions were sanctioned by James (Ya'akov) and the other Elders

Acts 21:15-26

15 So at the end of our stay, we packed and went up to Yerushalayim; 16 and with us went some of the talmidim from Caesarea. They brought us to the home of the man with whom we were to stay, Mnason from Cyprus, who had been a talmid since the early days. 17 In Yerushalayim, the brothers received us warmly. 18 The next day Sha'ul and the rest of us went in to Ya'akov, and all the elders were present. 19 After greeting them, Sha'ul described in detail each of the things God had done among the Gentiles through his efforts. 20 On hearing it, they praised God; but they also said to him, "You see, brother, how many tens of thousands of believers there are among the Judeans, and they are all zealots for the Torah. 21 Now what they have been told about you is that you are teaching all the Jews living among the Goyim to apostatize from Moshe, telling them not to have a b'rit-milah for their sons and not to follow the traditions. 22 "What, then, is to be done? They will certainly hear that you have come. 23 So do what we tell you. We have four men who are under a vow. 24 Take them with you, be purified with them, and pay the expenses connected with having their heads shaved. Then everyone will know that there is nothing to these rumors which they have heard about you; but that, on the contrary, you yourself stay in line and keep the Torah. 25 "However, in regard to the Goyim who have come to trust in Yeshua, we all joined in writing them a letter with our decision that they should abstain from what had been sacrificed to idols, from blood, from what is strangled and from fornication." 26 The next day Sha'ul took the men, purified himself along with them and entered the Temple to give notice of when the period of purification would be finished and the offering would have to be made for each of them.

Sorry, I previously stated that Paul kept Passover.. let me retract that.. I don't have scriptural proof that he kept Passover.. but I do have scriptural proof that he kept the Feast of Atonement. (Yom Kippur)

Acts 27: 7 For a number of days we made little headway, and we arrived off Cnidus only with difficulty. The wind would not let us continue any farther along the direct route; so we ran down along the sheltered side of Crete from Cape Salmone; 8 and, continuing to struggle on, hugging the coast, we reached a place called Pleasant Harbor, near the town of Lasea. 9 Since much time had been lost, and continuing the voyage was risky, because it was already past Yom-Kippur, Sha'ul advised them, 10 "Men, I can see that our voyage is going to be a catastrophe, not only with huge losses to the cargo and the ship but with loss of our lives as well." 11 However, the officer paid more attention to the pilot and the ship's owner than to what Sha'ul said.

Deuteronomy (D'varim) 16:1-17

1 "Observe the month of Aviv, and keep Pesach to ADONAI your God; for in the month of Aviv, ADONAI your God brought you out of Egypt at night. 2 You are to sacrifice the Pesach offering from flock and herd to ADONAI your God in the place where ADONAI will choose to have his name live. 3 You are not to eat any hametz with it; for seven days you are to eat with it matzah, the bread of affliction; for you came out of the land of Egypt in haste. Thus you will remember the day you left the land of Egypt as long as you live. 4 No leaven is to be seen with you anywhere in your territory for seven days. None of the meat from your sacrifice on the first day in the evening is to remain all night until morning. 5 You may not sacrifice the Pesach offering in just any of the towns that ADONAI your God is giving you; 6 but at the place where ADONAI your God will choose to have his name live - there is where you are to sacrifice the Pesach offering, in the evening, when the sun sets, at the time of year that you came out of Egypt.

Notice God did add something in this scripture... He said You may not sacrifice the Pesach offering in just any of the towns that ADONAI your God is giving you; 6 but at the place where ADONAI your God will choose to have his name live. That means we don't slaughter (Sacrifice is the same word in Hebrew) a lamb here in Saskatchewan.. but I'd have to do it at the Temple in Jerusalem. Well, Paul offered sacrifices (offerings) at the Temple after the death and ressurection of our Messiah - for nothing had changed.. but - BUT - now there is no Temple,  - that changed - so we can't do this part of Passover. Instead, we now have a Seder plate that has the symbolic lamb shank to represent the lamb we would have sacrificed. You see, the point is, I didn't go my own way, I persued God's Word and found the answers in HIS Word.  Oh, and that' was my answer to my question 5 years ago - We haven't stopped offering sacrifices because Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice, we have stopped because there is no more Temple.

Introduction: This is a steal, literally, because I found it on Facebook and decided to use it this week.  This is an expression of Praises to God- using the ABC’s.  I thought this would be a good way to be able to Praise God and use every letter of the alphabet!

Assignment: Try to think of one thing you can say to the glory of God- one thing to thank Him for, a positive thing you can say about Him, or one of His Names-using each letter of the alphabet.  You are allowed to make up words- if you can justify them by making it clear what you mean- and you may also use any foreign language (but please explain what it means) - and you can also use a thesaurus or dictionary if you get stumped. I’m putting my list below so you’ll have to copy and paste this then remove my answers.  It’s a bit of a challenge but I think you’ll enjoy it.  Have fun with it!

Memory Verse - II Corinthians 4:18 - While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Introduction - Beauty is in the eye of the beholder; isn’t that what we’ve always been told.  I find beauty in many things and in most people.  There’s beauty in a flower, according to FTD as well, there’s beauty in trees,  animals, people, and I’d have to say, as I’m sure that most people agree that there’s beauty in watching a child grow.

Assignment - Look around your space, look into your heart and share the beauty you see or feel with the rest of us.

I've taken this assignment as the opportunity to swipe some of Myles photographs and share with you, not only our world according to how Myles sees it, but also how beautiful winter can be. Many of you are sick of winter, but come along on Myles Journey as he seeks to see the beauty in March 1st in Saskatchewan at -30.  About 9 years ago, Stuart came to me and said, "I have an interview in Regina". I remember where I was standing, at the corner of the hall in our old house. I burst into tears. WHY would God want to send me to REGINA!  'What a flat wasteland' I thought, 'Why send me to the middle of NOWHERE!'.  I knew the moment Stuart told me he had an interview that that's where God was sending us.

But over the years, I have learned to bloom in the dung pile. What I thought was going to be a terrible place has turned out to be a wonderful place. My faith walk has really bloomed into a wonderful bouquet. I don't see where I live as a terrible place, it's beautiful.  I think, as the assignment says.. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.. we can't see beauty if we think we're in a dung heap, we have to be the rose, we have to choose to see the beauty. It's like choosing Joy.

And so, on a very cold bright winter day, my son went out to see His Beauty.  The sentinel stalks of grass remind us of the summer past, and help us to hope for the summer to come.

 Doesn't this photo give off that feeling of COLD

 I'm trying to envision Myles journey. the above photo tells me he was on the road heading North. In summer, this field is filled with one of three crops, Flax, Wheat or Canola. It's always the first field in the area to be cultivated, the farmer is an early bird - that also means it's the first harvested. 

 I love how the wind plays with the snow to create these masterpieces of direction.

 Now where is Myles. This one has me a little questioning. I don't recognize the fence as ours, so it must belong to the neighbours down the road. It's meant to keep in the Llama's, doesn't look like it would be so effective if they got into this field, as the snow is rather high. Beauty is knowing your neighbours.. and knowing there's a distance between you to give you each your space.

 I love how this dark photo shows you just how bright it is out. Look at the reflection of the sun off the snow. The journey I've walked out here has caused me to be a better reflection of my Messiah. I now see beauty in the blessing of keeping His Torah, knowing what kind of Bride He wants me to be, and preparing myself like Esther did for a long time in order to be ready for when I'm presented to Him when He comes to get me.

 As the light is sifted through the trees. so I'm reminded that nothing that comes into my life, comes without first being sifted through God's hands.

 It's beautiful to know that YHVH's eyes are always on me. Despire how insignificant I may feel, He always has me in focus.

Iona is not a beautiful Great Dane.  She's got the wrong bone and muscle structure, her spots lack uniformity, her eyes sag, showing red inside the lids. but ths dog has been a beautiful friend, one whom I trust.  She protects us from coyotes and lets us know when the horses are out.  She's ever so patient with the little children, letting them tug on ger and use her as a climbing gym. She's obedient, walking at heel without a lead.. her doggy character is extraordinarily beautiful.

 Still in Mr. Lipp's field, Myles finds himself in the secluded spot, sheltered from the wind. Here deer find shelter and long grass in the summer, and use this as a hidden trail in winter. The long shadows remind me of the long winter. It's a cold harsh place to live here - and yet God has placed so much wildlife here - deer, raccons, coyotes, porcupies, ground squirrels, moose, prairie chickens, hares... not to mention all the birds. It's a beautiful place, but you have to look for it. It's not like a zoo where it's all just sitting there waiting for you to come stare. You have to be patient, and when you see it, take the time to sit and watch.

 It may be winter, but colours POP in the bright sunshine.

 What is it? Where is it? I suspect this is near the sheds and it's an old steering wheel. Finding beauty in old relecks, discarded junk, rusted out metal. It's not what it is today that might be beautiful, but what it once was - strong, sturdy, with direction. Now it sits, lonely, year after year, as the grasses grow around it, and the mice hide and run through it. It's only purpose now is to hold those ropes.

 Winter white means blue.

 Evidence.. is it friend or foe? A  hunter? or a faithful companion?

 It's not only farming equipment that gets old, trees do to. They take a long time to die, and even in death they serve a purpose, a home for insects and animals.  Just like us, death of this tree doesn't mean the end, it's just a new beginning. When we die, our lives will continue with the Father, we will continue to Glorify God, continue to dwell with Him with our New Heavenly Bodies as His Pure Spotless Bride.

 I wonder if this is someone's den? or just a windswept hole?

 The next set shows how fast the sun sets here, as Myles walks home from the end of his long journey. He hasn't gone very far, never more than a 1/4 mile from home, but he's been out for about 3 hours just wandering around seeing the world through the lens of his camera. Beauty is knowing that your son is exploring, is looking at things with intention, not just letting his life pass him by.

 And all snuggly and warm, we wait for him. Beauty is knowing that home is where the heart is. Home is where those who love you are. Home is where the food is. Home, it's a perfect picture of God's Shalom, his Peace. 

Thanks for the assignment Nancy.. We'll be back home in 12 days. 10 days on a family trip too is beautiful. A little warm weather will be nice.

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Memory Verse: Psalm 69:21 They put poison in my food; in my thirst, they gave me vinegar to drink.

Introduction: Obey Your Thirst (Sprite) In this Psalm, terrible things are plaguing David. He’s seeking the Lord, as he has that sinking feeling, that desperate thing of alienation and abandonment… and they try to poison him and give him vinegar - GROSS! How Vile! Sometimes when we’re sick, we have that sinking desperate feeling, we call out to God, we call out for healing.

Assignment: Tell us the most vile “remedy” you’ve ever had to consume in order to be rid of that “plague”.  Was it something prescribed by a Medical Doctor? or was it an herbal remedy? We all know that Buckley’s commercial, it tastes awful, but it works.  Would you take this remedy again?  Did it work? Can you get your children to take it?

Oh Ladies, I’d love to see you in a photograph making that sourest of faces,  - remember that remedy and remake that face.. or get your kids to make that face with you.. can you do it without laughing?  Laughter makes the best medicine.

DR. FOWLER'S WILD STRAWBERRY EXTRACT

My mum will read this and giggle..  She knows, She used to take it too.  This old remedy was for tummy troubles, constipation, diarrhea you know, that sort of thing.  VILE - absolutely VILE.

In the 1900s, Dr. Fowler's Extract of Wild Strawberry was a very popular medicine: "Dr. Fowler's Exract of Wild Strawberry instantly relieves pain, is astringent and soothing to the irritated bowels, has a stimulating action on the weakened system and is a powerful disinfectant of the whole intestinal tract. For half a century Dr. Fowler's Extract of Wild Strawberry has been recognized as the safest and best remedy for diarrhea, dysentery, cramps, colic, summer complaint, cholera morbus, cholera infantum and all fluxes of the bowels of infants or adults." It could be bought in general stores. It cost about 25 cents. PARO, Guardian. 21 August 1900, p. 8

Introduction: You Deserve a Break Today (McDonalds) –After all this crazy weather, the economy ups and downs and now a new President for the United States you all do deserve a break today.  I want to give everyone a ‘break today’ and have the ANNUAL SHOPPING SPREE!!!

Assignment: I’d like to stick with a theme for the spree though.  The marriage bedroom!  I’m also being a little selfish on this one because my husband and I are getting ready to demolish our room, my office, and our ‘guest’ room and make ourselves a master suite.  I need some great ideas on linen, wall colors, curtains, pictures…anything that would help me to decorate our new room.  I do want a soft and sanctuary type theme.   Are you willing to help me?  Your budget is $1500!  I gave you a raise from last year…since the economy is so bad right now…LOL.  Make sure you use the banner and code on the right side of this page to show us your assignments!

Make sure you post pictures of all the things you buy with LINKS to the items so we all can take a peek at your treasures.

AKK, I worked on this for an hour and lost everything.. starting over.

We bought bedroom furniture last summer, so I'll show you what I got, and then go shopping for accessories. My purchases wouldn't fit Nancy's budget. I don't know if that's because we bought Canadian.. but I'll shop within my budget later.  When Stuart bought this furniture, I had to go shopping for bedding. I was worried because for 15 years we'd slept under a douvet.. do we replace the douvet or go with a comforter? I was worried about the weight  - would it feel right?  My Liz-Claiborne Renee has not let me down. I do have to iron the hem on the top sheet, otherwise it gets all shriveled together.. but it's not so bad. - You'll notice the big bare wall above the laundry baskets, that space needs artwork, I'll shop for that later, after I show you my room.

This is my side of the bed, Yes, I know the dresser is full of stuff, I spend more time feeding the kids than I do tending to my room. Notice the bedside table, it needs a more sophisticated lamp - I'll shop for that later too. Or maybe a floor lamp. There's room in the corner between the dresser and bedside table.

This is Stuart's side.. those Laundry baskets have been waiting all this time while I've been doing my BFS assignment (twice, I lost the first try) - I'll get to them in a few minutes.

This is Stuart's dresser. Notice the squishy spacing of this room. That's why we would like to knock down that wall and take over Janney's room - but that would require us to build rooms for the boys in the garage and move Janney and Elias upstairs..  When it happens, we'll have all the way out to those red bins near where Janney is walking.

 And this is Janney's room (with Elias)  If we took this space, we'd have 3 lovely windows in our room, and room to exercise in peace!

And now for my shopping spree.

Metro Collection Planes 'n' Posts Art Glass Table Lamp $129	Franklin Iron Works® Arbor Vine Table Lamp $129.00 - this one would compliment my ceiling fixture nicely
Franklin Iron Works® Arbor Vine Accent Table Lamp $79.99	Art Glass Leaf Accent Light $79.99 - this is a little too green though for my room, but I like the design
Hubbardton Forge Lunae Amber Glass Table Lamp $479.99 - there are circles in the candle sconces	Franklin Iron Works® Arbor Vine Torchiere Floor Lamp $345.99 - I just figured out why I'm so drawn to this design - I have this design in my livingroom ceiling fixtures.. lol

And now for the artwork shopping.  I've given myself a 10 minute limit - timer's on.

Ner Tamid
"The Eternal Flame"
Watercolor & Colored Pencil on Paper by Adam Rhine
"Now you shall command the Children of Israel that they shall take for you pure olive oil, pressed for illumination, to kindle a lamp continually. In the Tent of Meeting, outside the Partition tht is near the Testimonial tablets, Aaron and his sons shall arrange it from evening until morning, before Hashem, an eternal decree for their generations, from the Children of Israel." (Shemot/Exodus 27:20-21) The Eternal Light (Ner Tamid) is hung above the Aron HaKodesh (ark) where the Sefer Torah is kept inside every Synagogue. Our sages describe the Ner Tamid as a shining symbol of G-d's eternal Presence in our world and in our lives. This painting is in the 2009 wall calendar entitled "Hebrew Illuminations" illustrated by Adam Rhine.

Ani L'Dodi, v'Dodi Li
"I am My Beloved's, and My Beloved is Mine"
Watercolor & Colored Pencil on Paper by Adam Rhine
"Ani L'Dodi..." is the most well-known quote from "Shir HaShirim", or "The Song of Songs", written by King Solomon in the language of a beautiful, romantic declaration between a husband and wife, as an allegory for the love between the people of Israel and their Lord. The intertwining beauty of love is captured in this painting by symmetrical designs reaching around each other, from the upper left and lower right, embracing in spirals around the poetic center. Flora surround the union as the life of the couple grows and flourishes. This painting is featured in the hardcover art book entitled "Hebrew Illuminations" written by Adam Rhine and Louise Temple.

Chalom Hei
Watercolor and Colored Pencil on Paper by Adam Rhine
"Let me speak of the splendor of Your power and Your wondrous deeds." (Psalm 145:5) The letter "hei" is the fifth letter in the Hebrew alphabet, the first letter of the word "hadar" meaning "splendor" and "glory". This letter is also found twice in the Holy Name of the G-d of Israel (The Tetra- grammaton). It also begins the word "henini" or "Here I am..." This is the word Abraham, Jacob, and Moses instantly responded with when called on by G-d. "Chalom" in Hebrew means "Dreams," like that of Yakkov Aveinu (Jacob our Father) who dreamt of angels traveling up and down a ladder between heaven and earth. The gestural qualities of these paintings explores the dreamlike spiritual qualities of the Hebrew letters.

In Peace you Shall Be Led
Price: $220
Dimensions: 18" x 24"
The painting “In Peace You Shall Be Led” celebrates G-ds’s promise to the Children of Israel in the book of Isaiah (chapter 55, verse12) which starts with the words that appear in the upper right hand corner of the painting :

"In joy you shall go forth and in peace you shall be led"

The large tree, growing amidst a field of golden-brown thorns, and the flowering myrtle branch at the bottom refer to what is written in the smaller box on the left, describing how the land which lay desolate while the nation was in exile, will bloom again :

Thank you to those of you who were praying for our family. My husband is home, not quite fully recovered, but he's home and mending. He's reading a bedtime story to Janney and Asher as I type this, they're very happy to have him home.

Memory Verse: 1 John 4:16 (NIV)

And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.

Intro: Sometime “being all you can be” is a challenge.  We are trying to balance being a godly wife, mother, teacher, keeper of the home,  and much more.  None of us are perfect and we all struggle in our own ways with being able to achieve what we feel needs to get done.

Assignment:  This week I thought we could share what great ways we have found to help with all we have to do.  Besides the obvious getting face down in front of God, what have you found that works?  Have you done a great bible study that deals with this area?  Do you have a certain “thing” that  really helps you like a planner or gadget?  Do you have a certain bible verse that just speaks to you and you have it posted so you see it all the time?  Is there a website that is really valuable to you in this area?   What do you do that if someone else found out about it, they could benefit from it?

What's the biggest help to me  Teenage boys.. but that's not too helpful to you young moms, so I guess I need to share some other helps.

Click the book cover and read the first devotional.  This lovely book was given to me when I was a young mom with three small boys and a new stay at home mom, pulling my hair out trying to figure out how to manage it all.  This book taught me that everything I do; holding a sick baby, cleaning the toilet bowel, or making the meals, it was all Holy - all service to Adonai, all a for of worship to God Most High.   I learned to not resent these thing, but do them with a thankful heart and a joyful spirit.

I think our biggest obstacle to efficiently managing our homes is our attitude. If we hate the work, we're not likely to want to do a good job, nor even make an effort.  When we do it because we're doing it for God, as an act of love and devotion.. when we do it as an act of love for our families..then getting that "round tuit" is much easier.

Colossians 3:23

Whatever work you do, put yourself into it, as those who are serving not merely other people, but the Lord.