Ahava Love Letter - "The Hiding Place" (Steve Martin)

             

             “The Hiding Place” 

“Protect me like the pupil of your eye, hide me in
the shadow of your wings from the wicked, who are
assailing me, from my deadly enemies, who are all
around me.”
(Psalm 17:8-9 Complete Jewish Bible)

“On hearing about this, Yeshua left in a boat to
be by himself in the wilderness. But the people
learned of it and followed him from the towns
by land.” (Matthew 14:3, Complete Jewish Bible)

Dear family of friends,

As I know I have, I believe you at times too just want to run away from a given situation. Someone is attacking you in word, deed, or any other method under the sun that man thinks of. You just want to run from it. Get away and hide.

Whether it is the company boss pressing down hard on you at work; the family member railing against you once again for some incident that happened days, months or even years ago; the news anchor telling all about the terrible crimes happening in the world today; or your loving little kids, old enough to scream and run around, but not yet fully understanding their mom's need for rest - you just want to run and hide sometimes, and get away from it all. At least for a few minutes, right?!

Don Moen, one of my all-time worship leaders, came out with a CD in 2006 entitled “The Hiding Place.” It was another one of those that got worn out, as much as CDs can. The title song, of the same name, particularly struck “a chord” in my heart, and the Lord used it to bring encouragement and comfort during that time.

The first lines are sung, “You are my hiding place. I run to you. I need your mercy and grace, to see me through. So I’ll run to you.”*

I certainly can relate. And I know King David could too. He had the “hounds of earth” on his heels, tracking him down like a dog, even when he had done no wrong. He sought the Lord and he was heard. He just wanted to be hid in the shadow of His wings, from the wicked who surrounded him. The Lord did protect him, and he became the king of all Israel.

Jesus Himself had times when He just needed to get away from the pressing crowds and the masses who followed Him for a miracle. There are several passages we read in the Gospels where He went “to be by Himself in the wilderness”, or when He would get up early in the morning, when all others were still asleep, just to be in the Father’s presence.

Having examples like these, for us to pattern our life after, helps make it a bit easier to cope with, and yes, overcome, the daily grind and onslaught that comes our way. We need to get our own batteries “recharged” as is commonly shared from some pulpits.

Our spirits were created to have that void filled only by His ability to fill it, and thus we need the quiet times alone with Him. My personal morning prayer time with the Lord, which includes reading a chapter of His word on a daily basis, replenishes that which had gone out the day or night before.

Playing praise and worship music in our home, car, or on a walk fills the atmosphere around us with His glory. The powerful sound waves of good, wholesome music vibrating in our ears and hearts can replace the energy lost due to the pressures on us each and every day.

To be honest, I don’t know how people live without the Lord. I guess we know the answer by seeing that which is used instead, in place of the Lord, to fill that emptiness and stress they experience. Lord help them.

Give the Lord time today to refill your spiritual being with refreshing water and nourishment. Have some daily manna from Him. First take time to hide away in Him, and know that He will build you up and send you out.

It can be a mad house out there, but we have One Whom we can run to. His love is what He has for you as you do..

Ahava (love in Hebrew) to my family of friends,

Steve Martin

Founder/President

*(Don Moen, The Hiding Place, Integrity Media 2006)

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Ahava Love Letter #74   “The Hiding Place”  ©2013 Steve Martin 

Date: In the year of our Lord 2013 (09/05/13 Thursday at 8:35 pm in Charlotte, NC)

All previous editions of Ahava Love Letter can be found on this Blog:

http://loveforhispeople.blogspot.com 

  

Here are the last few:

Why Is A Gentile Like You Celebrating the Feasts of the Jews? (#73)

They Are Loved Too (#72)

Oskars Needed Again? (#71)

Little Orphan Chuckie (#70)

Demons & Fire Trucks (#69)

I Like Mike (#68)

Disappointed with Small Beginnings? (#67)

Rise Again (#66)

The Cities (#65)

How Can You Mend A Broken Heart (#64)

Good seed sown. Good tree grown. Good fruit given.

"The upright (honorable, intrinsically good) man out of the good treasure [stored] in his heart produces what is upright (honorable and intrinsically good), and the evil man out of the evil storehouse brings forth that which is depraved (wicked and intrinsically evil); for out of the abundance overflow) of the heart his mouth speaks." 
(Luke 6:44-46 Amplified Bible)

During these Feasts of the Lord and the natural harvest season many are entering into, may our spiritual harvest be abundant, as a result of good works done and good words spoken in the name and honor of the One we serve, Jesus Christ, Yeshua HaMashiach.

A good tree bears good fruit. It just happens to be so. Enjoy a good harvest, if you planted right, and enjoy good fruit, if your tree within is capable.

Steve Martin
Love For His People

Celebrate Rosh Hashanah with CBN - with Paul Wilbur leading Messianic worship

Gordon Robertson leading in opening prayer

Click here:

CBN Celebrates Rosh Hashanah - with Paul Wilbur!

Shofars ready to be blown!

Blow the trumpet!

Procession

Crown of Glory!

Messianic worship leader Paul Wilbur

Paul Wilbur

Leading Messianic worship

Beautiful dance to bless Yeshua

We bless you Lord!

Wonderful!

Flags, banners and all in praise

Boys, men and women 

dance unto the Lord 

in celebration of 

His great love and mercy!

It is a New Year!

Great is the Lord Yeshua, 

and worthy of our praise!

Watch the full video:

CBN - Rosh Hashana Celebration

10 Reasons You Should Listen to the Shofar this New Year

Wednesday, September 04, 2013 |  David Lazarus  Israel Today 

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Bible

Israel Today wishes all of our readers and supporters and the people of Israel a blessed Rosh Hashanah. We'd like to share with you the following thoughts and prayers as we celebrate this special season of renewal.

1) Trumpets are sounded at a coronation and God is hailed as King on this day. On Rosh Hashanah we give a special blast of the shofar (ram's horn) in recognition that the Almighty, the Sovereign One is Lord of Heaven and Earth.

May we acknowledge him in all our ways so that he will make our paths straight.

Let us remember that He is Lord over all the nations of the earth. He will have his way in Jerusalem, in Israel and among all the nations of the Middle East.

2) The shofar heralds the beginning of the season of renewal.

May this be a time for reflection and re-commitment to God.

Let us recommit ourselves and our families to all that is right and good in his sight.

3) The Torah was given on Sinai accompanied by blasts of the shofar.

Let us be bold to follow God's commandments even when it is not popular or comfortable.

Let us proclaim his truth courageously to the nations.

4) The Prophets compare their message to the sound of the shofar.

Let us not lose hope, but reopen our hearts to the possibilities of a better world for ourselves and for others.

5) Conquering armies gathered under the sound of the shofar blast.

May we be willing to take a bold stand against injustice, lies and corruption in society.

Let us remember the rights of the poor and oppressed in our midst.

6) The ram from whose horn the shofar is fashioned, was substituted for Isaac.

Let us offer up ourselves to love when it is costly or unpopular even as He who sacrificed himself for us an offering to cleanse and renew our spirits.

7) The prophet asks, "Shall the shofar be blown in a city and the people not tremble?" (Amos 3:6)

The Lord is shaking the nations. Only that which cannot be shaken will remain.

Let us serve God with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire.”

8) The prophet Zephanaiah speaks of "the great day of the Lord" as a "day of the shofar and alarm." (Zeph. 1:14,16)

As we contemplate the judgments of God coming even now on the earth, let us lift up our voices so that truth and mercy may be heard once again in the gates.

May the staff of Israel Today and all those who follow you continue to walk in humility before God our king and before man as we “speak the truth in love” to Israel and the nations.

9) The prophet Isaiah speaks of the great shofar which will herald the Messianic age. (Isa. 27:13)

Let us be patient and not grow weary in well doing for it is written that “at the proper time we shall reap if we do not give up.”

Be anxious for nothing, our times are in God's hands.

10) The shofar will be sounded at the resurrection.

Maimonides writes: "It is a divine decree that we blow the shofar on Rosh Hashanah. A hint of the following idea is contained in the command. It is as if to say: 'Awake from your slumber, you who have fallen asleep in life, and reflect on your deeds. Remember your creator. Be not of those who miss reality in the pursuit of shadows, and waste their lives in seeking after vain things which neither profit nor save. Look well to your souls and improve your character. Forsake each of you his evil ways and thoughts.'"

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Shana Tovah - Happy New Year 5774 - With the Good Lord's Blessings On Ye Heads!

With the love of our Lord, 

Yeshua HaMashiach 

(Jesus Christ),

we ask for His blessings 

on ye heads, O Israel!

Steve & Laurie Martin

Love For His People

Teshuvah 29 - Hebrew months of Elul and Tishri - Curtis Loftin

Curtis Loftin - Beit Yehsua in Lincolnton, NC

Teshuvah 29

Shalom Mishpocha,

Today (Tuesday) at sundown is the beginning of Elul 29 and the 29th day of Teshuvah - The Feast of Trumpets (Yom Teruah) begins tomorrow night (Wednesday) at sundown.

The month of Elul on the Hebrew calendar has 29 days.  The seventh month on the Hebrew Civil Calendar is the month of "Tishri" - with Yom Teruah occurring on Tishri 1, Yom Kippur on Tishri 10, and Sukkot on Tishri 15. 

Do you know how many days the month of February has?  Sure you do - that's an easy one - "28 days", except for leap year when it has 29.  Well, how many days does September have?  ...or July?  Those are always a little tougher, at least for me, so I rely on an old poem I learned as a child.  "Thirty days hath September, April, June and November, All the rest have thirty-one, Excepting February alone, And that has twenty-eight days clear, And twenty-nine in each leap year." 

The beginning of each Jewish lunar month is based on the appearance of the new moon. Carolyn & I actually wrote a little song years ago to memorize the Hebrew months - those of you who have participated in our Aleph-Bet classes through the years have heard it.  "Tishrei, Cheshvan, Kislev, Tevet, Shevat, Adar, Nisan, Iyar, Sivan, Tamuz, Av and Elul". 

The months have either 29 or 30 days ... alternating.
     30-Tishrei

     29-Cheshvah

     30-Kislev (but sometimes 29)

     29-Tevet
     30-Shevat

          (Leap Year month of Adar I is added here 7 times in the 19-year cycle)
     29-Adar
     30-Nisan
     29-Iyar

     30-Sivan

     29-Tamuz

     30-Av

     29-Elul

We have a Leap Year every 4 years on our calendar and an extra day is added to the month of February (February 29th).  The Jewish Calendar has an extra monthduring its Leap Year.  An extra month, Adar I, is added after the month of Shevat and before the month of Adar in a Leap year. A Jewish leap year occurs 7 times in a 19-year cycle. The 3rd, 6th, 8th, 11th, 14th, 17th, and 19th years are leap years in this cycle.

Israel has a Religious Calendar and a Civil Calendar.  The Religious Calendar begins with Nisan and runs through Adar.  The Civil Calendar begins with Tishrei and runs through Elul.

God's Calendar is actually the Jewish Religious Calendar.  

Exodus 12

² This month (Nisan/Abib) shall be unto you the beginning of the months; it shall be the first month of the year to you.

The Feast of Trumpets is called Rosh Hashanah in Israel (and many places around the world) - because Tishrei 1 is the beginning of the Civil Calendar (not the Religious Calendar).  Rosh Hashanah actually means "Head (or Beginning) of the Year".  Since Tishrei 1 is not the "Head of the Year" on God's Calendar, we usually call the Feast of Trumpets by what we believe is its more appropriate name - Yom Teruah (Day of Shofar Sounding - Day of the Awakening Blast - Day of Trumpets).

So, why the Jewish calendar lesson?  It's impossible to fully understand scripture without understanding the Jewish calendar. I love the Hebrew calendar and I know you will, too, as you become more familiar with it.  It is important to Him!  The Festivals are His appointments.  There are no random dates on God's Calendar.

Now, let's take a closer look at Yom Teruah ...

One reference in Scripture for Yom Teruah is found in Numbers 29. The weekly Sabbath (as you know) is from sundown Friday night till sundown Saturday night, but this scripture in Numbers 29 tells us that Tishri 1 (Yom Teruah) is also a Sabbath - "you shall do no servile work" (no public form of work providing wages).  This means that there will also be a Festival Sabbath this week from sundown Wednesday night till sundown Friday night (two days of Yom Teruah that count as one long day) - then the weekly Sabbath from Sundown Friday night till sundown Saturday night.  (That means that this week, the Sabbath days are from sundown Wednesday till sundown Satruday.)

Numbers 29

¹And in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work: it is a day of blowing the trumpets unto you.

Psalm 144

¹⁵ …happy is that people whose God is the Lord

As we continue to seek the Lord during the final days of the month Elul and "Teshuvah", Return to Him with all our hearts, 1 Corinthians 10, Psalm 145, and Psalm 51 offer some encouraging words to us.

1Corinthians 10

¹³ No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.

Psalm 145

⁸ The LORD is gracious and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy

¹⁴ The LORD upholdeth all that fall, and raiseth up all those that be bowed down.

¹⁹ He will fulfill the desire of them that fear Him: He also will hear their cry and will save them.

²⁰ The LORD preserveth all them that love Him: but all the wicked will He destroy

Psalm 51:7

Purify me with hyssop and I will be clean; Wash me and I will be white as snow.

White garments represent being in a state of spiritual preparedness.

Ecclesiastes 9:8

Let your garments be always white...

Thank You Abba for the cleansing power of the blood of Your Son, Yeshua, in our lives.  Continue to work in our hearts - drawing us ever closer to You.  B’Shem Yeshua (In the Name of Yeshua) - Amen!

Ahava V'Brachot,

(Love & Blessings)

Curtis

curtisloftin@gmail.com

Worship Opportunity For the Day:

YouTube Video: MARANATHA SINGERS "White As Snow"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPFCosKw1YE

White As Snow

Maranatha Music
“America Worships”

White as snow, White as snow,

Though my sins were as scarlet,

Lord I know, Lord I know,

That I’m clean and forgiven.

Through the power of Your blood,

Through the wonder of Your love,

Through the faith in You I know that I can be,

White as snow.

Blowing the shofars - Feast of Trumpets (Tabernacles)!