Day of Trumpets

Today is Rosh Hoshana (the head of the year, or Yom Teruah (the Day of Trumpets or the Day of Blowing). It is the onset of the fall feasts, and the beginning of the 10 Days of Awe leading up to Yom Kippur, and the Sukkot, or the Feast of Tabernacles. There is a lot of speculation as to what this time means in regards to the Day of the Lord, end times and all that, but I will leave that to people more knowledgeable than I.

I’m reflecting on the fact that this day is about announcing. It’s heralding the time of harvest, prodding us to reflect and repent, which can be bitter, humiliating, and I don’t know what else. It’s also a preparation for a glorious 8 day party, celebrating the Lord, His blessings, our family, our community, etc.

In Deuteronomy 32, the Song of Moses is taught. Yah instructed Moses to compose a song and teach it to the children of Israel, which was passed on from generation to generation. It calls for His people to learn from the past and look to the future. We sometimes either get bogged down by our past to the point that we can’t move on to what He has for us, or we completely dismiss and ignore our past, and can’t figure out why we keep making the same mistakes. Our Father –  so loving, trustworthy, and faithful – framed the appointed times in such a way that we are always growing closer to Him and shedding or turning away from the things that hinder. I am in awe, and during these Days of Awe, I will continue to reflect, repent, and learn, that I may go into the future celebrating His glory!!

Redshoooz – Give Me Your Eyes
BYNA 40 Days – Day 28, Day 29

 

Trust in You

Busy days in many ways – physically, mentally, and emotionally. There have been highs and lows; some days the highs win, some days the low. Walking out this reflection journey of trust, though, has been strengthening in ways that I haven’t expected. There are still dark days, but I know I will get through. Trust is my first go-to, not my last. It doesn’t always look or feel pretty, but it it’s there, and I’m grateful.

I was listening to a playlist put together by a friend, and this song pretty shouted out a lovely anthem. Enjoy it with me will you?

 

Redshoooz – The Heart

BYNA 40 Days – Day 15, Day 16

40 Days of Reflection

Yes, I realize that I have been rather MIA the last couple of months. It has been very difficult, and I admit to isolating myself and not reaching out much. I still feel like I’m in the middle of it, but I’m choosing to do some things differently. I may not always succeed, but I will continue to try.

I’m going through 40 days of prayers of repentance with B’ney Yosef North America, and a friend and fellow blogger and I starting talking about reflection. At sundown on the 22nd of August, we entered into the month of Elul on the Hebrew calendar. That began the corporate time of focus on repentance for the High Holy days of Yom Teruah, the Days of Awe, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot. In the midst of examining our own hearts, we talked about what topic is the Lord highlighting for us.

Trust is a big deal, and I understand that part of this season for me has been experiencing a completely new and different facet of trust. I realize I’m coming late to the party, but I want to commit to sharing something from Scripture and my thought process on trust every day for 40 days (yeah, I’ll be doubling to catch up). I’ll also link the posts from Redshoooz, who is focusing on the heart, and B’ney Yosef North America. Feel free to walk alongside the journey with us.

The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, because he trusts in You.

Isaiah 26:3 (NASB)

Reflections

A friend of the family was hit by a drunk driver and killed a bit ago. Apparently it was a hit and run, not sure of all the details. I got a wake up call, quite literally, from my dad at 6:30 this morning. The only reason I answered it was because he’s out of the country right now and I don’t have a call back number. But after asking how everybody was, he asked me if I had heard (the family friend lives in Texas) had died. I went from barely conscious to quite awake in no time flat. We become desensitized to these things, but when it’s someone you know, however casually, it’s a shock. And even though I didn’t know Steve very well, he was a close friend of my father. What struck me most was how stunned my father was. He mentioned several times that Steve had called him a couple of times, and he hadn’t had the chance to call him back. His voice was so full of regret, remorse and self-recrimination and I felt sorry for him. Steve was a close friend, yet his busy life got the best of him. Life is so brief, such a whisper in the wind, and we tend to live like it’s all we have. What regrets would Steve have had? That’s hard to know – it’s a moot point in any case. But what regrets do his ex-wife and his two kids now bear? What promises unfulfilled, what words unsaid, or wish were unsaid? And good friends, like my dad, what “what ifs” are still floating around in their minds, weighing them down with guilt?

It’s a reflection for me, especially that regret my dad for not calling back. We’ve become so busy in our society, we forget to have time for each other. “I’ll call later” turns into, “I was so busy, I forgot.” We do ‘things’, these activities, and they seem to take precedence over our relationships with each other. But if we were to put a pause button on our lives and look them over, what lasting moments would we find? How often did we choose things eternal over things temporal? What do we value, and how does that show up in our choices in how we govern and spend our time? For me, just being utterly transparent at the moment, I have a deep hunger for true, strong relationships and community, and I keep knocking my head against the busyness that seems to be a high value right now. It’s so hard when everything around us wants 48 hours out of our 24-hour day. But when someone is suddenly gone from my life, or at the end of my own, whenever that may be, the last thing I want on my heart and mind is regrets about how I just didn’t make enough time for those I love and care about.

This life is short, and so temporary – love hard.