Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem   King David in the Psalms of Accent gives a petition to “Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem”. The prayer and the Psalms to follow were sung by pilgrims as they made their way up to God’s chosen city. The text reflects the Abrahamic promises and the future Messianic…

Broken Pieces, Leaven Bread & Shavuot Moses Shavuot, or Pentecost memorializes Moses’ accent up Sinai where he met with God receiving the Decalogue (10 Commandments) written on two stone tablets by God Himself, the Torah, and instruction regarding building the Tabernacle. He was there for 40-days and nights (Exodus 19 – 32; Deuteronomy 9:9 –…

Very Personal  Psalm 139 is very personal.  David paints for us the intimacy he feels toward God. There is a depth here understanding the miracle and comfort of God’s absolute sovereignty.  In verse 13, David walks us through the mystery of God’s mastery over the gestation process of life itself. “For You formed my inward…

The Olive Tree  Symbols: The Olive Tree is a symbol of Israel. Olive trees appear in the emblems of both the State of Israel, as well as the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). The olive tree is also a symbol of peace, hope, and many other qualities that are important to Israel and the Jewish people. Striking:…

What Jewish People Believe A Look at Judaism – What Jewish People Believe Four Main Divisions of Judaism: Orthodox Orthodox Judaism believes in a personal Messiah, who though not divine, is super-human. They also embrace the authority of the Scriptures in conjunction with tradition. Conservative Conservative Judaism is, philosophically, the middle of the road Judaism.…

What comfort can be offered to the mother of a murdered son? Hersh kissed his mother good-bye after synagogue Friday night. The 23-year-old was heading out to a music festival with his buddy. It was the next morning that this festival became the main stage in Hamas’s surprise attack and massacre killing innocent hundreds. That…

Shabbat Shalom! Arriving just when the sun was going down we entered through the kitchen door in the garage.  There were several women, young and old, preparing food and setting place mats on the table. Cousins, aunts and uncles, brothers and sisters, plus friends were gathering.  You would think it was a family reunion after…

With the Babylonian exile in the past, and Jews returning to the land, work of rebuilding the Temple began.  However, the project was pushed aside as the people were putting their personal affairs first.  Things began to happen to the nation. Economic problems unfolded and Natural Disasters began to happen.  Let’s find out what happened some 2500…

Messed up! Second Passover God is a God of second chances.  For example, Peseach Sheni means “Second Passover.” One year after the Exodus, God instructed the people of Israel to celebrate Passover on the fourteenth-day of Nissan (springtime), to bring an offering, and to reenact the eating of the various foods as they had done…

The Heart of Worship during challenging times! When facing tragedy, we must prioritize our concentration! Our witness as believers becomes lackluster when we become preoccupied with self. When captivated with God, we find that looking at ourselves diminishes in the shadow of His glory. The preoccupation with self-fades immeasurably in the presence of the Holy.…