Rosh Chodesh Elul

 

Rosh Chodesh Elul Tov!

    I am very blessed to have been able to welcome the month of teshuva in the company of five other ladies. We prayed, read Psalms and Scripture and began approaching the King who is now in the field. What a privilege.

    The Word of God cleanses our souls and the more time we spend in it, the more we allow Him to remove those things that shouldn't be there and allow righteousness to come in, the more whole we become.

    Every year as Elul begins, it all seems overwhelming. But as I was listening to some Sage advice a few minutes ago, I want to share with you a good and simple place to start.

    The Hebrew word for Repentance is Teshuva, which means "to return". As per the above table, the word Teshuva is divided into 5, each letter with a matching Scripture. These 5 actions, listed in Scripture, lay the foundation of doing proper teshuva and returning to God more fully each day.

    For me personally, so far (it's the 1st of Elul today!), I have a list of four things that I will - with the help of the Heavens - be seeking to apply to my life in order that I may bring more honour to the Name of God. Two of them I have been attempting to achieve fully for two years, and I said to God this morning: Please let this be the year! It will take determination and commitment on my part, which I am trusting HaShem to provide, knowing I cannot do it apart from Heaven helping me. Almost like a catch-22 situation. But not quite.

    May each of our journeys to draw closer to HaShem this month be rewarded with His merciful help.

    I can't share all my personal struggles, but two of the things I hope to please God with this year are: 1. Saying my bedtime prayers every night, and 2. Sticking like glue to my set Torah study times (whether it be the reading of the Jerusalem Talmud or the Torah portion).

    They seem like good goals to me!

For those wondering why we work so hard to get close to God when Yeshua (Jesus) has done it all for us, please remember that the New Testament tells us to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. Yeshua Himself said He is the door. He is our way in, but we can't stand in the doorway forever, we have to move into the building and see what further treasures He has for us! Amen!