7th Night of Hanukkah


Shalom, Y'all!  Tonight was the 7th night of Hanukkah.  Allow me a minute to share my heart with you tonight.

We attended a Bar Mitzvah for a friend and enjoyed the time tonight! It was a lovely Erev Shabbat (Sabbath eve) service with the lighting of the hanukkiah. I was excited when I knew some of the Hebrew songs & could follow among with some of the readings in Hebrew!

This was our hanukkiah (the menorah used during Hanukkah) at home.  Hanukkah is almost over (one more night!) and I'm going to miss this time of year.  It has been very special to me.  This is our 2nd year celebrating Hanukkah, and last year we really didn't know what to do, or how.  I'm still learning, but as we light the candles each night and reflect on the deep spiritual meaning and symbolism...  My heart is just moved!  Let me share with you why.

Yeshua (Jesus) said:

  • "I am the light of the world. Any man who follows me shall by no means walk in darkness, but possess the light of life." {John 8:12} 

  • "Night is coming... While I am in the world, I am the light of the world." {John 9:4-5} 

  • "While you have the light, believe in the light, so that you become sons of light." {John 12:36} 

  • In the passage of Matthew 5:14-16, Yeshua turned to His disciples and said, "You are the light of the world... Let your light so shine before men that they see your good works and praise your Father who is in heaven."

In Hebrew, the word "Hanukkah" means dedication; as in, the dedication of the Temple after it was desecrated by invading pagan soldiers with idols and unholy sacrifices.

In Romans 12:1-2, Paul says, "I urge you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice—holy, acceptable to God—which is your spiritual service. Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect."

Isn't it interesting that Hanukkah is often called the Festival of Lights? And that "hanukkah" means to dedicate the Temple?  According to 1 Corinthians 6:19, our bodies are the Temple of the Holy Spirit (the Ruach HaKodesh)... And we are told to dedicate ourselves as a living sacrifice.

Do you see the connections?  
Wow.  I'm just blown away, as I watch these lights flicker & glow....

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Erev Shabbat Wrap!

Image
My Wrap of the Day for Erev Shabbat! 💖 I'm getting ready for Shabbat to start tonight, at sundown.  Today I'm wearing this three-scarf, layered wrap with a braid.  I even got a little bold and added TWO accents.  Can you see them?  I used a thin pearlized headband and a stretchy headband with peach pearls & rhinestones. Shabbat Shalom, Y'all! 💖
Read more

Snapped.

Got a minute to talk?  Do you ever have a day where you just can't take one more criticism or complaint? Not. One. More. I had that day today.  And I got a little snappy.  I'm not proud of myself.  In fact, I feel pretty rotten about it.  I'll probably need to make a phone call tomorrow to humbly apologize. Have you ever been there?  Your plans aren't working out.  You're tired and irritable.  You've felt picked on and picked over.  You're worn out, sensitive, spent, overwhelmed. And someone else comes along and their words feel like stingers.  You smile and try to hold yourself together.  Inside, you're yelling, "Stop it! leave me alone!"  On the outside, you take a deep breath, relax your shoulders, offer a silent prayer for patience.  The biting words keep coming.  And you snap.  You regret it immediately, but it's impossible to take it back.  I was there tonight.  I was hurting, and I hurt someone with my words.
Read more