Apple Matzah and the book of Ruth

 

Apple Matzah Kugel! Dreaming of Jewish comfort foods in Japan!

 

Who is this coming up from the wilderness leaning on her lover? Under the apple tree I awakened you...  Song of Songs 8:5

I had a dream during the days of the counting of the Omer.   The dream was a close up of  a blog post!! The post ( in the dream, note: it wasn`t a `real life` post!) was on one of our dear friends`s Blog and it was a post on "Apple Matzah and the Book of Ruth".  Maybe  I had this dream to remind me to come back to the blog, as it was during my extended break!!

In any case I ended up making Apple Matzah (Kugel!) thanks to the dream and will just share a little about the dream and the Apple Matzah here and see where the post will take us!

The post in the dream was written and formatted different from her usual posts. It was in text colors like pink and orange and she shared about apple matzah and interspersed the post with insights from the book of Ruth!!

Ruth was an eishet chayil, a woman of valor (from Ruth 3:11)

I woke up in the morning wondering about this apple matzah!! I had never heard of it, and now I wanted to make it!  And yet I had no matzah, so I  settled for looking to see if there was such a thing `out there`.  When I googled `apple matzah` I found something called Apple Matzah Kugel!!! I wanted to make it but had no more matzah after Passover has passed, and I don`t know where to get it in Japan after Passover.  So I decided to do something extravagant, and ordered Matzah from the US by Amazon!! 

 Boaz was an ish gibbor chayil, a prominent man of valor (from Ruth 2:1)

The matzah arrived during the last few days of the omer count, actually it was on Ascension Day (40 days into counting the Omer, see Acts 1), so that excited me! I had been fasting for a 3-day  fast to seek the LORD about some things related to Shavuot, so I had a matzah `break-fast` communion with Yeshua on the day the matzah arrived!!

Naomi`s bitterness was changed to joy by the union of Ruth and Boaz and her return to the land of Israel and to God`s covenant promises for her life.  The people prayed that her household prosper in Ephrath and be renowned in Bethlehem (from Ruth 4:11).   Again the word Chayil is used here to mean `prosper`.

During the last days of the Omer count, I made Apple Matzah and brought it to a friends house for the Shabbat before Shavuot!!  The taste was not what everyone is used to, though thankfully some liked it!! I loved it, it was like a Jewish comfort food that I might have tasted in my childhood, and it was somehow the perfect Shavuot dish to add to a repertoire.  It only contains a little milk so it is not too heavy, and has apples and cinnamon so can be a good desert not too sweet but enough sweetness to taste and see how good the LORD is.  Try it at your Shabbat or Feasts! And notice I have sprinkled a few insights from the book of Ruth just like in the dream!

The geneology that ends the book of Ruth (Ruth 4:18~22)  is the geneology that starts the book of Matthew (Matthew 1:1~6), showing the seamless way God has given us the story of Ruth and her Kinsman redeemer, Boaz, and connected us to the genealogy of Yeshua who comes from their union.  Yeshua is the Redeemer, or Goel of Israel!!  It is a beautiful story of covenant love and chesed.  We can also learn from the way Ruth accepted God`s commandments and identified with Israel。 We can also see in it the beauty of Jew and Gentile coming together to help us understand the purposes of God for Israel,  as Ruth, who was a Moabite,  loved Israel and the God of Israel and joined herself with Naomi with the famous verse,

Where you go I will go, and where you stay, I will stay.

Your people will be my people, and your God my God.  

Ruth 1:16~17

Below I will share the name of a book I read this season in regards to  Messianic insights into the book of Ruth. It was good and a recommendation during this season or anytime as a devotional study!

I pray you had a blessed time of Shavuot.  And now, the revelation that I was waiting to see where this post will lead!  The Holy Spirit showed me to wonderful scriptures about apples and relating to Shavuot!! As Shavuot is the holiday where we  We thank God and receive His revelation anew,  we celebrate the giving of the Torah at Mt. Sinai and over 1000 years later on the very same day the Holy Spirit was poured out on the disciples of Yeshua (Greek, Pentecost)!!

SO I will end the post with these verses about apples and Torah and God`s Love!

Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest, so is my lover among the sons.  In his shadow I delighted to sit, and his fruit was sweet to my taste.  Song of Songs 2:3

Sustain me with raisin cakes, refresh me with apples ~ for I am weak with love.  Song of Songs 2:5 (you may recognize this verse from my famous raisin cakes which just happen to be the bread I often make in the period leading up to Shavuot!)

 Keep my mitzvot and live, my teaching as the apple of your eye.  Proverbs 7:2

Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings, Psalm 17:8

Like apples of gold in settings of silver is a word aptly spoken.  Proverbs 25:11

For thus says ADONAI-Tzva`ot, He has sent me after glory to the nations that plundered you --because whoever touches you touches the apple of His eye --   Zechariah 2:12

Oh and last but not least! 

The recipe, HERE is the one  I used .  It was  easy and good, though of course you will need to obtain 4 sheets of matzah.  Enjoy!

The book I recommended above, Messianic Life Lessons from the Book of Ruth can be found HERE

Thank you DUTA for inspiring the dream,  and that I was able to express it in a post and hopefully return to more regularly blogging again!! 

Blessings and Shabbat Shalom!

Love,💕

Shayndel

Chag Shavuot Sameach from Japan! Love, Shayndel💖

 

 

 

Shavuot Loaves and Shavuot LOVE!

 

You are to bring out of your houses two loaves of bread for a wave offering, made of two tenths of an ephah of fine flour. They are to be baked with hametz as firstfruits to Adonai.  LEV 23:17

Dear Friends,

I apologize for my longer than expected blog break!! I have been well, thank you to friends who inquired!!  Sorry I couldn`t return comments, as the blog was not even enabling me to leave a comment, that made me realize I may have been gone too long, so I am popping in to say "Shabbat Shalom" and "Chag Sameach" as we are approaching the joyous Feast day of Shavuot!!! 

I made Challah for Shavuot a little early!!  The two Loaves became ONE in a HEART!!

 Love in Yeshua, 

Shayndel 

Sending Love to you for Shavuot!!

 

 

 

 

Love, Shayndel ❤️

“I pray not on behalf of these only, but also for those who believe in Me through their message, that they all may be one. Just as You, Father, are in Me and I am in You, so also may they be one in Us, so the world may believe that You sent Me. The glory that You have given to Me I have given to them, that they may be one just as We are one— I in them and You in Me—that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me and loved them as You loved Me."   John 17:20~23

 

 

 Sivan 2, 5782

Posted by Shayndel, Japan for Challah and Cherry Blossoms

 

 

 

Shabbat Shalom! Three Hebrew Words in Challah from the Book of Ruth

But now these three remain --- faith, hope, and love.  And the greatest of these is love.   1 Corinthians 13:13*

(*this scripture here because the story of Ruth is a LOVE story, though these are not the three words I did in Challah, I think I will have to do these three words in challah for another upload!! Read on to find out what the three words in challah are today.  Or rather, you will have to watch Part 1 at least to find out the words!! Enjoy!)

Dear Friends, 

Just coming in for a quick hello and to say Shabbat Shalom!

For your viewing pleasure and hopefully some Hebrew learning and insights, I am sharing this mini-series in 3 parts,  freshly made.  We haven`t done a word study in Challah for some time, and I felt a divine encouragement to make these three words !!! They are three words in Hebrew from the Book of Ruth.  

As you know the book of Ruth is read at Shavout for its taking place in the Harvest season as well as for the coming together in a love story of Ruth and Boaz and the strong echoes of the bringing forth of Messiah Yeshua ....generations later!!!

Well, I can`t write much now as I have to clean up my house for Shabbat and spent all morning making the video! I hope you might watch and enjoy it, and that there might be something in it that blesses you.  As I told another blog friend/sister, I felt the LORD wanted me to post this series before Shabbat, so I am premiering it here!! 

Blessings all and Shabbat Shalom!

Much Love,❤️

Shayndel (Joanne)

 #messianicjapan

 Part 1:

 

 Part 2:

 

 

Part 3

Two Shavuot Loaves! (1) A story of AHAVA in the time of Harvest!

 

wheat sheaves from Japan!

  

You are to bring out of your houses two loaves of bread for a wave offering, made of two tenths of an ephah of fine flour.  They are to be baked with hametz as firstfruits to ADONAI.  Leviticus 23:17

 

This year was the second time I made the two Shavuot loaves with my AHAVA Prayer partner in Japan.   We are in  2 different parts of Japan, so we made them together as we met on Zoom!!

We had  an intimate and wonderful time making them.  The night before our meeting, we had met with friends from our AHAVA fellowship and read the book of Ruth together (also on Zoom!*).   Being able to connect around the world on Zoom has been such an amazing blessing during this time of `shutdown`.  We read about the meeting and marriage of Ruth and Boaz in sonorous voices with accents from many nations.  God showed us revelations in His word as we read about Ruth the Moabite (as she is called in the early part of the story) and Boaz, the Goel (kinsman redeemer) from the line of Judah~~ and how they came together in this beautiful love story in the time of the Harvest!! Of course, from their union came Messiah Yeshua ...(how many?) generations later!!

So back to the loaves ( I hope to share some of the insights from book of Ruth on another post!).  

We came together as Jew and Gentile to make and lift up two loaves to Yeshua!  We were getting a little giddy as everything came together in His AHAVA.  As we counted 6 Tablespoons of sugar, Aimei said, `6 Tablespoons, 6 weeks!`.  and when we put in the 2 eggs we said, `2 eggs, 2 loaves!`.  We were counting numbers and counting omer as we also are reading in the Torah just now in starting in the book of Numbers!!

We Praise you LORD for your Love!

AHAVA in Hebrew means, Love.

Our Thanksgiving verse this week was perfect for the Bride.

Counting up to the day of Shavuot we invite the Holy Spirit to pour out afresh on us and on the Body of Messiah. To bring His Shalom upon Israel.

Reading the Word of God and making Challah go together well!  Man cannot live by bread alone!  So in the time when the bread was rising and when it was baking we prayed through our prayer sheet for our children and loved ones and Israel and nations.  

You can find our prayer sheet from the parsha Bamidbar HERE, which is the week we were in when making the loaves.

As I had a little dough left out from the loaves, I made a heart challah to represent two loaves becoming one!! (more on that in the next post). 

May we be One in Yeshua in this season of Shavuot/Pentecost and may the harvest be great and an outpouring of God`s love as brothers come to together and dwell together!! May we see the true peace in Yeshua, Prince of Peace, upon Israel!

Much Love and blessings,

Shayndel (Joanne)　❤️

 

I in them and You in Me-- that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me and loved them as You loved Me.

John 17:24

❤️

 

＊reminder if you missed this post, please check it out HERE and receive the AHAVA prayer sheets weekly, and invitation links to AHAVA zoom meetings which we hope to do more of periodically!! Thank you sister blogfriends who have joined! Blessings and AHAVA , Love, to all !

 

Grilled Fish and 40 Days!

Yeshua said to them, "Come, have breakfast."  

None of the disciples dared ask Him, "Who are you?"--knowing it was the Lord.   

וַיֹּאמֶר אֲלֵיהֶם יֵשׁוּעַ בֹּאוּ אִכְלוּ אֲרֻחַת הַבֹּקֶר וְאֵין 

   גַּם־אֶחָד בַּתַּלְמִידִים אֲשֶׁר מְלָאוֹ לִבּוֹ לִשְׁאֹל מִי אָתָּהכִּי יָדְעוּ אֲשֶׁר הוּא הָאָדוֹן׃

 John 21:12 (English, Hebrew)

 

As we count up the Omer, soon we are getting to 40 days, a day in Hebrew calendar called MEM B`Omer.  Mem (מ) מם is the 13th letter of the Hebrew alphabet and the number `40` in Hebrew counting.

The 40th day from after Passover is the day that Yeshua went up to Heaven to sit at the right Hand of the Father!＊  Isn`t it exciting as these 40 days (we are in day 38 today as I write) were the days He would have been appearing to the Disciples. All of the appearances He made to them  after His Resurrection were in the counting of the omer days that we are in now, including  fellowship with them, opening up the Scriptures to them, and making them breakfast.  

So when they got out onto the land, they saw a charcoal fire with fish placed on it, and bread.      

John 21:9

Hence the `grilled fish` in the post title!!

It is exciting times! As we await Shavuot and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit afresh, may we be ready! One bride for our Bridegroom.  Its really happening as Jew and Gentile are coming together as the Father calls us to be One in Messiah!!

I also wanted to share a post I wrote this time last year.  When I visited Israel and had a `breakfast with Yeshua` experience, which made the scripture come alive to me! Photo above: Breakfast with Yeshua, Sea of Galillee (2019).  You can read that post HERE if you would like, hope it blesses you and that we will meet Him this year for new revelation, and even for grilled fish!

 LeChayiim (To LIFE!), as we count up to the appointed `Moadim` of Shavout!!

Much Love in Yeshua. 

Look forward to those 153 fish and more in the catch this year as many many more than that turn their hearts to Yeshua, Jesus in a great outpouring of the Holy Spirit to become `One new man` in Messiah this Shavuot and Pentecost!!

Happy Counting!! 

Love, ❤️

Shayndel/Joanne (And a personal PS as I was researching the Scriptures of when Yeshua appeared to the disciples during these days of the Omer, I saw that one of the woman is `Joanna` (Luke 24:9~10)＊.   Though I must have seen it before, I was excited to note that  `Joanne` in the scriptures! And in Hebrew N.T., written as Yochana (there is no `J` in Hebrew), like this: 

יוחנה

💕

 Reference Notes:

1.  For a good article explaining in more detail about Mem B`Omer and these days on the counting of the Omer and Yeshua, please see this ARTICLE HERE on Hebrew4Christians

2.  ＊Scriptures referred to about Yeshua`s ascension, 

Mark 16:19, Luke 24:51, Acts 1:9, et. al.! 

וַיְהִי בְּבָרֲכוֹ אׂתָם וַיִּפָּרֵד מֵעֲלֵיהֶם וַיִּנָּשֵׂא הַשָּׁמָיְמָה 

Luke 24:51, Hebrew   

3.The verse in Hebrew with `Joanna`! , Luke 24:10

וְאֵלֶּה הֵן אֲשֶׁר הִגִּידוּ אֶל־הַשְּׁלִיחִים אֶת־הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה מִרְיָם הַמַּגְדָּלִית וְיוֹחָנָה וּמִרְיָם אֵם יַעֲקׂב וְהָאֲחֵרוֹת׃

 

3. last PS if you made it this far thank you for reading! OH, and just to point out I didn`t actually have fish, but rather yogurt and honey (milk and honey, for the land of milk and honey !)at my breakfast on the Galilee!

 

Challah Diary--Two Loaves for Shavuot Part 2 !

Behind the scenes and some Challah tips!!

Enjoy Part 2 of making the Two loaves for Shavuot!!

Trying out filming from `Zoom`, and some "on the spot Challah making" together!!
Thank you to my collaborator on the two loaves!

Part 1, how to make the dough, can be seen Here or in Post below! Enjoy!♡

Challah Diary--Two Loaves for Shavuot! Part 1!

we each made two loaves, so actually there were 4 loaves in all!!

You are to bring out of your houses two loaves of bread for a wave offering, made of two tenths of an ephah of fine flour.  They are to be baked with hametz as first fruits to ADONAI.   

                                                  Leviticus 23:17 TLV

Its always exciting to get to that day after the 49 days of counting and be ready for the holiday of Shavuot!!

I was preparing to make two loaves of Challah for Shavuot that morning, and had an unexpected surprise, which was that I had the chance to make the loaves together with a friend!

It was an extra blessing of having the chance to make the two loaves for Shavuot challah with my *AHAVA* prayer partner.  We had been praying together the morning before Shavuot, and both said almost at the same time that after our prayer time we were going to make challah, two loaves, for Shavout!! So we decided on the spot to do it together.  It was a wonderful time to make challah together and to meditate on the feast of Shavuot.  As one of the significances of the two loaves is that they can be said to represent Jew and Gentile together in Yeshua, we felt that making the challah together brought in that special meaning and it became a special time to make the loaves!!

I also made it *with you* as a way to share in the making and also that it could be my first "tutorial" on the whole process of making the challah from start to finish!! Some parts are more detailed than others, and some are just *tips* for how to make it, but overall I think it can give you a spring-board (seasonal pun intended!) to make challah for those who have always wanted to try it!!

I know we are already heading into weeks after the Feast of Weeks, hope you all had a blessed time for the Feast of Shavuot!!

There is also an exciting aspect of the spring feasts as a `challah maker` in that bread is featured so prominently in both Passover -- the unleavened bread, or Matzah--, and then Shavuot where two leavened loaves are waved as an offering. 
 
Blessings and stay tuned for parts 2&3!!  

Part 1 : making the dough from the start, including laying out the ingredients and getting started
Part 2 :  some behind the scenes and challah tips, showing the process as two of us did it together via `Zoom`!!
Part 3:  Finishing the loaves together,  our challah offering to the LORD 

Love (heart!)
Shayndel

PS I am on a new computer and this is embarassing to show my technical skills, I can`t find how to make my `heart`!! Should get it back soon, meanwhile sending extra Love!!

Shavuot Diary--Postcard from Shavuot & Story of Two Loaves, in pictures

From wherever you live, bring two loaves of bread as a wave offering of first fruits to the LORD.

--Leviticus 23:17

I love the spring feasts center around bread!!

Israeli oranges in Japan

(with Israeli oranges, and following the feast days, an `otsukaresama-de` cranberry smoothie)

something new

PS  my Shavuot postings are late! But as its still the month of Sivan...still within the Hebrew month, I am seeing if I can smoothly insert them in!
For more postcards from Shavuot, please enjoy posts here. 


Blessings and Shalom! Love, ♡　Shayndel

Counting the Omer--Shabbat Shalom! Omer Blessing

The Castle is made of light!! So when it appears bright and illuminated as the sky turns to night,  I read a blessing and count the day of the omer!!

And from the day on which you bring the sheaf of elevation offering---the day after the sabbath--you shall count off seven weeks.  They must be complete:  you must count until the day after the seventh week--fifty days; then you shall bring an offering of new grain to the Lord.  You shall bring from your settlements two loaves of bread as an elevation offering;      --Leviticus 23:15~17a

The days counting up from Passover to Shavuot are very exciting.
The commandment to count the Omer comes in the reading portion we are in this week!
In the counting, it is so wonderful to realize the living cycle of God's calendar and feasts, and  honor and marvel in His exquisite timing and eternal plan. 
The count each day and the blessing are made when the sun goes down, just at night fall or any time after night fall.

In our city there is a castle made of light that goes on at night,
It's perfect, so when the lights of the Castle go on,  we can count and make the blessing...

Today is 30 days, which is four weeks and two days of the Omer!

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments, and commanded us concerning the counting of the Omer.

May the LORD be gracious to us and and bless us.  May He make His countenance shine upon us forever, that Your way be known on earth, Your salvation among all nations.  The nations will extol You, O God; all the nations will extol You.  The nations will rejoice and sing for joy, for You will judge the peoples justly and guide the nations on  earth forever.  The peoples will extol You, O God; all the peoples will extol you, for the earth will have yielded its produce and God, our God, will bless us.  God will bless us; and all , from the farthest corners of the earth, shall fear Him.

 Accept our supplication and hear our cry.  You who knows secret thoughts.

Blessed be the name of the glory of His kingdom forever and ever.

(exerpted from the blessings and counting of the Omer,and Psalm 67) 

＊

Related posts on this blog for Counting the Omer, HERE
Related posts on this blog for Shavout, HERE

Mt. Fuji Torah Challah for Shavuot in Japan!

writing the Hebrew letters in dough, a new Challah challenge!

A Mt. Fuji Torah Challah for Japan, under a Mt. Fuji patterned Challah Cloth.  Shabbat Shalom!

in challah, Mt Fuji with the 10 commandments and a Torah scroll at the top!

Alef, bet, gimel dalet, hey!  Vav, zayin, chet, tet, yod.

Have a piece! Which letter did you get!?

evoking a mood on the Shabbat table of going up to the mountain to receive the Torah! For Shavuot, the mountain, the Torah, the flowers, and the feasting are all part of the holiday

I am a lily of the valleys.  --Song of Songs 2:1

"Come let us go up to the mountain of ADONAI, 
to the House of the God of Jacob! 

Then He will teach us His ways,
and we will walk in His paths." 

For Torah will go forth from Zion
and the word of ADONAI from Jerusalem.

Isaiah 2:3

Inspired by  Mt. Sinai and Ten Commandments challot (plural of challah!)  that I had seen for Shavuot (plural of Shavua, week!),  this one became a Mt. Fuji Torah Challah! Can you see the first 10 letters of the Hebrew alphabet?   They represent the Ten Commandments, and on top of the mountain, a Torah Scroll!! 

Shabbat Shalom!! 

Challah note:  I followed  this recipe for a Ten Commandments Challah.  Once I started rolling the shapes, the  inspiration came to make it a Mt. Fuji Torah Challah.   The recipe uses less yeast than a regular challah recipe, and few eggs (just one egg yolk) so it is a manageable dough and great recipe to use for making shapes and for making the Hebrew letters in challah.  Thank you Joy of Kosher! 

Blog note:  See a related post on a Ten Commandments related Challah that I made HERE in a somewhat earlier parsha!

The islands will wait for His Torah.       ---Isaiah  42:4  

Daily Bread Post-card(s)!

 On Shavuot we are commanded to offer two loaves of bread to the L-RD, to ADONAI, the Almighty Creator of the Universe.  And to bring them from wherever we are!

Today`s Daily Bread Post-card* is a double portion!
In honor of the feast of Shavuot.

This week, I will share two postcards!!

With two loaves of bread in each!!  The scripture is the same in both, Leviticus 23:17.
I send them to you.

They are both about bringing the offering of two loaves of bread, and waving them as a `wave  offering` to ADONAI.  One is a drawing I made at Shavuot last year (below) and one is a drawing I made this year (above).

This is the drawing I made last year :





This year,  I went out early in the morning once more to wave the loaves up to the G-d of Heaven! When I lowered my hands to bring the loaves back down, there was a flash of light on the `sole` of the two loaves in my hands!!! When I saw this flash of light, I thought of the lightning at Mt. Sinai at the giving of the Torah.  I felt that I received something from the L-RD, and everything became peaceful.  My heart had a moment of existing in His great Shalom!!!

Later on, I tried to draw something about the experience.  I looked at my drawing from last year.  Although there was something the `same` about my experience this year, I knew something was different. 

The Feast Day of Shavuot is an appointment to meet the G-d of Heaven.  During the 40 days since Pesach we anticipate this meeting and what it will be, as we work on the cleaning of our hearts and making ourselves ready for that meeting.  This time I felt He really was there to receive it!  In the drawing (top of this post)  I wanted to express that `meeting`, as we lift up the loaves.

For each person, Shavout brings a unique moment for each of us to re-live that experience of the giving of the Torah on Mt. Sinai every year, to offer our `firstfruits`, and to re-new our commitment to Him!  I hope the drawings can communicate even the least of that in the two postcards this week.

Shavuot is also the day that we read about in the book of Acts when the Disciples of Yeshua were gathered in the upper room in Jerusalem.  It was on the Feast Day of Shavuot that the Holy Spirit was poured down on the disciples and they received the Spirit of the L-rd!  Did you know the holiday known as `Pentecost` was not a `new` holiday, but rather it was on Shavuot,  First Fruits, exactly 50 days (Pentecost means the fiftieth day, in Greek) after Pesach, that the Holy Spirit was poured out!!!

One of the meanings of the two loaves is that they represent Jew and Gentile, together as one in Messiah Yeshua!  

Hope you had/having a blessed holiday!  Chag Sameach!

Love,

Shayndel


*Each week for the past ...weeks I have been posting a  Daily Bread Post-card.  Bread in this feature refers to Challah, which this blog is themed on.  In a larger sense, it refers to the word of G-d, which is our daily bread!  Because man (and woman) cannot live by bread alone but by every word that comes out of the mouth of G-d (Deuteronomy 8:3, Matthew 4:4).  And to take that further, Bread also refers to Messiah Yeshua because He himself is the Bread of Life. 

＊

He afflicted you and let you hunger, then He fed you manna--which neither you nor your fathers had known--in order to make you understand that man does not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of ADONAI.  ---Deuteronomy 8:3  TLV

Weeks!!

 From wherever you live,
bring two loaves of bread as a wave offering of firstfruits to the Lord.

---Leviticus 23:17

Happy Shavuot!
Did you know the name of this holiday, or Feast Day on the Kingdom Calendar, means `Weeks` in Hebrew.  Weeks!

We counted seven weeks from the second day of Passover to arrive at Shavuot.

Seven Shabbatot!

We did the math a few posts down!

It feels like on Shavuot time turns upside down and inside out as the King and Creator of this whole great and wonderful Creation comes so close to us.  After we counted up in anticipation to meet Him on His appointed day, He comes `down` to meet us just as He promised, and to let us know something very wonderful.  That we do `count`.  i.e., we count.   We count on Him.  We count to Him.  He created each of us, me and you and she and he and all of us, He created us all perfectly and wonderfully made（＊）.  He takes delight in knowing us, and all of Creation seems to be alive in a new way as He walks among us!!!

From wherever you live, bring two loaves

A day in His Courts is like a thousand elsewhere!!

Chag Sameach!
Happy Shavuot!!

 ＊

I praise You,

for I am awesomely, wonderfully made!

Wonderful are Your works--

  and my soul knows that very well.   

---Psalm 139:14