Psalm 100:4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.
Back in 1620, a bunch of English Pilgrims set sail on the Mayflower, looking to break free from religious persecution and find some religious freedom. These folks, known as the Pilgrims, were mostly Separatists who had split from the Church of England because of religious disagreements. They were originally aiming for Virginia, but thanks to some unexpected challenges, they got off course and ended up making landfall in Plymouth, Massachusetts. Life’s full of twists and turns, right?
Now, most of you know the story of an Indian named Squanto and his first Thanksgiving celebration with the Pilgrims.
However, you might not know that over a decade before the Pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock, English traders were trading with the Indians throughout the region. Squanto’s amazing story really originated then.
An Englishman named Captain Hunter had kidnapped several Indians and sold them into slavery, one of whom was Squanto, was sold into slavery in Malaga, Spain. There, Squanto was bought by a Spanish monk, who treated him well, freed him from slavery, and taught him about Christianity.
Eventually, Squanto made it back to England and worked in the stables of a man named John Slaney. It was there that Squanto learned English.
Upon Squanto’s return home in 1618, he learned that his tribe had been wiped out from an epidemic, probably smallpox brought by early English colonists. As you might imagine, he was devastated and couldn’t understand how God could allow this to happen.
Shortly afterward, a friend named Samoset introduced him to the Pilgrims. Because of Squanto’s history and understanding of English, Squanto was able to communicate with them. He also taught them how to survive there, how to fish, hunt, and how to plant corn. As a result, Governor William Bradford asked him to serve as his ambassador to the Indian tribes. Bradford accredited Squanto for the survival of the Pilgrim colony and saw that without God’s providential hand in providing Squanto — the colony would not have survived.
When I first heard the story of Squanto, it reminded me of the story of Joseph and the providence of God, even in the worst of situations. Joseph was sold into slavery, thrown into prison, accused and abused…. but all of these things were worked out for the purpose of saving the Jewish people. The story of the survival of the Plymouth colony rested on an Indian who was kidnapped, sold into slavery, returned home to see his tribe wiped out, and yet through these events was used by God to preserve the Pilgrims who came to America with this purpose, “for the glory of God, and advancement of the Christian faith”. (Mayflower Compact, November 11, 1620)
We have so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving season – even despite the tough times in which we live. While times are hard, we’re thankful to be alive for such a time as this! So we’re entering His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise today, knowing that our God is providentially in control of everything that is going on around us.
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]This week, we entered into the feast of Tabernacles — in Hebrew — Sukkot. Sukkot is known as “The Feast” in which God commands us to rejoice. As we entered this feast of rejoicing on Monday night, I think it is only fitting that we commit ourselves to a life of joy. “But how?” you say. We need to make a choice — a choice to rejoice! Wow, I’m a poet and didn’t know it, lol!
Last night, we concluded the feast of Yom Kippur where Jews throughout the world “afflicted” their souls. However, most kids in Israel look at Yom Kippur as “ride your bikes in the streets day!” You see, Yom Kippur in Israel is the one day when TV and radio stations are completely shut down and the streets are almost completely void of vehicles of any kind. Ironically, some of the only fully operational locations in Israel on Yom Kippur are the hospital emergency rooms – since kids who finally have no restraints on their bikes, skateboards, and roller skates tend to take risks they wouldn’t normally take – it’s Yom Kippur – they have the streets to themselves!
During the feast of Tabernacles in Yeshua's (Jesus') day, the temple priests would set up four great lampstands with golden lampholders, which they would light with the aid of enormous ladders in the Temple courtyard. The lighting of these lamps began the celebration of the "Great Hosannah" (Hoshannah Rabbah, in Hebrew).
The Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur in Hebrew, was the single most important day during the time of Yeshua (Jesus) and still holds utmost significance in Israel and among Jews worldwide today.
Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement is upon us. Beginning tomorrow evening, Yom Kippur marks the holiest of all holy days on the Hebrew calendar. It is the anniversary of the fall of man and it is the climax of the time of Teshuvah (repentance). Starting tonight night and into Saturday, all around the world, the religious will fast from food and water and read prayers in the synagogue, as will the majority of traditional Jews.
Rosh Hashanah traditionally marks the Jewish New Year. "Shanah" is a unique Hebrew word meaning "to repeat, revise, or go over again". As we begin the new year, with fall, then winter, spring, and summer, we remember the cyclical pattern of time in God's creation. The nature of life is to repeat itself -- to continue in a cycle, marked by Rosh HaShannah -- a New Year. Although time is moving in a direction toward a definite destiny determined by the Creator, it does so in cycles ... truly, "what goes around comes around".
Earlier this week, we celebrated the Biblical festival of Yom Teruah (Feast of Trumpets) otherwise known as Rosh Ha Shana. What's interesting about Rosh Ha Shana (the Jewish celebration of the New Year), is that it doesn't fall on the first day of the first month. It actually falls on the first day of the seventh month! It's difficult for outsiders to understand this concept, but if we study how the Jewish year begins and how God is outlining this age according to the Jewish feasts it all makes sense.