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From Rabbi Jack James {1:2} “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, {1.3} knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. {1:4} But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.” Trials have a tremendous effect on our lives; they have the power to make us or break us depending on how we react to them, how we handle them and who we blame for them. Do you use escape tactics when trials come? Do you start to drink, smoke, binge eat or do you not deal with your trials by denying them? What did James say about trials? Did he say they work bitterness, anger, worry, depression? No! He said that “the testing of your faith produces patience.” Patience is being able to stand under the pressure of trials. Not only do trials build patience in our lives, but they also produce maturity. “But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect” Now, perfect does not mean flawless, it means mature, complete. God wants to develop maturity in your life so you will be more useful in His service and He often uses trails to do it. We cannot understand everything that God does in our life. Our thoughts are not His thoughts and our ways are not His ways. From our perspective the trials we go through can seem unreasonable, but God has a purpose in our trials and we have to view them from His perspective. In fact, He customizes our trials and troubles to suit what He wants to accomplish in your life. Through our various trials and troubles God is working to teach us obedience and to rely on Him and less on ourselves. He leads us into situations that develop our character. He gives us tears and sorrow to keep us tender, hurts to keep us compassionate, failures to keep us humble. God sees the big picture of what we need so as to grow us into the image of His Son. Regardless of why or when or how trials come, they are all designed to bring us into a closer love relationship with Him but only we can decide whether they will or not. When Job suffered the loss of all his material possessions, the loss of his children and even his health, his wife told him to curse God. Job did nothing wrong; he loved and served the Lord. Those trials could have made him bitter; they could have turned him away from God, but instead he gave God the glory and grew through the situation to become a better man. |
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From Ellen So many things going on in the world and in our lives. As 2024 ended this past Tuesday we can sit quietly in retrospection. Did we all repent and rededicate our lives on Chanukah? Are we entering a new civil year with pure thoughts and abounding hope? I think that when we see the meaning of this past Hebrew month of Kislev and enter into the new Hebrew month of Tevet, there is hope! I am not a Hebrew speaker but as I have shared in the past my nickname was “Calendar Girl” in our Toronto office. Each time we approached a new Hebrew month I did a little research on the meaning of that month. Kislev means purse of the heart…a time to examine what is in our hearts. Only by this exercise could we have examined, repented, forgiven and rededicated our hearts to Yeshua. It is for this very reason we play Marty Goetz’s song “Chanukah” each year…as he so eloquently sings “…I dedicate my life to You, Yeshua.” Now for the Hebrew month of Tevet. Looking at the spelling of Tevet is what led me to write this brief presentation. The first two letters in the word Tevet are “tet” and “vav” which also makes up the word tov. We all know the meaning of tov… “GOOD!” We are also starting our Bible reading plan again with the Book of Genesis where God saw that it was “tov-good” in chapter 1 verse 4. This word Tevet tells us that the entire month will be filled with God’s goodness. As we look back in recent times we can see many challenges in our lives and in this world that might bend our hearts to have a critical spirit instead of seeing “tov-good”. Let us thank (toda) God for His goodness and His grace that enables us to see goodness in our lives. Remember the saying “God is good all of the time!” Let us strive to be more like Yeshua this Tevet and see the good in all things. We choose to be happy or sad. We choose to be needy or content. We choose to be angry or joyful. I would say to you today, realize that the consequences we endure in this life is a direct result of our choices. Please prosper and spread the Good News of salvation this month more than you did last month. It is good to praise the Lord and rejoice in song and dance. Put off your sackcloth and put on your garments of praise because our God is good all of the time! Love you all… |
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PayPal. No PayPal? No problem! Contact us for other options. https://paypal.me/kenyamission Titus 2:13…while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Messiah Yeshua.” Yours in Messiah Yeshua, Yom Teruah
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From the Rabbi's Desk - Weekly Torah portions by Rabbi Jack (Ya'acov) Farber.
Sunday, January 5, 2025
Parsha Vayigash - And He Drew Near
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