Prison weekly July 31, 2004

Va-Ethannan For the week of July 31, 2004 / 13 Av 5764 Torah: Devarim / Deuteronomy 3:23 - 7:11 Haftarah: Isaiah 40:1-26 Keep the Commandments Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you (Devarim / Deuteronomy 4:2). The word here translated "keep" is from the Hebrew shamar, meaning to watch over or to guard. It is the same word as is used in Psalm 121:4, where we read, "he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep." This suggests that to keep the commandments is something different from just doing them. The contrast expressed in this verse supports this. There is something in how we are to relate to God’s commands beyond the need to do them. The contrast here is between that of adding to and subtracting from God's command as opposed to keeping them. If shamar meant simply doing, then the verse makes no sense. This verse is more concerned about what God is commanding, then about performing those commands. Of course we should do what God says and not do what he forbids, but that is not the issue in this statement. Before we could actually follow God's instructions, we need to be clear what those instructions are. God specifically forbids our changing his word in any way, either through additions or deletions. The way to ensure that we would adhere to God's actual commandments rather than other people's versions of them, was for us to keep them. We were to watch over the commandments just like a shepherd watches over sheep. Now it is God's prerogative how the commandments apply and to whom and in which situations. Blindly insisting that we must do things in a certain way under the guise of following God's instructions is not keeping them at all. It is so easy to confuse our understanding of God's commands with what he has actually said. But if we truly keep watch over God's word, we will come to know what he is actually saying. Just like it would be difficult to keep watch over two distinct flocks of sheep without getting them mixed up, so we cannot truly keep watch over God's word and our traditions. If we do, they will get mixed up. God said that we are to keep his commands. We are to watch over them, guard them, make sure none of them goes missing, nor intruders break in. As we do that, I believe that we will discover what is really there. Then we will be able to do what God is telling us. TorahBytes Speculation "Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden" (Bereshit / Genesis 3:8). Recently I was out with a friend of mine. At some point in our time together he asked me a big question: "What is the purpose of life?" This friend professes faith in God and to my knowledge lives a good life, yet this fundamental question plagues him still. Anyone else out there struggling with a question like this? Don't get your hopes up; I am not planning on dealing with this subject. My friend had been thinking about this quite a bit, and it seemed to me had come to what was at least a tentative conclusion. He asserted that having a relationship with God was our prime purpose.As I already mentioned, I am not going to discuss this issue. The issue at hand is the passage of Scripture he used as the basis for what he was saying. It was the Scripture I quoted at the beginning of this message, which speaks of God's presence in the Garden of Eden. My friend deduced from this passage that prior to Adam and Eve's eating of the forbidden fruit and the resulting consequence, God would spend time with them in the garden. I have heard this from others before. Many people believe that part of God's regular routine at this very early part of human history was to hang out with his precious creatures. Since this was part of their regular routine, then this is what we should strive for in life, the reasoning goes. This too is not a subject I want to pursue at this time. I, like my friend, believe that the cultivation of an intimate relationship with our Creator is fundamental to life, but that concept is not found in this passage. Interestingly, when I challenged my friend's interpretation, he quoted the verse, but adding the words, "as was his custom" to the part where it refers to God walking in the garden. I don't blame him for the misquote, because that is the common understanding of what occurred there. So while my friend's understanding of the importance of our relationship with God is true, that concept is not found in this passage. To assert that God used to hang out with Adam and Eve in the garden is not biblical interpretation, but speculation. When we are studying the Scriptures, I think we should keep away from speculating as much as possible. I know that this is difficult to do, since we all come to the Scriptures with our own sets of understanding, and we are not always aware of the source of these understandings. That is one of the reasons why we need to read the Bible over and over again. It is by continually reading and rereading that our wrong assumptions and interpretations are challenged and corrected. The Genesis account provides us with no information as to how much time went by between God's putting Adam and Eve in the garden and when they sinned. It may have been a short time or a long time; we don't know. We may think it would be interesting to know, but I think if it would be helpful to us to know this information, then God would have made it clear in the Bible. Therefore I don't think it is worthwhile or helpful to us to spend time and energy trying to derive meaning from silence. Rather than thinking about things we don't know anything about, we would do much better to consider the things that God has revealed. Truah/TorahBytes Family Parsha V'etchanan 5764 Deuteronomy 3:23 - 7:11 Torah Portion: V'etchanan by Nesanel Safran Our desire to get ahead and reach our goals can tempt us to act in a less than upright manner. Yet the Torah assures us that only by playing fair will we ever succeed in the long run. This week's portion teaches, "...do what is good and fair in God's eyes, so that it will be good for you" (Deut. 6:18). Since ultimately it is only God who decides whether we will succeed or not, doesn't it make sense to do things in the good and fair way that He wants us to do? In our story, a kid has to decide whether playing fair is worth the price. "FIRST CLASS" Debby felt really weird seeing her smiling face plastered up over every corner of the school. When her friends first tried to get her to run for school president, Debby Furst didn't really take them seriously. Sure, she was a popular kid and all, but that didn't mean hundreds of people would want to vote for her to be their leader. But now it seemed like it might really be happening. She did really well in the first round of elections, and was now running in the final showdown against just one other finalist named Wendy. The long, exhausting election campaign was almost over. With just one day left, she and Wendy were running neck and neck. Debby sat at the desk of her impromptu 'campaign headquarters' (the small, empty offices that the school had supplied to each of the finalists), absentmindedly pondering the picture on one of her campaign posters, and its slogan: NICE GUYS FINISH -'FURST'! She wondered if she'd still be smiling like that tomorrow. Debby was lost in her thoughts when Judy and Val, her two best friends and campaign managers, came bursting in. Val was waving a piece of paper in her hand and they looked really upset. "Debby this is awful! It's terrible!" said Val almost crying. "We have to fight fire with fire!" Judy added in a voice so angry it was scary. "Hold it! Calm down. What's going on?" Debby asked. "What's going on?! I'll tell you what's going on. That rotten Wendy is about to drag you through the mud in front of the whole school!" The girls went on the explain how they had gone into the school office to photocopy Debby's latest speech and found in the copying machine a last-minute campaign poster her opponent must have forgotten there. Debby took one look at the poster and was shocked. It was the meanest, most viciously negative thing she had ever seen. It was full of lies about her, and even had an ugly caricature of her drawn on the bottom! Debby's face grew redder and redder. She knew Wendy really wanted to win - so did she - but this was too much. "See what we mean? They made a hundred copies of this thing and plan to put it up everywhere right before the vote, so you won't even have a chance to respond!" Judy said. "But don't worry..." Judy continued, "I've been doing a little 'creative writing' of my own. Take a look at this." With a grin, Judy pulled out another poster from a manila folder. It was just as mean, but this time aimed against her opponent. "It's our only chance, Debby. We'll print it up quickly, and maybe the two posters will cancel each other out. If not, the kids will believe all of Wendy's lies, and we'll get creamed at the ballot box." Debby looked over the poster. Part of her thought it was horrible, but part of her felt like she had no choice, that Judy was right, and it was really her only chance. "Just give me the okay and we're on our way," Judy prompted. Debby was about to go for it, then she had a second thought. Had this been why she agreed to run for president - to slander and hurt people? And what about her campaign slogan about nice guys finishing first? She had learned in her Torah class that God wanted us to be fair and good, and would help us when we were. She couldn't believe that putting out nasty posters about people was what God wanted her to do. She didn't quite know how, but she trusted that if she was meant to be school president, it would happen without her having to resort to dirty tricks. "Forget it. I'm not doing it," Debby stated, shaking her head. "But why not?" Judy protested. "Wendy started it, and if you don't fight back, you can forget about this election." Debby waved her off. "I don't care. I want to win, but if it means doing it this way, it's just not worth it." The election took place as scheduled, and Debby paced the floor of her office waiting for the results to come in. She didn't have very high hopes of winning now that everyone read such bad things about her on Wendy's awful posters. Soon it would be all over, and she could forget about the whole thing... Suddenly the door burst open. It was Judy and Val, but this time they were all smiles. "Debby! The principal just finished counting all the votes and you WON! It's a landslide. You got almost twice as many votes as Wendy!!" Debby couldn't believe it. "But how ... wasn't the election neck and neck? And what about her poster?" "Her poster," answered Val, "is what won the election ... for you! It seems that a lot of kids who were planning to vote for Wendy didn't like how mean she was to you and switched over to vote for you instead. Apparently, some kids even wrote it on their ballots. If you had put up your own nasty poster, they never would have voted for you!" Debby - now 'President Furst' - smiled with joy and relief. She was glad she won the election, though she knew that once she had decided to play fair no matter what, she was already the winner. Aish.com Mission Updates:Greetings Saints in His Perfect Peace, Remember some months back I asked for the Dramatized version of the KJV Bible Scorsby on CD. Well let me tell you a story of one of the people whom is blessed by it. The girls as we call the Lady's at church started a Bible study. I told my wife to head it and she set it up this way... Proverbs read it write it then give to Pastor Dan to Grade them...I got taken in anyway, Yuk. Yuk! So on Sabbath I make them read what they wrote then I read the Proverb and teach it line upon line. We all love it. Well Kathy came to us not being able to read or write but just barely. Not being able to get help with it she uses the tape I made her of proverbs to listen to the weeks proverb. She Does just a little at a time as she follows in her Bible then she writes. This week I was so surprised as we all were of how ell she mad progress. She is leaning reading and writing from that Bible CD! We also are about to run short on blank tapes so pray about this...The tapes we buy cost a $100 for a 100..... Now I do wish I would have gotten it Scosby just reading as it would be easier for her to do it! The Sunday radio program had the most people listen in yet! If you have not heard it yet the AMERICAN VOICE RADIO will replay on Thursday and we will archive this week sometime. This is really a must hear program! Pray about supporting the ministry as we could really use your help as Bills are coming due as well as the food account needs funds as well as we need gas..... The FATHER bless thee and keep thee;The FATHER make His face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee;The FATHER lift up his countenance upon thee,and give thee shalom. (peace)Bemidbar (Numbers) 6:24-26 In Yeshua's Name, Bro. Dan, Pastor of Messiah's Branch Shalom In Yeshua our Messiah, Friday was a very busy day as we made six dozen egg-n- cheese sandwiches that we also served with chips and sauce, donuts, coffee, iced tea, and ice water through out the day. Kathy and I made a really good garden fresh dinner that consist of sliced tomatoes, cucumbers smothered in creamy italian dressing, greenbeans mixed with canned diced carrots and canned potatoes smothered in butter,and the main course that did not come fresh out of the garden was hamburger-n-noodles, and bread-n- butter.The mission bills are coming in and the news letter should go to print Friday, water bill 17.24, internet 19.95, storage electric 19.47, Mission phone 46.77 the news letter takes 200 to print and 111 to mail, rent is 375 and that electric should be in by Friday last months was 157. PLEASE pray about supporting these works all we ask is that you pray about it then do as lead by our Father. Yes we believe He will supply all of our needs but He uses His people to do that. We are just making you aware of the needs and if you are called to supply a need that is between you and Yahweh. Remember Yeshua said "you have not because you ask not".We had clothing come in on Tuesday and Friday from I believe four different sources a very big percent of them have already went out. CMA brought in three cases of ramen noodles and eleven boxes of scalloped potatoes on Friday. There is a lady who is making available to those in the area 10 pound food packages for three dollars. This same lady will have bread available for free to any who need it Find out how you can be included CNPW · Community Network & Pantry of Wichita @ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CNPW/ The Bible CD's have created a miracle for my girl Kathy who helps me with the cooking and cleaning for the Mission. When we first gave her copies of the cd's on cassette she was just listening to them. Then we started our women's Bible study and she began doing them with the tapes. As the weeks have past she has begun playing the tape for a few verses while following along in her Bible. She then turns off the tape rereads the verses on her own the write what she learned from them in her Bible study book. GLORY AND PRAISE be to YAHWEH she is beginning to READ. The way it works is I give them a lesson on Tuesday then on Friday before Pastor Dan gives a message we go over the lesson as a group. We each read from our study books what we learned as Pastor Dan comments then he reads the lesson and teaches on it. We were all so over joy'd Friday as we learned that Kathy is beginning to read on her own. I made the comment that her method of learning to read is how hooked on phonics is set up to work and our son Daniel commented that this was better cause it was " Hooked on The Bible".AMEN I pray for you all to have a very Blessed day More on the Mission next update: Blessings & Shalom sisterlinda/Messiah's Branch Last weeks Passage : Romans 14-1-12 1 Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations. 2 For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs. 3 Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him. 4 Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand. 5 One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind. 6 He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks. 7 For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself. 8 For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's. 9 For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living. 10 But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. 11 For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. 12 So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.Find This Passage: And it came to pass a long time after that the LORD had given rest unto Israel from all their enemies round about, that Joshua waxed old and stricken in age. And Joshua called for all Israel, and for their elders, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers, and said unto them, I am old and stricken in age: And ye have seen all that the LORD your God hath done unto all these nations because of you; for the LORD your God is he that hath fought for you. Behold, I have divided unto you by lot these nations that remain, to be an inheritance for your tribes, from Jordan, with all the nations that I have cut off, even unto the great sea westward. And the LORD your God, he shall expel them from before you, and drive them from out of your sight; and ye shall possess their land, as the LORD your God hath promised unto you. Be ye therefore very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, that ye turn not aside therefrom to the right hand or to the left; That ye come not among these nations, these that remain among you; neither make mention of the name of their gods, nor cause to swear by them, neither serve them, nor bow yourselves unto them: But cleave unto the LORD your God, as ye have done unto this day. For the LORD hath driven out from before you great nations and strong: but as for you, no man hath been able to stand before you unto this day. One man of you shall chase a thousand: for the LORD your God, he it is that fighteth for you, as he hath promised you. Take good heed therefore unto yourselves, that ye love the LORD your God. Else if ye do in any wise go back, and cleave unto the remnant of these nations, even these that remain among you, and shall make marriages with them, and go in unto them, and they to you: Know for a certainty that the LORD your God will no more drive out any of these nations from before you; but they shall be snares and traps unto you, and scourges in your sides, and thorns in your eyes, until ye perish from off this good land which the LORD your God hath given you. And, behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth: and ye know in all your hearts and in all your souls, that not one thing hath failed of all the good things which the LORD your God spake concerning you; all are come to pass unto you, and not one thing hath failed thereof. Therefore it shall come to pass, that as all good things are come upon you, which the LORD your God promised you; so shall the LORD bring upon you all evil things, until he have destroyed you from off this good land which the LORD your God hath given you. When ye have transgressed the covenant of the LORD your God, which he commanded you, and have gone and served other gods, and bowed yourselves to them; then shall the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and ye shall perish quickly from off the good land which he hath given unto you.
Shalom we love you Messiah's Branch/sisterlinda & family Mark 9:23,10:27 Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible

Prison Weekly July 24th

Devarim For the week of July 24, 2004 / 6 Av 5764 Torah: Devarim / Deuteronomy 1:1 - 3:22 Haftarah: Isaiah 1:1-27 Point of Reference At that time I commanded Joshua: "You have seen with your own eyes all that the LORD your God has done to these two kings. The LORD will do the same to all the kingdoms over there where you are going. Do not be afraid of them; the LORD your God himself will fight for you" (Devarim / Deuteronomy 3:21,22). There are two events in Israel's history that became reference points for them through the years. They are the defeat of two kingdoms that were situated to the east of the Jordan River – the kingdoms of Sihon, king of Heshbon and of Og, king of Bashan. It was following these events that this, the fifth book of Torah, begins. They appear to mark the end of their years of wandering and set the stage for their upcoming conquest of Canaan. Moses refers to these events to encourage Joshua as he prepares to lead the people in the conquest of the Land on the other side of the Jordan. Later Moses will tell the people that they will defeat the nations of Canaan just as they defeated Sihon and Og (31:4). These victories are celebrated as part of God's miraculous acts on behalf of Israel as recited in Psalms 135 and 136. They are also part of the great prayer of Nehemiah chapter 9 (Nehemiah 9:22). What was it about these victories that made them stand out in the history of the nation? There were other battles, other victories, other great stories, but these became ones to especially remember. Why? Now unless the Scriptures explicitly tell us why this or that happened, we may never know. But finding the unique qualities of particular events like these may help us discover their importance. As I already mentioned, these victories became reference points for Joshua and the people as they faced the future:You have seen with your own eyes all that the LORD your God has done to these two kings. The LORD will do the same to all the kingdoms over there where you are going (Devarim / Deuteronomy 3:21,22). Israel was going to face incredible challenges in the days ahead. The opportunity to fear and to give up would arise again and again. But as they faced those challenges, they were to remember what God had done regarding Og and Sihon. The victories of the past were God's pattern for their future. They would not necessarily find themselves in the exact same situations as they had been in the past. But their hope of future success was not based on how they handled the previous situations; it was based on what God did through them. God would take care of the future just as he took care of the past. They need not wonder about it. It is likely that God will provide you with similar points of reference. God will take you through difficult situations, which will provide you with a basic understanding of how God will continue to help you in your life. Take the time to remember. And remember that even though the exact details of your present challenges may be very different from past circumstances, God who took care of you back then, will also take care of you now. Torahbytes Our Hearts' Desires "Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart" (Tehillim / Psalms 37:4). Some weeks ago I addressed the issue of getting in touch with our God-given dreams. Once we discover the dreams God has put in our hearts, we can begin our journey towards realizing them. King David in the Psalm that we read asserts this. The Master of the Universe cares enough about us that he is moved by the things that are on our hearts. God wants to give us what we long for. Yet according to King David, God doesn't respond to everyone's heart this way. The person whose heart's desires God grants is the one who delights himself in God. God is not like a genie in a bottle who grants wishes to those who have figured out how to control him. He responds to the desires of those who are in a loving relationship with him. Those who delight themselves in God are those who love God and his ways. They love what he loves and hates what he hates. The things that make God happy make them happy, and the things that give him grief, grieves them. Delighting in God is not about being religious. It is not about fulfilling ritual obligations. It is about looking at life from God's perspective. It is about caring for our spouses and children. It's about having regard for the poor and needy. It is about caring about justice and fairness. It is about knowing and teaching truth. It's about being thankful for our provision and looking to our Creator for all our needs. Those who delight in God are not selfish. They don't insist on their own way. They are quick to forgive and to ask for forgiveness when needed. They are truly humble. They acknowledge the work of God in history, in their own lives, and in the lives or others. To delight ourselves in God is to find our greatest pleasure in him and in the things that matter to him. It is these people that can have confidence that God will give them the desires of their hearts. You might think that if you would truly delight in God, you wouldn't have any desires. Some people equate faith in God with absolute contentment, thinking that if they truly trust God, then they would have no real needs or wants. But nothing could be further from the truth. When we delight in God, our eyes open to the reality around us - living in a world spinning out of control, ignoring God and his goodness. It is when we delight in God that we truly begin to get in touch with our deepest needs and the needs of others. When we truly delight in God we begin to see what life can really be. When we delight in God we begin to see the difference that God can make. So instead of being devoid of desire, desire begins to burn in us like nothing we have experienced before. At times the great gap between what is and what can be almost seems to crush us. But there's good if we delight ourselves in the Lord, he will give us the desires of our hearts. When desire begins to burn within us, and we don't see those desires realized quickly, we can easily be tempted to give up, to quit delighting in God. That's why we need to hear the confident words of David: God will come through for us. As we delight in him, he will not allow the fire of desire to consume us. If we keep on delighting in him, our hearts' desires will be granted. Truah/TorahBytes Family Parsha Devarim 5764 Deuteronomy 1:1-3:22 Torah Portion: Devarim by Nesanel Safran Many times life requires us to make transitions from something old and familiar to something new. It's not always easy to face these changes, but they are a necessary part of growth. This week's Torah portion (the first in the book of Deuteronomy) begins the transition Jewish People had to make from their familiar life of the last 40 years in the wilderness, to prepare for what would be the very different life they would be leading in the Land of Israel. Although Moses, their leader, knew life in Israel would be a good thing for the people, it still wouldn't be easy to face a change, so he spent quite a bit of time preparing and encouraging them, making sure the transition would be successful. The key to remember is that whenever God expects us to make a transition, He will give us just the tools we need to succeed.In our story, a boy, a teacher and a couple of frogs get a lesson about making successful transitions."TAKING THE LEAP"I looked over my nature studies test before I turned it in and smiled. Usually I was so careful to make sure I got the answers right. But this time I was being just as careful to make sure I got every answer wrong. This may sound funny to you, but wouldn't you do the same thing if failing meant to pass, and passing meant to fail? Confused? Let me explain.You see I had been in the same school since first grade. Maybe I didn't love this school, but one thing for sure, I was used to it. I knew everybody and they knew me. I knew what you could and couldn't do. But next year all this was going to change since our class was all moving up to the regional junior high school. This meant a big new school, new people, and new rules.Some of the kids in my class were excited about the move, and so was I - that is until the day I was playing ball with my friend Todd, his older brother Richard and his friend. Rich and his friend were a couple of years older than us so they had already made the big move. I heard them talking to each other about how much homework they had to do that night, and how they would get in trouble if they didn't hand it in on time. They spoke about classes with strange names like calculus, trigonometry and anthro-something. If I hadn't known they were speaking English, I could have sworn they were talking Chinese. I decided then and there that there was no way I could handle a school like that.So I made a plan: If I failed all my courses this year, I would get to stay back in school, and I wouldn't have to move on to the new school! Brilliant, no? I thought so too, and everything was going great until Mr. Resnick, my nature studies teacher asked me to come speak to him after class."Martin, what is all this about?" he asked me, waving my perfectly awful test in front of my face.I guess he wondered why a kid who just about always gets 90's on his tests, suddenly got a zero. Now if it were any other teacher I would have just shrugged my shoulders and given a good bluff. But Mr. Resnick was a special, super nice guy, who really cared about us kids, so I just kind of melted and told him the truth. I told him about how I would never make it in the new school and I told him about my plan to get out of it.He sat back and crossed his eyebrows like he was thinking. I didn't know if he was going to like my plan, or yell at me, or what. Like I said, he was a nice guy and all, but a teacher is still a teacher. After a minute or so, he asked me to come with him to the nature lab. That wasn't so bad. Our class hadn't used the lab for a while, and I always liked going in there to see all the neat stuff, especially the big eco-tank in the middle of the room. But why did he want us to go there now?Soon enough I got my answer. "Come look at the tank," Mr. Resnick said. "Do you see anything new?"I sure did. Last time the tank had been full of tadpoles; now there were hardly any of them left, and the whole thing was full of these little jumping frogs on the sand at the edge of the water."Yeah, the tadpoles grew up into frogs," I told him, hoping now that I had answered the question correctly, I could go.But Mr. Resnick, smiling and nodding, didn't look like he was done with me yet. "That's right. Every one of these frogs you see used to be tadpoles. But as you know, tadpoles can only swim and live in the water, so how can they now possibly survive on land?"Was he trying to give me an oral test to make up the written one I had just worked so hard to flunk? He knew I knew the answer, so I figured I'd better get at least this one right. "You taught us how their lungs develop, and they grow legs just before they leave the water.""Correct. Now tell me Martin, do you think when these things were still tadpoles they would have ever thought they would be able to leave the water, get up on dry land, and make it in 'frog school?' How could they? They were helpless, legless tadpoles until it was time for them to move up to the land. Then God gave them the legs and lungs they needed, just when they needed them, and turned them into frogs."I got his point. "So, you're saying that when I have to move up to junior high, God will give me the 'legs' that I need to make it there, too, and handle all that new stuff, right?"He nodded, and handed me back my test to take again. You can bet this time I aced it. I'm still a little nervous about 'taking the leap' into the new school next year, but I know somehow God will work it out so I'll be able to handle it. After all, a guy can't spend his whole life as a tadpole, can he? Aish.com Mission updates:Greetings Saints in His Perfect Peace, Friday was really hot as the air at the Mission did not work. We fed many anyway they just did not hang out. We had a woman stop by who came out of the street is back with her Husband and two children! Praise the Lord. I have to do a wedding in a little town south of Wichita. I found this out just minutes before she showed up. This is also where she lives so she invited us our whole family for dinner! We feed her many times and she is a believer in Messiah! The bread situation is going to be dire very soon. Where we get our bread I think it has dried up. Pray we find away to remedy this. We need 50 loaves at least every two weeks. Right now we are at about zero in finances. Bills are paid I think ( Mom handles these) but I know they are coming soon again. Net support is down this month. So far we always get $20 a week from one saint and we had $70 something come in from Australia. So please pray about helping this month we sure could use it. Gas is a real need and donations to the food account. We have someone whom donated two VCR's. On he said does not work just may need cleaning. We need four to start as we are coping tapes. Or will be soon I pray. Today's radio program will be the Story of R. G. Stair many of you know all about him and my trip to expose him which is on-line. I am looking for my updated file done for me by a brother but I think it went in a crashed computer. Anyway I will be adding pictures to this story. Stair was supposed to go to court last week but got it put off again. he claims he is repented but if so he would just plead guilty as a not guilty plea is a lie period. Today's Guest is bro. Mike From the Net team. A link to their site is on our main page and the have a Yahoo group just to talk about Stair.... Listen in to our radio program today at 6 PM Central.. ... next weeks program is going to be very good and I will announce by Tuesday who the guest is. Yes we are always looking for guests to speak on various subject like, Currant Bible Prophecy, Israel, False Prophets, end time things..... The FATHER bless thee and keep thee;The FATHER make His face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee;The FATHER lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee shalom. (peace)Bemidbar (Numbers) 6:24-26 In Yeshua's Name, Bro. Dan, Pastor of Messiah's Branch Shalom In Yeshua Our Messiah, Friday was very hot at the Mission the air was not working right and it never got below 83. I only made four dozen egg-n-cheese sandwiches but I also served watermelon, chips -n- sauce and donuts with coffee, ice tea and ice water throughout the day. For dinner I made hambuger-n-rice, greens-n-carrotts, slices garden tomatoes and bread-n- butter. The bills are paid for this month but we will need gas for this Tuesday and Friday. The newsletter for August will cost 200 to print and another 111 to mail. Rent is 375 the ele bill hasn't come in yet but with the air not working right and running continually I'm praying it won't be to high last months was 157. I will post the bills next update as they should all be in by then. We have a new clothing ministress Sarina will be taking care of the clothes now. Call me or email me if you have something to give and I will make arrangements with you for delivery or pick up. We are almost out of serving gloves at the mission and the food account is low so pray about supporting these works Yahweh is in Control He will provide but He uses His people to do it. Sabbath service was a lot of fun this week my new dance had everyone rollin it was funny.More on the Mission next update Blessings and Shalom sisterlinda/Messiah's Branch FIND THIS PASSAGE:1 Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations. 2 For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs. 3 Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him. 4 Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand. 5 One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind. 6 He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks. 7 For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself. 8 For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's. 9 For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living. 10 But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. 11 For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. 12 So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God. Shalom we love you Messiah's Branch/sisterlinda & family Mark 9:23,10:27 Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible

Prison weekly July 10th & 17th

I'm Now back from vacation this Prisonweekly consist of portions for July 10th and July 17th Shalom
Mattot and Masei For the week of July 17, 2004 / 28 Tammuz 5764 Torah: Bemidbar / Numbers 30:2 - 36:13; 28:9-15 Haftarah: Jeremiah 2:4-28; 3:4/ Responsibility But if her husband says nothing to her about it from day to day, then he confirms all her vows or the pledges binding on her. He confirms them by saying nothing to her when he hears about them (Bemidbar / Numbers 30:14). This week's double parasha contains some interesting instructions about a woman's vow. If her father - if she is unmarried - or her husband hears about a vow or obligation she makes, and he doesn't nullify it, she is obliged to fulfill it. These instructions sound strange to us in our day, because we tend to view ourselves as independent of each other. Most people I know do not think that fathers and husbands have this kind of authority over their daughters and wives. But that's not what I want to get into this week. Once the father or husband heard about the vow, he shared responsibility for it. In fact in verse 15, if he decided to nullify it after some time had passed, he became fully responsible for it. The fact that he said nothing or did nothing, had nothing to do with it. It was the hearing of it that made him responsible. This illustrates how God views our role in many of the situations we find ourselves in. We tend to think that whatever happens to others is their own responsibility. But in reality we are responsible for each other. This doesn't apply to every situation. We must discern when our involvement is called for. But while some people would do well to be less involved in others' lives, most of us would likely do well to get more involved. This also doesn't mean that we should react to gossip and rumors. But once we understand that the welfare of others actually depends on us, then we may be more motivated to find out what is really going on around us. So many people are stumbling about in life today, trying to find their own way. A sense of family or community responsibility is almost non-existent in many of our societies. Because we are not taking responsibility for those around us, people look to non-relational institutions for help and guidance, whether it be government agencies or paid professionals. The Torah tells us that if the husband waited too long, then he would be responsible for his wife's guilt . I wonder how many difficult situations we could help others avoid if only we would be quick to get involved. Torah Bytes Ownership "The land must not be sold permanently, because the land is mine and you are but aliens and my tenants" (Vayikra / Leviticus 25:23). Recently I was trying to understand some of the root causes of problems between people groups. My primary concern had to do with the effects of these root issues upon people of faith – especially among those who believe in the God of the Scriptures. While there are those who attest that Believers are somehow immune to the negative influences of society, the fact is the destructive forces at work among the general population are experienced just as much among religious and spiritually-minded people. Maybe we should be immune to the sins of those around us, but we are not. The reason why we might fool ourselves into thinking that we are morally superior to the general population is that we claim to affirm a higher standard of morality than that of the general population. We think that if we say we believe the Bible, then the values of the Bible will automatically work their way into and through our lives. But it is not our assertions of faith and the recitation of creeds that make a difference in our lives. It is living out the principles we affirm that causes us to be different. Sometimes the difference that is seen by others is a superficial one. Our general commitment of faith may motivate us to not use bad language and stay away from certain forms of entertainment, but never fully integrate into our personal relationships or business dealings. When we allow the truths of Scripture to speak to the fundamental issues of life, allowing God to address our root issues, then the foundations of who we are will be transformed and our lives will begin to reflect the reality we claim to uphold. One of those foundational issues has to do with possessions. Much of human conflict on both the personal and international realms relates to things. Wanting what we do not have and preserving what we already have makes up a very high percentage of our energy every day of our lives. The Bible speaks very clearly to this issue. God's perspective on how we relate to material things is very different from how most of us see it. In ancient Israel, the people were not to see themselves as owners of the land. God was the owner and they were only tenants. As a result the land was not to be sold permanently to others. It is reasonable to ask if Israel's relationship to the land is a model for all people in every place at all times. According to Psalm 24:1, "The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it." The whole earth is God's possession. It was given to human beings to care for. But instead we have attempted to take it for ourselves. Instead of owners, we are to be stewards or caretakers of the earth and all it produces. How that works out in terms of the rules and regulations imposed by governments is one thing, but those of us who claim to live life from a biblical perspective need to allow this to get into our hearts. Paul urged us to live our lives as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1). This is a concept going back to the debt Israel owned to God when he freed us from slavery. We don't belong to ourselves let alone have a claim on our possessions. We are to handle them with great care, knowing that they have been put into our hands by God as part of the fulfillment of his plans and purposes. Once we realize that all we have is not our own to do with as we please, then we will also begin to understand how we are to share what we have with others. This attitude will enable us to walk in a new level brotherhood that we so desperately need. Truah/TorahBytes Pinchas Tammuz 5764 Torah: Bemidbar / Numbers 25:10 - 30:1 Haftarah: 1 Kings 18:46 - 19:21Replaced by: Jeremiah 1:1 - 2:3 God's Determinaton Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations (Jeremiah 1:5). One of the things about God that many people have struggled with has to do with how much he influences the affairs of our lives. Concepts such as fate and predestination give the impression that what happens to us is determined by forces outside of ourselves. The lives we live are more of an unfolding of what was to be, rather than anything we ourselves can control. Others insist that no such outside influences exist. They believe that God has given us something called free will and nothing in life can ever supercede that. The Scriptures seem to assert that both of these views contain a measure of truth. I doubt if we will ever be able to fully work out these concepts philosophically. The Bible is not a philosophy book. While it deals with philosophical issues it doesn't try to resolve them. The Bible is a book about God and his ways. What it does assert is that if we walk in those ways, we will experience life how God intended. Disregarding the Scriptures' teaching is the route to destruction. The Scriptures certainly teach that we have a will and that we are responsible for our choices. Exactly how free that will is is not that clear. No person's will is completely free, since our choices are limited by so many external and internal factors. However it all works, we need to take care so as not to miss what is so beautifully expressed in God's words to the prophet Jeremiah that I have read. God had his eye on him from before he was ever born. Jeremiah's calling as God's mouthpiece was deeply set in the heart of God. The fact that one day he would receive such an appointment was clearly predetermined. Whether or not Jeremiah could have resisted what God had determined is debatable. We may never know the stories of those who ignored their call, but what we do have is many stories of those who accepted it. Fulfilling God's will is not about striving after spiritual heights. He has not issued a challenge to the human race waiting to see who is up to the task. In fact one of the foundational teachings of the Scriptures is that all of us have missed the mark. Only God is up to the task. It is only through faith in the Messiah that we can make it at all. So instead of striving we need to discover God's will. When we truly walk with God, we find that we are on a path that he himself has cleared - one in which he has set the destination. To do God's will is to cooperate with him and his purposes. When we do that we can be confident that he will faithfully guide us until the end. TorahBytes Gardening "Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed" (Bereshit / Genesis 2:8). A lot of people like gardening. I think I understand why. There is something rewarding about being part of the blossoming of creation. The growing of plants, flowers, fruits and vegetables is a wonderful combination of natural process and the intervention of people to bring forth things useful and oftentimes beautiful. Gardening brings people out of doors and in touch with nature in a most intimate way - in a way that not too long ago was experienced by what was probably a majority of people on earth. Yet because of the great migration to cities and the resultant urban lifestyle, many people have to go out of their way to keep in touch with the land. According to the Bible human beings began life in a garden. While the word garden creates the image of a lovely place of flowers and perhaps some neat rows of tomatoes and zucchini, the Garden of Eden was probably far more extensive than a suburban garden. It was more likely the place of our first livelihood, rather than just a pleasant way to spend a summer afternoon. Notice that according to the verse quoted, God himself planted this garden. He then put the man and the woman in the garden to take care of it. The first job given to our original parents was that of gardeners, though it might be more accurate to call them farmers. Years ago a friend of mine referred to the curse of work as if the concept of work itself was something that was a result of our first parents' sin. But according to the Scriptures work itself is not a curse. Work was cursed by God as one of the consequences of Adam and Eve's rebellion. In the third chapter of Bereshit (English: Genesis) we read: "To Adam he said, 'Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, "You must not eat of it," Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.'" (Bereshit / Genesis 3:17-19). It is difficult for us to accurately imagine what Adam and Eve's work in the garden was like. The only kind of work we know of is one that includes the kind of struggle described in the passage as by sweat and thorns. It seems the work they knew at first was one far more efficient and pleasurable than anything we have ever experienced. Be that as it may there is still a great connection between humankind's first assignment and the gardening of today - whether it is professional farming or tending one's flowers on the week-end. We were designed to be in touch with the things of earth. Touching the soil, sowing seeds, pruning branches, harvesting produce, caring for animals, and so on are all part of who we are as human beings. Our primary calling as human beings is to be caretakers of this wonderful planet on which we live. While not all of us are to be farmers and gardeners, the world's economy is still dependant on farming. While we continue to do our work amidst thorns and by the sweat of our brow, we can look forward to the day when the curse will be lifted and we will be able to do the work of God unhindered. Truah/TorahBytes Family Parsha Pinchas 5764 Torah Portion: Numbers 25:10-30:1 Pinchas by Nesanel Safran It is important to seek peace, but that doesn't mean we should run away from all conflicts and confrontations. In this week's Torah Portion, Pinchas acted very strongly and confrontationally against those who were leading the Jewish people into self-destructive behavior. Yet, the Torah goes out of its way to refer to him as a descendant of Aaron the priest, who was known as a great peacemaker. The sages explain that this comes to teach us that Pinchas' confrontational behavior was actually an act of peace that staved off a disaster. The lesson here is that sometimes the true way to restore peace and harmony isn't merely to look the other way at improper behavior, but to be willing to confront it. In our story, some kids discover that sometimes the only way to peace is by standing up for what's right. "MAKING WAVES" What a day for a class trip to the beach. The tide was high, the waves were perfect. It was warm, but not too warm, and just sunny enough to tan without getting burned. Michael and his friends, Brad and Steve, had just finished spreading out their blanket, and armed with sunscreen, Frisbee, and picnic lunch were lying back and settling in for a nice relaxing day of sun and fun, when suddenly SPLASH!! They felt like they had been hit by a tidal wave."What in the world...!?" The guys jumped up in shock, just in time to see the running feet of Keith - one of the rowdy kids in the class - and a couple of his buddies. They were playing beach tag and were wildly chasing each other around with buckets, seemingly not the least bit concerned where the water they were throwing at each other was landing. The guys were annoyed, but tried to shrug it off, figuring the 'storm' would soon pass.And pass it did, but unfortunately it passed into a sandstorm, as now the rowdy kids were flinging handfuls of sand in every direction, running and laughing like wild hyenas."This isn't right," declared Mike, brushing off his now sandy sandwich. "Those guys are ruining it for everyone."His friends all shook their heads in ready agreement, but started to get nervous when they saw Mike get up and move determinedly in the direction of where the wild kids were camped out."Hey where are you going?" asked Steve tensely."Where do you think I'm going? I'm going to tell those guys to control themselves. They can't just run around like nobody else exists, and I'm also going to tell them to turn down their blaster. It's disturbing everybody, probably even the fish, and making the whole beach shake."Mike had only taken a few steps when he felt a tug on his elbow. "Hey Mike, wait a minute," pleaded Brad. "Why start up with them? It will just make things worse. Aren't you the one who's always telling us how important the Torah says it is to be peaceful? Don't you want to have a peaceful time at the beach?"Michael thought about his friend's words, although it was hard to think about anything with the music blasting so loudly. It was true, peace was important... Then he remembered something they had learned in Torah class, about how Pinchas was considered a peacemaker even though the way he acted seemed on the surface anything but peaceful."Brad, you're right - it is important to be at peace. But do you call this peace? Look around you, everybody here is totally miserable - all because of those couple of wild kids who have decided they own the beach. Sitting here and suffering isn't called making peace. You can come with me or stay put, but I'm going to go and do a little peacemaking of a different kind."With that, the boy marched off.Mike's friends held their breath and watched from a safe distance as the boy boldly approached Keith and his friends and tried to explain calmly but firmly that they had to change their tune. At first, they tried to laugh him off, but Mike persisted, and told them if they kept it up, he would report them to the teacher. Eventually Mike's requests, pleas, and threats hit their mark, and his tall stature and broad muscular shoulders didn't hurt his cause either.The guys turned down their music, and were careful to restrict their wild games to the end of the beach where no one was sitting. It became like a whole new - and peaceful - beach. Everyone relaxed, and even Keith and his crowd seemed happier to be off on their own. All thanks to the boy who understood that like Pinchas, sometimes you have to be a warrior for true peace. Family Parsha Matot-Masay 5764
Torah Portion: Masay Numbers 33-36 by Nesanel Safran We are now in the midst of a three-week period (from the 17th of the Jewish month, Tamuz, until the 9th of the month of Av) in which many tragedies have struck the Jewish people throughout history - most notably the destruction of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. It was a terrible blow, from which we still haven't recovered nearly 2,000 years later, and is the root source of all of the world's problems.Our sages teach that the main reason God allowed the Holy Temple be destroyed was as a consequence of unwarranted negativity - hatred and infighting - amongst our people, and that it will only be rebuilt when we reverse this and relate to each other positively, with genuine love and unity. Let's take this chance to reflect on this bitter lesson from our past and begin to act in a way that will 'rebuild the Holy Temple,' and bring us - and the world - to a brighter future. In our story, a kid finds the 'Holy Temple' within herself and brings a little more love into the world."THE GOLDEN GIRL""You have really outdone yourself, Sarah!" exclaimed Jill. "Everything's just glowing. People will be talking about this party for years!"Sarah blushed at her friend's compliment, but inside she was beaming. Sarah Gold had invested a lot of time and effort (not to mention a good bit of her parents' money) to make sure her Bat Mitzvah party would be perfect in every detail. Like her name, the theme of everything from the matching place settings and table decorations, to the breathtaking cluster of helium balloons floating gracefully in the center of the room was all glimmering, shining gold. The food was ample and delicious and the music upbeat but tasteful. Her speech, so carefully prepared (but not too long) about the sad destruction of the Holy Temple, which had come about through dissension, and would only be rebuilt through loving friendship, hit its mark, leaving all the kids who were lucky enough to have made it onto her exclusive, handpicked invitation list happy indeed to be considered her friend.Sarah, was still glowing from all her friends' kind words and compliments, when the door opened, and like a rain cloud coming to ruin a perfectly sunny picnic, walked - or rather trudged in - the last person she or anyone else would expect to see at this beautiful gathering of beautiful people. It was Harriet Geemes. She was a dumpy, clumsy girl, who had the uncanny gift of being able to say the wrong thing at the wrong time, and manage to clash with nearly everyone and everything around her. Sarah was still in shock as the shabbily-dressed girl made her way into the room, managing to knock over a tray of hors d'oeuvres and a bottle of soda along the way.Sarah came back to her senses as she felt a tap on the shoulder. "Harriet must have thought the party was open invitation," whispered her best friend, Jill, who had helped her plan the guest list. "Are you going to break the news to her, or should I?"By now, Sarah's shock had turned to indignation. How dare this 'nobody' come crashing (literally) the party and ruining the event she had been planning for months! "I'll take care of this myself," hissed Sarah, as she pulled the invitation list out of the shimmering gold handbag that matched her shimmering gold, formal dress. 'I'll just show her the list, ask her to find her name, and when she doesn't, I'll ask her to leave,' thought Sarah, as she glided across the room. It would all be over in a moment - quick and painless (except perhaps to Harriet.)Sarah drew closer, glanced at the paper in her hand, and felt her feet slowing down. Instead of the list, she found in her hand the last page of notes from her speech that she had shoved in her purse. She skimmed it over and felt faint as she read the following lines:"The last straw that caused the Holy Temple to be destroyed was when a man embarrassed and threw out a guest he hadn't invited from his home. The lesson we learn is to make room in our homes and our hearts for everyone - whether we think they deserve it or not."'Oh wow, I'm about to do just the same thing - aren't I?' she thought, horrified.Sarah glanced over at Harriet, who by now got the idea she had made a mistake in coming to the party. She had retreated to the corner of the room, looking confused and embarrassed, while futilely attempting to brush a newly acquired chocolate stain from her blouse. Sarah knew she'd have to think and act fast.Replacing her scowl with her sweetest smile, Sarah calmly walked over to the uninvited guest. "Harriet, I'm so glad you came," she said warmly. "I felt just terrible when I discovered that I had forgotten to mail some of the invitations. But why are you standing alone in the corner? You must come and sit next to me, at least for a little while."Sarah put her arm around the enormously relieved girl's shoulder and, in full view of everybody, escorted her to the head table, leaving no doubt in the mind of the other guests that Harriet 'deserved' to be there as much as they.The party wound down, and Sarah, exhausted but happy, sat back in her chair and relaxed for the first time. Jill, who had promised to stay behind and help her clean up, plopped down next to her. "Sarah, I really have to hand it to you. This was the party of the year, everything just shined. And I don't know why, but from the moment you sat Harriet down next to you, the whole, golden party took on an even more special, deeper kind of glow."Sarah smiled. She knew why. It was the glow of the Holy Temple beginning to be rebuilt. Aish.com MB Updates Greetings Saints in His Perfect Peace, Friday was a great day. We were very busy considering it was the first of the month. Kathy and Richard renewed their wedding vows on Thursday. It was so wonderful. We will show you pictures later. They have came a very long way in the last year. They are really new creations in Messiah. They came out here and stayed with us over the weekend. We had a few others also from Messiah's Branch here on Sunday. Yes it was my birthday...I turned 49. The radio program was a very good one with warnings from Dr. Dan Bohler. Here is his web site.. .... I really enjoyed doing the program with him. I am unsure who will be on next. I am always looking for guests. I am trying to get the programs archived but I have not found a program I can run to get it on the net. This program I will mail to the webmaster and have him put it up. The FATHER bless thee and keep thee;The FATHER make His face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee;The FATHER lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee shalom. (peace)Bemidbar (Numbers) 6:24-26In Yeshua's Name, Bro. Dan, Pastor of Messiah's Branch Friday July 2nd we were packed elbow to elbow Kathy made five dozen egg & cheese sandwiches that her son severed as I gave out Tostito bite size chips & Pase enchilada sauce to dip them. We had donuts throughout the day with ice tea,ice water and hot coffee. I made the first fresh garden goulash that was really good. All was eaten and we severed it with greens -n- carrots,fruit cocktail,bread-n-butter and a cold bottle of coke. Sabbath service was a lot of fun as Pastor Dan taught on marriage. Richard and Kathy will be renewing their vows this Thursday July 1st. When they were married eleven years ago they just went to a pastors house and Kathy was wanting a wedding so by the Grace of Yahweh we are giving her one. All are welcome it will be at the Mission at 7pm. We had a donation of 1000 dolllars and was able to pay the Mission phone and water bills. We put 200 into the food account. The radio was paid for four more weeks, June and July newsletters were able to be printed and mailed as well as the over seas. Dan was able to get everything he needed to get the well pump working they will finish up on it Wednesday. Pray for these works We Love you all more on the Mission next update! Blessings & Shalom sisterlinda/Messiah's Branch Answers for July 2nd Answer: To whose home on what street in Damascus was Saul lead? A. home of Judas, street called Straight Acts 9:10-1110 And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord. 11 And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and enquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth, Passage Found: Matthew 18:1-9 1 At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? 2 And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, 3 And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5 And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me. 6 But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea. 7 Woe unto the world because of offences! for it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh! 8 Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire. 9 And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire.There will be no question or Passage for this week just study your Torah chapters Love ya bunches sisterlinda/Messiah's Branch Mark 9:23,10:27 Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible
Can't Eat
Can't eat beef..........mad cow
Can't eat chicken........bird flu
Can't eat eggs........cholesterol
Can't eat pork...............bacteria
Can't eat fish...............mercury
Can't eat fruit .........insecticides
Can't eat vegetables.......herbicides
Now, the way i see it; that only leaves
CHOCOLATE

Prison Weekly July 2nd

Family Parsha Balak 5764 Torah Portion: Balak by Nesanel Safran Two people who are trying to reach the same goal have a choice: to either compete and work against each, or cooperate and work with each other. The second way is much more pleasant and usually more effective too. In this week's Torah portion, Bilaam and Balak were enemies from two warring nations, but they banded together as allies to reach their common goal of fighting against the Jewish people. While they cooperated to do evil, we can use the same principle of focusing on our common goals, and cooperating to do good. InOInIn our story two kids find a common goal and learn to work with - instead of against - each other. "TWO LEFT FEET ""Buy a concert ticket and help feed the needy!" called out Wendy. She tried to manage her best smile, while nervously keeping one eye on the girl doing the exact same thing just a few yards away.Mrs. White, her bandleader, had handed out the books of concert tickets the day before and explained how selling them would not only raise money for the local homeless shelter, but also win the kids who sold them big prizes. Wendy was sure she'd sell a ton. But now she was standing out in the boiling heat for almost two hours and hardly sold a single ticket!'Oh wait a minute,' she thought, 'here comes Mrs. Waxman, my neighbor. For sure she'll buy a ticket from me.' Wendy started walking toward the woman when she noticed Paula, another kid from the band, moving in the same direction.'What a nerve!' thought Wendy, picking up her pace. 'She saw me approaching her first! Well she's not going to steal this one...'The two girls simultaneously broke into a mad dash and nearly knocked the older woman over. They both loudly blurted out their appeal at the same time, each one hoping to be heard over the other. Mrs. Waxman, who was usually very kind, was unnerved by the sudden barrage and shook her head. "I don't know what the two of you want, but if that's the way you ask someone for something, I'm not interested." With that, she clicked her tongue and walked into the store.This kind of scene had been repeating itself all day, and both kids had just about reached their boiling points. "Look what you did!" accused Paula."I did? You've been stealing my customers all day!" Wendy shot back.The two of them flew into a full blown screaming match, creating a big scene. Soon the store manager approached. "I'm sorry girls," he said. "I know I gave you permission to sell tickets in front of the store, but your constant pushing and bickering is disturbing my customers, so I have to ask you both to leave."Wendy cringed. That had been the third store in the shopping center they had been kicked out from in front of already!Hot and tired, Wendy trudged on in the direction of the shoe store across the way with Paula, her competitor, hot on her trail. "Why can't you go somewhere else?" Wendy asked, annoyed."It's my neighborhood too. I also want to sell tickets; I also want to win a prize. If you don't like it, you go somewhere else!" snapped Paula.The unsuspecting store manager had no problem letting them stand there, and soon enough, the fierce competition began. 'Oh no! Here comes the manager and we just got here!' thought Wendy. She was sure she knew what was coming, yet for some reason the manager didn't look angry or annoyed like the others."Hi girls, can I talk with you for a minute?" she asked.'Yeah, the minute it takes to boot them out,' Wendy thought bitterly.But the manager invited them into the air-conditioned store and offered them each a cold drink. "Selling tickets for your band, huh?" she asked with a smile.The two of them nodded nervously."I bet you're both hoping to sell a lot, maybe win a prize too?"They nodded again."Having much luck?"Both girls sadly shook their heads."Well I don't know much about concert tickets, but I have sold a few shoes in my time. To sell shoes you have to know how people walk. Ever notice how people walk?"By now, both Wendy and Paula were feeling much cooler and more at ease."Now both of you stand up and take a few steps."The kids shrugged and did as she asked. It was better than getting yelled at."Great. Now do it again, but this time, I want you to move both feet at the same time."Wendy tried to take a step, but couldn't. There was just no way to walk unless she kept one foot still as she moved the other. She looked over at Paula and both girls giggled as they were in the same predicament."What's the matter?" the manager asked with a deadpan look."We can't walk and move both feet at the same time!" laughed Paula."That's right. To get where they want to go, both feet have to take turns and cooperate, don't they?"By now, Wendy was starting to get the point of this strange conversation. "And if Paula and I want to get anywhere selling tickets we have to take turns and cooperate too, right?"The woman nodded. "I see you also know something about shoes. Now go back out there, cooperate, and succeed!"Refreshed and inspired, Wendy and Paula made up that they would take turns approaching people, and if one of them knew the person walking by and the other one didn't, the other one would let her speak to them even if it wasn't her turn.Things went much more smoothly after that and they both sold enough to easily earn the prize. Both Wendy and Paula returned home that day with good feeling and gratitude to the wise store manager who, like the others, had told them to take a walk - but in a different kind of a way. Aish.com Mission Updates: Friday we were packed elbow to elbow Kathy made five dozen egg & cheese sandwiches that her son severed as I gave out Tostito bite size chips & Pase enchilada sauce to dip them. We had donuts throughout the day with ice tea,ice water and hot coffee. I made the first fresh garden goulash that was really good. All was eaten and we severed it with greens -n- carrots,fruit cocktail,bread-n-butter and a cold bottle of coke.Sabbath service was a lot of fun as Pastor Dan taught on marriage. Richard and Kathy will be renewing their vows this Thursday July 1st. When they were married eleven years ago they just went to a pastors house and Kathy was wanting a wedding so by the Grace of Yahweh we are giving her one. All are welcome it will be at the Mission at 7pm.We had a donation of 1000 dolllars and was able to pay the Mission phone and water bills. We put 200 into the food account. The radio was paid for four more weeks, June and July newsletters were able to be printed and mailed as well as the over seas. (July's will go to print Tuesday and be in the mail Wednesday).Dan was able to get everything he needed to get the well pump working they will finish up on it Wednesday. We had gas for Friday and this Tuesday. We will need gas for this Friday and the Mission ele is due on the 6th at $157.00 The internet will be due on the 9th $19.95 we need to go plates for the Mission they are around $8.00 at sams for 100 it maybe 150 I don't remember for sure. we will need Toliet paper, paper towels,serving plates and napkins soon we are low on all these items. Pray for these works We Love you all more on the Mission next update!Blessings & Shalom sisterlinda/Messiah's Branch Last weeks Answers:What group of people did Jesus say took away the key of knowledge and prevented people from entering the knowledge of God?a. Lawyers b. Scribes c. Phariseesa. Lawyers!A.Lawyers Luke 11:52 Woe unto you, lawyers! for ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered.Passage Found:Luke 11:1-4 1 And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples. 2 And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth. 3 Give us day by day our daily bread. 4 And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. Question:To whose home on what street in Damascus was Saul lead? Find This Passage:At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me. But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe unto the world because of offences! for it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh! Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire. And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire. Mark 9:23,10:27 Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible
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Answer: To whose home on what street in Damascus was Saul lead? A. home of Judas, street called Straight Acts 9:10-11 10 And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord. 11 And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and enquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth, Passage Found:Matthew 18:1-91 At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? 2 And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, 3 And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5 And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me. 6 But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea. 7 Woe unto the world because of offences! for it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh! 8 Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire. 9 And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire.