Jerusalem

Psalms 48:12&13

Passover-The Last Supper

Passover, or what some of my friends call the last supper, was special this year.  This was our first Passover meal in our own home.  We still went to a Passover seder at our friends, Adrienne and Kenny's home where we celebrated Passover for the first time ever last year.  This year I also had a Passover meal with the kids at the church.  It was such a good feeling to share what I had learned over the past year with many children I had taught in Sunday school over the last few years. 

We talked about the names of Jesus and how we call him the Lamb of God.  I then told them the story of all those who obeyed God in Egypt.  They put the blood on their doorposts and were saved from death that night. I reminded them how important it is to obey his commands even when we do not fully understand. 

Obedience was hard for the Israelites, just as it is hard for us sometimes but as we draw near to him, he draws near to us.  James 4:8

Jesus took bread and when he broke it said, "do this in rememberance of me."

He also took the cup after supper and said, "this is the new covenant".

Matthew 26:26 - 1Corinthians 11

Paul teaches about this and how we are to keep the Passover just as Jesus instructed us to remember him at this time.  These are pretty clear instructions, not to mention that we were commanded to keep this day and teach it to our children in Leviticus 23.

This is one of the few references to children in the Bible, so I take it pretty serious when I consider what I teach our children.

With this instruction we decided to obey in our home.

The children now understand the story of the Exodus as well as how Jesus is the Lamb of God. 

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of all knowledge

Proverbs 9:10 and Proverbs 1:7 states that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of all knowledge or wisdom.  Fear is often looked at as negative but I was thinking of all of the positive reactions of fear in our lives.  I thought of how I save money in fear of running out,
I try not to speed in fear of getting a ticket,
I try to eat healthy for my weight and health,
I pay my bills so that I have electricity, car and home,
I did my homework so I would make the grades and not be benched
I respected my parents out of fear!
Many things we do out of fear are good and beneficial.  Fear truly keeps us in line.  It helps us to be wise and work hard.  Fear is good when you are fearing in the right way.  I will define fear of the Lord as standing in awe of Him to a point that you will obey immediately and completely because you know that He is good and faithful.  I trust Him with my life.  In fact I am more fearful to live life without my Father in Heaven.  We all need more of this awesome fear of the Lord.  His ways are clear and perfect.
Deuteronomy 30:11 Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. 12 It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, "Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?" 13 Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, "Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?" 14 No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it.

15 See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. 16 For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws;

 

Define Jesus

Considering the Jesus I am sharing I find it necessary to define Jesus.  Paul refers to this:
2 Corinthians 11:3-5 (New Century Version)


3 But I am afraid that your minds will be led away from your true and pure following of Christ just as Eve was tricked by the snake with his evil ways.4 You are very patient with anyone who comes to you and preaches a different Jesus from the one we preached. You are very willing to accept a spirit or gospel that is different from the Spirit and Good News you received from us.

Truth

Psalm 15


A psalm of David.

1 LORD, who may dwell in your sanctuary?

Who may live on your holy hill?

2 He whose walk is blameless

and who does what is righteous,

who speaks the truth from his heart



3 and has no slander on his tongue,

who does his neighbor no wrong

and casts no slur on his fellowman,



4 who despises a vile man

but honors those who fear the LORD,

who keeps his oath

even when it hurts,



5 who lends his money without usury

and does not accept a bribe against the innocent.

He who does these things

will never be shaken.

Psalms 27

Psalms 27:4 One thing I ask of the LORD,


this is what I seek:

that I may dwell in the house of the LORD

all the days of my life,

to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD

and to seek him in his temple.

5 For in the day of trouble

he will keep me safe in his dwelling;

he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle

and set me high upon a rock.

6 Then my head will be exalted

above the enemies who surround me;

at his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy;

I will sing and make music to the LORD.

7 Hear my voice when I call, O LORD;

be merciful to me and answer me.

8 My heart says of you, "Seek his [b] face!"

Your face, LORD, I will seek.
9 Do not hide your face from me,

do not turn your servant away in anger;

you have been my helper.

Do not reject me or forsake me,

O God my Savior.

10 Though my father and mother forsake me,

the LORD will receive me.

11 Teach me your way, O LORD;

lead me in a straight path

because of my oppressors.

12 Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes,

for false witnesses rise up against me,

breathing out violence.

13 I am still confident of this:

I will see the goodness of the LORD

in the land of the living.

14 Wait for the LORD;

be strong and take heart

and wait for the LORD.

I'll Be My Brother's Keeper

Obadiah prophesied:

The house of Jacob will be a fire and the house of Joseph a flame; the house of Esau will be stubble.

Love will hold us together- this song is great. I'll be my brothers keeper!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvnVjLX_hRE&feature=youtube_gdata_player

The Parable of the weeds

Many times we ask the Lord why we are in an unpeaceful situation.  We question why as Christians things get bumpy. 
We even share our faith as a peace message - "come to God and He will give you peace."  I began to ask the Lord how I was to explain this to a struggling Christian or an unbeliever.
I saw a film the other day that explained it this way:

If you had an opportunity to share with the victims of 9/11 on 9/10 about the message of salvation, would you really offer the message to them that God had a plan for their life and that He wanted to offer them peace?

Stop and think.
The plan for them was an unfair, short life and they did not experience the peace here on earth, but rather will experience it when they meet with God and receive that payment for their sin that Jesus offered them, and that they accepted.

Sometimes carrying the backpack of being a Christian can be tiresome.  It is like when my Lillian has to decide if she wants to carry her Camelbac.  Her Camelbac, which holds water, is really heavy when she puts it on all filled up.  She always considers taking it off before she starts her adventure but then she remembers the necessity of the cool Ozarka water that she just put in it.  She knows that she can run farther and  climb higher when she is refreshed by that cool water.

Following Christ, obeying, giving, loving, forgiving, enduring can all be tiresome but Christ promises to be our living water. He understands that we are living among weeds that choke the light and water out of us.  He knows that we are surrounded by hardships trying to pull us down.  He is asking us to endure.  He has made a promise to us.  We must run and not grow weary.  He makes a way when there seems to be no way and these hardships purify us just as it did David and Job.  He is looking for a holy people that have been found righteous.  This parable explains His plan:

Matthew 13:24 He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, 25 but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds [3] among the wheat and went away. 26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. 27 And the servants [4] of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ 28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ 29 But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.’”


Matthew 13:36 Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.” 37 He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the close of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the close of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, 42 and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.


Matthew10:34 “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth.

Law&Grace - Define Law for me

This is a test.  What does law refer to in the book of Romans? 
If I was asked by my professor to define a law, I would ask, which law?  There are many laws - the law of gravity, the law of motion, laws of thermodynamics and laws of exponents just to name a few.
I grew up believing that I was not under the law but rather grace.  I can say that I still believe this but would like to define the word law.  I believe that when I accept Jesus that I am no longer under the law of sin & death or sin = death.
I do believe though that I am under the law (teaching/instruction) of God.
I start my study in Romans 6:14 which clearly states that this is referring to sin as the law -
For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.
Man have I heard that so many times and thank the Lord because I need grace because all have fallen short.
I do recognize that I had taken this verse with the mindset that I was not held to the standards of the Old Testament because of grace and this is where my question lies.
Yes, I understand that the temple is gone.  I understand that I am not in Jerusalem and I understand that I am not welcome in a synagogue but on the feast days and the commandments I do believe that they are for me.  For one, the Bible will never contradict itself.  If it says that I am free from the law in chapter 6 and chapter 7 v 12 says, So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good, I would say that I should define law in each specific reference.
More examples: 7:22 For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war and making me a prisoner of the law of sin...v25b So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.
We then see a new law presented in ch8.  v2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.  This is the good stuff...v3 For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he  condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the spirit. v7 the sinful mind is hostile to God.  It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so.
Quite a few laws and quite a few meanings.  This verse just told me that the spirit of life in Christ Jesus enables me to submit to God's law.  A revelation to me was that this law - God's law, the word law is translated from the hebrew word meaning instructions.  We can look at this two ways.  As a child I did not like instructions, rules and guidelines but as I matured I began to see that when I new the instructions I was able to win.  God's law, God's instruction enables us to be that set apart people that are holy and useful to him.  It enables us to win the race. 
Paul goes on to state to the Romans in ch15 v 4 For everything that was written in the past (Old Testament) was written to teach us so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures (Old Testament) we might have hope.  v8 For I tell you that Christ has becoume a servant of the Jews on behalf of God's truth to confirm the promises made to the patriarchs so that the Gentiles (that's me) may glorify God for his mercy, as it is written: "Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people."  Then to sum it up Paul tells us in Romans 15:16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles with the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.  Paul defines his ministry in v.18b as leading the Gentiles to obey God. 

Sharing with those who do not understand - Acts 8

"Do you understand what

Stephens defense is my creed! Acts 7

It is refreshing to see how Stephen, just as Paul, Peter and our Jesus defend themselves to the Jewish leaders of the day by saying how they have kept the law and not broken one word. Their defense is not grace but rather that they are obedient to Gods law.

How to worship our God/Feast of Dedication celebrated by Jesus!

John 4:21-24
Jesus declared, Believe me, woman a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain or in Jerusalem.  You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is through the Jews.  Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.  God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.
Then later in John Jesus is celebrating the Feast of Dedication (John 10:22-43) and He was being questioned. 

Romans

19Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. 20Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.




Righteousness Through Faith

21But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, 23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement,[i] through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— 26he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.

27Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On that of observing the law? No, but on that of faith. 28For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law. 29Is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too, 30since there is only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith. 31Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law.

As I sat down with a friend yesterday we both agreed that we grew up with the idea that we are not under the law but rather we have grace.  As I studied the scriptures this year I used a translator (interlinear) to find the origial Hebrew meaning of some words.  The word law in many cases throughout scripture is referring to the first 5 books of the Old Testament.  What I was surprised to find was that in some chapters sometimes law would refer to the scriptures and a few verses later be referring to another law. 
Just as in science we refer to the law of relativity or gravity, we have to in the scripture define the  law we are referring to.  There are quite a few.  You could say that this is a translation glitch.  Some versions of our Bible are clearer than others.  I studied Romans in King James, New Century and NIV versions.  I find in Romans a law of sin and death or sin = death.  Romans is where we have to be very careful that each time we see the word law we get to the root of the word and define whether it is referring to scripture, sin, geneology or other law.
The reason I began to question this is because I found that Jesus refers a law in Matthew when He says in 5:17&18: "Do not thin that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.  I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroe of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.  Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
This drives me to understand what commands He is referring to.  Does the sermon on the mount take the place of the scriptures and the prophets?  Let's be careful in considering this because Jesus sounds pretty detailed in these verses.  In fact, in all the gospels He refers to the scriptures (keep in mind the only scriptures of His day are the OT).
Matthew 23:23 Jesus corrects the Pharisees and makes it clear that obedience is more than deeds but a heart issue.  Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give tenth of your spices, mint, dill and cumin.  But you neglected the more important matters of the law- justice, mercy and faithfulness.  *You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.
He goes on with a great analogy of cleaning the outside of the cup without cleaning the inside.  Once again just as David writes to us about - the law has always been a heart issue.  David says,  write your word on my heart that I might not sin against You.  He knew that the law kept Him set apart but that God wanted His heart and his deeds. 
How could David love this law so much and yet we despise being under a law.  This is where defining law comes in handy.  What does Jesus say about the law?
In Mark Jesus says, "You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on the traditions of men.He then answers the question we all have in Luke 10:25-27 On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life? What is written in the Law?  He replied. "How do you read it?" So, it is safe to say that the law when referring to scripture is good and necessary. 
To confirm this
 

Sukkot was the very first festival of God that I ever celebrated.  Last year (2009), we were invited to a "camping trip" with special speakers.  We loaded up the whole family and headed to the lake.  Now, this was the first time that I had by choice celebrated Sukkot but I did remember a time when my parents invited us to dinner and we ate out on their backyard deck(2005).  My dad told the kids to gather sticks and he began to place them through the lattice over our heads.  We then ate and blessed God and looked through our Sukkah to see the stars.  It was a fun night with not alot of meaning for us.  The only reason that it was special was because not only was my dad grilling and preparing supper but my mom was full force into the preparation.  My dad makes dinner look easy.  He is a natural born chef and can cook up some award winning recipes.  My mom, more or less, fulfills her duty as wife and mother; so when she is excited to be preparing and serving it gets your attention.  My mother has one great passion and that is the scripture.  That night she was putting it into action and it thrilled her.  We just all observed and enjoyed the good food.  As I look back now I am so thankful for this memory with my mother and father.  This was just before they moved to the other side of the earth.  When they returned for a visit it just happen to be Sukkot 2009.As if our home was not temporary enough for them they were journeying to a lake in Dallas for Sukkot, with or without us.  I had missed them so we decided, Corey decided, to join them.  When we got there we did not want to leave.  In fact, the kids stayed.  Yes, M.K. who was the only one not home schooling skipped school and stayed at the lake to celebrate with my parents.  Corey and I came to get clothes and food and headed back to the lake.  To my surprise, a lady from New Braunfels was sharing on "being the bride of Christ" - my favorite subject!! This got my attention.  For me, the question arose - what does the bride of Christ look like?  After celebrating Sukkot last year I was convinced that I will always celebrate this day. I was even more convinced after I read the scriptures of the priest and prophet, Zechariah.  Zechariah 14 tells us that our Lord will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem... the Lord will be King over the whole earth.  v16 Then the survivors from all the nations that have attacked Jerusalem will go up year after year to worship the King, the Lord Almighty, and to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles.
Our celebrations now are obedience and just a shadow of how things will be with our Father.  It is a sweet picture.  It is an answer to prayer, to discover this truth in my Bible.  My children are getting a clear picture of what they are holding out for.  Especially for the girls, I had asked God to give them a picture in their minds of how the bride would feast with her King.  This is worth living for.
Now, this year, we will be in Jerusalem for Sukkot 2010!  All of my guide books say that this is the time to visit.  Everyone is out of their home and in a Sukkah!
I have given you my journey through Sukkot by backyard grilling and camping at the lake, so here is the specific instruction:
First, let me restate Galatians 3:29.  If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.
FYI - I love being an heir.  Study this verse out.  What is an Heir?  What is the promise?  This is worth your time.
Next, Leviticus 23:39-44.  v41 Celebrate this as a festival to the Lord for seven days each year.  This is to be a lasting ordinance. v42 Live in booths for seven days.  This is to remember that those who obeyed God in Egypt were saved.  They came out a mixed multitude.  Anyone who believed the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were saved and began their journey to the promised land. 
This is a great foundational truth for us to know as believers.  This is an amazing miracle that our children love and must know to understand the God they choose to believe in.
On the holiday of Sukkot, we are commanded to dwell in temporary shelters or booths, as the Israelites did in the desert after the Exodus. The commandment to "dwell" in a sukkah can be fulfilled by simply eating all of one's meals there. However, some people study the scriptures and even sleep in the sukkah. This is what we are hoping to experience in Jerusalem.
Sukkot is a seven-day fall festival which takes place on the 15th of Tishri and commemorates the sukkot (Hebrew for booths or tabernacles) where Israel lived in the wilderness after the Exodus.
Building a Sukkah is a memorable and fun family experience. Children of every age can help just as we did that first celebration.
On Sukkot, we are commanded to use Arbat HaMinim, the four species, to "rejoice before God." The Four Species are: 1) Etrog (lemon-like citrus fruit) 2) Lulav (palm branch) 3) Hadas (myrtle branch) 4) Arava (willow branch). The three branches are bound together and referred to collectively as the lulav.
With the Four Species in hand, we say a blessing and wave the species in six directions (east, south, west, north, up and down) to symbolize that God is everywhere!  As we did this at the lake we truly felt different from this world.  I am sure we looked different too.  For us this celebration takes us into the scriptures where it tells us that we are just passing through.  This world is our temporary dwelling.  Do not get too comfortable!
Our family started this day by watching a film on Netflix about Italy.  They have some cool traditions.  Once again I found myself considering our traditions that we were passing on to our children.  I am interested in our German heritage.  I also love Texas and am proud to be a Texan but lately I have been thinking about being an American.  What a great country that would allow us to have freedom to worship in our own way.  I don't know if this will always be the case.  While it is, I want to examine my identity.  As an American, Texan with ancestors from Germany I want to remember that when I accepted Jesus Christ, I took on the identity as a child of God.  I was adopted.  I must take up the traditions and customs that are important to Him.  Rather than spend the summer tracing my family tree online I am going to grasp tightly my Bible and maybe head down to the little German town of New Braunfels for some river time.  Join me!

Shavuot/Pentecost

This week we celebrated Shavuot for the first time in our home.  Shavuot, meaning weeks in Hebrew is known by Christians by the Greek word Pentecost, meaning fifty, because it is celebrated fifty days after the Day of First Fruits.  This feast is also referred to as the Feast of Weeks and Feast of Harvest.
We had been counting the omer since Passover Sabbath and anxiously awaiting this holy day. 
After the Israelites escaped Egypt and were in the promised land they were told to celebrate the harvest.  It is agreed that this is the time that God gave the commandments to the Israelites.  Exodus 19:9-25:20:1-21. 
For me this was a very life changing day because as I have been studying his great instructions, I have been asking the Lord to teach me to love His word and live by it as David did.  David says that God's scriptures are perfect.  Psalms 119 says, how can a youn man keep his way pure? By living according to your word.  I will seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands.  I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.  David says that he delights in God's decrees and that he will not neglect his word.  He then asks God to open his eyes that he may see wonderful things in his law (hebrew, meaning instruction).
So, as children of God, we have been given his law/instructions to set us a part and make us a holy people.  The great part is that when all the people were in Jerusalem celebrating this Holy Feast Day of Shavuot, and being obedient to His word, He poured out His Holy Spirit on them. (Acts 2) 3000 people came to know the Lord on this day when the disciples began to speak in the foreign languages of the people.  This was a great HARVEST.  This outpouring of the Holy Spirit had been prophesied.  Jeremiah 31:31-33 and Hebrews 8:8-13; 10:16&17.
That which was written on the tablets was now being written on their hearts.  God began His harvest by giving the Holy Spirit, that we should make disciples of all men. 
In our home we read the traditional Shavuot passage of Ruth and asked the Lord to accept us as He did Ruth when she followed Naomi and said,"Your people should be my people and your God my God."
Jesus gave us this freedom to be called the children of God and then He gave us the great councelor, the Holy Spirit, and wrote His word on our hearts.
We asked God on this Shavuot to pour out His Holy Spirit on our family so that we may not sin against Him.
Then, we celebrated!  We grilled outside and made root beer floats and ice cream sundaes.  We visited our good friends and danced before the Lord.  We waved the loaves of bread before the Lord for the first time in our lives and were overjoyed to see our children give thanks for the harvest of bread as well as the harvest of unbelievers.  Once again, this feast day taught our children God's ways.  It helped us all understand that although Jesus had to leave us, that He gave us what we need to be called the children of God. 
This was not only comforting to me but the children finally were able to understand the purpose of the Holy Spirit - to obey His scriptures and make disciples!
This is why we celebrate the feasts.  This was God's design for how we are to teach others and our children.  This is His curriculum.  It is without fault. 
His word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path.
To consider what the word law refers to click on the link Law&Grace under pages at the top right.

Jordan - The Royal Tour - Part 5

Justification Statement

I have so many people ask why we are going to Jordan and Israel on our trip.  Most people think we should spend the whole 3 months in Switzerland or Italy.  We have a great answer but it is long.  I am blogging about our trip and all of the details and so I thought that I would put into practice what God is working through me.  I am going to write about this journey that our family is on.  I will write about our love for His word and the truths that I am seeing for the first time while studying His word.  I will write about how God is making me a student of His word. I have spent my whole life asking God where He wanted to send me and what I should do for Him.  He has shown me this year that He wants me to honor His words that He gave me and be His.  That is it and this is how I am doing that.
This year we have taken a step back to check ourselves out and identify what we like about our lives and what we don't so much.  Habits, traditions, addictions, customs and other things that consume our time have all been taken note of.  It has been like a fresh start for us. 
This all started with my Saturdays when I would open the BIG Bible up at the Robert Carr Chapel between weddings and begin to read.  It was usually opened to Psalms, Proverbs or Isaiah because it looked even and perfect up on the lectern. 
Isaiah talks about God's people taking up traditions and customs in the lands they go to.  He warned them, but also said that when you see that you have done this, turn from your ways and come back to God.  I asked God to show me ways that I had turned from Him.
Some things that began to stir within me were, for example, my family genealogy.  I recently obtained much knowledge about my dad's family.  I often visit my families farm in Rhineland, Texas.  This is where my great grandfathers came and settled when they left the Rhine lands of Germany.  This information just raised my attention to the awareness that our country is fairly new and we all come from people who lived very different lives. 
That takes me to the other thing that raised my awareness of how times throughout history, beliefs, traditions and customs took drastic turns.  I have been studying the Renaissance Period with the kids.  We wanted to jump to this time period because of our trip to Europe that is coming up.  First, I took them quickly through early civilization, modern civilization, etc. to get us to the Renaissance.  For the first time I began to realize that History is History, but that does not make it right.  What I mean is that just because things happened a certain way does not mean that it was the right way.  Many times people stood up and said, "hey, this isn't right," and many times they got their heads cut off.  So, I want to say, "hey, we forgot something" and I hope that you will all read for yourselves Leviticus 23 and consider if you think these Holy Days are important to our God. 
For the history examples, let me bring your attention to the Holocaust, the Crusades, slavery and our taking land away from the Indians.  These are just a few times where things were done that were not right and yet only a few great people stood up and said, "this is wrong." 
One very important time period for us to consider is the time of Constantine.  Constantine was the emperor of Rome who made claim to be a Christian.(see Constantine under pages- top right) Under his rule the church took some drastic turns.  It is worth your time to look up the Council of Nicaea.  We find that throughout history the church and government were one.  You can look back at the time that Jesus was born to see how the Roman government reigned over the land. 
Leviticus 23 in MY Bible tells us of wonderful feast days and my question was, "who keeps these feast days and why do I not know anything about them?"  The answer would be, the Jewish People keep these days and the reason that I don't know about them is because of our church history.

One of the best parts of my job as the Wedding Coordinator at TCU was getting to meet all of the different officiants for the weddings.  Sometimes, (so fresh in my mind) I would meet as many as 4 in one Saturday.  They were from every denomination and very willing to educate me on their traditions and customs.  I had two invite me to a Passover Seder meal.  I quickly learned that in my office of Religious and Spiritual Life at TCU that each denomination had special days and I found it necessary to look at the early church as presented in my Bible.