Hi All,

I am new to this, in fact, this is my first message ever in a forum online.

I have read a couple of chapters of Yada Yahweh, and am convinced that this is the lifestyle I would love to follow for me and my family- meaning no idols, statues and the like.

What I would love to know is how to serve Yahweh in a worthy manner?

I am so used to saying lengthy prayers and the Rosary everyday (at least 1 hour daily) that suddenly a day without the Rosary or my regular prayers is what I find hard to accept.

How about the Miqra? When should one keep the Miqra - I mean does the 10th day of the seventh month mean July 10th or the 15th day July 15th?

I am not going to work anymore on Saturdays - trying to keep the Sabbath, but need to spend the Sabbath in a more worthy manner and am seeking directions.

Any suggestions anyone?

Please allow me to extend a warm welcome as well, Dom24. Total freedom in Yahshua can take a little getting used to, especially if you're used to being hogtied by one religious system or another. Our bonds, as you have discovered, can be quite comforting, can't they: familiarity breeds lukewarm laziness, apathy, the temptation to stop being watchful. But realizing at last that we're free is like diving into cool water, or breathing pure oxygen. It's exhilarating!

The "trick" is to avoid substituting one system of legalism for another. We are all eager to do what Yahweh said to do, but to do that, we need to pay attention to what He actually said. For instance, did you know that virtually all Passover seders are illegal, according to the Torah? In Deuteronomy 16:5, He says, "You may not sacrifice the Passover within any of your gates which Yahweh your God gives you; but [only] at the place where Yahweh your God chooses to make His name abide." In fact, six of the seven mo'edim (appointments) of Yahweh are supposed to be celebrated only in Jerusalem---the place where "He has chosen to make His name abide." So it's obvious that keeping the letter of the Torah is not the crux of our existence.

My purpose is not to discourage you; quite the opposite. We should pay special attention to Yahweh's seven qodesh miqrym (holy convocations)---not to keep them as religious rites, but to celebrate their significance in the plan of God for our redemption. Familiarize yourself with what they signify. Each of the seven marks a major prophetic event (four of which are now historically fulfilled) in God's calendar. So mark the days, make note of them, thank Yahweh for what they mean. If you live near like-minded believers, congreate together to celebrate them. But resist the all-too-human urge to turn them into religious rituals. They can't be literally performed according to God's Word, even in Jerusalem, without a Temple and priesthood.

That being said, in God's parlance, we are the temple... we are the priesthood. Ponder that, my friend.

kp

I guess 3's company...hopefully not a crowd...I definitely reccommend the Psalms as well. Most of them are indeed themed, so you can pray for forgiveness, give thanks for forgiveness, pray for safe passage/travel, harvests, give thanks, pray for Jerusalem...and other worthy topics. You can also start with the Shema, which is what I do. The part about loving YHWH with all your heart, soul, and strength and loving your neighbor as yourself puts me in the right frame of mind...making sure I am not broadcasting the ME SHOW into the Kingdom.

As far as the sabbath goes, make it special. Enjoy a sliver of the best of life. It is a rehearsal for the Millenium. I am not trying to push it and certainly not mandate it, but at some point I dress up a little, wear the fine threads, we eat special foods that we usually don't eat the rest of the week, The boob tube stays off....not because it's a sin to turn on electricity...but because it's a day that is supposed to be set apart...TV is just one big vulgar grotesque worldy distraction. It would be best in my opinion if everyone threw the hypno-box out the window...but if you can't bear that...perhaps try to set the sabbath apart. Sing, recite psalms...be joyous. Let me explain this better. I am a farmer. Everyday I wear dingy old clothes that are stained and tattered. Wearing nice clothes is My way of setting it apart, my way of remembering I am resting on this day...and showing others that it's a day of rest. The whole point is setting it apart. Another good way to start learning how to walk in the way you have said you want to walk is to get it directly from the source. Acts 15 comes to mind:"[21] For Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath." It was obviously expected that the Goyim coming into faith in Messiah of Israel were going to be sitting down and learning Torah (and Nevi'im and Ketuvim) every week.
You can look into the weekly parashot (Parashah-singular). These are bite sized portions of the Torah. They are read every week. They are also attached to Haftorah and Messianics have New Testament readings attached to the Parashot too. You can read and reflect on everything that that passage has to offer...from the practical to the spiritual. I am not trying to confuse you but I am probably doing a wonderful job. There are two types of Parashah schedules. There is the annual cycle...in which you can get through the whole Torah in one year. Then there is the Triennial cycle in which it takes 3 years to get through all of the Torah. Both have their advantages and disadvantages. I am really starting to appreciate the triennial cycle however because the passages are smaller and you can focus your attention more finely. If you type these terms in to google you can get schedule lists quite easily. If you have family or people you can have sabbath with, offer insights ask questions, discuss.

You don't have to become a "Jew"* practicing "Jewish" religious rites, but tradition isn't always a bad thing. I don't think Yahushua was against tradition and He probably applied much of it either incidentally or approvingly. He was only against tradition and pharisaic halakha (the way one practices Torah-Literally, the way one walks) when it went against Torah or was given the same status as Torah (as legally binding...i.e. washing of the hands). It offers a continuity that people in some ways need. There is nothing wrong with reading the creation account every week or saying a blessing over your family, your sons, your daughters, wives or husbands, doing a traditional blessing and thanksgiving over bread and wine (doesn't have to be Challah), or going out and looking for the first 3 stars in the night sky to mark the end of Sabbath....and other such things. Right after Sabbath is over, my wife and I usually talk about the week, what we did right, what we could have done better on, what we want to do in the coming week both in the horizontal world and in the realm of the vertical. That's our traditional post sabbath conversation. That's what we do...find your own way. :)

*when I say Jew, I am not referring to blood or ancestry or the term Yahudi, but moreso in the sense of the practices of Rabbinic Judaism

Shalom and Welcome

Shalom,

Glad to have you with us Dom24, and the first thing I'd do is to let you beware of becoming trapped by customs and rituals. Sure there are formal ways of celebrating the weekly Sabbath and the seven Miqrym, but I doubt the best ways are learnt from orthodox Judaism.

I am glad to have been pulled out of a congregation that was fixated on rituals, and I am not willing to be pulled back into another form of ritual worship. A recently-found messianic friend suggested reading Parashah, as brother Shalom82 suggests, and also attending online sabbath meetings. While this may seem a good idea at first, I'd rather follow what Shalom82 does, and read Psalms and Proverbs and other portions of the Tanakh and Brit Chadasha, as well as re-read all the YY books and get onto this forum.

Sure there are no rosaries, communion or other such rituals but they are unnecessary, irrelevant and distracting from Abba Yahweh who wants us to know Him better through His Word and to engage in His Work. Formal group prayer is optional at this point but there is nothing to stop you to follow the online sermons on other sites should you find some comfort in that particular approach. That said, you should also be aware that not many sites that offer online Sabbath services uphold the same doctrines and may differ in several aspects. Some may even require that you wear the tallit, wear tsit-tzit, blow the shofar, light the menorah, face Jerusalem and say the Shema, while some messianic orthodox believers may even recommend wearing tefillin and putting up metzuzah as well. If this does not confuse enough wait till you hear how you are to keep the Sabbaths as each group may have different traditions!

For a newbie, Shalom82's example is good. I, too, struggled in the dark waters for a while, trying to find the rims of the pool and a shallow floor before realising that having faith in Yahushua as my Messiah will let me float alone in the deep end of the pool. Reach out to Abba Yahweh and He shall support and guide you. Don't follow men, especially their man-made traditions.