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SUNDAY LORD'S DAY
Sunday is my day to go to church and worship the Lord. It's where I connect with my fellow believers, and it truly feels like a celebration. It just feels right, you know?
I find so much comfort in knowing God is pleased when we gather to worship Him. Psalm 133:11 says, "How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!" It's a beautiful reminder of the power of community.
We're called to gather regularly, and I try to never take that for granted. The Bible even tells us not to give up meeting together, like some people do. It's something I'm always working on – making church a priority. Life gets busy, but it's so worth it.
Psalm 84:102 really speaks to me: "Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked." That really puts things in perspective. For me, there’s no better place to be.
Be zealous without negligence; with bren (fervor, hitlahavut) be burning with the Ruach Hakodesh. With avodas kodesh serve Hashem.
If anyone serves me, let him follow me, and where I am, there also my eved will be. If anyone serves me, HaAv will honor him.
For we are fellow po'alim (workers) of Hashem, you are the sadeh Hashem (field of G-d), you are Hashemʼs binyan (building).
So then, Chaverim and Achim b'Moshiach of mine, be steadfast, immovable, abounding always in the avodas kodesh of Adoneinu, have da'as that your po'al (work) is not in vain in Hashem.
Only fear Hashem, and serve Him in emes with kol levavchem; for consider what great things He hath done for you.
I appeal to you, therefore, Achim b'Moshiach, through the rachamei Hashem (mercies of G-d), to present your geviyah, all of your being, as a korban chai (living sacrifice), kadosh (holy) and acceptable to Hashem, which is your spiritual avodas kodesh service.
And sitting down, Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach called the Shneym Asar and says to them, If anyone wishes to be Rishon (First), he shall be Acharon (Last), and mesharet (minister, servant) of all.
If, therefore, I, being Rebbe and Adon, washed your feet, you ought to wash the feet of one another also.
And thou, Sh'lomo beni (my son), know thou the Elohei Avicha, and serve Him with a lev shalem and with a nefesh chafetzah (willing mind), for Hashem searcheth kol levavot, and understandeth all the yetzer machashavot. If thou seek Him, He will be found by thee; but if thou forsake Him, He will cast thee off forever.
Then the people rejoiced, for theirs were freewill offerings, because with lev shalem they offered willingly to Hashem; and Dovid HaMelech also rejoiced with simchah gedolah.
And his Adon said to him, Shkoyach (well done), eved tov vneeman (good and faithful servant)! A few things you were faithful over, over many things I will ordain you. Enter into the simchah of your Adon.
Thou shalt not give heed unto the devarim of that navi, or that dreamer of dreams; for Hashem Eloheichem is testing you, to know whether ye love Hashem Eloheichem with all your lev and with all your nefesh.
For, Achim B'Moshiach, you were called for “zman Cheruteinu”; only use not the Cherut for a pretext for the basar, but, through ahavah (agape), minister to one another as avadim (servants).
And in reply the Baal Torah said, V'AHAVTA ES ADONOI ELOHEICHA B'CHOL LEVAVCHA UVECHOL NAFSHECHA UVECHOL MODECHA and L'REACHA KAMOCHA.
And ye shall serve Hashem Eloheichem, and He shall bless thy lechem, and thy mayim; and I will take machalah (sickness) away from the midst of thee.
Also I heard the voice of Adonoi, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us? Then said I, Hineini; send me.
No one is able to serve two adonim (masters). For either he will have sinah (hatred) for the one and ahavah (love) for the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve Hashem and Mammon (Money).
But do not drift away from ma'asim tovim and sharing; for with such zevakhim Hashem is well pleased.
For Hashem is not unjust so as to forget your po'al (work) and the ahavah which you have shown toward ha-Shem of him, having rendered avodas kodesh ministry service to the Kedoshim, ken, and you are still serving them.
And whoever wishes among you to be rishon (first) will be your eved (servant).Just as the Bar Enosh did not come to be served (to be ministered to), but to serve (to minister), and to give his neshamah (his nefesh), as a kofer (ransom, pedut) LARABBIM (for the sake of many, for the Geulah Redemption of many).
For I hungered and you gave me something to eat. I thirsted and you gave drink to me. I was a sojourner, and you extended hachnosas orchim (hospitality) to me.I was naked and you gave me malbish arumim (clothing the naked). I was ill; with bikkur cholim (visiting the sick) you ministered to me. I was in the beit hasohar (prison); you came to me.Then the tzaddikim will answer him, Adoneinu, when did we see you hungering and we fed you, or thirsting and we gave you drink?And when did we see you a sojourner and we extended hachnosas orchim (hospitality) to you, or naked and we clothed you?And when did we see you ill or in the beit hasohar and we came to you?But the wise took shemen in containers with their menorahs.And in reply, HaMelech will say to them, Omein, I say to you, in as much as you did it to one of the least of these achim of mine, you did it to me.
And if it seem rah unto you to serve Hashem, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the elohim which Avoteichem served that were on the other side of the River, or the elohei HaEmori, in whose land ye dwell; but as for me and my bais, we will serve Hashem.
But be shomer to do the mitzvah and the torah, which Moshe Eved Hashem charged you, to love Hashem Eloheichem, and to walk in all the darkhei Hashem, and to be shomer mitzvot regarding His commandments, and to have deveykus (attachment, cleavimg to G-d) to Him, and to serve Him in avodas [kodesh] with kol levavchem uvkhol nafshechem (all your heart, with all your nefesh).
Render your avodas kodesh service with a lev tov as avadim unto Adoneinu and not unto Bnei Adam,
For even the Bar Enosh did not come to be served but to serve and to give his NEFESH as a kofer (ransom, pedut) LARABBIM (for many, for the Geulah [Redemption] of many).
For he who serves Moshiach in this is pleasing to Hashem and approved by people in general.
Having been delivered from the yad haoyvim (hand of enemies) of us to serve Hashem fearlessly,In kedushah (holiness) and tzedek (righteousness) before Him all our yamim (days).
And in reply, he said to HaSatan, It has been written, ES HASHEM ELOHEICHA TIRAH VOTO TAAVOD (Hashem Eloheicha you shall fear and him alone you shall serve).
My avodas kodesh service to Hashem with all anavah (humility) and tears and tzoros, and all that happened to me by the kesharim of the [unbelieving] Yehudim;
I appeal to you, therefore, Achim b'Moshiach, through the rachamei Hashem (mercies of G-d), to present your geviyah, all of your being, as a korban chai (living sacrifice), kadosh (holy) and acceptable to Hashem, which is your spiritual avodas kodesh service.Show mishpochah (family) affection to one another in ahavah shel achvah (brotherly love). Be first in esteeming one another, in showing mutual respect.Be zealous without negligence; with bren (fervor, hitlahavut) be burning with the Ruach Hakodesh. With avodas kodesh serve Hashem.Have simcha in tikvah. Have savlanut in tzoros. Keep davening tefillos.With a spirit of koinonia, keep the pushke full for the needs of the Kedoshim. Aspire to hachnosas orchim.Say a bracha on those who bring redifah (persecution) on you, let it be a bracha and not a kelalah (curse).Join in simcha with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.Think with a (spiritual) consensus in achdus harmony among yourselves. Do not cherish the thoughts of the ba'al gaavah (haughty person), but associate with the anaviyim (humble), with the lowly am ha'aretz; do not be chachamim (wise ones) in your own estimation.Repay no one ra'a (evil) for ra'a (evil). Take into consideration what is haTov in the sight of everyone and do that.If possible, so far as it depends on you, live in shalom with everyone.Do not take your own revenge, beloved, but give opportunity for G-dʼs Charon Af (burning wrath), for it is written, LI NAKAM V'SHILEM (Vengeance is mine and recompense, repayment) — I am He who will repay, says Hashem.Stop allowing yourself to be conformed to the Olam Hazeh, but be transformed by your hitkhadshut (regeneration, renewal) of your mind, so that you may ascertain what is the ratzon Hashem (the will of G-d), what is the good, acceptable, and perfect will of G-d.
Trust in Hashem, and do tov; so shalt thou dwell in the Eretz (land), ure'eh emunah (and thou be pastured securely).The mouth of the tzaddik speaketh chochmah, and his leshon uttereth mishpat.The torat Elohav is in his lev; no steps of his shall slip.The rashah lieth in wait to ambush the tzaddik, and seeketh to slay him.Hashem will not leave him in his yad (hand, power), nor condemn him b'hishshafto (when he is judged, brought to trial).Wait on Hashem, and be shomer over His Derech, and He shall exalt thee to inherit Eretz; when the resha'im are cut off, thou shalt see it.I have seen the violently powerful rashah, spreading himself like an indigenous green tree.Yet he passed away, and, hinei, he was no more; yes, I sought him, but he could not be found.Mark the blameless man, and observe the yashar (upright); for the end of that ish is shalom.But the poshe'im (rebels, transgressors) shall be made shmad together; the latter end of the resha'im shall be cut off. But the Teshu'at Tzaddikim is of Hashem; He is their ma'oz (stronghold, refuge) in the time of tzoros.Delight thyself also in Hashem, and He shall give thee the desires of thine lev.
For we are His masterpiece, having been created in Moshiach Yehoshua for ma'asim tovim, which Hashem prepared beforehand, that the derech of our halakhah should be in them.
Render your avodas kodesh service with a lev tov as avadim unto Adoneinu and not unto Bnei Adam,Having da'as that whatever ma'aseh tov each one does, this he will receive back from Hashem, whether he is an eved or a Ben Chorin.
Doing nothing according to anochiyut (selfishness) nor according to empty ga'avah (conceit, haughtiness, arrogance), but in anavah (humility), fergin (graciously grant) each other esteem above yourselves.Because he came near to death on account of the avodas kodesh of Moshiach, performing an act of Messianic mesirat nefesh (whole-hearted devotion) having risked his life, that he might make up for the ministry to me that you could not give.Let each of you talmidim look after not only your own interests, but also the best interests of others.
For Hashem is the one working in you, both to will and to work according to His chafetz (good pleasure of His will).
Whatever you do, be po'alim (workers) who with their neshamah work facing Adoneinu and not Bnei Adam,Having da'as that from Adoneinu you will receive the sachar of the nachalah (alloted inheritance). Serve Adoneinu Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach.
For they themselves [the ma'aminim b'Moshiach in Macedonia and Achaia] are reporting about us, what sort of initial reception we had with you, and how you made teshuva, turning to Hashem from elilim (idols), from avodah zarah (idol worship), turning to worship the Elohim Chayyim and Elohei Emes (the Living G-d and the True G-d),
Have simcha always.Daven unceasingly.In everything offer hodayah, for this is the ratzon Hashem in Moshiach Yehoshua for you.
Modeh ani (I give thanks) to the one having empowered me, Rebbe Melech HaMoshiach Yehoshua Adoneinu, because he considered me ne'eman (faithful), having appointed me to the rabbanut of Moshiach.
Do your best to shtel zich (apply yourself), to present yourself to Hashem as one approved, a po'el (workman) without bushah (shame), keeping on a derech yashar the Dvar HaEmes.
By how much more will the dahm of Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach who through the eternal Ruach Hakodesh offered himself without MUM (defect) to G-d, by how much more will his DAHM purify our matzpun (conscience) from ma'asim metim (dead works) in order to serve the Elohim Chayyim.
Therefore, als (since) we are receiving a malchut unshakeable, let us hold on to the Chen v'Chesed Hashem through which we may offer to Hashem, an acceptable avodas kodesh, with yirat Shomayim and chasidus.
Now be Shomrei HaDvar Hashem and not Shomei HaDvar only, thereby causing yourselves to fall under remiyah (deceit, deception).Because if anyone is Shomei HaDavar and not Shomrei HaDavar, this one is like a man looking at his ponum in a mirror,For he observed himself and has gone away and immediately forgot what he looked like.But the one having peered into the Torah HaShleimah (the Perfect Torah), the Torah HaCherut (the Torah of Freedom), and there remaining, not as a forgetful listener but one who is shomer mitzvot and goes into action, this one will have a bracha on his head in all his acts.
Each one according as he received a mattanah (gift), as k'lei kodesh ministering to one another, mefakkechim tovim (good stewards, supervisors) of the varied Chen v'Chesed Hashem.If anyone speaks, let it be as though it were the oracles of Hashem; if anyone ministers, let it be as by the chozek (strength) which Hashem supplies, that in all things Hashem may be glorified through Rebbe Melech HaMoshiach Yehoshua. Lo HaKavod V'HaOz L'Olemei Olamim. Omein (To whom be the glory and the power into the ages of the ages. Omein.)
For this very reason, you must apply all zerizut (diligence) to supply emunah with midah hatov (the attribute of virtue), and midah hatov with da'as (knowledge),And da'as with shlitah atzmit (self-control), and shlitah atzmit with chozek (fortitude) and chozek with chasidus (piety),And chassidus with ahavah shel achvah (brotherly love), and ahavah shel achvah with ahavah (agape).For if these midos are in you increasingly, they will forestall you from being batlanim (idlers) and lo poreh (unfruitful) in the da'as (personal saving knowledge) of Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Adoneinu Yehoshua.
I have da'as of your ma'asim (deeds) and the ahavah and the emunah and the tzedek and the savlanut (patient endurance) of you, and that your ma'asim ha'acharonim are more than harishonim of you.
I have da'as of your ma'asim. Hinei, I have placed in front of you a delet (door), having been opened, which no one is able to shut: because you have a little ko'ach (power) and have been shomer over my dvar (word),
Therefore, they are before the Kes (Throne) of Hashem and serve Him yomam valailah in His Beis Hamikdash, and the One sitting on the Kes (Throne) will pitch the tent of His Mishkan over them.