Happy Fall Season!

I so enjoy THANKSGIVING!  IT has been my favorite holiday since a little girl.  I look forward to this family celebration of thankfulness to our Creator Who bountifully bestows us with goodly Nourishment! 

Growing up my sister and I would take turns wearing either the Big Brown Paper Bag that we cut out to look like an Indian Garment with a feathered headband or we’d wear our long ‘Holly Hobbie’ nightgowns that made us feel like beautiful Pilgrim women.  Our loving Mother let us wear our outfits to dinner.  I thought it was cool to wear my beautiful nightgown to dinner!  We had so much fun pretending to be Indians and Pilgrims!  And remembering this special day in this way meant a lot to me.

Today I shared with my ten year old son how that we as Believers are Pilgrims, strangers, here in this world.   We are in the world, but not of it! 1 Peter 2:11  Amen!  May our lives reflect our Heavenly Kingdom with Abba YHWH and His Son Yahshua!

Looking forward to Thanksgiving time with the smell of fresh fall leaves causing reflections on wonderful memories of making cars out of leaf piles and pretending to travel the world and sail the seas!  The clocks going back an hour-YAY-to  stay snuggled in covers a little bit longer in the mornings!  =)  (Not that we really need covers in Sunny Florida, unless, the AC is set too low!  LOL!)

Family news:  My oldest son recently turned 25 years old and some of his words are included in this newsletter.  My youngest daughter just made me a very happy Grandma for the first time with a beautiful grandson!  He is so adorable and to see the generations continue of the Father’s heritage so blesses me!  My almost 17 yr old son just got accepted to Junior Varsity Soccer and everyone is looking forward to his soccer games!  My 22 yr old daughter is a sweetheart.  Even with all her deep studies at the University to become a Physician’s Assistant, she makes sure she invests special quality time with each of her siblings and with her parents too.  Her kindness ministers to me!  I am busily trying to keep up with my youngest son who is 14 ½ months old; or, maybe he is trying to keep up with me by trying to learn everything I do so that he can quickly undo it so that I can redo it… repeatedly!  =)  My 10 yr old son is a great big brother and loves helping out in every way that he can.  Along with each of his siblings he excels academically and scored the fifth highest in his school for reading counts last month-way to go Son! I am preparing the next CDs that have been long in waiting for me to record.  I so hope to have them ready before Winter!  =)  So here I am-a mother with full hands and greatly blessed!

Already great excitement is felt as plans are in the making for Thanksgiving Dinner!  I so enjoy the children gathering for dinner preparations and then sitting at the table to feast on the bounty before us.  (We then look forward to the leftovers!)  This year we plan to make special gifts together after the big dinner for giving out during the upcoming Chanukkah Celebration, the Feast of Rededication, the Festival of Lights!  Oh that our Lights might shine that men may see our good works and glorify our Father which is in Heaven!  (Mt 5:16)

Now I want to share with you some words by my oldest Son. 

He writes, “IF I were speaking to you Face to Face, I might countenance half of what I truly feel and say nothing of it , but here, at the point where we both look down, our meanings fly, our relationships glide, and two souls touch thanks to G-d-given minds and the working of angelic spirits.”    If you know Josh, then you know this is true-  that he speaks more with his subtle facial expressions than his tongue. 

He goes on to write in response to what I wrote him about God graciously blessing me with him as my firstborn son (He leaves out the vowels in titles of God as a way of reverence.), “Yea, not all of what I say is befitting a child that ’G-d has graciously given.’  But, remember His grace is sufficient.”   I had to smile at this because, yes, His grace is sufficient!  HalleluYHWH!  Amen!

I have been praying heartily for my Son.  In fact, last Shabbat and in the following Monday Prayer meeting we specifically gathered in unity and cried out from our hearts for our Father to save His sons and raise them up to be righteous leaders.  My Son sent me a letter that was dated the very next day after that specific Shabbat Fellowship gathering.  In it he says only what Ruach HaQodesh could have known to move him to write me, “Dearest and purest, it is my honor to inform you that I have submitted to the King of Gentiles and Jews who have humbled themselves in repentance…TAKE CARE IN KNOWING THAT IT IS IN FULL CONFIDENCE THAT THIS IS WHAT HE, THE L-RD, WANTS FOR MY GOOD AS A LOVER AND KEEPER OF THE COMMANDMENTS THAT HE HAS SET FORTH.  I AM ONLY ANSWERING TO G-D’S PRODDING. AND HIS PRODDING IS ONLY ANSWERING YOUR PRAYING, “SAVE OUR SONS!” (SOS).

 Come on now!!  HALLLEUYHWH!!

 I urge you -Mothers, Fathers, Grandmas, Grandpas, Siblings, Cousins, Aunts, Uncles, Loved Ones- I urge you, pray for our sons and daughters that the Father may raise them up to be righteous leaders before Him to lead us in Him!  Whatever their circumstance may be, no matter how precarious, dangerous, terrible or scary, Pray to Abba and Trust Him to honor your prayer of FAITH for your loved one!  He honors your prayers!  They need you now!  My Son’s words are a powerful manifestation of Abba answering prayer forthrightly and sending His Ministering Messengers to take forth the answer!  HALLELUYHWH!!!  And again I say HALLELUYHWH!! IN Yahshua’s NAME!  AMEN!!  For The Glory of The One and The Only KING of Kings and Holy One of Ysra’el!!

He goes on, “Soon is not too far away from here, when soon is the reception of your cries in His ears…He loves mercy, and on my knees, I lie down and rest my cares.  What if Love was just a meaning for picking up some who did not fall?  Where should Thanks start beginning, when He Loves all all in all?  Yahshuah, he saves Us, Hoshanna!  So we cry!  Save Us Now!  Emmanuel, G-d is with us now!   So how can it be, that His majesty resides in the dark human soul, His power in something not whole?  When and while we are sleeping He keeps us as sheep in His folds….We are instructed to go further unto perfection.  Because, being found in His likeness is a blessed knowledge but finding out how to serve that likeness as L-RD in your life is a never ending struggle of joy as we kick in the womb of the world, teaching our heart to reverence our own true bodies that even G-d feared for in his teaching us about His Son by sending Him because they are his body formed curiously in the depths of the earth.”    I pray that you have been greatly encouraged today as I shared a part of my Son’s edifying words of testimony and edification.

As I continue the study of Lashon HaQodesh, the Holy Tongue-Hebrew, I noticed something interesting.  The Hebrew word ‘ACH’  אח  means Brother.  (It can also mean Kinsmen or friend.)   ACH is composed of the Hebrew letters א Aleph which is the the ancient picture of an Ox meaning Strong and ח Chet which is the ancient picture of a Tent Wall meaning Protector for the ones inside. 

So from the Hebrew letters we see the following definition of Brother = A Brother is one who is a Strong Protector. 

The Bible encourages us to be our brother’s keeper.  Galatians 6:2 - Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Messiah.  Proverbs 18:24- there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

‘ACH’  is also the modern Hebrew word for Nurse.  American Nursing Association gives this definition of Nursing:  ‘Nursing is the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities, prevention of illness and injury, alleviation of suffering through the diagnosis and treatment of human response, and advocacy in the care of individuals, families, communities, and populations.’

We know that a nurse cares for others.   I believe there is a parallel here that we need to catch. 

As we are Mishpachah, Family or Brethren in Messiah, we need to care for one another as brothers/sisters and as nurses so to speak.  Of course we already know this, but to see it divinely manifested in YHWH’s Holy language- well, that just accents the importance! 

Brother = ACH = Nurse

Another Hebrew word that has two meanings also struck out at me.  The word for Beloved is DOD  דוד.  It has the Dahlet at the beginning and ending which is the ancient picture of a door.  It mean entrance and also means those who need provision or the poor.  Makes me think- Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven! Mt 5:3  HalleluYHWH!   We are to bless going in the home and going out of the home!  The middle letter is the picture of a nail peg- hold the tent down.  It means add too  and reminds us of the One who was pierced by the nails for our transgressions and He by doing so ADDS US TO THE KINGDOM!  HalleluYHWH AGAIN! 

The Word DOD has another meaning.  Get this-  It is also the word for Uncle.  Look at that!  Here again we see another parallel of importance in the family relationship. 

As a child I adored my mom’s twin sister.  My aunt used to allow me to comb her very long beautiful hair and she would talk to me like we were friends.  She made me feel so special and because of that I wanted my own children to experience my openness with them.  My babysitter who was an adopted Uncle to me also treated me like an equal rather than like an inferior child.  He would get on the floor with me and build blocks, teach me checkers and watch TV with me while eating snacks.  He taught me how to play ping pong; he didn’t let me win, but rather, he taught me how to play well.   He included me in conversation even when his buddies were around.  His genuine thoughtfulness  towards me helped me to later on beat even the boys in Tennis, Volleyball and other events. 

My point here, is that Aunts and Uncles have a special role for their nieces and nephews.  When my children were little they would climb all over my brother like monkeys on a tree!  Even after not seeing him for a long time he would so naturally pick the littlest one up and throw him in the air to their sheer delight and how this touched me.  Now, I observe how my oldest daughter dotes so lovingly on her little nephew with such love and admiration- the fruit of her sister’s womb.  My parents are very fun and loving and enjoyed playing with us children too.  In fact, my mom would chase us around the house and tickle us over and again.  And to this day they enjoy games and amusement parks and are like kids themselves at heart!  But I believe that what is so unique about Aunts and Uncles is that they have a special place of admiration with the nieces and nephews because these adults are so much like their own parents.    

So again, UNCLE= DOD = BELOVED

DOD begins and ends with the Dahlet, the letter that is the picture of the door to the home.  The middle letter, the Vav or Waw, is the picture of a nail peg to hold the tent/home down and means add to.  Uncles add to the opportunities of growth possible with their beloved ways.

The Father made the family first.  He built the Family home first and even the Hebrew language shows this through even the building of the Hebrew alphabet!  So  First we saw how a brother is to be a strong protector who cares and now we see that an uncle is one who opens the door to lives by adding great love. 

Blessings and Shalom!  May you enjoy a wonderful ThanksGiving Holiday with your Family and I just feel to bless Your family relationships that they may grow this ThanksGiving!

PS.  Remember the very first two letters of the Hebrew AlephBet are Aleph meaning Strength and Bet meaning home.  The very first two letters spell the word AB  (Abba-Daddy).  So the letters that spell father give the definition that the Father is the Strength of the home!  This is why we need to pray for our sons.  The family unit is the building block of society.  We want strong family units.  We want our sons to become strong fathers/ leaders of their families/homes.

Off to the County Fair to enjoy the animals and arts and rides…our annual Family Tradition!

Love  Ya  MISHPACHAH!!  Leslie Ann

SongsOfLeslieAnn.com