Did you know that the Feast of Unleavened Bread and Passover are not necessarily the same thing? Pesach – or Passover – is actually an opening event to the week-long Feast of Unleavened Bread. And during this celebration of our redemption from Exodus, we mark it separate from the rest of the year by only eating unleavened bread.
Whether its hand-made or out of a box, matzah can prove to be a challenging item to integrate into your life. Especially because the whole point of us celebrating the sacrificial death of Yeshua Messiah is that at the end of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, we celebrate the fact that He is Risen! How about that?! Resurrection Day – even when celebrated under the banner of Easter – is all about the Risen Messiah!
If you think about it – not letting the bread rise hastening to leave Egypt is celebrated as commanded in Leviticus 23 for a whole week, along with the Passover each year. Yeshua is called the ‘Bread of Life,’ the living Word of ADONAI concealed in humanity and revealed as The Son of God in the resurrection. He is the ONLY reason to celebrate! He rose! So, even all the bread around us bows to His Lordship in our lives this week! Eating a whole week of matzah is all about remembering the value of “risen.”
So while there are lots of blogs that will tell you creative things to do with matzah, I’d like to share some other ways of recognizing this sacred holiday.
1. This is the Biblical new year on ADONAI’s calendar, so I often get a new Bible and begin underlining the passages that God lit up for me over the past few months to jump-start my spiritual momentum for this new season.
2. I start each day with Communion, either alone with God, or some times with my husband present also.
3. I like having a ‘matzah pizza’ movie night with our kids every year. I want them to remember to enjoy life God’s way.
4. I absolutely have to watch Cecil B. DeMills “The Ten Commandments” and quote every line – especially when the Pharoah deposed Moses (which I can hear the memory of my mother’s voice in my head as a child). My kids love comparing that movie to what the Bible actually says. Thankfully, this has taught them to search for God’s truth for themselves.
5. I change out my curtains and bedding and dishes and home decor items for the next six months! Why? Since ‘living the Bible’ only includes two seasons, seedtime and harvest, I want to remember that this next six months is NEW and I want to train myself to ‘seed’ areas where I want to bring in a harvest!
6. I make a list of areas I want to personally grow. For example, this year, I want to get more sleep, and landscape my home, and create my first children’s book.
7. I like to write a note to each of my children about how very much I love them. I try to remember to recount how very proud I am of both their work, and God’s ‘works’ in them, over the past year.
8. I especially like getting rid of everything in my drawers and closet that I haven’t worn, or dreamed about wearing, in the last year. I am not a pack rat. I gave up storing things ‘just in case’ long ago, when God showed me He is the source for absolutely ALL my resources.
9. I take one hour to think about relationships with people I have truly enjoyed over this last year. I ask God to help me adjust my perceptions of how I can be a better friend and ally to people He puts in my life story – AND I ask God to help me responsibly let go of unmet expectations of people I meet on my journey that are ‘just passing through.’
10. I like to dream about the family vacation we have always talked about doing, but never seem to fully execute. That’s the beauty of pausing to remember and plan, life is always an adventure when you follow the cloud!
Planning and preparing are important parts of being flexible to follow God as He leads us. Which is why I suggest getting a copy of our TLV Seedtime Planner so that you can begin to plan, journal, and record what God does for you throughout this season. There are beautiful rhythms that God has ordained for His people and getting back into the groove with Him means that you can fully engage in His plan. Learn more about the TLV Seedtime Planner from Rabbi Eric and myself below!
Please take these days to remember that God’s plan includes resurrecting our lives daily – with each sunrise! Yeshua is RISEN and we will be RISEN along with Him at the final shofar blast in the New Jerusalem, too!
So, is it possible that celebrating a week of eating unleavened bread is about remembering we are called to walk day-by-day? I love this time of year, because I keep remembering that we still need daily manna from heaven on life’s journey following Messiah back home to Our Father.
This is a chance for you to reset your life, to reboot yourself and open your heart to new ways of doing things – including letting Yeshua be both Savior AND LORD! Hallelujah!
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