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Deuteronomy 6:4 says “Hear O Israel, the Lord Thy God, the Lord is One.”. Since the following verses speak of reciting these words when you lie down and when you get up, the Hebrew “Shema” prayer is said both morning and evening. Christians are familiar with the “Shema”, because it is quoted in the Gospel of Mark. A scribe asked Jesus which commandment is greatest of all. Jesus replied “Hear, O Israel; the Lord our God is one Lord.” The Shabbat typically begins (on Friday evening) with candle-lighting and “Kiddush”. The Sabbath table is set with two candles (or more), a special kiddush cup is filled to the rim with wine or grape juice, and two loaves of challah bread. The candle-lighting on Friday evening occurs 18 minutes before sunset. The prayer “Ner Shel Shabbat” is usually said by the lady of the house. This is followed by Kiddush, which includes blessings over the wine and the bread. One of the most loved songs of Friday night is “Lecha Dodi”, which literally means “Come My Beloved”. The theme of this song is the bride and bridegroom - the Jewish people and God. It was composed in 1571 by Rabbi Shlomo HaLevi Alkabetz, renowned for his wisdom and poetry. Many other songs and prayers fill the Sabbath, which is concluded Saturday evening with a brief ceremony called “Havdalah”. It should be performed no earlier than nightfall (when three stars can be seen in the sky) on Saturday night. The word itself comes from the Hebrew word “L’HAVDIL”, meaning to separate or to distinguish. The wine cup is filled to overflowing, symbolizing the joy of the Sabbath day. The spices remind us of the sweetness of the Sabbath, which departs for another six days. The spices commonly used are cloves, cinnamon or bay leaves. They are commonly kept in a special decorated holder called a b’samim box. The brief Havdalah ceremony typically concludes with the song “Eliyahu HaNavi” (Elijah the Prophet). The song goes as follows: “Elijah the Prophet, Elijah the Tishbite, Elijah, Elijah, Elijah the Gileadite, Speedily and in our days, Come to us, With the messiah, son of David, With the messiah, son of David.” Hear sample audios of these prayers at our Learn Hebrew Prayers web page.

Can you imagine being sent out into the wilderness for forty years like Moses? If Moses would have lived his life up until then differently would God have spared him the discomfort? Was God trying to prove some point to Moses by making an example of him? What can we learn about this story?

When was the last time you drove down the road with out the radio in your ears? When was the last time you just listen to your kids, your spouse or a friend and not said two words? When was the last time you just stopped and listened to the coffee pot making coffee early in the morning? Whether by design, life or nature most of us during our lives have built up barriers (walls) in our minds and around our hearts. By doing so most will never reach the full potential of what God has for their lives. Inside each of us are minds of brilliance and hearts of gold. Yet it’s our walls that prevent us of experiencing life seen through God’s eyes.

Over time with life’s up’s and down’s and disappointments from others we harden like walls of cement. Our walls have been constructed to protect us from fear. Fear of failure, fear of success, fear of expectations. Our rooms become smaller and our thinking becomes stale. A good example of this is children. The bible says, “Child like faith.” Children have no fear. They walk right up to a strangers and have a conversation, with out thinking they will take a leap off a table to get to the couch.

As adults, why do we find it so hard to get back to the simple things in life? Why is it so hard to quiet our minds? Have we become so scared of realizing who we have become that we fill our heads up with meaningless things? Has the walls of our hearts been built right before our blinded eyes? I started a new company in May of this year with a friend of mine. About a month ago we happened to be talking in our lecture hall. I said to her, “Somewhere within these four walls is a million dollar idea. The question is, “Are we willing to look for it, and are we willing to ask God for help guiding us to it?” In other words, “what if these walls could talk?”

What if today your walls could talk? What if your barriers and fears didn’t exist? How would your life change? Would you forgive easier? Would you have a different career? Would you worry less? Would you have a better relationship with others or even with Jesus? I guess God could ask us the same question. “Somewhere within your four walls of your life, mind, and heart is your relationship with me. Are you willing to let your walls down, ask for it and seek it with all you have? Are you willing to just trust me that I will guide and protect you?” Would Moses life been different if his walls could talk? Maybe not. But maybe so!

Today we have a choice to allow our walls to talk. Today we have the chance to make a different in our own life and touch another. Will you take down a wall and live a life God has always wanted for you? Will you give yourself a chance to see life through Gods eyes? All you have to do is look and listen for him and be willing to ask for his
guidance. Let your heart and mind talk this week. Let your true brilliance and your heart of gold shine from behind those walls. Make a difference in yours and some one else’s life.

About the Author

Greg Ryan is a High Profile fitness expert best selling author of faith base and fitness books and former employee of Kathy. For FREE mini course on how to LOSE WEIGHT NOW the right way clich here http://www.resolutions.bz

“. . .A woman named Martha opened her home to him.” (Luke 10:38).

I personally feel that Martha has been much maligned. There are two sides to us all, a harmony — an equanimity — to our natures that includes the Martha-side as well as the Mary-side. It takes the oars of both faith and works to row our ship through earth’s uneven waters. The Martha in us takes care of the practical in life: the everyday cleaning and toiling and taking care of our families and the necessary duties of each day; the Mary in us takes care of the spiritual in life: the everyday concern in prayer for others when we join Jesus in the Garden each morning and have Him hold us close to Him while we love Him and thank Him and bring before Him our loved ones and our not-so-loved ones who we want to love.

The Mary in us studies to do well; the Martha is us does well. We need both. Perhaps there is a lesson here that we have not before considered. Martha worked very hard to feed at least thirteen extra people that day. She was the angel for this hungry and tired group. While Mary had the privilege of sitting at the feet of Jesus and absorbing wisdom, Martha was busy preparing the meal. We are told, “But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made” (v.40). Surely this is understandable.

We all can relate to Martha as well as Mary. Let us remember that God is a God of the hearth-keeper as well as the heart-keeper. Let us remember it was Martha who unwittingly fulfilled the hospitality call: “Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it” (Hebrews 13:2). Also, when their brother Lazarus died it was Martha who went forth to meet Jesus: “. . .She went out to meet him, but Mary stayed home” (John 11:20).

Some of us are the meeters and greeters and some of us are the quiet ones who wait at home. Neither should be criticized.