Register for Celebrate Yeshua Northwest

Celebrate Yeshua Northwest (CYNW) is a free annual mini-conference of Restoration in Seattle, serving the Pacific Northwest. Our goal is to bring some of the best from the worldwide messianic movement to help Seattle celebrate Yeshua our Messiah as King, Lord, and Savior. The conference includes three messages with a focus on Romans 9, 10, and 11, and what God is doing among the Jewish people, the body of Messiah, and the messianic movement. Come and spend a couple days with us - click here to register!

Want to know more about our guest speakers and worship leaders?! Click Here

See Schedule for weekend 👇🏽

FRIDAY, AUGUST 25TH @ 6:30PM-8:30PM

Worship with Misha Goetz, blessings for Shabbat, and a message from Rabbi David Rosenberg. Doors will open at 6:00PM. 

SATURDAY, AUGUST 26TH @ 10:30AM-12:00PM

Shabbat Gathering featuring Jennifer Dillavou & the Restoration Band and Rabbi Matt Rosenberg. Doors open at 10AM.

6:00PM-8:00PM

Worship with Nate Benjamin, a message from Wayne Hilsden, and Havdalah. Doors will open at 5:30PM.

Setting Prisoners Free in Zimbabwe

Some of our Team

In Masvingo, Zimbabwe at a medical clinic with Jewish Voice Ministries International (JVMI) the extraordinary happened, again. This was my fourth medical clinic with JVMI, and honestly it moved slower at the start than the previous clinics I had been on. By Wednesday night I had resigned myself to not having a single amazing moment. For context, on my first trip sang the Aaronic Benediction over 700 Ethiopian pastors in the old African Union in Ethiopia and then again over 1500 people in the new African Union. Amazing. On my second trip, I preached the Gospel to an entire Beta-Israel village near Tach Gayint, Ethiopia and saw the whole village come to faith in Yeshua. What?! Ridiculous. On my third trip, this time to Zimbabwe, a young woman came with manifestations from a demon that would confuse her so much that she would go into a type of walking sleep and wake up lost; once, she woke up to find herself standing in a fire, her foot and leg burnt as a result. She came to the clinic clearly manifesting without control, and in the power of the name of Yeshua we were able to set her free. I had the chance to lead not only her, but her extended family to Yeshua, her father saying the words at the end, “We will follow the God that set her free from this demon.” I know, it sounds like a Bible story! Why does the Lord let me experience such amazing things? I am not sure, but I am grateful for the opportunities He gives me. 

Messianic Congregation in Masvingo, Zimbabwe 

On these trips, we open the clinic on Sunday afternoon (half day) and close them at noon on Friday (ends with a half day). Altogether the clinic is open 5 full days, so by the time we get to Wednesday night there is only a day-and-a-half left and we begin to finish the clinic. So, on my fourth trip, again in Zimbabwe, we came to Wednesday night. Based on history, I expect at least one major thing to happen. Don't get me wrong - I am not saying that this is the way it has to be, and I try to bring no expectation of what will happen on these trips. But at the same time, I live by the promise that God will do more than I can hope or imagine, and if you know me at all you know I can imagine pretty big.

On Thursday morning, I preached a sermon at the morning meeting for our international volunteers and local workers out of Exodus 14 and 15. The story follows the exodus of Israel from Egypt after 400 years of slavery and the parting of the Sea of Reeds where Israel walks through on dry land, and then the waters crash on the pursuing Egyptians and their chariots, drowning the enemies of Israel. The end of Exodus 14 reads, “So Adonai saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. When Israel saw the great work that Adonai did over the Egyptians, the people feared Adonai, and they believed in Adonai and in His servant Moses.” Then in Exodus 15 Moses sings a song to the Lord, 

I will sing to Adonai, for He is highly exalted!

The horse and its rider He has thrown into the sea.

Adonai is my strength and song,

and He has become my salvation.

This is my God, and I will glorify Him,

my father’s God, and I will exalt Him.

Adonai is a warrior—Adonai is His Name!

Pharaoh’s chariots and his army

He has hurled into the sea,

and his chosen captains have sunk

into the Sea of Reeds. (Exodus 15:1-4)

The enemy said, “I will pursue,

I will overtake, I will divide the spoil.

My lust shall gorge on them!

I will draw my sword—my hand will destroy them.”

You blew with Your wind, the sea covered them.

They sank like lead in the mighty waters.

Who is like You, Adonai, among the gods?

Who is like You,

glorious in holiness,

awesome in praises,

doing wonders? (Exodus 15:9-11)

People waiting for prayer

I shared these verses at our morning meeting to encourage everyone to finish well. I wanted them to know that though the people we were ministering to were facing despair and darkness, the God of Israel wanted them to experience hope and light. That we came not just to help them physically but to show them Yeshua, and much like Israel crossing the Sea of Reeds we had already seen God do amazing things and that we can believe that in our last day-and-a-half in Zimbabwe our God was willing to do more than we can hope or imagine. I preached hard. I preached well. I needed to hear it myself for what was about to happen that afternoon. 

On Wednesday evening we got a call that a local prison wanted to send some prisoners to receive care at the clinic. On Thursday afternoon, twenty three of them came in a giant military-style bus with no windows. Handcuffed to the guy next to them and surrounded by armed officers, we needed to make sure they didn't interact with the general population of our clinic. Our team did a great job of getting these guys around the clinic to receive care. We cleared out one of the tents so we could gather all of these guys together and share the Gospel with them. They all sat quietly waiting, still handcuffed to the guy next to them; and with a translator this is what I told them… 

“We are so glad that you are here and that we have had the opportunity to serve you guys. You need to know that Yeshua our Messiah was crucified with two criminals. One chose to mock Yeshua and the other asked to be remembered. I know you feel forgotten but you need to know that we have not forgotten you, and more importantly the God who formed you in your mother’s womb has not forgotten you either. Although you live in a cell, God wants to set your hearts and souls free, today. He can set you free if you ask Him to forgive you of your sins and accept Yeshua as God and Savior.”

Prisoners, officers, translators and prayer team

We offered them prayer, two by two, and the opportunity to accept Yeshua and to ask him to forgive them of their sins. All twenty three prisoners chose to believe in Yeshua. Several of them asked for a Bible and we told them we would send them and that the Bible is not just a book but, if they read it, the Holy Spirit would bring the words to life and set their hearts, minds, and souls free. Even the officers accepted prayer from us as a group, and asked that if we were sending the prisoners Bibles that we send them for the officers as well!

Prayer Team

More than I can hope or imagine?! You better believe it. I don't plan these amazing moments on these trips but my God does. He just asks that I show up and trust Him. It is not even just about the one big moment, it’s about the amazing doctors, dentists, nurses, international volunteers, and local workers that make it possible to help over 9,600 people, to pray for 2,399 people, to see 322 people come to know Yeshua, and to see at least 18 verifiable healings in the name of Yeshua. We saw with our own eyes the lame walk, the blind see, the deaf hear and in this case at least 23 prisoners set free! The one big moment is my God’s way of putting a giant dollop of whip cream on top of the sundae. 

Back in Seattle, I made a joke in a group of pastors that for some reason my ministry is more effective in Africa than in Seattle, and then I went into a few-day funk because, momentarily, I believed it. It took me several days to come around because I believed that lie. Ministry that I do is effective, not because of me, but because of the God I serve. Here is what I know for sure: my God does more than I can hope or imagine - in Africa, in Israel, in America, in Seattle, in my congregation, for my family, my marriage, my children, their school, our friends. My God wants to pull people out of darkness and despair and show them light and hope in the name of Yeshua. He wants to use me and YOU to do it. And if given the opportunity, He might just change your life, increase your faith, and allow you to do amazing things for His glory! Without doubt (okay, maybe enough doubt to give God room to do amazing things), I can say, “The best is yet to come.” For me, my family, Restoration, Seattle, Messianic Judaism, the larger body of Messiah (Church), and anyone from any nation, Jew or Gentile, who calls on the name of Yeshua! 

Want to know more about Jewish Voice Ministries and medical outreaches?! Head over to https://www.jewishvoice.org/go/medical-outreaches

Celebrate Yeshua Northwest 2017

Celebrate Yeshua Northwest is an annual mini-conference of Restoration in Seattle, August 25-26. Our goal is to bring some of the best from the worldwide messianic movement and larger Church to help Seattle celebrate Yeshua our Messiah as King, Lord and Savior. We are excited for our lineup this year and Celebrate Yeshua Northwest is a free mini-conference serving the Pacific Northwest. Come and spend a couple days with us!

For more info and lineup of speakers and worship leaders check out our website: http://shalomseattle.com/celebrate-yeshua

Dont miss it!

Last Chance for Passover Tickets

The last chance to buy tickets for our passover seder is Wednesday, April 5th. That means if you are hoping to buy them in person this Saturday (Not an April fools joke) is your last chance!

You can get your tickets online anytime until end of day on Wednesday, April 5th here: 

https://www.eventbrite.com/o/restoration-a-messianic-synagogue-3492160195

Or, you can call the office today (Thursday) or next week (Monday-Wednesday) and Emily Kennedy can help you purchase tickets over the phone. 

Don’t miss out and take this last opportunity to donate a ticket for someone who cannot afford to come. 

This will be the 3rd best seder of all time because the best is yet to come!

Winter Connect Groups

Winter Connect Groups begin next week and I want to encourage you to jump in and join a group. It is only an 8-week commitment and it will add real community to your life and encourage you more than you can imagine. 

As in past semesters, some of our groups will work off of Saturday sermons. When we write sermons we spend somewhere between 10-20 hours on them, and the life cycle of our congregation functions through our sermon series. It is a great way to connect with people in our community and on a deeper level with God. These are also great groups to invite friends to who don't yet know Yeshua!

3 sermon community Connect Groups:

Mill Creek: Led by Laurie Bachand @ Rick & Cindy Gile’s home - Monday nights @ 6:30pm (begins Jan. 16th)

Edmonds: Led by Chris Hamilton @ Tom & Gisela Fogle's home - Monday nights @ 6:30pm (begins Jan. 16th)

Northgate: Led by Aybars Uckun @ Aybars & Kelly Uckun's home - Tuesday nights @ 6:30pm (begins Jan. 17th)

We have a specialty Connect Group that studies the traditional Jewish readings from the Torah for each Saturday. It is a great opportunity for study and connecting with like-minded people at Restoration. It is very convenient as this group meets on Saturdays in our building following our Shabbat Gathering.

Torah Connect Group: Led by Janet Cothrell after Shabbat Gathering (begins Jan. 21st)

This winter semester we are adding Connect Groups specifically designed for men and women. These groups will use a video-based Bible study and will be totally different in context than the other groups. So if you are able, you can participate in a few different groups in one week!

Women’s Connect Group: Led by Piper Ditzler - Wednesday nights @ 7:00pm in the Restoration Office (begins Jan. 18th)

Men's Connect Group: Led by Matt Rosenberg - Tuesday nights @ 6:30pm in the Restoration Office (begins Jan. 17th)

You can get specific information about each group at our Shabbat Gathering every Saturday, or contact Emily Kennedy in the office at 206.232.0490 or info@shalomseattle.com.

These groups are going to be awesome. You are designed for community and we are better together. Join a Connect Group this winter semester!

That Time We Led A Jewish Village To Yeshua

“Remember that time we led an entire village of Jewish people in a prayer to accept Yeshua as their Messiah?!” That is a quote I never imagined saying but that is exactly what happened in Tach Gayint, Ethiopia on a trip with Jewish Voice Ministries International (JVMI). JVMI has been doing medical clinics in places like Ethiopia and Zimbabwe for many years and an important part of every medical clinic is the prayer tent. After people receive medical treatment they have the option of stopping in the prayer tent for counseling and prayer. On every trip, in every clinic, people are prayed for and many are healed. As usual, we set up a prayer tent and for the first day and half saw some amazing miracles. One young girl, who walked six hours to come to the clinic, asked for prayer because her entire right arm was paralyzed. Two years earlier she had surgery to remove a goiter and during the surgery her entire right arm became paralyzed. A group of people prayed for her and I watched as life came to her arm and she began to lift her shoulder, bend her elbow, and grip her fingers for the first time in two years. Excitement and tears of joy filled her eyes as we all worshipped God for what He had done for her. It was an amazing miracle to witness. 

I have found in my walk with God that He loves to make changes when we are comfortable in the way we do things. Our first instinct is to blame the Devil and call it oppression or persecution. But, often what feels like persecution is just God changing direction for us. So, in the middle of the first full day came the news that the leaders of the town of Tach Gayint wanted the prayer tent shut down. Shutting down the prayer tent had never happened at a JVMI clinic and our team was faced with an interesting situation. As we all prayed, God had already set the stage as several clinic veterans sensed that this trip would be different. Words like “new paradigm”, “new model”, “change” and “organic” came to many even before we left the United States. With the shut down of the prayer tent looking like a reality, the question was, “what do we do now?” and part of the answer the Lord gave us became one of the great events of my life. 

Tach Gaynit, Ethiopia has a population of 6,000 Jewish people in villages scattered all over the area. These villages of Jewish people are the reason that JVMI decided to host a clinic in Tach Gayint. With the prayer tent shut down, we decided to send teams to these villages to share directly with these Jewish people about Yeshua. I was a part of a team of 24 who went to a village of about 70 Jewish people. To get to this remote village, it was an hour drive from the clinic site and a 4 mile walk, which felt like it was up hill both ways. Sammy, one of our translators and a Messianic Leader from Gondor, Ethiopia gathered the people together. They brought out goat skins for all of us to sit on so we could talk together. Ezra, one of the leaders from JVMI, asked the villagers to tell their story. One of the older villagers stood and told us that he had a vision the night before. In his vision he saw a great light like the sun coming down the path of their village. He told us, “I am getting old and will die soon, but I want to live as long as the moon.”

I told them that we were not the light from the vision but we represented the light, Yeshua our Messiah. The villagers told us of all of their suffering as Jews. Houses burnt down, hard time finding work, children not able to go to school, works of art made to be sold that no one would buy because they were made by Jewish people. In Ethiopia many people believe a unique version of the old anti-Semitism of blood libel. It is believed that Jews turn into Hyena’s at night to take babies and drink peoples blood. It is also believed that Jewish people can curse you by giving you the evil eye. If bad things happen to you or family, it is probably because a Jewish person gave you the evil eye. Even in 2015, Jewish people were killed as “retaliation” for perceived curses. 

We told the village that Jewish people have been suffering all over the world for thousands of years and that they were not alone in their suffering. Joshua Aaron and Liron Siegel, from Israel, both shared about their families that suffered persecution. Then I shared with them about our Messiah who suffered 2,000 years ago. That He suffered for Jewish people and was beaten, bruised, whipped, had a crown of thorns placed on His head and then crucified. As He hang on the cross He said, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.” He prayed for those who persecuted Him. He died then rose from the dead three days later and told His disciples to tell everyone about His story. We told this Jewish village, in the middle of remote Ethiopia, that they are why we had came. That we wanted to share the story of Yeshua who was not just a man but also the God of Israel. That He was with them every time they suffered, He was with them in their persecution, and that He knew persecution Himself. That He came for Jewish people and that all they had to do was ask Him to forgive them of their sins and accept Him as their Lord and Savior. I also told them that, if they believed in Yeshua, not only could they live as long as the moon but after they died they could actually live forever with Yeshua. I turned to Ezra and asked, “should we have people pray with them individually?” And Ezra replied “Just go for the whole village!” So I asked, “does anyone want to accept Yeshua as their Messiah?” and to my amazement the whole village lifted their hands. Through translation we asked them to repeat a simple prayer in the name of Yeshua and welcomed an entire village of Jewish Ethiopians into the family of God. 

I chanted the Shechanyanu in Hebrew over them. The prayer says, “Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of Universe, who has brought us to this happy season.” Then Joshua Aaron taught the village Hine MaTov, from Psalm 133, “How good and pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together” and chanted the Aaronic Benediction over them.  We then had the opportunity to pray for individuals and saw several people healed. One man came to myself and Alice Rivas for healing in his right ear. He could not hear so we prayed in Yeshua’s name and nothing happened. He still couldn't hear. Our translator, Yamlak Amare, noticed some necklaces that the man was wearing and said they were from witchcraft. We encouraged him to cut them off asked him to renounce witchcraft and let Yeshua heal his hear. He agreed, we cut off the necklaces. Alice prayed that he would receive hearing in his ear and immediately he gained his hearing back. Alice covered his good ear and whispered in his “bad” ear and he repeated every word!

I felt like I was in a movie. I have heard stories, read books and articles of people leading tribes to Yeshua. But me, not likely. Sitting at my desk in the Restoration office, reflecting on this amazing time, I just can’t believe that God allowed me to be apart of this. For me, this will go down as one of the great moments in my life. JMVI will continue to follow up with this village throughout the year, bringing medical supples and discipling the villagers and we plan to go back to Tach Gaynit next January. The best part is back in April of 2015, I was supposed to go to Zimbabwe with JVMI and I ended up in the hospital instead. The Lord taught me so much (read about it here) as I had to stay home and recover. The only reason I was on this trip to Tach Gayint, Ethiopia was to make up for the trip I missed in 2015. I had no idea what God was up too but man was I glad to be on board for the ride. 

If you have never been on a trip like this, may I suggest that now is the time. You never know what God might use you to do and it may just become one of the greatest experiences of your life. Here’s the website for medical outreaches: JVMI Medical Outreaches.

Wisdom & Coexist Bumper Stickers

My parents tell me that reading did not come easy for me and that I was about eight years old when I really began to comprehend what I was reading. One of the first Bible’s my dad gave me was a New Living Translation Messianic version. Basically, this translation changed the name Jesus to His hebrew name, Yeshua. My dad created a system called “The Word As A Way Of Life” (WWL). In WWL, you put yourself on a never-ending cycle of reading with twelve sections through the whole Bible. By reading one chapter in twelve sections everyday you can read the whole Bible about every 90 days. Of course, some sections take longer than others but the average is reading the whole Bible over and over again about every 90 days. Just the text. No commentaries. No study guides. Just the text. The goal was not deep mediation but familiarity with the text of the Bible. At the age of eight, my dad set me up with eight bookmarks reading one chapter from these eight sections everyday and I continue in twelve sections to this day.

my WWL sticker in my Bible

As I grew older, I realized in conversation with other Bible readers how much my early reading and system of reading prepared me for understanding the Bible. Most Bible readers will say that they believe in the whole Bible but many have never actually read the whole Bible. Some would celebrate reading through the whole Bible once. Some, maybe four times. I can’t even count how many times I have read the whole Bible. Sure, there were times I didn’t read. There are days I only read six sections and pick up where I left off. For the most part, I have read the Bible every ninety days from the time I was eight. I am thirty six now and I am really bad at math. I just know I have read it a lot. I don’t say that to boast of my own knowledge but to celebrate my parent's decision to get me into the Word of God at a young age. Part of the reason I am a Rabbi today is because I am still enamored with the text of the Bible and the life that can be found within its pages. I use a lot of commentaries and supplemental materials that help with studying the Bible, they are great, but nothing replaces reading and understanding the text of the Bible all by itself. 

It’s funny because I can tell what time of my life I memorized a scripture by the translation I used for my daily devotions. During my High School years is really when I began to take my faith in Yeshua seriously. I bought a little New International version (NIV) because I thought the cover was cool. A lot of the scriptures I have memorized are from my days with with that little NIV and some of the “life verses” which impacted me early in my faith still speak to me today. 

As I remember it, one of the first verses that spoke to me early on was Proverbs 9:10-12:

10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. 11 For through wisdom your days will be many, and years will be added to your life. 12 If you are wise, your wisdom will reward you; if you are a mocker, you alone will suffer.

I have ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity disorder) and while many my age have been misdiagnosed, I was the poster child for the disorder. I am sure my love of Proverbs 9:10-12 comes from my parents who desperately, in all of my spontaneity and curiosity, wanted me to choose wisdom. My brain moves fast. Often, particularly in adolescence, my brain made decisions that the rest of me wouldn’t understand until it was too late. Reflecting back on my childhood I can say with confidence that I was not a bad kid but my decision making record would reflect otherwise. Many in my life treated me like a bad kid not knowing that my heart was always towards The Lord. In my struggle to understand myself I found these verses. My whole life I have desired wisdom. This proverb calls “the fear of the Lord” the very beginning of wisdom. In the world we live in there is all kinds of wisdom. There is the wisdom of philosophy, the wisdom of mathematics, the wisdom of hollywood, the wisdom of business, the wisdom of science, the wisdom of the arts. There is nothing wrong with any of this wisdom, for all wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord. Not being afraid of God but understanding that all things begin with Him. In all of our wisdom, intelligence, creativity, and ingenuity, there is a God that created wisdom for us. It is within the nature of human beings to believe we can be wise on our own. There is something in us as Americans, who value individualism, to believe that our ability to create comes from ourselves. Humanism is the philosophy that we as human beings can create our own good and wisdom.

The American Humanist Association defines Humanism as “a progressive philosophy of life that, without theism and other supernatural beliefs, affirms our ability and responsibility to lead ethical lives of personal fulfillment that aspire to the greater good of humanity.”

R.C. Sproul, the great theologian writes, that “Humanism was not invented by man, but by a snake who suggested that the quest for autonomy might be a good idea.” The truth is that we, as human beings, love wisdom for wisdoms sake, instead of loving God who gives us wisdom as a tool to discover Him. 

Proverbs 9:10-12 hits this concept directly in between the eyes. Your wisdom, intelligence, creativity, and ingenuity start with God. When He formed us in our mothers womb He put all of these good things in us and He wants credit for his own creativity. Any wisdom begins with God. Any understanding that we can have in any field begins with knowledge of the Holy One. Otherwise, understanding and wisdom become about us and what we know rather than God who, in his wisdom, gave us the capacity for wisdom and understanding.  You can have wisdom without acknowledging God but that wisdom will fade when the world comes to its conclusion. The only wisdom that will survive is the wisdom that acknowledges the creator of wisdom. 

Verse 11 tells us that if we understand that knowledge and wisdom come from God than “your days will be many, and years will be added to your life.” Even more than that, verse 12, tells us with this kind of wisdom comes great reward and that those that who mock will suffer in loneliness. Why loneliness? Because if you boast in your own wisdom when you come to the end of your wisdom you will only find yourself. There is a limit and an end to all wisdom. But If we recognize that wisdom begins with God and that any wisdom we have comes from Him there is no end to our understanding. There is thankfulness and gratefulness that any wisdom I have comes from the One who created wisdom. 

I’m always intrigued by those who mock faith. Instead of a “Jesus Fish” on their cars people have “Fish n’ Chips” or a “Darwin Fish”. In Seattle, many people seem to have “Coexist” bumper stickers with all different religious symbols in the word Coexist. Interestingly, it seems to me that the only people who have those stickers on their cars and people who are non-religious. All you need is a basic study of comparative religion and you understand that different religions cannot coexist. Sure, we can all live in the same city and treat each other with kindness. But ultimately, if you believe in Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, etc., you believe that everyone will end up somewhere after this life is over, and they all boast of different outcomes. In that sense, for anyone who is an adherent of any religion, you don’t want to coexist with people. You want people to come with you to where you will end up after this life is over. It is only those who “mock” religion that want to “coexist” and what they mean by coexist is “no religion.”  I’m not trying to lead people to religion as much as I am trying to lead people to Yeshua. He transcends religion and what we have done with religion. In His wisdom, He created the heavens and the earth, and He gave us the capacity for wisdom and understanding. Ultimately, there is an end to the wisdom of this world. When all things come to end so will all wisdom that is found on the earth. But, if we acknowledge that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding,” and give God credit for transcending and creating wisdom, then, “your days will be many, and years will be added to your life.”

People are searching for wisdom. We were made to be smart, intellectual, creative beings. God put in us the desire to seek out and find wisdom. Any wisdom I have is wisdom that has been given to me. I am not wise on my own. But to acknowledge the One who created wisdom is the highest form of wisdom itself. All the days of my life I want to grow in wisdom. A wisdom whose foundation is the fear of the Lord and an understanding that comes from Knowledge of the Holy One!

When God Makes You Sick

In April, on the last day of Passover, I went to the emergency room with tremendous pain in my abdomen. In all honesty, I thought it might just be the worst gas I had ever felt before or maybe just too much Matzah (#JewishProblems). At first the doctors were not even sure what was happening! After tests and imaging studies, I was diagnosed with Diverticulitis. WebMD describes Diverticulitis this way: 

Diverticulosis happens when pouches (diverticula) form in the wall of the colon. If these pouches get inflamed or infected, it is called diverticulitis. Diverticulitis can be very painful. Doctors aren't sure what causes diverticula in the colon (diverticulosis). But they think that a low-fiber diet may play a role. Without fiber to add bulk to the stool, the colon has to work harder than normal to push the stool forward. The pressure from this may cause pouches to form in weak spots along the colon. Doctors aren't sure what causes diverticulitis. Bacteria grow in the pouches, and this can lead to inflammation or infection.

It was painful. More painful than anything I have experienced in my life. As I was suffering late at night, before going to the hospital, I began throwing up from the pain. While sitting on the bathroom floor I found myself singing. What an odd experience to throw up and sing at the same time. Specifically two songs were set on repeat in my mind, The Love of God by Marty Goetz and Lord Have Mercy by Lecrae. The line in Lecrae’s song is “Lord have mercy and pity on your son from what I once was and what I have become.” 

While the diagnosis was clear, my doctors had no idea why this was happening to me because this condition seemed odd at my young age. With gas and excess Matzah ruled out, I had no clue either! It wasn't until the end of August that I experienced an unexpected revelation.  God made me sick. 

I know, it sounds weird and I don’t like saying it out loud or writing it down. I feel like to some degree it’s against my theology. Please don’t read this and believe that I am saying God causes people to get sick. That would miss the point of the lesson I learned. Some sickness is just sickness. Some sickness is opportunity for us to learn something. 

For a few weeks prior to this revelation each of the leaders at Restoration came to me and in different conversation and all essentially said the same thing to me: “You don’t listen. When you do listen you are only hearing what you want to hear so you can persuade me to what you want me to do.” If one leader says something you think about it. If two leaders say the same thing you pray about it. If all your leaders say the same thing it is probably God trying to get your attention. So, with the encouragement from my mentor, I took a test from Emotional Intelligence 2.0 and the results said, “You don’t listen. When you do listen you are only hearing what you want to hear so you can persuade me to what you want me to do.” Dang it. So, after all this I am getting in my car after a great workout and clear as day I hear the Lord say, “I made you sick.” I respond with, “why would you do that to me?”  To which, as clear as if I was before the Lord, He said, “It was the only way you would listen to me.”  Then there were tears. a lot of tears.

I don’t know how you feel about God speaking out loud. I don’t know if you have ever heard Him speak to you. Maybe you think I am crazy. I’m okay with that. Maybe you think God making me sick is ridiculous and I would say that, until this happened, I probably would have agreed with you. I am not saying sickness is from God. I am not saying this happens to everyone. I don’t know how often God works this way. There is also a danger that we would be gripped by fear and begin to believe that anything bad that happens to us is from God. It’s not. Fear is not from God. Here is what I know, I wasn’t listening. To think that I would try to persuade God, to what I want Him to do rather than listen for what He wants me to do, makes me sad. I want to listen better. To God, to my leaders. Of course the danger of being this transparent is that people have the tendency to look back and say “you weren’t listening to me either.” Or in conversation people pull out this blog and say “you are doing this to me, right now.” I get all that. I also believe that God wants to our experiences to encourage someone who may be going through the same kind of thing. 

It’s interesting because in the beginning of January of this year I started taking my health seriously. I starting going to the gym four times a week and I am eating better than I had before. Aside from the time I was recovering from being sick I have maintained these lifestyle changes all year.  I have changed a lot of things in my life because of this encounter with God. Reflecting back on this whole experience I realize this was a test from the Lord. When we talk about God testing Abraham in Genesis we recognize that He wasn’t testing Abraham to see what he would do. God knows. The test is for us. Honestly, it was faith building, even in serious pain I gave God glory and didn’t blame him for my pain. I worshipped Him and knew He was with me and was aware enough to hear is voice in my pain and recovery. Not just hear, either, but respond. Please don’t believe I am some kind of spiritual super star. That would miss my whole point in writing about this experience. It’s about how awesome God is not about me. 

You might say, “If God loves you why would He hurt you?” This is an important question. The writer of the book of Hebrews gives a great answer:

7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? 8 If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. 9 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! 10 They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. (Hebrews 12:7-11).

It is because God loves me so much that He would take such drastic measures to speak to me. I am quite confident that, for many years to come, 2015 will be a year for me to reflect back on knowing that God refuses to leave me. My passion in life is helping others know that no matter what you do, no matter how far you run from the God who created you, no matter if you claim to not believe in Him at all—that same God will never leave you. He waits, patiently. He inserts Himself into your story and uses the events of your life, good and bad, to point you back to Him.

So, are you listening even in your pain? Can you hear His voice? What is God saying to you in the midst of pain?

Light Up The Darkness

On this first night of Hanukkah I wanted to share with you the message that I gave at Gateway Church in Dallas at their Messianic service earlier this month. It was such an honor and joy to be apart of their service.  I spoke about Hanukkah and how we can “Light Up The Darkness.” It’s a perfect message for us tonight (Dec. 16th) and for the week of Hanukkah. Don’t be afraid of the Darkness. Light Up the Darkness!

Click here for the link to my message at Gateway Church and Happy Hanukkah!

The Meaning, Mission & Values of Restoration: A Messianic Synagogue in Seattle

At Restoration, a Messianic Synagogue in Seattle, we want to do our part so that God may show Himself to all people. Paul, writer of most of the New Testament, who was a trained Rabbi and devout Jew, wrote in his letter to the Romans, “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile” (Romans 1:16).

The simple explanation of the Gospel is that God sent His son, Yeshua, to offer Himself as a sacrifice that would pay the penalty for humanity’s sins. Yeshua, after being put to death, rose from the dead three days later, and defeated death as a punishment for sin. If one believes in Yeshua, they can find the forgiveness of their sins and the ability to live with God forever after they die. God’s desire is for every human being on planet earth to understand this message.  

Our synagogue’s mission is to lead people to become fully devoted followers of Yeshua.

Yeshua is not just a good teacher, Rabbi or Jew who said wise things. He is the “visible image of the invisible God” (Colossians 1:15) and we want to follow Him and the things He has asked us to do. The word “become” is very important because it speaks to the never-ending process of developing into better followers of Yeshua, along with learning and understanding the things of God. The name of our synagogue, Restoration, speaks to the idea that God is always, consistently, calling people to return to their Creator and find restoration in all that God has made them to be, both Jews and Gentiles.  This is reflected in a three-step process that we want to lead everyone through: Worship. Connect. Serve. 

Worship 

We believe that God is One and yet three-in-one: Father God, Yeshua the Son, and the Holy Spirit— and He alone is worthy of all adoration, veneration and honor. You were made to worship the One True God. Worship is recognizing who God is and who you are in Him. Worship is the first step in becoming a disciple of Yeshua. We worship Him together on Shabbat, during the holidays and in every event. 

Connect

Everyone belongs in the family of God. Part of belonging is connecting to community. We believe you can’t do life alone and that you need community around you during the week to thrive. 

Serve

Serving in the congregation and using our gifts and talents is important for every follower of Yeshua.  One way we demonstrate God’s love is through volunteering in our synagogue and in our community. 

This three-part process is just that, a process. As we gain more understanding, we then lead others through the same process. We are always learning more about what it means to worship God, connect with others, and serve our community.

Every congregation has values that make them distinct. Restoration is not in competition with other Messianic synagogues or Bible-believing churches in Seattle. We are on the same team with any congregation that is leading people to Yeshua and believes that He is the way, the truth and the life, and that no one can get to God expect through Him.  We have six core values and they are what we care about most at Restoration. 

We Reflect the Jewishness of Yeshua

We choose, to reflect the Jewishness of our Messiah, Yeshua. We are unapologetically a synagogue and unapologetically worship in a Jewish context. As a synagogue we worship on Shabbat, meet for Biblical Festivals, keep varying degrees of Kosher, and sing in Hebrew and English. Some wear kippot and Talliot.  We do not believe that we are right about everything and that everyone else is wrong, or that others are in sin for not being more like us. We partner with other Messianic synagogues and churches that share a love for Yeshua and people finding Yeshua.

Everyone Belongs in the Family of God

Really, everyone. Jew and Gentile, male and female. Everyone. The family of God is big and God put us in our physical families so that we can find His family. All of us belong to the same family and worship God together. At Restoration, Jews are Jews and Gentiles are Gentiles. There is no need for Jews to become Gentiles or Gentiles to become Jews. Every person, with their family background and history, is called to be a representative of their people in the Family of God. God wants people from every nation, every tribe, every language and we mean to reflect that in our synagogue.

Every Setback is a Chance to Comeback

We are all sinners and all fall short of the glory of God. That is the power to the story of Yeshua. His love is not measured by your goodness. Every time we sin, every time we fall short, every time we have a setback, is an opportunity for us to return to God. This is reflected in the Biblical idea of Return. God is always calling people to return to Him, Our Creator. We run, we turn away, we fall into sin and things that are opposed to God, but in His grace and mercy He says, “Comeback, return to me!” (Hosea 14:1, Joel 2:13, Zechariah 1:3). 

We Are Irrationally Generous with Our Resources

We realize that, for many, giving seems irrational. God has given us so many resources, including money, gifts, talents, and time. We believe it all belongs to God and that He wants us to be irrationally generous with those resources. For us, we give of our money because God gave it all to us and it really all belongs to Him. 

We believe everyone should tithe to the community that they belong to. Tithe literally means “a tenth” and above our tithe is called offerings. In the Scriptures, the definition of offering is what you give after you tithe. You cannot give an offering unless you already tithe. 

Restoration currently gives 11% out to non-profits in Seattle and Israel, and we plan to increase our giving. Because we want as many people as possible to hear the message of Yeshua in its Jewish context, we give it away! Our sermons will always be free. Our Restoration App for smartphones and tablets (iOS, Android, Windows, Kindle Fire) will always be free. 

We Demonstrate God’s Love Through Service

God’s love for us is demonstrated in the giving of His son’s life for ours. As an expression of God’s love we want to serve our synagogue community, Seattle (our city), America (our county), Israel (Homeland of the Jewish people), and the world. We give of our time and talents to our synagogue because we believe together we can change the world.

You Can’t Do Life Alone

Actually, you can do life alone, but it is not a part of our original design. We were made for community. Contrary to the typical American dream, our lives are not just about us. Our lives were designed by God to be shared with others. We choose to live in community with others. We choose to not do life alone. We choose to let others into our journeys, into our hurt, and into the joys of life. We choose to share this messy life with others. And we believe that God wants to speak into our lives through community. 

Want to know more, visit us at ShalomSeattle.com!