Good Morning Dear Friends,
I hope you are all doing well this week! I have been busy, but I am doing well! I only have two days left and will be out for Christmas break. (Woo hoo) This morning I have a new blog post for you today. We will be discussing what Hanukkah is all about and I will be going over what each candle represents in the menorah or Hanukkiah. I get very excited around this time of year because I enjoy celebrating Hanukkah. I will never forget the first time I celebrated Hanukkah, I wasn't sure if I was doing everything right so I prayed, "Holy Spirit lead me, I'm new at this." He of course did and friends, all I could see is Jesus in this beautiful eight day celebration! I just kept saying over and over again, "This is beautiful, absolutely beautiful!" So if you are ready to learn more about this beautiful celebration, let's proceed, but before we do, I hope you have your cup of coffee or tea with you. Let's begin!
So what is Hanukkah? Hanukkah is a celebration of dedication. It's also a story of the Maccabees who at the time before Jesus came to this earth revolted against the Greecian empire and against Antiochus and Alexander the Great. The Jews were told you cannot worship your God, but are to worship our gods. In short, the Maccabees had enough and they fought against them and were successful. While they were fighting, it was during the time of Hanukkah and they only had enough oil for one night and miraculously the oil burned for 8 nights! I love reading about the Maccabees, such a wonderful story of faith and perseverance against evil. They fought for their rights to serve the Almighty God and did not give up. When they were told you cannot do this or that, it was like a fire rose up within them and said, "Do not bow to the enemy, fight back!"
So, now that you know the Maccabean story, now time to discuss what each candle represents. There are actually 9 candles. The one in the middle is called the Shamash. Shamash means "The Servant." Does this remind you of Someone? The one in the middle represents Jesus and with the shamash candle, you light it first then use the shamash to light the rest of the candles. Now when you light the candles, you go from right to left on the menorah. The first candle on the first night that you will light is called avodah. Avodah means to worship. So we come back to the most important commandment, you shall worship the Lord your God and no other. It also means to serve others selflessly. The second candle is called ahavah. Ahavah means to love, to love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your entire being. Also you are to love your neighbor as yourself. To love others deeply. These are the words of Jesus when He was asked what was the greatest commandment. The third one is called tefillah. Tefillah means prayer. Oh I don't know about you, but do you see a pattern. This is the order of how we are to approach the throne of God.
We are to approach Him with worship, love, and now prayer. Praying daily is not only important for us, but also to the Lord. It is our daily communication to our heavenly Father. Pray consistently and fervently. The fourth candle is called emunah. Emunah means faith. Our faith in God is what allows Him to move in our lives and grows every day we live. Live lives of faith and faithfulness. The fifth candle is called teshuvah. Teshuvah means repentence, we are to quickly and continually repent when we fall into sin. The sixth candle is called anavah. Anavah means to walk humbly before the Lord. We are called to live a life of humility or humbleness because the opposite of humility is pride. Pride is what caused satan to lose everything in heaven even his identity. The seventh candle is called tzedakah which means righteousness or right living. Another meaning is to give charity to those in need. Think about all the people that are in need today, so many are living in difficult circumstances. I reminded of what Peter told the poor man, silver and gold we do not have, but what we do have, we give freely. What did they have? They had the power of the Holy Spirit and a right relationship with the Lord.
The eight candle is called tikkun olam. Tikkun olam means repair of the world. Now Jesus is the ultimate repairer of the world, but we who partner with Him, we can shine our light in this dark world and bring repair to this fallen world. To all the ones who are broken and desperate to be repaired. Isn't this wonderful, this lets us know that we do indeed have a purpose in this world and it's to not only be a servant of the Lord, but to serve others and as we do, the Lord will not only see, but bless us for being obedient to Him.
So, there you have it, you have learned a bit about Hanukkah. I pray that you were blessed by this post! If you are intrigued by this beautiful celebration of dedication, I encourage you to pray and ask the Lord to reveal these powerful truths to you and that He may lead to celebrate this wonderful feast! Be blessed my friends! May the Lord bless you and keep you. Shalom and happy Hanukkah, until next time!
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