Leviticus 23:15-17: 15 “‘From
the day after the day of rest — that is, from the day you bring the
sheaf for waving — you are to count seven full weeks, 16 until the day after the seventh week; you are to count fifty days; and then you are to present a new grain offering to Adonai. 17 You
must bring bread from your homes for waving — two loaves made with one
gallon of fine flour, baked with leaven — as firstfruits for Adonai. The apostles would have counted those fifty days, known as the counting of the omer, and then on the 50th day - the feast of Shavu'ot - they were gathered together.
Acts 2:1-4: The festival of Shavu‘ot arrived, and the believers all gathered together in one place. 2 Suddenly there came a sound from the sky like the roar of a violent wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then they saw what looked like tongues of fire, which separated and came to rest on each one of them. 4 They were all filled with the Ruach HaKodesh and began to talk in different languages, as the Spirit enabled them to speak.
Last Saturday we went out to a Colorado State Park near a lake and camped out with two dear friends who, like we, were greatly anticipating a fresh outpouring of the Spirit. We were blessed with a campsite very near the water, and we spent the entire afternoon in the Word. After enjoying a sumptuous banquet of the Scriptures, we all began to question, "What do we need to do to be prepared for a fresh anointing? Does God consider us ready and worthy of such an event?" We all received the same answer as we sought the Lord, and the answer was "teshuva" (repent)! It bore witness with all of us. We needed to be clean vessels before the Father.
We had a time of precious worship in our little camper that evening, as the feast day came in, and we each offered up to the LORD our own personal confessions of sin, asking forgiveness of Him and of each other. Then, quite suddenly, it began: the mighty, rushing wind! The wind blew so hard I wondered if our little pop-up was going to roll over! The great gusts of wind ushered in the rain - a downpour of heavenly blessing, a sign of Father's cleansing work in each of us. That night we slept peacefully, confident that we had heard His instruction and received His blessing.
In the morning we walked down to the lake with two freshly-baked loaves of fine flour. Before we waved them before the LORD, we two couples entered the lake and washed our spouses' feet, asking for forgiveness in any ways we dishonored one another, and then asking the Father to accept US as two loaves - two people joined together as the two sticks of Ezekiel - being restored as one.
How personal and intimate this Shavu'ot celebration was! We knew the Spirit had visited us in the wind and in the rain, and again in the lake. Tearfully we climbed back up on the bank and waved the loaves of bread as an offering to YHVH, feeling overwhelming gratitude that our Abba was looking down on His children with joyful approval. We are not in the Land - we are in exile - and none of us have full understanding how to keep these wonderful festivals; yet, it reminds me of little children who make a card for their daddy's birthday and scribble all over the paper and make funny pictures. Does the daddy disapprove because he can't read the scribbling or understand the pictures? Of course not! The daddy's heart is melted because his little child did the best he could to show his love for his father.I pray that our Abba Father's heart was melted as we worshiped and confessed, and washed feet and waved the firstfruits offering of bread before Him. I pray that the couple who came walking by and curiously watched us will want to discover what we were doing, and come to the LORD because of it! I pray that the mighty wind and the outpouring of rain were signs that we are being cleansed, healed, restored, and made ready to be the Bride of our soon-coming King!
