Painting by Yoram Raanan
"If you follow My decrees and observe my commandments and perform them ....
then I will place my sanctuary among you; and my Spirit will not reject you.
I will walk among you; I will be God unto you, and you will be a people unto me…
and I will lead you erect."
One day at the end of days as we know them, in the days of the Messiah,
we are promised that we will walk with God just like Adam and Eve did in the garden of Eden at the beginning of time.
Every week we have a taste of the next world when we enter into the holy 7th day,
"My Shabbos shall you observe, and My Sanctuary shall you revere- I am Hashem."
This world as we know it is decreed to last for six thousand years.
Just like our weekly cycles consist of 6 days of work followed by a Shabbos of rest,
so too there will be 6 millennia of work followed by
a Shabbos-like time of tranquility.
On erev Shabbos (right before Shabbos starts) we run to get ready
knowing that once Shabbos begins our work is 'done'.
At that time our week is over, and we must let go.
On Shabbos there is literally no more 'work' to do.
We are done with creating and doing.
We acknowledge that God runs the world and 'desires' a relationship with us.
We stop our toil allowing us to 'walk' together with God.
The 7th millennium is promised to be a time of peace,
a time beyond time when there will be no more wars.
“A 'day' that is entirely rest and serenity for eternal life"
At that time when we will all know and recognize God, all will be well.
There will be no more hunger, no more illness, no more death.
It is promised to be a time of joy and gladness.
At that time there will be no more crying and sorrow.
It is a promise.
This world and our existence in it will not last forever.
We are part of a much bigger plan.
There is a better future to yearn for.
We are now in the period akin to Friday afternoon,
poised to enter the next stage.
We are near the end of the 6th millennium (5784) eagerly awaiting the 7th.
May we be people who help repair the tattered state of our relationship with others and with God.
May we play our part in bringing the Messianic era earlier
than at the end of the 6th millennium.
May we see those days of peace and tranquility in our lifetime.
Shabbat shalom
Much love
Elissa
Painting by Yoram Raanan
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