We are entering into the Feast of Tabernacles—the Feast of Rejoicing. Sometimes, going from the Ten Days of Repentance into this time of rejoicing is a difficult transition. That is why God gives us eight days to get there! There are things we can do to help us get into the joy of the Lord. Psalm 100:4 tells us to: Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. So, one step you can take to get into the joy of the Lord is to begin to thank Him for your blessings.
The purpose of living in little booths during Tabernacles was to remember and honor the days when God’s presence physically dwelt with His people in the wilderness. You too should remember the beginning days of your walk with God, the days of His presence when He first met you. Then, learn to dream in God all over again. Joel wrote: Your old men will dream dreams (Joel 2:28). People tend to give up on their dreams as they age, either because they seem unattainable, or because they have become disillusioned. Hold onto your dreams and believe that God can still fulfill what you believed for when you first met Him.
The biblical Feasts are times that God has appointed to meet with us. During the Feasts, having a meeting with God is not dependent on fasting and prayer; it is a matter of awareness. Think about the last time you were in a difficult place, and remember how the Lord finally met you. If you study how He met you, you will probably realize that it was not a matter of what you did nearly as much as the fact that you opened up to an awareness of Him.
The awareness of the Lord is what the Israelites were practicing when they kept the Feast of Tabernacles. There was a release from their everyday cares. For eight days they left their daily routines to appear before the Lord. We also are trying to break out of our ruts during this time, because we cannot move into something new in God until we stop doing what we are doing and seek Him.
Tabernacles is meant to be a time of rejuvenation. If you do not take time to recharge, your spirit will flag. Feed on God’s Word. Have times when you are alone with Him—not listening to anything or anyone else. Learn to tune into the Lord. Soon you will become aware that He has been speaking to you all along. As you wait on Him, He will renew your strength (Isaiah 40:31).
During the Feast, take the opportunity to polish up your dreams. Be like Abraham and Joshua and Caleb—all of whom God met when they were older—and who believed that God would fulfill what He had spoken. Do not let your hope be deferred. We may not be where we want to be yet; but we are not where we were yesterday. We are en route; we are moving. Our hopes and dreams are going to be met. We are going to possess all that God has promised us.
Scriptures: Deuteronomy 16:15; Leviticus 23:39-43; (Psalm 16:11; 100:4); (Joel 2:28); (Isaiah 40:31).
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