(August 21- September18, 2009) Month of Elul (For more information see “Victory at the Gates”)

In the Hebrew month of Elul (sixth month) our primary mode of relating to the Lord is as a child to his father. The theme of Elul is returning home (repentance). It’s the time of introspection and inventory, a time to review one’s deeds and spiritual progress over the past year and prepare for the upcoming festivals. They are:

Feast of Trumpets (9/18-20/09 Rosh Hashanah) – A Wake-up call! A time set by God to call you to attention.
The Ten Days of Awe (9/20-28/09 Ten Days of Repentance) – An extended time of seeking the Lord!
The Day of Atonement (9/27-28/09 Yom Kippur) – A time for your fellowship with the Lord to be restored!
The Feast of Tabernacles (10/2-9/09 Feast of Sukkot) – An appointed time to experience God’s presence!

During this month it’s important to rediscover the Lord after a lengthy period in which we may have deserted or ignored Him. In the month of Av, the month that precedes Elul, the deterioration of our relationship with God is so deep that He withdraws to His concealed, inner sanctum, reflecting our withdrawal from Him. However, because of repentance the Lord is likened to a king who goes out into the field, where all of His subjects can meet Him. Our “rediscovery” of God in Elul draws Him from His inner sanctum out to the field. Meeting the Lord in Elul is an “informal” meeting, in which we seek His paternal kinship (intimacy).
In Haggai 1:2-11(Tyndale NLT), in the month of Elul, the Lord gave a message through the prophet Haggai to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Jeshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest. “This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: ‘The people are saying, ‘The time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the Lord.’” Then the Lord sent this message through the prophet Haggai: “Why are you living in luxurious houses while my house lies in ruin? This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Look at what’s happening to you! You have planted much but harvest little. You eat but are not satisfied. You drink but are still thirsty. You put on clothes but cannot keep warm. Your wages disappear as though you were putting them in pockets filled with holes! “This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Look at what’s happening to you! Now go up into the hills, bring down timber, and rebuild my house. Then I will take pleasure in it and be honored says the Lord. You hoped for rich harvests, but they were poor. And when you brought your harvest home, I blew it away. Why? Because my house lies in ruin, says the Lord of Heavens Armies, while all of you are busy building your own fine homes. It’s because of you that the heavens withhold the dew and the earth produces no crops. I have called for a drought on your fields and hills – a drought to wither the grain and grapes and olive trees and all your other crops, a drought to starve you and your livestock and to ruin everything you have worked so hard to get.” For those who live in drought stricken areas we may want to pay particular attention to this prophetic word. Elul is the time when the Body of Christ needs to repent for sins against the Church for focusing on their needs rather than the Church. We must be careful that we don’t turn our backs on the Church during this season. Case in point, when Israel did not fulfill God’s will, Hebrew tradition says that the cherubim atop the Ark of the Covenant would miraculously turn back-to-back. This back-to-back posture does not necessarily reflect hostility, but on more subtle terms – a lack or break in communication. Sometimes, our friends, family or churches require our attention when we are consumed with ourselves. Our face is turned inward, and we don’t desire to turn our hearts to our loved ones or to the Body of Christ. On the other hand, we don’t wish to insult them, so we lightheartedly answer their appeal for our attention with an offhand, “a little later.” What we are really saying is “I want to remain engrossed in my own world.”
Because Elul is the month of healing our relationship with the Lord and others, let’s be proactive to interact with the Lord and those we love in a new way! Over the next few month’s we must awaken spiritually, spend extended time in prayer and fellowship with Him so that our relationship can be restored. As we pursue Him we will experience the Lord’s presence!

Apostles Vance and Debbie Russell
Arise Ministries International
Austin, TX . San Antonio, TX . London, UK
www.ariseministries.com