​“Fathers, don’t irritate your children and make them resentful; instead, raise them with the Lord’s kind of discipline and guidance.” - Ephesians 6:4, CJB

We can never really know the outcome after raising our children what their lives will be like. We have hopes and dreams for them, but God alone directs their paths and their futures.

That being said, I want to address the subject of mental illness. It’s very easy to love a child who’s well behaved but challenging to love a child who isn’t. Raising a mentally Ill child can be very taxing at times and can cause stress in the family. I know this very well; there’s constant chaos in the household. As taxing as it could be, they are still capable of learning the Bible, and we can still raise them in the way they should go. Just as we keep Yeshua in the center of our marriages, we need to also keep him in the center of the family. God saw fit for us to have all our children, so they should all be loved unconditionally, just the way he loves us. We are all children of the Lord, and we should all be raised as such.

Be a Blessing and Be Blessed!

Morning Inspirational
By Rebbitzen Kathleen Rantz
May 26th, 2022 | 25th of Iyyar, 5782

​“For everything there is a season, a right time for every intention under heaven — a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance…” ~ Ecclesiastes 3:1, 4, CJB

There are many dynamics to family life, just as there are those within congregational life. The way one grows up, reflects who they are as adults. Those that grow up within congregational life (depending on the traditions of those communities) are told to always be serious, and to act accordingly; that there is no crying or laughter allowed. If they misbehave, they are punished. There’s no singing, dancing, or even playing of instruments in some congregations, because it may be a distraction from God’s word. Interestingly however, throughout God’s word you see weeping and rejoicing. You see singing, dancing, and even the playing of musical instruments. God is to be worshipped and praised!

God is a God of love; he shows us how to love one another. He gave us his son Yeshua, who laid down his life so that we may live a life of joy. He gave us times and seasons. He gave us feelings and emotions. He’s given us discernment to know when, where and how to use these emotions. He has shown us how to act accordingly. He’s given us gifts to use for his will. So, praise him in the storms; delight in his Shabbat’s, walk in his ways, and love the life he’s given you. Be sad, be angry, be joyful, be glad, sing and dance. Do all the things he instructs you to do, cause it’s okay to do these things.

Be a Blessing and Be Blessed!

Morning Inspirational
By Rebbitzen Kathleen Rantz
May 12, 2022 | 11th of Iyyar, 5782

“Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.” – Ya’akov/James 1:12, ESV

We all go through various trials in our lives. Some trials are worse then others; some will take you to a breaking point. We can’t let ourselves get lost in the breaking. Breaking takes our focus off God and onto the circumstances. Breaking causes us to make decisions that can cause severe consequences. What if we focus on the making, not the breaking? What new thing is God doing within us? Life is a test, and just like in school, when we pass the test, we go to the next level. For every trial we go through, when we press into God, we come out better, stronger, and wiser. He’s done it in us before and he will do it again. Our focus may sway, but we need to bring it back to him. Our trust should always be in him; he is where our help comes from. So let us stay steadfast through the trials and see God’s blessings through them. Ask him what new thing is he doing in you?

Be a Blessing and Be Blessed!

Morning Inspirational
By Rebbitzen Kathleen Rantz
May 4th, 2022 | Third of Iyyar, 5782
18th Day of the Counting of the Omer

​“Comfort and keep comforting my people,” says your God. - Isaiah 40:1, CJB

This week we observe Holocaust Remembrance Day. Many will remember the six million Jews killed during the Holocaust through walks or marches. Schools and other communities will have Holocaust survivors speak to them about their time in captivity. We’re in a time where many of those survivors are passing on, and family members now speak for them and tell their stories, to ensure what they went through is never forgotten. Every year we profess to “Never Forget.” 
 
Why do we do this? We do this so the atrocities of what happened to the Jewish people will never be repeated on their future generations, or any other race or religion that is being persecuted now, even in this day and age. God comforts those who mourn in Zion (Isaiah 61:3). He also gives comfort to those in the nations who are suffering because of hate or oppression. Holocaust Remembrance Day is a day which holds deep spiritual meaning, a day we should never forget, about a people who should never be forgotten. 
 
May we “Never Forget” those six million Jews that perished during the Nazi Holocaust.

Be a Blessing and Be Blessed!

Morning Inspirational
By Rebbitzen Kathleen Rantz
April 27, 2022 | 26th of Nisan, 5782

​“Get rid of the old hametz, so that you can be a new batch of dough, because in reality you are unleavened. For our Pesach Lamb, the Messiah, has been sacrificed. So let us celebrate the Seder not with leftover hametz [yeast], the hametz of wickedness and evil, but with the matzah of purity and truth.” 
 
- 1 Corinthians 5:7-8, CJB

Passover marks the redemption and rebirth of the Jewish people who were freed from slavery and led to the Promised Land. It’s a mark of new beginnings, a New Year.

One of the ways we prepare for this Holy Day season is in going through our homes, cleaning them from top to bottom to ensure we get all the hametz/leaven out; the leaven which both symbolizes and represents sin in our lives; the sin that clutters our hearts and minds. In a way our homes represent who we are. How we feel about ourselves, is how our houses are kept. Just as we clean the clutter [sin] out of our homes, we can also clean the clutter [sin] out of ourselves. We then bring in the matzah of purity and truth into our homes. Then during Passover, we eat the matzah, and that purity and truth then is inside of us. A lot of people complain about matzah, because it’s dry and they can’t wait till they don’t have to eat it.

While leaven represents the sin in our lives, for Messianic Jews and like-minded Messianic Gentile believers, matzah represents for us redemption and freedom for the Jewish people. When we take a good look at the matzah we see,
 
“He was pierced for our transgressions ... by His stripes we are healed.” Isaiah 53:5 
 
You can see the piercing’s, the bruises, the stripes. It reminds us that He has freed us from sin and shame. Now the matzah doesn’t seem so dry after all. We no longer focus on the food, we focus on Him.

As we eat our matzah of purity and truth this Passover season, let us not forget the one who died for our sins; Yeshua - the One for whom we serve. 
 
Let’s empty our hearts and lives of sin and fill our hearts and lives with His truth. 
 
Let’s start a new season with Him.

Be a Blessing and Be Blessed!

Morning Inspirational
By Rebbitzen Kat

April 11, 2022 | 10th of Nisan 5782

 
​“Therefore, I tell you, don’t worry about your life — what you will eat or drink; or about your body — what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing?”- Matthew 6:25 CJB

There are so many in the body that still fear so much despite all they read in His Word. Then they see what’s going on in the world, and that heightens their anxiety. So much so, they become paralyzed by it. When fear and doubt surround us from every side, remember the one who was, and is, and is too come. God’s Word is not void. As you grow in the Lord and let him enter your heart, you’ll feel the anxiety lessen within you. He’ll calm the waves; he’ll calm the storm. He’ll take care of your every need. Just call on Yeshua in your times of distress and let his peace spill over you. This was my story, and I know this to be true. Praise him in “your” storm.

Be a Blessing and Be Blessed!

Morning Inspirational
By Rebbitzen Kathleen Rantz
March 30, 2022 | 27th of Adar II, 5782

​“For if you fail to speak up now, relief and deliverance will come to the Jews from a different direction; but you and your father’s family will perish. Who knows whether you didn’t come into your royal position precisely for such a time as this.” 
 
- Esther 4:14 - CJB

Esther finds herself in a deadly position in the King’s Palace. God’s purpose for her being there, is for her to bring her people, the Jewish people to freedom. She may live, she may die, but a decision needs to be made.

Many of us may wonder what our purpose in this life is. Then it happens; we find ourselves in a position where we can make a difference in someone’s life, maybe even save their life. We can be a doctor, a lawyer, a civil service worker, in the military, a parent, or just an average person. Whoever we become in life, we serve a purpose, and the choices we make can change the trajectory not only for our lives, but for someone else’s as well. Sometimes it may be a live or die situation. Whatever our call, we are to love one another as he loves us. We may not understand Gods will or Gods plan, but he does have one. And it may be for such a time as this.

Be a Blessing and Be Blessed!

Morning Inspirational
By Rebbitzen Kathleen Rantz

Ta’anit Esther, 13th of Adar II, 5782 | March 16, 2022

“Yet he knows the way I take; when he has tested me, I will come out like gold. My feet have stayed in his footsteps; I keep to his way without turning aside.”
- Job 23:10-11

God, are you there? I’m going through all this turmoil in my life. I keep reaching out to you, but I can’t see where you are in all this. Are you hearing me? Can you see what’s going on?

Whether it’s figuratively or literally, we all go through battles. There are times in our lives when something happens that we think is beyond anything we can handle, yet we get through it. We get through it, because all those times we couldn’t hear him or see him, he was there. Many of us who are believers in Yeshua, can look back on our lives, and see that he was there. If he was with you then, then he is with you now. We may never understand the battles that we have to go through, but I believe God uses it to make us stronger and better. When you look back on your life, you will see he was there. I know I wouldn’t be where I am now, if not for God.

“Cause You were there, You were there
In the midst of danger's snare
You were there, You were there always
You were there when the hardest fight
Seemed so out of reach
Oh, You were there, You were always there
You were always there …” - Song by Avalon

He was there with you then, ... He is there with now ... He will always be with you!

Be a Blessing and Be Blessed!

Inspirational by Rebbitzen Kathleen Rantz

March 2, 2022 | 29th of Adar I, 5782

“Have I now become your enemy because I tell you the truth?” - Galatians 4:16, CJB

Sometimes the truth hurts, but it has to be told. I’m speaking of biblical truth; the truth being that Yeshua is the way, the truth, and the light. Is it better to let someone go on believing a lie because you don’t want to hurt their feelings? No, it isn’t. To let someone, live a lie, is to keep them in their chains. Keeping someone in their chains, is to keep them from the freedom they can have in Yeshua. To keep them from the freedom they can have in Yeshua, is to keep them from having a better life. May we never back down from teaching his truth. After all, we were them once.

Be a Blessing and Be Blessed!

Morning Inspirational
By Rebbitzen Kathleen Rantz

February 23, 2022 | 22nd of Adar I, 5782

“Stay sober, stay alert! Your enemy, the Adversary, stalks about like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Stand against him, firm in your trust, knowing that your brothers throughout the world are going through the same kinds of suffering.”
- 1 Peter 5:8-9, CJB

How often do we find ourselves at a crossroads? We have a life altering decision to make, but not sure what to do. There will be people in our lives who will give advice and try to direct our steps, but that may be more to benefit them, and can be detrimental to us. The only way to know for sure we’re making the right decision is to go to Yeshua in prayer. He’s the one we need to direct our steps and guides our paths. We can accomplish many things when we follow him and his direction.

Be a Blessing and be Blessed!

Morning Inspirational
By Rebbitzen Kathleen Rantz

February 16, 2022 | 15th of Adar I, 5782