Lighted Way Ministries Newsletter: March-May, March May, 2015 COUNTING THE OMER

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1 Lighted Way Ministries Newsletter: March-May, March May, 2015 COUNTING THE OMER PREPARING FOR PENTECOST Pentecost is just a few days away. With this in mind, it is important to know how to spiritually prepare for this Holy Day, as well as when to keep it. All of these details are given in the Biblical command to count the Omer. The first thing we will look at in preparing for Pentecost is how to physically Count the Omer, or how to determine the timing of Pentecost. The timing of Pentecost is dictated by First Fruits, which takes place during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Leviticus 23:10-15 gives us several keys to determining the timing of Pentecost, known in Hebrew as Shavuot. Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a sheaf of the First fruits of your harvest unto the priest: And he shall wave the sheaf before YHWH, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it It shall be a Statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings. And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the Sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven Sabbaths shall be complete: Even unto the morrow after the seventh Sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto YHWH, (Leviticus 23:10-15). The keys to determining Pentecost, as listed in Leviticus 23:10-15 are: 1. First Fruits is always the day after the Sabbath, which falls during the Week of Unleavened Bread. 2. Number Seven Sabbaths from the day of First Fruits. 3. Pentecost is the 50 th day, counting from First Fruits. 4. Pentecost is the day after the 7 th Sabbath, which means, Pentecost will always be the first day of the week (Sunday). Confusion about First Fruits and the Resurrection comes in when we unknowingly compress all First Fruits events into one day. Actually, First Fruits takes place in three separate stages, spanning a few days. The first stage of First Fruits is the marking of the barley grain. The second stage is harvesting (cutting) the barley grain for First Fruits. And the third stage is presenting the First Fruits grain (waving the barley sheaf). Only the presenting of the First Fruits grain actually takes place on the morrow after the Sabbath, or the first day of the week. To show how these three stages of First Fruits usually spanned several days, consider the Death and Resurrection of Christ, which was

2 Lighted Way Ministries Newsletter: March-May, the prophetic middle fulfillment of First Fruits. Since Heaven carefully fulfilled this Feast in both time and event, we can use the Gospel record to demonstrate the stages of First Fruits. The first stage of First Fruits took place on Passover. Rabbinic records inform us that, in the time of Messiah, the high priest would go to the barley fields on the day of Passover. This was the time when the First Fruits barley was marked, but it did not happen on the day of First Fruits. To do this, on Passover, the high priest would loop a cord around the uncut barley grain indicating that this patch of grain had been selected as First Fruits for that year. On the Passover in the year Yahshua Died, Heaven marked the First Fruits grain by opening the graves of the sleeping saints who would be resurrected with Yahshua. As it says in Matthew 27:50-52, Yahshua, when He had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; and the graves were opened. But, while the graves were opened, the Bible says clearly that no one came out of those marked graves until just after the Saviour was resurrected. Thus, the grain was marked on Passover, but not cut (harvested), just as it always had been in the First-Fruits-grain-marking ceremony for hundreds of years. The second stage of First Fruits took place on Sabbath just before sunset. This was the time when the First Fruits barley was cut. Just before the sun set, the priests would go again to the barley fields. They sought out the patch of uncut barley which was marked by the high priest s cord. They cut the grain and brought it back to the temple. In the Gospel Record, we see that the Saviour arose from the tomb at the precise time in which the barley grain was to be cut. Along with Him, many sleeping saints were raised from those marked graves, as the First Fruits of the final harvest of saints to be raised on the Great Day of YAH s return. Thus, the cutting or harvesting of the spiritual grain once again took place at the precise time given in the shadow picture of the Feast ceremony. But, the resurrected saints, having just been harvested as the First Fruits grain, were not WAVED (presented before the Father s Throne) on the same day they were harvested. Notice that the presenting of the grain took place on Sunday, the morrow after the Sabbath, which fell during the Week of Unleavened Bread. Because the marking, cutting and waving of the grain for First Fruits didn t happen all at one time, the cut grain (the resurrected saints) had time (before the waving ceremony) to go into Jerusalem and witness! Matthew 27:53-54, and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves after His Resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many. Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Yahshua, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God. The third stage of First Fruits took place on Sunday morning (the actual Day of First Fruits) at 9 AM. In the Feast, the high priest would wave the First Fruits grain in a special presentation ceremony at this time. At the precise time when the First Fruits barley was to be waved in presentation to YAH, Yahshua ascended to His Father, accompanied by the recently resurrected saints. Because of His accepted Sacrifice, the resurrected saints were accepted into Heaven. The First Fruits grain was accepted on the actual Day of First Fruits, which was and always is on a Sunday! The Psalmist portrayed this exciting First Fruits procession in Psalm 24:7-10 Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? YAH strong and mighty, YAH mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O ye gates; even lift them up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? Yah of hosts, He is the King of glory. Selah. Many confuse the time of the Resurrection with the time of waving the First Fruits grain. Because they wrongly do this, most of the Christian world believes that Yahshua was Resurrected on Sunday morning. But, we need to remember that the resurrected saints had time to witness in the city and the women had time to encounter the Saviour before He ascended. None of this could have happened if the Resurrection was at the same time as the First Fruits grain presentation. The Resurrection didn t happen on First Fruits, this was First Fruits stage 2 the cutting of the grain. But, the DAY of First Fruits, was the day when the grain was waved. Clarity in the order of events comes by looking at the whole Gospel account, and by studying the shadow picture of the rehearsal (mikraw) in keeping the Feast of First Fruits.

3 Lighted Way Ministries Newsletter: March-May, As we have already seen, the Day of First Fruits, always falls on the first day of the week, during the Week of Unleavened Bread. We know this because Leviticus 23 tells us that it is waved on the morrow after the Sabbath. Leviticus 23:11 And he shall wave the sheaf before YHWH, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it. The word Sabbath here is translated from the Hebrew word Shabbath (Strong s number 7676). This is the weekly Sabbath, and is the same word we find in Exodus 20:8, where it says Remember the Sabbath to keep it holy. Annual Sabbaths are translated from the Hebrew word shabbathon (Strong s number 7677). There is one exception. The annual Sabbath of the Day of Atonement is referred to as a Shabbath, Strong s Number But, there is one more key identifier in Scripture that shows beyond all question that the Day of First Fruits has to be consistently on the first day of the week. It is found in Leviticus 23: Leviticus 23:15-16 And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the Sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven Sabbaths shall be complete: Even unto the morrow after the seventh Sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto YHWH. Pentecost is calculated from First Fruits. Counting from this Day, Pentecost is just 7 Sabbaths and 50 days from First Fruits. The only way to get BOTH 7 Sabbaths AND 50 days, is to count only the Seventh-day Sabbaths (7676) from Unleavened Bread. Any other calculation always ends up with too many Sabbaths, or the wrong number of days. Also, as there are no other annual Sabbaths between Unleavened Bread and Pentecost, one must count the seven Sabbaths as weekly Sabbaths. And the morrow after the seventh Sabbath can only be the first day of the week, the day which follows the Seventh-day Sabbath. This year, the morrow after the seventh Sabbath is May 24 th. This is Pentecost, The fifty days from First Fruits to Pentecost are referred to as the days of Counting the Omer. An Omer was a Biblical unit of dry measure equal to 1 / 10 ephah, which is about 3.7 quarts. This counting period came to be called the Counting of the Omer because an omer of barley was waved on First Fruits. Counting the Omer spiritually refers to measuring the barley, which is a message of judgment, measuring YHWH s people by the Standard of the Torah. The process of counting the omer is something we do both literally, to get the timing of Pentecost; and spiritually, to prepare for the Latter Rain. Let s look now at what it means to spiritually Count the Omer or be spiritually prepared to receive the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. In the story of the Apostles, they spent 40 days preparing to receive the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The Bible tells us that after this preparation, they were all in one accord, in one place, and were actively seeking the Outpouring of the Holy Spirit. This preparation was vital to receiving the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. Just as the disciples of old needed the Outpouring of the Holy Spirit in order to complete their Gospel Commission, so we need it today. It is through receiving the Holy Spirit, on a soon-coming Day of Pentecost (could it be this year?), that we will be empowered to carry the Gospel to the whole world. Scripture tells us that our Heavenly Father is eager to pour out His Spirit upon us all! Luke 11:9-13 And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil,

4 Lighted Way Ministries Newsletter: March-May, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him? So, since YHWH is eager to bestow His Spirit upon us, we must ask, Why is the Rain delayed? The answer to this question puts the proverbial ball in our own courts. It is our lack of spiritual preparedness which delays the needed Rain. Jeremiah 3:1-3 But thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to Me, saith YHWH Thou hast polluted the land with thy whoredoms and with thy wickedness. Therefore the showers have been withholden, and there hath been no latter rain; and thou hadst a whore's forehead, thou refusedst to be ashamed. Jeremiah 5:23-25 But this people hath a revolting and a rebellious heart; they are revolted and gone. Neither say they in their heart, Let us now fear YHWH our God, that giveth rain, both the former and the latter, in his season: He reserveth unto us the appointed weeks of the harvest. Your iniquities have turned away these things, and your sins have withholden good things from you. Deuteronomy 11:16-18 Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them; And then YHWH'S wrath be kindled against you, and He shut up the heaven, that there be no rain, and that the land yield not her fruit; and lest ye perish quickly from off the good land which YHWH giveth you. Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes. Just passively awaiting our Heavenly Father s Timing in sending the Latter Rain isn t what Counting the Omer is all about. Counting the Omer is spiritually measuring the grain. This measuring process, spiritually comparing our hearts and homes with the Standard of YHWH s Holy Law, is our part in preparing for Pentecost. Leviticus 26:3-4 If ye walk in My Statutes, and keep My Commandments, and do them; Then I will give you Rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. Deuteronomy 11:13-14 And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently unto My commandments which I command you this day, to love YHWH your God, and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul, That I will give you the rain of your land in his due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil. YHWH will have a people who are totally surrendered. And upon them, the tongues of Fire will soon fall. Like the apostles of old, these anointed ones will do mighty feats for the cause of YAH. Thousands will be converted in a single day. These grass-roots followers will form the end-time Church. They will bear the torch of Truth in the darkest hours of this earth s history. Like Job, of old, this group of anointed believers will have the privilege of exonerating YAH s Character. In the end, He will hold them up with these words of blessing and acceptance, these are they which are not defiled with women, they follow the Lamb withersoever He goeth, they are without fault, they keep the Commandments and have the testimony of Yahshua Messiah.

5 Lighted Way Ministries Newsletter: March-May, And in the soon-coming reign of the beast, these Holy Spirit empowered people will shout the Truth helping to bring about his demise. They will be hated of all men, persecuted, downtrodden and despised. Yet through YAH s power, they will be victorious for His Cause and His Kingdom. Does this sound like some kind of mamby-pamby group of Christians? Will they be battling the powers of darkness during the day and then going home to continue their addictions and secret sins at night? Will they be hypocritically preaching one thing and then living another behind closed doors? Or will there be among them some who simply hangout with the dynamos but themselves are spiritual wallflowers accomplishing no real feats for the cause of YAH? No! So how do you get to be among YAH s dynamic, end-time Church? Can you be assured a place in it by having your name on the right denominational books? Can you be certain to be among them if you attend the right meetings? Will you be among the end-time faithful simply by expecting to be saved and hoping you ll be changed into that dynamic pattern while you drift along in your spiritual easy chair? The answer is No on all counts. Those who will be among the end-time faithful Church will know, live-by and teach the Truth. They will have been purified in the Refiner s Fire. And there are no wallflowers on the Elijah team. In Joel we are told that our sons and daughters will prophesy. John the Baptist was proclaimed by the Saviour to be the greatest prophet, yet he didn t tell the future. The primary work of a prophet is to teach Truth. Are you getting yourself and your family ready to go out and preach a message that sends arrows of destruction into the kingdom and heart of the Beast? A bigger showdown than Mount Carmel is coming! YAH is calling for men, women and children who will be holy, empowered, and true - as true to duty as a compass needle is to the pole. He is looking into hearts, seeking to find people who will stand for the right though the heavens fall. What kind of heart do you offer Him? Is it still divided, or is it fully turned to Him? Matthew 6:24 and Luke 16:13 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. How did Daniel get the strength to stand in the test of the lions den? He made a choice to follow YAH and first passed the battle of the dinner table. He purposed in his heart that he would not participate in something that would defile him. And that s how it is for you and me. THE ABILITY TO STAND THE BIG TESTS WILL NOT BE THERE UNLESS WE ARE PRAYERFULLY GAINING THE VICTORY OVER THE LESSER ONES! Surely we don t think we ll have the strength to keep the Sabbath holy when it comes to blood, if we haven t been willing to risk losing our jobs to keep it in the easy times! We certainly won t know what Scriptures to quote on the day of trial, if we haven t been hiding YAH s Word in our hearts during the time of preparation. The Last Day people of YAH are going to be completely possessed with His Spirit. In fact everyone is coming to total possession. We will either be completely possessed by the Spirit of YAH, or wholly gripped by demons. The longer you dabble with unconfessed sins, the longer you remain unsurrendered to YAH, the more ground the devil gains in your soul. Having strongholds of the enemy in your heart is like having an aggressive and malignant spiritual cancer. It s time to ask the Father to cut them out!

6 Lighted Way Ministries Newsletter: March-May, There isn t much time left. Prophetic signs of the times all show that this old world has entered its Latter Days. This coming Pentecost could very well be the One. And you ll either be on the side of YAH fully, or you won t be there at all. There s no grey zone no middle ground. So what s it going to be, friend? Will you give yourself to YAH completely? Will you surrender to Him confessing even your most secret and cherished sins? Only if you re completely in His Hands can He protect you, empower you, and use you to accomplish His good purpose. But, if you cling to your spiritual cancers, very soon He ll have to cut YOU out lest your spiritual leaven harm His pure Church. It s time for a radical transformation! We have read in Acts about what YAH can do with a mere handful of surrendered souls. In fact, from the Fire that fell upon that roomful of faithful Apostles, the Gospel was preached to the whole world, rapidly. JOIN US FOR PENTECOST 2015! Join us in person Meetings held in the Manfredine home in Roseburg, Oregon. OR Join us via Livestream. Connect through the Internet or via Roku Satellite TV. Weekend Schedule: (Items with a * will not be broadcasted) Come to Him! Men, women, teens, children Give Yahshua your life unreservedly. And He will take the little boy s lunch of your life, and make it enough to feed the 5,000 - with leftovers! Give yourself to Him and lay your all before His Altar. YHWH is calling YOU. He has a powerful work to do in and through your life. There must be nothing between your soul and your Saviour! This is the most important preparation for Pentecost. We invite you and urge you, dear ones, join us in Counting the Omer. Let us prepare for Pentecost together! Then, on the 24 th of May, we may effectively join together and pray for the Latter Rain, in one accord, as the Apostles did long ago. Sabbath May 23: * 11 AM Prayer & Praise Session #1 * 12:30 PM Fellowship lunch 2:00 PM Mark Manfredine Seeking Pentecost 3:15 PM Shauna Manfredine Mazzaroth Messages Pt 13: Aryeh (a study of the constellation Leo) and the Devil s End Pentecost May 23: * 11 AM Prayer & Praise Session #2 * 12:30 PM Fellowship lunch 2:00 PM Mark Manfredine Praying in One Accord (required worksheet is online) 3:15 PM Shauna Manfredine To Him Whom Much is Given Calendar MAY Livestream Pentecost Weekend Sabbath May 2 PM (PST) Pentecost Day May 2 PM (PST) JUNE Livestream Sabbath June 2 PM (PST) Sabbath - June 2 PM (PST) JULY Livestream Sabbath July 2 PM (PST) Sabbath July 2 PM (PST)

7 Lighted Way Ministries Newsletter: March-May, HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE RETREAT PASSOVER 2015 IN NORMAN, AR Our journey began when Ed and Wanda Beierle (pictured on the right) invited us to give the retreat at their church in Arkansas. We were truly delighted to spend time with this godly couple and enjoyed sweet fellowship with them and their precious, Feast-keeping, church family. From the end of March to the end of April, 2015, we were on the road. We spent time in Arkansas, Kentucky, Texas, and several other states. It was a wonderful and Holy-Spirit-filled trip! Our journey began with Yahweh miraculously providing a beautiful, rented RV (the miracle was that it was affordable!) for us use for this exciting journey. And, with that, we started our 3-day journey to Norman, Arkansas, where we were invited to share the Feast and Week of Unleavened Bread. The little Chapel Valley Church in Norman, Arkansas, led by the Beierle s, Dr. Mizel, and Lon and Marie Jones, is a full Feast-keeping congregation. It is located in the beautiful Ouachita National Forest truly a little brown church in the wildwood (well it has brown trim). Even their sign (shown below along with some of the precious folks who kept the Spring Feasts with us) reads Sabbath Fellowship: Keeping His Appointed Times What a joy it was to fellowship with these loving and sincere brothers and sisters! Prior to the Feast, this fellowship group had about 25 people in regular attendance. But there were about 70 people who kept the Passover with us! Mark and Shauna led the Seder service, which was the very first Passover experience for many who attended! The Week of Unleavened Bread was also a tremendous blessing. Mark and Shauna gave the Keys to Living Like You ve Been Saved Workshop, which is on Spiritual Warfare and victorious Christian Living. Denny and Brenda Kaneshiro shared Denny s testimony about how Yahweh had saved his life and leg after he was attacked by flesh-eating bacteria, this past November. The pictures and music were memorable! The Kaneshiro s also gave a couple of health talks. Shauna Manfredine gave a morning series based upon her new (currently being written) book, soon-to-be-titled Torah Studies for the Ex-Gentile Believer. The Presence of the Holy Spirit was felt by all who attended and the speakers were powerful, under the unction of Heaven. As a result, at a mid-week altar call, ¾ of the congregation went forward either committing their lives to Christ for the first time, or re-committing them. One man, a veteran Feast-keeper of 33 years, proclaimed that this Feast had been the best one he d ever experienced glory only to Yahweh! Some came to the Feast seeking shelter from great difficulty or even duress. One individual came with demon

8 Lighted Way Ministries Newsletter: March-May, possession and was set free from literally hundreds of demons, many of whom had been oppressing and possessing her since childhood! In each case, Yahweh gave the person the Healing Balm of His Presence and Promise. It was beautiful to see what Yahweh did in each life. Truly, this was a Feast where Yahshua was Present, and gave each one what they most needed! We praise Him for it all and rightly give Yahweh all the Glory. One of the wonderful things about traveling for this Feast was that Yahweh afforded us a rare glimpse into some of what He s been doing with the spiritual seed He has used us to sow. For example, we truly enjoyed meeting Bob and Carolyn Fekete (pictured on right). This precious couple from North Carolina had so enjoyed our original Mazzaroth Messages DVDs that they watched them several times, and internalized the message. From there they printed a vinyl banner of the constellations. It shows the Gospel in the Stars. They brought it to the Feast to bless us with seeing it! What fun that was! The Fekete s had shared the Gospel in the Stars, using their lovely banner, in their local Adventist church. It was so well received that they have since been asked to share the Gospel in the Stars in many SDA churches. They were even asked to present the Gospel in the Stars at the Oshkosh SDA Pathfinder event, in which they shared it before 8,000 people! The Pathfinders loved it so much that they even created a new Pathfinder honor for it! Wow! What wonders Yahweh has done with the small seed of the Mazzaroth Messages DVDs! We were thrilled and deeply encouraged to learn this! One dear sister at the Feast, Pat Galloway (shown on the left with Shauna), had helped to start a prison ministry in the JVHCC Oklahoma men s prison. Pat was a delight to meet and truly shares our hunger and thirsting after Righteousness. She also blessed us with many embroidered Scripture tapestries (6 of which we have already framed and hung in our home Thank you, Pat)! Following the Feast, we were blessed to join Lon and Marie Jones (pictured below) in visiting the JVHCC men s prison in Oklahoma. Mark and Shauna both spoke to the men in the prison, many of whom are Feast Keepers. Yahweh did many miracles for this ministry appointment as well. For example, we took a case of Keys to Living Like You ve Been Saved books and 50 Living Beyond the Keys Bible study lesson to distribute to the inmate believers. We were able to bring all the materials in with us and distribute them immediately. Lon and Marie Jones were amazed and told us that in five years of doing the prison ministry they had never been allowed to take materials straight in to distribute to the prisoners! Always before, they had to leave the materials with the Chaplain. From there it could take weeks or even months to reach the men. Sometimes the materials never reached the inmates. Yahweh also blessed us to bring in a bottle of anointing oil, which we were allowed to give to Chris, our brother in prison, who serves as the inmate pastor of this Feast-keeping congregation in JVHCC. Yahweh blessed us in many personal ways as well. For example, at the Feast, our son Christopher re-met a lovely young lady to whom he had first been introduced back in Her name is Melissa Dueck (on left). Our son is now (with both parents blessing) in a godly courtship with her! Additionally, our daughter, Katrina, went forward at an altar-call indicating that she is now not just along for the ride, but personally choosing a life-time with Yahweh as her King! We are rejoicing for it all!

9 Lighted Way Ministries Newsletter: March-May, NEW Books and DVD s From Passover / Unleavened Bread 2015 Torah: Entering Yah s Covenant Protection by Shauna Manfredine Body Temple & Testimony by Denny & Brenda Kaneshiro New DVD s & Books from the 2015 Spring Feast Item Torah (8 DVD s) by Shauna Manfredine Body Temple & Testimony (3 DVD s) by the Kaneshiro s Rescued from a Flesh-eating Bacteria (book) - Kaneshiro s Gems of Truth series (2 DVD s) Mark Manfredine Whole Retreat Set (includes 23 DVD s no books) Suggested Donation $48.00 $21.00 $19.95 $14.00 $ Order Quantity Total Gems of Truth by Mark Manfredine

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