Thoughts on Torah and Food

Do you know when God gave Israel the Torah (often translated "law" but better understood Hebraically as "instructions" "the way to live" and "the mark to aim at"). Did He give it to them when they were still in Egypt and say, "Here, follows these rules and I'll think about saving you if you do a good enough job of keeping them?"

NO!

God rescued them FIRST.

Only after he saved them, a people who could not possibly have saved themselves, did He teach a freed people how to live out their freedom.

Therefore, God's word, law, instructions and commandments are not opposed to Grace as I thought in times past, but they are in fact PART of His grace!

Having been raised as a Lutheran where Law and Grace are often considered polar opposites, this thought represents part of the massive paradigm shift that's been happening for me lately.

No, the Torah and it's instructions are not ways to earn God's favor or salvation or rescue.
Yes, they are there to teach me how to live a free life.

So what instructions are there that could be relevant to me? I'm not a Levitical priest. I don't have a tabernacle or temple. I'm not a farmer or a shepherd.

But I do eat. And God's word does have a few things to say about that.

What is Food?
What does God say should be Food for us? What is best for us to eat, and what is not best?

Clean and unclean animals are first mentioned in Genesis 7:2-4. It isn't specified in this passage what constitues a clean animal (Food) and unclean animal (Not Food) are. Later in the Bible, there are two lists, one in Leviticus 11 and one in Deuteronomy 14. I've summarized the two lists below:

• On land, animals with cloven feet that chew cud are Food. Specifically mentioned as Food are the ox, the sheep, the goat, the deer, the gazelle, the roe deer, the wild goat, the ibex, the antelope and the mountain sheep. Specifically mentioned as Not Food are camels, rabbits, and pigs. Also Not Food are weasels, mice, tortoises, chameleons, lizards, snails, and moles -- so I gather as a category that rodents, reptiles and crustaceans are Not Food.
• From the water, only fish with scales and fins are Food.
• Of things that fly, specifically mentioned as Not Food are eagles, hawks, owls and other birds of prey, ravens, swans, pelicans, storks, herons and bats. Specifically mentioned as Food are locusts, katydids, crickets and grasshoppers.

So, it turns out that there are lots of Foods and Not Foods on this list that I've never even tried. Seafood is generally too expensive for our unemployed budget, so although I've tried it in the past, I haven't had any lately.

The only Not Food that is really an issue for me is pork. Up until recently, pork chops, ham, sausage and bacon formed a regular part of my diet.

Since God designed my body, I trust that he knows what represents Food for me, and that things that are Not Food are not the best choice.

So, I've been eating much less pork. I'm not making a hard and fast rule ... I had baked beans with bacon at our church potluck yesterday ... but I'm not seeking out pork products, and for the most part, I'm making other choices.

One w, the only problem I'm having now is that DH isn't quite on the same page with me. We both do grocery shopping, and he has continued to buy sausage and ham and is feeding it to our daughter. I'm a bit stumped as to the best course of action. Do I let it go, do I ask him to stop buying it, or do I ask that if he wants to buy it that he refrain from offering it to Pookaloo? Something I'm still praying and pondering on.

Decision Made and a Request

Well, we made our fateful decision and will be moving up north in about a month.

One confirmation I've had is a sense of peace and even burst of energy. Another not so positive confirmation is the bad news we've had about my father-in-law's health recently. It will be good for us to be close and be of help.

He's going into surgery tonight. Please pray for him and our extended family during this difficult time.

Decisions Decisions

Our family is approaching a crossroads. We must decide where to live. Right now we are considering Southern California (where we are now) or Central California (where DH's family is). We really want to seek God's plan and go (or stay) as he directs.

The thing is, there really hasn't been a clear direction one way or the other. We initially thought up north was the clear option. Then DH started leaning more toward staying, which I was fine with. But in the past few weeks, I've been feeling a tug north again. DH has started to feel the same. But were our reasons godly? Are these feelings a message from God? How could we be sure? Have we been listening closely enough?

Then, this week I came across this blog by The Internet Monk that freed my thinking a bit on this.

He argues that there are 5 ways that God reveals his will.

1. Declarations and commands in scripture
2. Providence/life's circumstances
3. Authority figures and trusted advisors
4. Mystically through the Spirit
5. Signs, miracles and answered prayers

He points out that many Christians agonize over what God's will as a result of focusing too much on the 4th and 5th ways, overlooking the still small voice of the first three "ordinary" methods of revelation.

These two quotes in particular stood out:

If this makes sense, I reject the idea that God requires some superior effort on my part to be mystical in order to communicate his will to me.

and

I’m free, within the boundaries of following Jesus, loving God, loving neighbor and using my gifts and talents, to serve God wherever I believe is the best place for me. There is a process, but I can trust myself as a reliable means of knowing God’s will. Not perfect, but not to be ignored in favor of “signs.”

Finally, as I browsed through the 150+ comments to the blog entry, I came across these powerful lyrics by David Wilcox.

I'm done being "dead with deciding ... mourning the choices I'd lose." It's time to make the decisions. I trust that we will find, as Mr. Wilcox did, that:

Now as soon as I'm moving - my choice is good
This way comes through right where I prayed that it would
If I keep my eyes open and look where I should
Somehow all of the signs are in sight
If I hold it up to the light