10/31/2026
When people hear that we keep Shabbat, observe Yehovah's appointed times or follow His instructions about food, they sometimes think of everything we must be missing out on. I can understand why it looks that way from the outside. There are things we choose not to join in, and those choices aren't always convenient.
But I often return to Yehovah's words in Leviticus 20:26: “You are to be holy to Me, for I, Adonai, am holy, and have set you apart from the peoples, so that you would be Mine” (TLV).
“So that you would be Mine.” What a reason to be set apart. He wasn't asking Israel to be different merely to stand out. They belonged to Him, and their lives were to show it. Through Yeshua, we too have been brought near (Eph 2:12–13). I don't want to treat that calling as something I have to endure.
Some choices are difficult, especially when our children see friends enjoying things our household has decided not to take part in. It takes time to explain why. I would rather have those conversations than quietly let the world decide what matters to our family.
And then comes Shabbat. There are weeks when I reach Friday with unfinished jobs and a head still full of work. Yet Yehovah has given us this time to put ordinary things aside, open His Word, share a meal and enjoy one another's company. Isaiah speaks of calling Shabbat a delight (Isa 58:13). That's what I want it to be in our home.
John writes that loving God means keeping His commandments, and that His commandments are not burdensome (1 John 5:3). Of course obedience can cost us something. Yeshua never said following Him would always be easy. But I have come to see how much good there is in what Yehovah asks of us.
We don't have to live at odds with our neighbours to live differently. We can enjoy their friendship, welcome them and care about their lives, while holding to the convictions Scripture has given us.
On this Shabbat, which happens to fall on Halloween, I'm grateful to belong to Yehovah. That means more to me than fitting in.
Shabbat Shalom.