ELUL 5782 | Tribe of Gad

Elul 5782: August 28, 2022 - September 25, 2022

Welcome to the Hebrew month of Elul! Elul is the last month of the Hebrew civil calendar and is the sixth month on God’s spiritual calendar, counting from Nisan. It is a month that connects the past year with the coming year (5782 to 5783); a time when we reflect on where we are and where we should be going. In Aramaic the word “Elul” means “search”, which is appropriate considering this is the time of year we search our hearts. Elul is one of my favorite months. It is rich, full of an abundance of knowledge, wisdom, revelation, hope, preparation, restoration, and divine design!

Elul in Hebrew is- aleph, lamed, vav, lamed.

It is an acronym of Song of Solomon 6:3 - “I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine!” This month is a time when closeness and intimacy with God is established. Our arms open to embrace Him and His arms are always open to embrace us! We were created by Him, and for Him, and we will not be satisfied without Him!

This is the month that the “King is in the field”!

You see, one month each year a king would leave his palace of protection and strict protocol, and set up his royal tent among the people. He made himself, his presence, available to everyone. There is heightened accessibility to God during Elul; a SUPERNATURAL ACCESS, if you will. He meets you where you are, wanting to connect with you in the everyday affairs of life! It reminds me of Isaiah 55:6 - “Seek the Lord Yahweh when He makes himself approachable; call upon Him when you sense He is near.” God wants his people to experience His character.  He wants to manifest His Justice, His righteousness, and His love. Of course, the greatest King who left His throne to come into the field was Jesus.  He lived in our field in a tent of mortal flesh.  He was God made accessible, smiling and radiant.  He came to manifest God’s goodness, love and righteousness… to heal and deliver ALL.  He came to draw us into a relationship with the Father. That’s what it truly looks like when the king is in the field!!

The month of Elul is linked with the tribe of Gad.

One of the meanings of Gad is “troop” or company. They were some of the fiercest warriors of Israel. Even after they received their territory given by God, they still fought for the other tribes’ inheritance in the Promised Land. This is a testimony of their fidelity to God and commitment to others. It is said that the tribe of Gad was strong defensively and offensively. They were great leaders in battle who always followed through, never stopping until victory was secured and the enemy was subdued. So watch and fight the tendency to isolate this month and ask yourself, “Am I part of a company of believers that will war on my behalf? Am I leading anyone or warring for someone?” I hope your answer is, “yes!”

The letter associated with Elul is “Yod” which is the tenth letter of the alphabet. It’s very small and practically every letter of the Hebrew alphabet contains a “Yod”, therefore it’s in every Hebrew word! The number ten testifies to how God carries out His plan in perfect order. God is in the details and the “Yod” indicates God’s omnipotence (unlimited power). It’s the “spark” of the Spirit of God in everything! The “Yod” even looks like a little flame! It’s the smallest letter and that speaks of humility, resembling a person bowing in prayer. God delights in using the small to demonstrate His power and glory. This whole month of Elul is about preparation for the feasts coming up next month in Tishri , the High Holy Days (Rosh Hashanah, 10 days of Awe, Yom Kippur, and Feast of Tabernacles). Therefore, the scripture of the 10 virgins is often referred to in this month (Matthew 25:1-13). The number 10 represents divine order in the KINGDOM REALM. It’s associated with setting things up for the purposes of God. There were 10 plagues and 10 commandments. Noah was the 10th descendant from Adam and Abraham was the 10th descendant from Noah. You have 10 toes and remember “The steps of a righteous man are ORDERED by the Lord.”

The constellation for the month of Elul is Virgo the virgin. Virgo is represented as a woman with a branch in her right hand, and corn or wheat (which is harvest), in her left hand. She is a virgin with seed and it is impossible for a virgin woman to have seed because women carry eggs and men carry seed. The seed in Virgo (Mary) is the incorruptible seed of God. This glorious sign doesn’t just speak of the virgin, but the miraculous birth of the bringer of redemption! Look at Isaiah 4:2 - “In that day, the BRANCH of Yahweh will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit (HARVEST) of the earth will be the pride and glory of the remnant of Israel.” The heavens certainly do declare the Glory of God!

Elul is designated as the time to prepare for the High Holy Days. Because these days are filled with so much meaning and potency, they require a special measure of readiness. The shofar is blown everyday of Elul, except on Shabbat or Sabbath. This is to awaken people from the sleep induced by sin and apathy. It’s a month of “teshuvah” or repentance. It’s a call to forsake or turn from the sin that has you bound, confess the truth, ask for and accept your forgiveness from God and others.

Elul is the “Eye of the Needle” month. Many of us are going through a tight time in our lives where we are being squeezed and perhaps even feel as though we can’t breathe. Maybe you think the weight of your burden is too much to bear. So how does this feeling relate to the eye of a needle? In ancient Israel people from all over the world would come to Jerusalem for the fall feasts. Many would travel on camels weighed down with baggage. If they arrived when the main entrance of the city was closed, they would proceed to the side gate which was narrow. To get through they would unload everything on the camel so it could enter. This is what we are doing in this month, examining ourselves and asking God to show us what is weighing us down and hindering us from moving forward.

Remember Hebrews 12:1 that’s says, “…….let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.”

For the month of Elul the body part is the left hand and it represents a call to action. God is stirring us to action and giving us a green light to “GO”! So remember:

*Jesus is in your field!

*He is supernaturally accessible!

*Be part of a troop. Be a leader and war on behalf of the kingdom! Subdue the enemy!

*Be the spark!

*Prepare and repent! Break off sin and apathy!

*Remove the baggage and move forward!

Say YES even when you are afraid and watch God “OUTDO” what you imagined! Ephesians 3:20 TPT

-Shalom, Stacey Cain Woodley