Our Shabbat Dinner

Shabbat Shalom!

Have a peaceful rest!

A dear friend requested that I post about our Shabbat Dinners. So this

is an attempt to do so...

Our Shabbat Dinner is a special dinner that is set apart just like the Shabbat which is

the seventh day of the week.

Preparation for this dinner starts early in the morning with baking two

loaves of Challah Bread, making a desert, and doing all the

cleaning because on Shabbat we don't want to work, it's a day of

long awaited rest!

Of coarse many wives simply buy their Challah bread, (our

stores don't stock it, go figure) and

with the Challah bring home a pie to pop in the oven. My dh

prefers home made pies, yes dear it's my pleasure to

make you a home made pie :-)

Our Shabbat dinner isn't like the traditional 'Jewish Shabbat Dinner' if there

is an actual traditional one. I've found through the years that

Yahweh will lead each family if they ask him to, to observe

Shabbat in a way that pleases him.

The Table

Our dinner table is set apart that is to say we don't set

it the same way as during the week, we use a table cloth,

cloth napkins, two candles, wine glasses (for the grape juice)

we have only one set of dishes but if I had a set of fine China

I would use it.

Our Menu
I try to cook a 'special dinner' on the eve of Shabbat (Friday evening)

Usually I cook either Fish or Chicken as our main dish.

In the summer we do a nice salad with corn on the cob or

some other garden fresh veggie.

The vegetable dish varies.

Two loaves of Challah Bread,

butter for the bread,

Grape Juice

and

a home made desert.

Blessing the Meal

We all sit around the table while dh says the blessing.

Some people have a regular blessing they say, dh just prays

what's on his heart.

Then my girls get to light the candles :-)

As they light the candles the say:

'Blessed are thou O Yah our Elohim

King of the Universe.

Who sanctified us and commanded us

to keep the Shabbat

Blessed be your name forever!'

everyone says together:

'HalleluYah

Praise Yahweh!'

Dinner begins with worship music playing

in the background.

Oh I forgot to mention I try to keep

worship music on during the day to keep

me focused and in a spirit of worship.

Some families say the blessing after

the meal because often times in the Bible

after Yahweh provided for his people

they would forget about him, in

saying the blessing after the

meal shows that they didn't

forget about him. Nice symbolism!

Making (or purchasing) two loaves of Challah bread

symbolizes 'the gathering of manna' in the

wilderness. Yahweh commanded that

they gather twice as much so they

would not have to work on Shabbat.

The loaves also represent the

bread of life our Messiah

who died for us that

we might live.

When giving the prayer of 'Thanks' often

the loaves are lifted up and the prayer of

thanks is give (we don't do this, but it's nice to do)

then the the scripture is read in Exodus 16:22-23

Just before we eat everyone raises their wine glass

and toast each other by saying:

Shabbat Shalom!

After the meal we quickly clean up trying to beat

the sun before it sets, which now, since we set the clocks

back an hour, the sun sets much earlier. After clean up we read, listen to music,

and relax.

.

Many have the husband/daddy pray for the

children speak blessing on them, which is

what I want dh to start doing. He

also prays for his wife and pronounces

blessing on her.

I read somewhere that

studies show Jewish

children tend to excel in their studies

and have

a positive attitude and grow

into being successful adults in life

believing

they are blessed and walking

in their blessings, the one

thing that was

found different in

their lives apart from

others was this one simple act of blessing

them on each Shabbat

of their young lives.

Many families go to Shabbat Service in the

evening and on Shabbat (saturday) but we

don't because we there isn't

a Torah Observant congregation here

that follows the Messiah.

The only congregation here that observes Torah

is a Jewish one and they don't believe that

Yahshua is the Messiah :-(

So we listen to EliYah or YRM

for our Shabbat service via the internet.

When the sun sets we pray to end Shabbat, but

many have another (smaller) dinner,

we don't.

I'm learning to enjoy and call the Shabbat a delight, it's

hard because I long for fellowship with like minded

believers. I believe if we did have

a congregation to fellowship with I would

enjoy it so much better. But Father knows

best and I believe there is a reason for this

time in our lives without a physical

assembly.

I hope this has helped you my Sister Bridget, there are no

set 'rules' per say to a Shabbat dinner just a nice

dinner, teaching the children that Shabbat is

a set apart day that

Yahweh commanded

his people everywhere

to observe

so we begin it with a special

dinner that is unlike the rest of the week.

There are many 'Jewish Traditions' for Shabbat

but we like to keep ours simple and have

the Holy Spirit lead us in our observance.

Well, got to get back to preparing for Shabbat,

May you have a

His Shalom on

Shabbat!