For me, there are no memories fonder than a cool autumn breeze billowing the sheets on three sides of me as I eat my breakfast in the Sukkah. The leaves and fronds above my head rustling and the geese overhead flying to warmer places. To linger here is to steep in the presence of a God that delivered me from Egypt, walked me through the desert, and brought me up into a land of freedom. To dwell here is to dwell with our Father. And because just a few days ago we observed Yom Kippur where we asked the Father to wipe our slates clean, we can enjoy His presence, white as snow.
When I became an adult, my observance of Sukkot looked different as the stages of my life changed. In college, I had to go to my local Hillel to find a Sukkah to dwell in. After that, I got to spend many years camping in a group with my friends, varying yearly in structure and venue. However Sukkot looks for you and your family, there are a few things that remain the same. And we can find those things in the Torah:
Leviticus 23:23-43 says, “‘But on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered the produce of the land, you are to observe the festival of Adonai seven days; the first day is to be a complete rest and the eighth day is to be a complete rest. On the first day you are to take choice fruit, palm fronds, thick branches and river-willows, and celebrate in the presence of Adonai your God for seven days. You are to observe it as a feast to Adonai seven days in the year; it is a permanent regulation, generation after generation; keep it in the seventh month. You are to live in sukkot for seven days; every citizen of Isra’el is to live in a sukkah, so that generation after generation of you will know that I made the people of Isra’el live in sukkot when I brought them out of the land of Egypt; I am Adonai your God.’”
We get a little more information in Deuteronomy 16:13-15 which reads, “Celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles for seven days after you have gathered the produce of your threshing floor and your winepress. Be joyful at your festival—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, and the Levites, the foreigners, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns. For seven days celebrate the festival to the Lord your God at the place the Lord will choose. For the Lord your God will bless you in all your harvest and in all the work of your hands, and your joy will be complete.”
One thing is for certain–the Lord wants us to celebrate and be joyful during this feast and also to remember how He delivered us from our captivity, and will continue to do so over and over again. All through our lives, we as humans encounter little Egypts, places in our walks where we are held captive, separated from God. But over and over again we see how our loving Father longs to set us free, to deliver us simply so that we can be closer and more in line with Him and His good plans for our lives. How much easier it is to celebrate the Feast of Booths with joy when we remember this about our Creator and His heart.
Speaking of Sukkot, I would be remiss not to announce that this is the fourth year Messiah Texas has been blessed with the opportunity to host Texas Tabernacles! It is a beautiful week of worship, learning, and community, all while getting to observe Sukkot with as much joy as possible, and so many people we know and love. If you have other plans this year, we will miss you and hope to see you next year!
