Events Page

  Shalom
  to you,

Wellsprings of Torah,  www.TorahWellsprings.org
Rick Wills - Messianic Elder,  Mishareth@TorahWellsprings.org

You might enjoy this sample of Yemeni Chant, Yom Shabbat
Credits are posted at the bottom of this page.

    On this page are special events. These events may, or may not, be hosted by Wellsprings of Torah.

 

Dr. Ben Alpert (shown here with his wife) is our former Rabbi. He is currently serving as an International Ministries Representative, where he focuses on Chosen People Ministries operations in South Florida, as well as Bible study tours to Israel, mentoring new staff, researching, and representing the ministry by speaking in churches and conferences worldwide.
 
On January 22, 2005 Rabbi Ben visited our congregation for the first time since he had assumed his office in South Florida. We had been operating for two and a half years, and his visit was as our first Guest Speaker since we had begun our services at Wellsprings of Torah.
 
With his visit he took special notice our Torah scroll which I had constructed for the services, and afterward became the first to purchase a similar Torah scroll from us. He will be using the scroll in his own congregation that meets with him in Boynton Beach, Florida.
 
For information about his tours to Israel, click the following... "See Israel through Jewish eyes"
 

 

1    Shabboth

    (Friday evening until Saturday evening, the Holy Sabbath) is always an event at Wellsprings of Torah. We meet at 10am Saturday mornings.

2    Broadcasts

    Rick Wills, the Messianic Elder to Wellsprings of Torah, has spoken on certain radio stations that are local to the Charlotte-Metrolina area of NC. He was hosted by the popular program of "Journey to Wholeness," anchored by Sydney Langston, Ph.D.

    The first two week interview covered the topic of "Understanding Biblical Forgiveness." We all have our private concepts about forgiveness, but the Torah has outlined specific parameters that define its nature and behavior.

    The second two week interview covered the topic of "Repentance, Reconciliation and Torah," exploring the injunctions of the Torah and the teachings of the Messiah that relate to mending hurt relationships.

    Copies of both interviews (each contained on two cassette tapes) may be obtained by sending a $10 donation for either interview (being $20 for both) to "Debra Wills, El Rophe Center, PO Box 327, Waxhaw, NC 28173 USA." The price covers the shipping and handling within the continental USA.

    Currently, weekly sermons are posted as audio media on the Broadcast Page of this site.
 

3    Te'ruah (Rosh Hashanna)

    We just finished Yom Te'ruah (Rosh Hashana), now we are going into Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement). Then the next Shabboth we are observing Sukkoth (Tabernacles). Together, these are the High Holy Days of Yisrael. Our Congregation will be camping for the first few days of Sukkoth. That is what you are supposed to do, but you are actually supposed to do it in Yerushalaim (Jerusalem) at the Temple. But nobody has done that for 2000 years (because there is no Temple), so we are just doing something that is better than staying home.

    Yom Te'ruah was fantastic. We blew the Shofar a hundred times. That is also what you are supposed to do. On the last blast, the Last Trump (that is referred to in 1Corinthians 15:52 of the Chadasha), you blow it until you have no more wind. Then the Lord is supposed to move in with the Spirit and sweep your breath away into the Heavens -- One day, as he does this, he will even raise the dead. Job says (26:13), "With his Spirit, the heavens are Shifroh.” Shifroh means they are made clear and beautiful. The word Shifroh is derived from the word Shofar, which is the horn you blow the Last Trump with... it is called Tekiah Gadolah (the Great Blast) in the Hebrew.

    With our Tekiah Gadolah we all felt the Lord moving swiftly among us as we listened until its end.
 

4    Kippur (Day of Atonement)

    With our Yom Kippur (Day of Coverings or Day of Atonements) service we realized that when we admit to our sins it completely unravels us emotionally. We also discovered that Adonai has established Yom Kippur as an advantage for us in order to provide us with the strength to continue -- though our sins might be excessive.

    Yeshua the Messiah was referring to the mechanics of Yom Kippur when he  said, "Come to me all of you that are burdened. Take my yoke onto your shoulders, and realize that my methods are not troublesome, and my task is not too difficult."

    The "task" of Yeshua, as it is exhibited in Yom Kippur, is to strengthen you to continue. And where you continue, you do so to discover righteousness. The "method" that Yeshua employs is the Torah, the Law of God. Because the Torah in its purest form is pristine and perfect, and it contains the resources that will encourage and strengthen the person that feels they are failing.

    Therefore, we approach Yeshua the Messiah, as the remaining Temple of Adonoi, upon whom the Father has placed His Name. We humble our selves with fasting, and we confess our sins -- with the hope and trust that the Messiah is just, and that he is able to relieve our anguish -- by forgiving us with many "coverings", covering over all our sins -- that the Father may bless us and sustain us, and that we may continue in righteousness.
 

5    Sukkoth (Feast of Tabernacles)

    For Sukkoth, we observed our Shabboth Service, then everyone went to the mountains to camp together for a few days. It was both fun and nice, but I have to say that I was exhausted by the time we returned home. And it made me wonder about how difficult it might have been for everyone in Jerusalem in Yeshua's day. At that time they all slept in Sukkah's (Sukkoth) which were pitched in the streets around the Temple. It was also the responsibility of the citizens of Jerusalem to try to make things as easy for the visitors as possible, but camping is camping, and it had to take its wear. Nevertheless, I can say that it is a ware that leaves you satisfied... "Behold how good it is for brethren to dwell together in unity," and that is what the Festival of Sukkoth is all about.

6    Simchath Torah and B'reshith

    Recognizing the close of Torah studies by dancing with the Torah Scroll was a lot of fun. The kids enjoyed it even more than the adults, but it was the adults that had been looking forward to it all year long. Now, we are re-starting the Torah studies with Bireshith (Genesis), and it is like walking in by the front door to our home.

    I love the Creation story. In my opinion, it is the most important story of Torah. That is because it is the Seed of the Tree of Torah that would blossom with the families of Yisrael. And everything that grows from this Tree has the character of that Creation Seed. Yeshua, the Messiah, is also the product of this Seed and Tree.  And the nations of the earth have been grafted into this Tree by the merit of Yeshua. Hashem (God by Holy Name) is the farmer that has planted the Seed and cultivated the Tree, that it should live and bear very much fruit, and that it would be strong enough to nurture the grafting of many nations (the Gentiles). This capable Branch that carries our grafting is Yeshua the Messiah.

    These High Holy Days are the realization of all those labors. And our Congregation, Wellsprings of Torah, is a deliberate part of this Tree of Life. Therefore, Bireshith (Genesis), the story of the Seed and its unfolding, has a family association with our spirituality. And the Seed of the Tree is its intelligence; moreover, in this mysterious story of six days and a seventh, is the knowledge that explains why we exist as we do.

7    Pesach (Passover)

    This year we tried to keep the service small and private. Nevertheless, the general festival commandment is to not forget the "widow, orphan, stranger, and Levite", so there were a few people we had never seen that also attended. But with Pesach, the Torah specifically commanded that Yisrael should assemble in their houses with one or two families. In that day a family might have 8 to 14 children, and that means each house could have 20 to 32 participants. Our Pesach had about 30, and where I have led assemblies of 200 in the past, I can say that this Pesach was a lot more relaxed and satisfying.

    Moreover, this year we actually were in a house instead of a Hotel, Motel or Club, which is what the Mitzvah (commandment) had instructed... "You shall eat the lamb with bitter herbs in your houses." So we cleared out the two-car garage, set up tables and decorations, lit the candles and smiled. It was especially a lot of fun to crank up the garage door for Eliyahu (Elijah) to come in. I walked outside and yelled for him... but all I saw was the full moon, all I heard was a sweeping wind, so we closed the garage door and resumed the service.

    Maybe next year... and maybe in Yerushalaim (Jerusalem).

    The revelations were comforting, the sounds of harp, flute, clarinet and violin were sweet, and the food was delicious. The candle light filled the room with a beautiful glow, and my only regret was that our horseradish was on the weak side. I just didn't get that tingling scalp feeling this year. I hope that doesn't mean anything important. But I did get the Ruach Hakodesh (Holy Spirit) feeling of Qadusha (Holiness). And with this Pesach, once again, we all walked with Yisrael as they marched out of Egypt... as the Torah says, "a mixed crowd went out with them."
 

Wellsprings of Torah Garage Seder

8    Our Anniversary

    Our Two-Year Anniversary was celebrated on Shabboth, June 5th 2004. We conducted our usual service, and had a pleasant Covered Dish Dinner afterward instead of the normal Oneig. Everyone brought their favorite foods, and some experimental foods, but most importantly -- they brought themselves. The next week we decided to extend the celebrations with a picnic after the service again. We went to a State Park that was nearby, and it was as pleasant as the Covered Dish Dinner. Everyone brought fruits, cold salads and sandwiches, and we ate under a grove of trees beside a wonderful lake. The water looked cool, and ducks would fly low -- crossing from one side to another. Afterward, we played Put-Put Golf, and went for a walk along the lake. There weren't any bugs, and it wasn't too hot -- it was just a nice day for talking.

    We are very grateful to Hashem that we are still operating after two years. We are a small but diligent group of souls, who are earnestly pursuing the face of Adonai and his signature in worship. We love Yeshua, and we are grateful to his people, Yisrael, who built a Kingdom that became Yeshua's arena for the Bisorah (Gospel). Moreover, they still maintain that Kingdom in the Diaspora so we can truly understand what Yeshua taught -- for what he taught and meant was Torah and the lifestyles that are immersed in Torah. May our Father in heaven bless Yisrael, and remember Avrahom, Yitzhaq and Yaakov. May he remember his promises and his mercies, and may he send the Mashiach Yeshua back to them swiftly and soon.

    Revelation 22:20, "He who testifies to these things says, "Yes, I am coming quickly." Omein. Boah-na, Adon Yeshua."

The earth is an event that can't be ignored -- even the Angels have said,
"... the earth is filled with the Glory of Hashem (the Lord)."
 

East Coast Vista of the Pisgah National Forest in North Carolina
 

West Coast Vista of Mount Ranier in Washington