The Sabbath/The Counting of the Omer/Courts of Heaven Prayer

Hello friends, my name is Chadwick Harvey. You have reached Faithful Performance. Thank you very much for joining us tonight on this special Shabbat night as we also continue the counting of the Omer. We want to thank everybody for being with us last night as we continue through the weekend with these videos.

Tonight we are going to go through the Sabbath. I am going to read a couple of pages about the Sabbath, and then we will get into the Courts of Heaven prayer for all those who want to join us in corporate prayer — praying for our nation America, for Israel, for the hostages, the Jewish people, and really the entire world, because there are many people going through difficult times across the globe. We have friends from every corner of the world, and we truly appreciate you joining us live or on the rerun. We hope this ministers to you tonight through both the Courts of Heaven prayer and the teaching on the Sabbath. Shabbat shalom, everyone.

I have had a number of people reaching out about prayer, health, finances, and much more. We hold these prayer sessions once every six months, once every quarter — whenever the Lord leads us. We felt it was a wonderful time to do one during the counting of the Omer, right at the halfway point, which is exactly where we are today. We are on day 28 here on Eastern Standard Time, just over the halfway mark. We are about to close out four weeks, with three more to come. Those final three weeks are very important as we approach the close of this festival. It is so special to reach the end of this season and to celebrate the Festival of Shavuot — with the spiritual growth, the maturation, the insight, the revelation, and the intimacy we have with Yahweh during this time. This is His 50-day count, orchestrated by Him alone for mankind to be a part of. How special is that? Whoever wants to believe and be obedient to Him gets to be intimate with Him on the very days He has divinely designed. We must get back to what He has orchestrated for our lives. He knows best — what we should eat, how we should pray, our behavior, our attitude, our demeanor. It is time to return to what He wants and to walk in obedience to Him.

This is one of those beautiful days: the Shabbat. This is really where it all begins, with the Sabbath day. It is a special time to understand these divinely appointed meetings with Him — through the weekly Shabbat and through this season of liberation. We talk about it often because that is where we are right now: the season of liberation. We are in the month of Iyar, on the 28th day of the Omer. The Orthodox will be on day 35, as they count from a different starting point. Here at Faithful Performance we are counting from a Messianic perspective and are on day 28. However each person is led to count, the exhortation is the same: understand this season of liberation.

We need to pray deeply into this season, because that is exactly what it is — a liberating time, a spiritual spring cleaning. We have all heard of spring cleaning, and this is actually where that tradition comes from: from the Omer and from the removal of leaven from our homes during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. He wants us to take inventory of our lives. While that is important throughout the year, there are certain times on His calendar that carry special weight — the feast days, the counting of the Omer, and all the anointings that accompany this season. During this count He wants us to understand where He is directing us as we enter the new season ahead. We have already stepped into something new, but an even deeper new season awaits us when we reach Shavuot.

With that in mind, I want to lovingly challenge everyone — including myself — with this question: what do we want to get out of these next three weeks? Tomorrow will complete four full weeks of the Omer count, leaving three weeks remaining, represented by the rainbow colors of indigo, blue, and violet or purple. These are three important colors and three important weeks as we close out the counting of the Omer here in 2025. We felt it was a wonderful time to pray into the Courts of Heaven together with all of our friends. Thank you so much for joining the prayer tonight, because it truly matters — where two or three are gathered, He is there among us.

We will now count the Omer here on the East Coast. Some of you in the Western time zones are still within the daylight of the previous count, but we are a few hours ahead. We will say it now and again at the end for those who join later. We are so grateful for everything He has done during this count — the revelation, the inspiration, the motivation, all the things He is working in each of us personally and prophetically. We thank Him for that. We ask that the spiritual gifts be open tonight as we go through the prayer, and that He guides and directs all of us through these final three weeks of this special 50-day divine appointment, as we approach the Feast of Shavuot and enter into the summer months. We praise His holy name.

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu, Melech Ha'olam, Asher Kid'shanu B'mitzvotav V'tzivanu Al S'firat Ha'Omer. Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments and has commanded us to count the Omer. This is day number 28 — four completed weeks. Congratulations, everyone. Four completed weeks, and it has gone by quickly, yet has been rich and thorough.

We also want to sing Psalm 92, the Song of the Sabbath. This is a powerful Sabbath scripture. Let us receive it from the Word, receive it from the Almighty Father, and let it ease us into that Shabbat rest — that Shabbat mode He wants us to enter into, where everything quiets down a little more than it does during the week. This is from the Complete Jewish Bible:

*A Psalm, a Song for the Shabbat.*

It is good to give thanks to You, Adonai, and sing praises to Your name, Elyon; to tell in the morning about Your grace and at night about Your faithfulness, to the music of a ten-string harp and a lute, with the melody sounding on a lyre. For Adonai, what You do makes me happy; I take joy in what Your hands have made. How great are Your deeds, Adonai, how very deep Your thoughts. Stupid people can't know, fools don't understand, that when the wicked sprout like grass and all who do evil prosper, it is so that they can be eternally destroyed — while You, Adonai, are exalted forever. For Your enemies, Adonai, Your enemies will perish; all evildoers will be scattered. But You have given me the strength of a wild bull; You have anointed me with fresh olive oil. My eyes have gazed with pleasure on my enemies' ruin, and my ears have delighted in the fall of my foes. The righteous will flourish like a palm tree; they will grow like the cedar in Lebanon. Planted in the house of Adonai, they will flourish in the courtyards of our God. Even in old age they will be vigorous, still full of sap, still bearing fruit, proclaiming that Adonai is upright — my Rock, Yeshua, in whom there is no wrong. Amen and amen.

Let us pray this one more time.

It is good to give thanks to You, Adonai, and sing praises to Your name, Elyon; to tell in the morning about Your grace and at night about Your faithfulness, to the music of a ten-string harp and a lute, with the melody sounding on a lyre. For Adonai, what You do makes me happy; I take joy in what Your hands have made. How great are Your deeds, Adonai, how very deep Your thoughts. Stupid people can't know, fools don't understand, that when the wicked sprout like grass and all who do evil prosper, it is so that they can be eternally destroyed — while You, Adonai, are exalted forever. For Your enemies, Adonai, Your enemies will perish; all evildoers will be scattered. But You have given me the strength of a wild bull; You have anointed me with fresh olive oil. My eyes have gazed with pleasure on my enemies' ruin, and my ears have delighted in the fall of my foes. The righteous will flourish like a palm tree; they will grow like the cedar in Lebanon. Planted in the house of Adonai, they will flourish in the courtyards of our God. Even in old age they will be vigorous, still full of sap, still bearing fruit, proclaiming that Adonai is upright — my Rock, Yeshua, in whom there is no wrong. Amen and amen.

Thank you, my friends. That was very powerful. One thing that stood out to me: He mentions the wild bull in Psalm 92. We are currently in the month of the ox — Iyar, the month of the wild bull. He mentions that very thing in this Psalm of the Sabbath. How remarkable. I hope that has eased everyone into a good feeling for the Shabbat.