Moshe Rabbeinu tells Bnei Yisroel not to be afraid of conquering the land of Eretz Yisroel. And if they do start to feel scared or nervous, they should think back to the miracles Hashem did for them when they left mitzrayim. They will realize that just as Hashem helped them in the past, He will continue to help them fight these battles and take over the land.
In life, we are sometimes afraid to look ahead. We don't know what the future will bring and we don't know how we will overcome our battles. We need to fortify ourselves with emunah and remember the times Hashem helped us in the past. When we think about other times Hashem helped us pull through, we will feel strengthened and know that He will help us this time too.
May we hold on to our faith in Hashem at all times, by looking back at the times Hashem helped us and staying confident that He will be there for us in the future!
Friday, August 16, 2019
Parshas Va'eschanon
When Moshe Rabbeinu speaks to the Jewish Nation before his death, he tells them that we will do aveiros and we will be sent to galus. But, Hashem will never forsake us as a nation and we will ultimately do teshuva and return to Hashem.
While we are in this galus, we may go through times where we feel lost and alone. But we must remember this promise. Hashem will never abandon us! He will never forsake us! And if we use what we are going through to return to Him and to come closer to Him, we will add meaning to our life and purpose to our pain.
May we be able to keep growing and keep coming closer to Hashem as we bridge the gap between us and our Father in Heaven!
While we are in this galus, we may go through times where we feel lost and alone. But we must remember this promise. Hashem will never abandon us! He will never forsake us! And if we use what we are going through to return to Him and to come closer to Him, we will add meaning to our life and purpose to our pain.
May we be able to keep growing and keep coming closer to Hashem as we bridge the gap between us and our Father in Heaven!
Labels:
Connection,
Emunah,
Galus,
Life,
Parshah
Sunday, August 11, 2019
Tisha B'Av
During the nine days, the rules we keep are similar to the halachos of someone who mourns the loss of a close relative. We don't listen to music and we don't wear fresh clothing.
But on Tisha B'av, the mourning intensifies to another level. We don't eat or drink, we don't wear leather shoes and we don't greet people with a warm hello. When someone loses a loved one, they don't have an appetite and they don't feel like greeting everyone they meet. They miss their relative and nothing else matters!
This is why we fast.
On Tisha B'av, we mourn the loss of the closest relationship we once had with Hashem. How can we eat when we are so far away from the ideal lifestyle? We use the sadness of the day to propel us to make better choices so we can experience that same closeness once again.
May the confusion and distance we live with be replaced with clarity and closeness as we do everything in our power to bring the Geula!
But on Tisha B'av, the mourning intensifies to another level. We don't eat or drink, we don't wear leather shoes and we don't greet people with a warm hello. When someone loses a loved one, they don't have an appetite and they don't feel like greeting everyone they meet. They miss their relative and nothing else matters!
This is why we fast.
On Tisha B'av, we mourn the loss of the closest relationship we once had with Hashem. How can we eat when we are so far away from the ideal lifestyle? We use the sadness of the day to propel us to make better choices so we can experience that same closeness once again.
May the confusion and distance we live with be replaced with clarity and closeness as we do everything in our power to bring the Geula!
Friday, August 9, 2019
Parshas Devarim
Moshe Rabbeinu speaks to the Jewish Nation before he dies. He spends five weeks telling them all the things they will need to hear before their new leader, Yehoshuah, will take over.
While we don't like to think about death, all of us will one day leave this world. While we are still alive, we can think about what kind of messages we are leaving for those around us by the things we spend time doing, the way we act and the words we say. The interactions we have with others really do leave a memorable, lasting impact on our friends and family.
May we be able to utilize our time while we are still alive to impact those around us in positive ways and act as a role model for spiritual growth to all those we come in contact with!
While we don't like to think about death, all of us will one day leave this world. While we are still alive, we can think about what kind of messages we are leaving for those around us by the things we spend time doing, the way we act and the words we say. The interactions we have with others really do leave a memorable, lasting impact on our friends and family.
May we be able to utilize our time while we are still alive to impact those around us in positive ways and act as a role model for spiritual growth to all those we come in contact with!
Tuesday, August 6, 2019
Nine Days
We are now in the nine days.
Unfortunately, we are so distant, so far, many of us don't even connect to what we are supposed to be mourning for. So we go through the motions, we don't wash our clothes, we take lukewarm showers and we don't eat meat.
Yet, we look out for gourmet dairy recipes. We shop for the finest ingredients so our final product with be tasty with an exceptional presentation.
We even send jokes about how hard it is to manage for nine full days without meat. (Two of those days happen to be shabbos this year).
Seriously?! Jokes?
I get that we want to have good food and we want it to look and taste good but are we really going to joke about how difficult it is to manage for a week without any meat? That we can't barbeque?
We don't get what we're mourning about. We don't grasp the enormity of the loss. So chazal instituted some external signs of mourning so we shouldn't forget that we should be sad about something.
You want to really feel it? Open up a shir hashirim and read about the love between Hashem and His Jewish Nation. Read about the bond we once had, the connection we are aching to have again. Learn what it means to be really close to Hashem, as close as a husband and wife who love each other more than anyone else in the world.
This is the love Hashem has for us! This is the connection He wants to reestablish with us!
But we are far too distracted to notice. We are busy mourning our week without meat instead of mourning what we really lost.
Let's stop for a moment.
Ponder our lives.
Think about what we're missing.
Think about the lack of clarity. The lack of morals. The lack of understanding.
And daven for the day when we will be reunited with a true bond of love and affection to the One who is waiting to show us just how much He loves us.
Unfortunately, we are so distant, so far, many of us don't even connect to what we are supposed to be mourning for. So we go through the motions, we don't wash our clothes, we take lukewarm showers and we don't eat meat.
Yet, we look out for gourmet dairy recipes. We shop for the finest ingredients so our final product with be tasty with an exceptional presentation.
We even send jokes about how hard it is to manage for nine full days without meat. (Two of those days happen to be shabbos this year).
Seriously?! Jokes?
I get that we want to have good food and we want it to look and taste good but are we really going to joke about how difficult it is to manage for a week without any meat? That we can't barbeque?
We don't get what we're mourning about. We don't grasp the enormity of the loss. So chazal instituted some external signs of mourning so we shouldn't forget that we should be sad about something.
You want to really feel it? Open up a shir hashirim and read about the love between Hashem and His Jewish Nation. Read about the bond we once had, the connection we are aching to have again. Learn what it means to be really close to Hashem, as close as a husband and wife who love each other more than anyone else in the world.
This is the love Hashem has for us! This is the connection He wants to reestablish with us!
But we are far too distracted to notice. We are busy mourning our week without meat instead of mourning what we really lost.
Let's stop for a moment.
Ponder our lives.
Think about what we're missing.
Think about the lack of clarity. The lack of morals. The lack of understanding.
And daven for the day when we will be reunited with a true bond of love and affection to the One who is waiting to show us just how much He loves us.
Friday, August 2, 2019
Parshas Matos-Masei
The Parsha lists the many places the Jews traveled to while in the desert in great detail. We know that there is no extra letter or extra word in the Torah so this detailed list is all the more significant. Every stop the Jews made in the desert was important and worthy of being mentioned.
In our own lives, we may not know why we have to go through certain things or why we have to make specific stops along our journey, but we do know that there is a reason for every single step of our journey. Each thing we go through, every person we meet, every place we end up at, is important. There is a reason and a purpose for it all.
May we be able to utilize the stops along our journey for growth and personal development and leave a positive, lasting impression on each person we meet along the way!
In our own lives, we may not know why we have to go through certain things or why we have to make specific stops along our journey, but we do know that there is a reason for every single step of our journey. Each thing we go through, every person we meet, every place we end up at, is important. There is a reason and a purpose for it all.
May we be able to utilize the stops along our journey for growth and personal development and leave a positive, lasting impression on each person we meet along the way!
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