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Daily Chizuk #1288
Weekly Parasha
The Goal of Hishtadlut: Fulfilling the Divine Will
Parashat Shemot: Odds Don’t Matter
Rashi writes in this week's parasha, Shemot, That after Pharaoh decreed all the babies should be thrown into the Nile. Amram who was the greatest one of the generation divorced his wife and all the Jews followed. What Amram did on the surface level seemed correct. Why should they continue having children if they were just going to be killed anyway? However, Miriam his young daughter respectfully told her father that having children is the will of Hashem. Furthermore, who says the decrees of Pharaoh will come to fruition? Moreover every child born, regardless of what happens to them, will be able to enter the World to Come.
When according to odds things don't seem to add up, yet we persevere knowing we're doing what Hashem wants, that avodah is so precious to Him. When it comes to Hashem, things don't always have to add up. He is the one in charge of results and to Him, odds don't matter. As far as we are concerned, we do our part as best as we can and we know Hashem takes over after that.
Today we are yearning for the Geula more than ever. It is the acts that we do with mesirut nefesh that bring the Geula closer. When our rabbis tell us certain things to improve upon, and they may be very hard for us to do, that is precisely our calling to hasten the Geula. To rise to the challenge and do it despite the difficulty involved. Whether it's calling somebody we're at odds with to make peace, whether it's accepting to follow all the halachot of Shabbat, whether it's improving in the area of modesty, whatever it is, the greatest gains will come from the difficulties involved in doing it. And when it seems that if we improve we're going to lose out, that is where we can display our steadfast emunah in Hashem and say that we know we never lose by following His will.
Shabbat Shalom!
Rashi writes in this week's parasha, Shemot, That after Pharaoh decreed all the babies should be thrown into the Nile. Amram who was the greatest one of the generation divorced his wife and all the Jews followed. What Amram did on the surface level seemed correct. Why should they continue having children if they were just going to be killed anyway? However, Miriam his young daughter respectfully told her father that having children is the will of Hashem. Furthermore, who says the decrees of Pharaoh will come to fruition? Moreover every child born, regardless of what happens to them, will be able to enter the World to Come.
When according to odds things don't seem to add up, yet we persevere knowing we're doing what Hashem wants, that avodah is so precious to Him. When it comes to Hashem, things don't always have to add up. He is the one in charge of results and to Him, odds don't matter. As far as we are concerned, we do our part as best as we can and we know Hashem takes over after that.
Today we are yearning for the Geula more than ever. It is the acts that we do with mesirut nefesh that bring the Geula closer. When our rabbis tell us certain things to improve upon, and they may be very hard for us to do, that is precisely our calling to hasten the Geula. To rise to the challenge and do it despite the difficulty involved. Whether it's calling somebody we're at odds with to make peace, whether it's accepting to follow all the halachot of Shabbat, whether it's improving in the area of modesty, whatever it is, the greatest gains will come from the difficulties involved in doing it. And when it seems that if we improve we're going to lose out, that is where we can display our steadfast emunah in Hashem and say that we know we never lose by following His will.
Shabbat Shalom!
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