One of the most important lessons of the Torah is that we have to make an effort and God will then help us. That said, we should never say that God did not have a hand in our success.
Now for a quick Devar Torah.
This week we read Parshat Haazinu, and we read it during the season of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. This year, we will read it on Shabbat Shuvah, the Shabbat between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
That timing is no accident.
Haazinu is essentially Moses’ final speech to the Jewish people. Moses knows that he is going to die. He knows that the Jewish people are about to enter the Land of Israel without him, and he has one last opportunity to prepare them for what lies ahead.
His warning is straightforward: remember the Torah. Remember the mitzvot. Remember where you came from, and above all, remember where your blessings come from.
That is also the message of this season.
As we approach Yom Kippur, we look back over the past year and ask ourselves: What did I do right? What did I do wrong? Whom did I hurt, knowingly or unknowingly? Where did I fall short? And perhaps most importantly: What can I do better in the coming year?
One of Moses’ great warnings is about the danger that comes with success. When things are going well, it is very easy to say, “I did this. I built this. I succeeded because of my own intelligence and hard work.”
Of course we have to work hard. Judaism does not teach us to sit back and wait for miracles. God expects us to make an effort.
But we must never confuse making the effort with controlling the outcome.
You can open the greatest business in the world, but if no customers walk through the door, you don’t have much of a business. You can work hard, plan carefully, and do everything correctly—and still need a little help from Above.
There is an old joke about a man who goes to synagogue every day and prays, “God, please let me win the lottery.”
He does this day after day, year after year.
Finally, after twenty years, the ministering angels turn to God and say, “Why don’t You let this poor fellow win already? He’s been praying with all his heart for twenty years!”
And God replies, “I’d like to—but first he has to buy a ticket.”
That’s the point.
God’s help does not relieve us of the responsibility to act. We have to buy the ticket. We have to start the business. We have to make the phone call. We have to get into the batter’s box.
And if you want to get a hit, eventually you have to swing at the pitch.
You may swing and miss. There are no guarantees in life. But if you never swing, you certainly won’t get a hit.
That is an important message as we approach Yom Kippur. Teshuvah isn’t simply saying, “God, make me a better person.” We have to take the first step. We have to make the effort to change.
And when we do succeed, Moses reminds us not to say, “My own power and the strength of my hand accomplished all of this.”
Yes, we worked for it. Yes, we made the effort.
But God gave us the ability to make that effort, the opportunities to use it, and the blessings that allowed that effort to bear fruit.
Our responsibility is to step up to the plate and swing.
And then, with God’s help, perhaps we can get the hit.
Something to think about.
Leave a Reply