THE ART OF HOLDING ON
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THE ART OF HOLDING ON
What would you do in your life differently if you knew you could not fail? is probably the most important question in coaching. The second most important question What would be the worst case scenario, in case what you would like to do does not work out?
No one is a super man… we are only asked to the do the best we can. Troubles, got the feelings scared, and always seem to catch me when I am least prepared… Frozen, when I have to choose, any road I take I got something to lose… Quest, was it meant to be? Are or is this all part of my destiny? You’ll never know, just let it go, or what could take you there, but in time you will find you don’t have to despair!
Hold on, give it just a little more, Hold on, wait for the other door to open, never give up hope!!!
Appreciation, for what you own, focus on your blessings and how much you’ve grown… Remember that you never are in this world alone! Trials arise before your eyes, and took your by surprise, got news for you, courage never dies!
Hold on, give it just a little more, Hold on, wait for the other door to open, never give up hope!
This song, from Yaakov Shwekey, is lately my favorite song, and is playing in my headphones, right now, as I am writing this article, blocking out the noise in my Jerusalem apartment, while my wife is holding up the fortress of the family. The printer’s dead line, is in just one hour, if I want to get this article out, as I had a crazy week, juggling everything in my life. I won’t be able to have the editor edit this, so I am just writing away, hoping I wont fail, and worse case scenario, people will write me all my typing mistakes… But If I could give just one person a little hope, it is worth to just type away and get the article out…
Living in Israel, is just living in מתח, stress, that you just don’t have a minute to just chill. Even in front of my elevator, in my building with 40 apartments, and about 40 people living on each floor of the twelve flights in my building. And between the two elevators, is a sign, that while you wait for the elevator, there is a sign of the Tehillim and prayers to say for the soldiers and for the Jewish Nation. And in the elevator, as you are going up 10 flights from the parking lot, there is a daily dvar Torah on a rotating message, that someone removes each day. So even in the elevator, when you can’t check your phone, you have some message, to make sure, your mind is always at edge!
“There was once a man, who went to his Rabbi, asking for help with his life, and his bleak future. The Rabbi blessed him, he thanked the Rabbi, and exited the room. The son of the Rabbi asked this man, what did his father, the Rabbi, tell him, that gave him new hope, that it was worth to come to the Rabbi for? The man said, the Rabbi blessed him, that Hashem Ya’azor! G-d will help!
The son of the Rabbi, asked this man, “What will you do, until Hashem Ya’azor? Until G-d’s help?” The man was stumped,… immediately he asked to go back in, to the Rabbi, to ask him, what will I do, until G-d will help me?
The Rabbi smiled, and answered, Until Hashem Yaazor, Hashem Yaazor! Until G-d helps, G-d will help!
We try to dream big, we try to hold on, and we are challenged again and again, not knowing how we will survive or thrive. But that is what life is all about! It is one big long test, before the elevator, during the elevator, after the elevator, of G-d asking you, DO YOU STILL SEE ME? DO YOU STILL BELIEVE IN ME? It is so funny, what my mother just sent me last night, while I was sleeping. “I wonder what the part of my brain that used to store people’s phone numbers is doing now!” You can sometimes wonder when you are thrown your hardest life tests, how when things were so calm, you thought that you could manage life, all by yourself! You thought you got it all! When things go great, you say, I got this! But when things go wrong, you say, G-d why did you do this? Like Naomi said, אֲנִי֙ מְלֵאָ֣ה הָלַ֔כְתִּי וְרֵיקָ֖ם הֱשִׁיבַ֣נִי יְקֹוָ֑ק When I left Israel, I went so full with blessing. But G-d brought me back empty handed! One second, Naomi. When things are good, you go alone, but when things are not good, it’s all G-d??!! Its pretty hard to love G-d like that, or trust in G-d like that!
If you can’t dream big, you gave up on yourself, on your destiny! Of course, worst case scenarios can happen, but usually, the things that go wrong in life, are never the things you dreaded for so long. Every older man I asked told me so! The things that go wrong in life, were never the things you dreaded anyway, so why not dream big? Meaning, G-d takes care of all what you dread, as worst-case scenario!
As we see in this war, as IDF keeps moving forward they are learning how right they were for moving forward, not knowing how important this war is! Not knowing if we can actually get rid of Hamas forever, or if we can ever get our hostages, not knowing how the world will respond, but we need to dream big! We really need every prayer, every moment of Hizuk, every Hessed, to win this war!!!! Last week, we had two soldiers that are Baalei Teshuva eating by us Friday night, one was Duvdani, and the other was Givati. The help they had from donations from America with the gear made all the difference for them! We had the greatest meal together, while they told my children how they asked their superiors, if they can go back to yeshiva to learn, as they can learn the whole day, and they believe that their Torah and prayer all day, can help more, than being on the fronts at war, because WE NEED MIRACLES!!! We need G-d! And the army and their friends let them back to yeshiva! You should have watched these guys bench Birkat Hamazon, and how they only spoke Torah at the table! We really had angels this last Friday night with us!
This is something we find in the Parasha. וּבְר֤וּחַ אַפֶּ֙יךָ֙ נֶ֣עֶרְמוּ מַ֔יִם נִצְּב֥וּ כְמוֹ־נֵ֖ד נֹזְלִ֑ים קָֽפְא֥וּ תְהֹמֹ֖ת בְּלֶב־יָֽם: And with the breath of Your nostrils the waters were heaped up; the running water stood erect like a wall; the depths congealed in the heart of the sea.
What does that mean , that the water congealed in the middle of the sea?!
We know that depth of the Sea, is very deep, much deeper than the ground at the shore. When the sea was split to two, and the floor of the Sea was revealed, there was a great gap in height, from the shore, to the bottom of the Sea! The Jews could have fallen into the depth, and gotten hurt, even if it was all dry! And then they would have to trouble themselves greatly to climb back up, out of the Sea! So G-d made them a miracle, that the water congealed, and they walked on a flat, dry, congealed water, not at the bottom of the Sea! (Daat Zekenim, Baalei Hatosefot)
In the Hagaddah we say on Pesach night, אלו קרע לנו את הים ולא העבירנו בתוכו בחרבה דינו, If G-d would have split the Sea for us, and did not cross us the in the middle of the sea, in the dry land, that would have been enough for us to thank Him!
What? What is there to thank G-d for, if he would split the Sea and not take us across it? We would have been killed by the Egyptians!
No! The meaning is, that G-d not only split the Sea, in front of our eyes, but He also, brought us through the water themselves, not having to go down to the bottom of the Sea and climb back up again! He did not have to do that for us, but He did!
The word שיר not only means Song, it also mean Circle, in the Mishnayot. (Shabbat 5 1) because every song is a circle, where the past note, and the present note, blend with the following note. We are to say Shirah, when the past that we had pain, and the future where there is anxiety, come together to the present moment, in full circle. The Egyptians who tried to destroy us by throwing us into the Nile, G-d is now destroying them, by drowning them in the Sea! כִּ֣י בַדָּבָ֔ר אֲשֶׁ֥ר זָד֖וּ עֲלֵיהֶֽם: In the same thing that they plotted against us! The word זדו , plotted, is the same root as the word נזיד, the round lentil, because G-d brings everything into full circle in the end! Moshe now realized, how he was wrong for questioning G-d in the hard times saying, וּמֵאָ֞ז בָּ֤אתִי אֶל־פַּרְעֹה֙ לְדַבֵּ֣ר בִּשְׁמֶ֔ךָ הֵרַ֖ע לָעָ֣ם הַזֶּ֑ה וְהַצֵּ֥ל לֹא־הִצַּ֖לְתָּ אֶת־עַמֶּֽךָ: So Moshe fixed that questioning of G-d, by starting off the Shira with אָ֣ז יָשִֽׁיר־מֹשֶׁה֩ וּבְנֵ֨י יִשְׂרָאֵ֜ל אֶת־הַשִּׁירָ֤ה הַזֹּאת֙ לַֽיקֹוָ֔ק וַיֹּאמְר֖וּ לֵאמֹ֑ר אָשִׁ֤ירָה לַֽיקֹוָק֙ כִּֽי־גָאֹ֣ה גָּאָ֔ה ס֥וּס וְרֹכְב֖וֹ רָמָ֥ה בַיָּֽם: For those very things that were so hard, that seemed like the worst things, G-d was there with us all along!!!
When we get a glimpse of inspiration, how G-d was always there, and will always be there… Having faith in G-d, in crazy times, saying Shira, saying Vayosha with Kavaana, will give you forgiveness for all your sins! (Mishna Berura 51 17)
Every single step, along the way, even steps you never thought about, G-d is with you!!! Just HOLD ON!
