Hashem reminds Moshe that whatever impingement he feels he has, it cannot impede him from his destiny, nor the people from redemption. Once Moshe was able to rid himself of his doubt and submit to his destiny, he was able to perform miracles. & of course miracles happen every moment, disguised as nature, but if we cloud them with doubt or anxiety, we can’t see the miraculous good.
With Pharaoh, we see after each plague he agrees that Hashem is the Almighty. But then he forgets, doubts, becomes faithless and fooled again, thinking he is in control and can save himself. And when Moshe brings the next plague, he begs for it to stop and be reversed, he says that he will allow Moshe to take B’nei Yisrael out and serve Hashem. But the plague abates, Pharaoh’s compassion abates and he hardens his heart again.
I once produced a short film for the Accidental Talmudist titled “The Parking Spot”, and one of my favorite actors, Stephen Tobolowsky, was the star. (You may know him as Jack Barker from Silicon Valley). The scene opens with his character who is in a rush to a big money meeting but unable to find a parking spot! We hear him on the phone pleading with his colleague to try to stall the meeting. Eventually, he prays, “Please God, help me get a parking spot! If you help me get a spot, I’ll give 10% of this deal to charity! I’ll give 10% of every deal I make! and I’ll call my mother!” Right then a car pulls out, and he gets all excited and says, “Wow, never mind, God. I got it!!”
When everything is running smoothly, when everything seems aligned, we sometimes think foolishly that it is because of our own doing and not that of Hashem. And it’s often in those times when we get shaken up and fall from on high, so that we can be humbled again. So we enter into a space of questioning and then can remember the fundamental answer that everything is from the hands of Hashem, and that all that we do have is meant to be connected back to Hashem, to spiritualize reality, not materialize it.
May we all rid ourselves of doubt, release the chains of our own struggles and the parts of our minds that enslave us, and manifest the Promised Land within ourselves.
Thanks for reading!
Much love & Shabbat Shalom!
– Erez // @erezsafar
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