I Missed the Flight, and…

 

My flight from Fort Lauderdale to JFK was set to takeoff at 1:01 pm. For some reason, I thought it was at 1:10 – a nine-minute difference.

I arrived to the terminal at 12:28 , walked up to the desk, and… was informed that they had just closed the desk and I had missed my flight. No more flights to NYC were set for that day. Oh, how aggravating!

No story or begging I could come up with could convince the airline to let me board, and so I was left with no option but to buy a new ticket on a different airline. Thank G-d, I was given a refund for the missed flight.

With much time on my hands until the flight, I started playing G-d and try to figure out why I had missed my flight; after all, it was the first time in my life that I had made such a mistake. I'm usually one of those who arrive together with the oldies even before the desk has opened…

Having read so many a book on Divine Providence, citing tales of so-and-so who missed his flight and was saved from a crash, or the guy who missed the train and was saved from certain death on 9/11, I could already imagine my plane getting high jacked and…. Blah blah blah… Just like in the movies.

Oh, if such a thing were to happen, what a story I would have to share! In my mind's eye, I saw myself telling everyone how G-d had watched over me and preaching about how everything is so orchestrated by our Father in Heaven. Feelings of gratitude would permeate my being, and tears would come to the eyes of the audiences. And they would all (including me) turn over a new chapter in their lives.

BOOM…

Suddenly normalcy hit me like a bolt of lightning. How immature my thoughts have been! How cruel! NINETY PEOPLE DON'T HAVE TO DIE, FOR ME TO KNOW THAT G-D WATCHES ME.

Do the twin towers have to fall for me to know that G-d watches over me? Does sickness and death have to strike, Heaven forbid, for us to appreciate the miracle of life?

NO! We can see G-d in the wave of a leaf, and in the breaths we take. Every moment is a miracle, every step monumental. And every circumstance is an opportunity to experience G-dliness – even missing a flight when, Thank G-d, nothing happens.

Let us merit experiencing a truly miraculous world, one where every detail will clearly declare G-d's glory. May it be soon, with the coming of Moshiach.

Amen.

The Guy in Florida who cursed out G-d

 "Could you believe it? They were thanking G-d that his body washed ashore! If this B…… G-d does exist, why did he let him drown?"

I had just exited a gift shop after a lovely conversation with some old-timers, and was approaching my friend who was deep in conversation with a hippie looking guy in his fifties, who had rented some space in the mall to showcase his ($85,000) pianos.

I casually joined the conversation; the guy introduced himself as an assimilated atheist Jew who did not at all identify with any religion due the fact that they were all…

His language was kind of annoying due its rich mix of high vocabulary English and lowlife street barf, most of which was pointed to G-d.

I had heard enough. Interrupting his ranting I asked him if he knew the meaning of Chutzpa, he said "yes, I sure have a lot of it".

"Do you mind if I ask you a question with chutzpa?"

He replied, "No problem, with pleasure."

"Is it possible that the reason and source of your "so called" lack of belief in G-d is primarily emotional and very little intellectual?

"I mean if you truthfully did not believe in a divine power, and that everything just happens without purpose and reason, then you would not be cursing him out as if he were a punk, you would not think of him at all!"

Honestly I was expecting him to remove G-d as his target and now aim all his sophisticated vocabulary at me. Surprisingly he became thoughtful and quiet.

"You know, my brother died when I was six years old, it was very traumatic, and my friend always said that my atheism was born from that experience. So maybe I do…"

"So you're angry at G-d, and can't stop thinking of him, you think of him more then I do! You might be a bigger believer then I am…"

His cell phone came to life at that moment, conversation over. I'm sure he thanked G-d for the rescue.

 

Do something about it:

You believe in G-d, admit it.

“Harder then living through the Holocaust”

I'm sitting and writing this thought, in beautiful sunny Boca Raton Florida , where I am filling in for the local Shliach for the next few weeks. B"H I am really enjoying every minute, for it really is a great learning experience.

Yet although the nature of the article would be expected to be fun, humorous and sunny, being influenced by the climate and atmosphere, it is not of that kind. It's due to a powerful event I lived through just a few moments ago and can't seem to get my mind off it, that I feel like sharing with you this powerful, albeit depressing and overwhelming experience.

Today in the Chabad house we hosted a round the table session for the families of the incarcerated, there were psychologists, volunteers from the Aleph institute and over half a dozen family members of those sitting in prison.

Among those sitting around the table was a soon to be 94 year old man, whose son is in prison, for relatively a small amount of time. The reason shall remain private, due the common trust of not relating the stories that were tearfully told at this meeting.

As he finished his tale of woe, he concluded with a statement that shook me and all those present to the core, he said: "I have lived through the holocaust, for four and a half years I was transferred from one camp to another, yet all that was not nearly as hard as my present situation having my son in prison."

Honestly no words can be written and do justice to the feelings of compassion that poured in our hearts when he delivered his tearful thought.

As I sit before a the computer, thinking to myself why did I have to hear this statement coming from such a broken heart and spirit, what do I as a free kid with endless opportunities walk out with.

I think one of the messages that can be derived, is that we must understand how important it is to live a life of values, of repentance and of spirituality, infusing our lives with purpose and meaning, because at the end of the day the disgrace and self pity of those who have not lived the life of meaning, and those of their loved ones is greater then we can ever imagine.

No Nazi was able to do the old man what a lost and confused young man did to himself. The biggest threat to us as a nation is ourselves, when we lose focus and mix up our values.

The month of Elul is upon us when we reflect on the past year and plan our coming year, hopefully this message will help us reach deeper and find our true priorities.

I am sorry for the depressing tone of this thought; it's just that I felt compelled to share this moment with those I know.

May our coming year be full of blessing, of goodness, a year of freedom, of redemption.

Do something about it:

Be something you can be proud of!

Do you have a Jewish Foot?

There are a church and a Jewish Temple next to each other. One day, the priest asks the Rabbi: "Why is it that you don't have any mice in your Shul?"

The Rabbi answers: "Well, when they become 13 years old we make them Bar Mitzvah. After they become Bar Mitzvah, they don't come to the Shul anymore."

***

Most probably you are reading this email while vacationing, as all good people do during the hot summer months. So in that spirit we'll start with a story.

The Chassid Rabbi Nechemiah of Dubrovna told:

"I once saw a Russian soldier being whipped. His crime? While standing watch on a winter night, his feet had frozen in their boots. 'Had you remembered the oath you took to serve the Czar,' his commander berated him, 'the memory would have kept you warm.'"

"For 25 years," concluded Rabbi Nechemiah, "this incident inspired my service of the Almighty."

You surely worked hard this year, and your body has been crying for a long-needed rest; granted. (That doesn't explain why after vacation is over, we are so drained that we need another vacation…)

Excuse me for interrupting your relaxation, but a question begs to be asked. It may not be the most convenient and politically correct question, but what are you taking a vocation from? Has your religion also been on a summer break? How about your moral standards and modesty – is everything up to par? Is your body relaxing alone, or is it paired up with a relaxing soul?

The good old saying goes: Why do the high-holidays come in September? It's because after all that went on during the July and August, our souls need some cleansing…

Eikev, is the name of our Parsha, and the verse literally means "because you listened to G-d's commandments,", but it can also mean "heel," teaching that one's heel should listen to G-d's commandments. The entire body, head to toe, should be permeated with G-d and his Torah.

Judaism is not a High Holiday religion, nor is it a hit-and-run-never-to be-seen-again Bar Mitzvah event. We don't "pay our dues" to the Divine by coming once in a while to the prayers. It is never ending; not a moment goes by which G-d does not expect you to maximize in order to better yourself and the world around you.

We eat for G-d, sleep for G-d, and work because G-d wants us to be able to support our family – so that they should have the peace of mind to remain committed Jews.

This may burst your vacation bubble, but it is truly a powerful and liberating thought: G-d is everywhere. There is no place lacking His presence; no situation devoid of His planning; no challenge in which His Guiding Hand can not be seen. And thus, always and everywhere, His commandments are relevant. Judaism encompasses all of time and space – even the "heel," the nitty-gritty, the temporary – and the vacations.

Do something about it:

Do something about it:

Make every moment a Jewish Moment

Shnorer!

After a huge earthquake, a couple was buried under the rubble. The wife was freaking out from fear; the husband seemed content and relaxed.

When asked by his wife from where he derives such confidence and hope, the man responded that he had promised two thousand dollars to the local day school. They were sure to come find him…

***

Here's a story from the Talmud:

King Munbaz squandered all his treasures and the treasures put away by his ancestors, feeding the poor during years of hunger. His brothers and his father's family ganged up on him and said to him: "Your ancestors stored treasures and added to the treasures stored by their ancestors, and you squandered them!" Said he to them: "My ancestors stored below, and I stored above; my ancestors stored in a place where a foreign hand can reach, and I stored in a place where a foreign hand cannot reach; my ancestors stored things that do not bear fruit, and I stored things that bear fruit; my ancestors hoarded money, and I hoarded souls; my ancestors stored for others, and I stored for myself; my ancestors stored for this world, and I stored for the World to Come."

*

Location: 770 Eastern Parkway. Time: 24/6. Situation: Some shnorer is begging for some cash.

I'm sure you recognize that scene, for be it Italy, NY, or Mexico, any place that might have had a Jew amongst her residents in the last decade is not safe from the plague of shnorers. They will dig you up, even if you modernize your name to Mc-something. Rest assured; they'll find you.

Like one guy said, the reason that G-d did not send upon Egypt the Plague of Beggars is because G-d wanted ten plagues and the beggars would do them all in one…

But all jokes aside – and this is not a paid advertisement of Shnorers Inc. – charity is the best investment you can ever make. It is even a proven method to make more money! As our sages state, G-d promises that if you give a tenth of your earnings to charity, you will be blessed with riches.

And this is the only time that G-d challenges you to test him! So come on and put G-d to the test!

Do something about it:

Become a millionaire, give charity