The Magic Formula for The Book of Life

Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are so near yet we are so far away. How do we prepare ourselves? The Rebbetzin's advice is timeless, "'Hafoch boh, hafoch boh, d’kula boh - Turn the pages, turn the pages, for everything is to be found within it.” To every challenge there is a teaching from our Torah that is applicable. The well-known three-fold formula is guaranteed to yield positive results: tshuva, tefilla, and tzedukah – repentance, prayer, and charity."

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The Rebbetzin continues, "It never ceases to amaze me however, how many people resist this advice, although they give lip service to it every Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. It is amazing how few of us are sensitive to the language of prayer, and how resistant we can be to suggestions that we elevate our service to Hashem. Whatever our religious commitment may be, we are content with the status quo and shun suggestions for growth. It goes without saying that we would never apply this logic to our financial and material positions. In those areas, we are always eager to expand and grow.

"Recently, a young lady came to see me with an overwhelmingly devastating problem. When, among other things, I recommended that she turn to Hashem and follow the formula of tshuva, tefilla, and tzedukah, she smiled indulgently and said, “Rebbetzin, I need real help, real solutions.”

"For a moment, I was astonished. She was an observant woman – how could she have made such a statement? “Can there be any more real solution than the help of G-d?” I challenged. To what extend do we really believe that Hashem can intercede and resolve our problems? How deep is our faith?

"It is Chodesh Elul and our world is in crisis. We are beset by so many difficulties, trials and tribulations, be they personal or national. Our problems are huge, but we are short on faith. It is written in the Talmud: “Ayn yisurin boh l’olom elah bishvil Yisroel – Suffering is not visited upon the world but to awaken our Jewish people...” Just consider that which is unfolding right here in our own backyard. Nature itself is crying out for our attention. Hurricanes and floods are sweeping our country, creating havoc and forcing multitudes to flee their homes. Additionally, the political situation in our own United States as well as throughout the world is frighteningly uncertain, and looming over it all is the terrifying specter of the danger to Eretz Yisroel.

"The month of Elul is upon us. Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur are just around the corner. Our lives, our future, our very world is hanging in the balance. We cannot allow this Elul to be “same old, same old”. This Elul we must become different.

"The parsha that ushers in Chodesh Elul is Re’eh. This Torah portion is all about “choices”. Moshe Rabbenu, our loving rabbi, charges us with the responsibility of “choosing” blessing over curse. The first condition to this blessing is to develop our ability to listen (asher tishm’oon), We have a responsibility to sensitize our hearts and minds so that we might hear the call of G-d in our daily lives.

"How do we react when our Heavenly Father lovingly rebukes us? It is Chodesh Elul – Let us have a moment of truth and answer. When difficult days befall us, do we feel self-righteous indignation and anger? Do we feel that we have been treated unjustly, or do we return to our Heavenly Father, to our G-d in humility, prayer and love?

"I have often told my listeners that overwhelming problems can be analogous to boiling water. When you place a carrot into boiling water, it becomes mush and disintegrates. When you do the same with an egg, it becomes hard and tough. On the other hand, when you place coffee or tea into boiling water, it is transformed into a delicious drink. This then, is the option that we all have: we can collapse and disintegrate like the carrot; we can become hard and tough like the egg, or we can take our boiling water and convert it into something positive – a delicious drink.

"That is the option that stands before all of us. When confronted by overwhelming problems, when the water is really boiling, we can fall apart like the carrot and become depressed – but that will not benefit anyone....worse, it will consume and destroy us.

"We can become tough like hard boiled eggs – cynical, bitter, and angry like those petulant children. Once again, a self-destructive response that will only alienate us from others and from our true selves.

"Finally, we can become like coffee or tea and convert our boiling hot water into s delicious drink that can be nourishing for us as well as for others. We can look upon our problems as challenges, as opportunities for growth and convert our negatives into positives, our liabilities into assets and our short comings into strengths.

"Yes, if we know how to listen, we can realize our full potential as Jews and return to our Heavenly Father and to our Torah way of life. Our history demonstrates that there is no difficulty, no obstacle that we cannot overcome when we become one with our G-d. We need only allow the light of G-d to lead us. “G-d is my light and my salvation...Whom shall I fear?” is the psalm that we recite twice daily during this season But do we really believe it? Do we really believe that G-d is our light and our salvation? This year, let us demonstrate our faith and not just mouth empty words, but let us allow the light of G-d to truly lead us. We simply cannot afford to continue with “same old, same old.”