Lech Lecha: Just Like the Sand

Dear friends, welcome to this week's virtual show. This week we have the para begins with one of the most dramatic statements in the entire Torah. A statement that forever changed the trajectory of mankind. Hashem says to go leave everything you know, everything you know, your family, your land, everything familiar and venture out into the unknown. of you takes this courageous journey of faith and tells him if you do so number one you will reap incredible personal benefit but not only that taking this courageous journey into the unknown will allow you to transform yourself to transcend from a the individual into a theim the father of a multitude of nations. It is through this journey that Armabu transforms from an individual personality ultimately again into the father of the Jewish and the father the truth is of monotheism throughout the world makes a variety of different promises that are going to go ahead and come come true some will see and some will only occur generations later says to this chapter 13 verse I will literally go ahead and make your offspring like the dust of the earth. If a person is able to count the particles of dust, you'll be able to count your offspring as well. It's interesting. Hashem could tell in two different ways. You'll have offspring like dust. You'll have offspring like sand. But the idea is the same that it seems to me what Hashem is telling is that the same way no one could count the particles of sand, no one can count the particles of dust, so too your offspring are going to be so numerous. And the question is obvious. Never in the history of the world have the Jews been so numerous. And the truth is we don't even see that in our destiny that we are going to be so numerous. So the the blessing that Hashem is conveying to must have a different meaning. What is it that Hashem is trying to convey when he says you're going to be like the dust you're going to be like the sand and the commentaries go in many different directions on the most basic level the mag says and I quote to you he says sometimes just speaks in hyperbole sometimes it's just hyperbole hem you're going to have so many descendants okay so how does Hashem term so many so many is like the dust of the earth like the Okay. But again, understanding that perhaps it's somewhat hyperbolic. On the other hand also understands understands it literally. Rashi says the same way that people can't count the particles of sand. People also won't be able to count your offspring. The medasa explains so beautifully that rather it's reference just like there's sand and dust from one end of the earth to the other. So to Jewish people the cloudly soul will be from one end of the earth to the other. That could be a geographic statement or as hers really understands it is it's an impact statement. No other people no other nation in the history of man [clears throat] has had an impact upon humanity like we've been influencing the nations of the world from the beginning of time. So rehears explains so when hem tells that your offspring is going to be like the dust like the sand just like dust and sand is anywhere and ever you can find it all over the earth. So to the influence of the influence of the influence of us the Jewish people the Abrammitic descendants will be felt from one end of the earth to the other. And again many different meshim many different ideas but this has been a question that's bothered me for years and I think if we delve a little bit deeper we can see something quite fascinating sand has many fascinating qualities and again even though over here makes reference to to dust but also also says like sand. So we'll use them interchangeably but when one looks at sand has a number of fascinating qualities. Number one, there are many different types of sand. There's sand that's used for building. There's sand that's used for concrete. There's different types of sand. Sand that's used for mortar. And again, different colors, right? Different iron, iron oxides, different colors, different different consistencies. And Hashem is telling your children are going to be like the sand. The beauty of does not want us to be the same. the same way that no two people look the same. Doesn't want us to be carbon copies of one another. He doesn't want us to try to be like one another. Obviously, a person should have role models and people they aspire to be like, but it's more like I admire the qualities of my role models and I want to try to emulate those qualities. But my avod is to be me. My avod is to be who I am. Just like there are different types of sand, there are different types of juice. And this message really has two facets to it. Number one, for us to each of us to embrace our individuality didn't create me and doesn't want me to be like someone else. He wants me to be the best version of me. Sometimes we make the mistake of comparing ourselves to others, measuring ourselves up against others. And while it's good to have role models, and while it's good to have people you look up to, the goal is never to become your role model. The goal may be to emulate certain qualities that your role model has. Each category of sand knows its place, has its purpose. Each of us has to discover our own unique individual identity. And on the other hand, we have to learn to embrace other Jews. Just like there are different types of sand, but again, sand all falls under one umbrella. So to what it means to be part of cloud is to embrace the differences, to acknowledge the differences, maybe even celebrate the differences and recognize that we have never been the same. We will never be the same because that's not what wants us. There are different types of sand and there are different types of Jews. Become the best version of yourself and learn to love every other Jew as well. Number two, something interesting happens when you step down on sand or on dirt. Something fascinating happens, which is it compacts. The individual particles are compressed together and become firm, become strong. An incredible metaphor for when we are stepped on, when we are compressed, when pressure is apply applied applied to us either through external enemies, tragedy, difficulty, watch what your children do. They don't splinter. They don't splinter. They compact. They don't go in different directions. They come together. The power of our people and the way we are able to meet every single challenge and every single strain of adversity is because when we are stepped down, when we are pushed down, when we encounter difficulty, tragedy or adversity, we compact. We come together, we grow closer. The power of like the sand that is compacted when pressure is applied to it compacts comes together when there is pressure as well. Of course, the old of our people is to figure out how to have a even when there's no pressure, even when there's no enemy, even when there's no external tragedy. Number three, what's interesting about sand and dirt is its ability to change form and shape, right? Sand looks different ways. If the wind blows this way, the sand goes this way. Or if there's water, the sand goes like this. Sand is always changing, changing form. Sand and dirt represent the ability to pivot or to adapt. Sand never remains a constant. It's always shifting based on what is happening around us. The power of the Jew, the greatest power of the Jew is the power of the pivot. We have the ability to acclimate to anything. We have the ability to adapt to anything. This is true as a nation and it's true as individuals. How often has it happened as a people that we faced circumstances that we thought signaled the end? How often has it happened as a people, as a nation that o overwhelming situations and overwhelming circumstances that we thought would bring us to our knees? And yet, what did we do? We pivot. We adapted. And as individuals, so often in life, we face overwhelming circumstances. Some of us it's each and every day. And for others, it's episodically, but it's for everyone. At some point in time, there are winds that blow. There are forces that work against us. And as sand, we have the ability to adapt. As sand, we have the ability to pivot. The power of the pivot is the most powerful tool that the Jew has in his or her spiritual toolbox. No circumstance, no situation could ever break me because I have the ability to adapt. I have the ability to pivot. I have the ability to mold and to meld myself to my new circumstances. Like the sand, I know how to pivot and I know how to adapt. And lastly, interestingly enough, sand. And this is I think many of us find the ocean very memor messmerizing like this. When you stand by the sand, right, you dig your feet into the sand and your footprints are so clear and they're so discernable. And then what happens? A wave comes and the water washes away everything. And when you look at that sand after the water has washed over, you can't tell that I was standing there two minutes ago. You can't tell that anything. In fact, it looks just as fresh as probably as the day that it was created. Water represents. Water represents Torah. Water represents spirituality. A lot of times in life, our personalistic sand gets stepped on, gets trampled on, as we've spoken about before, and we've had to adapt, and we've been compacted, and there's scars. There are scars, you know, as we go through life, we kind of rack up a collection of life injuries. They might be life injuries as a result of what other people have done to us or life injuries as a result of circumstances that Hashem has visited upon us. And sometimes like my personalistic sand is like all pockmarked from all the different kind of all the difficult trials and tribulations of life. But here's what's incredible. If you surround yourself with the water of Torah and you surround yourself with the water of becoming a selfless individual giving to others and you immerse yourself in the water of spirituality of it has the ability to smooth and to soothe your personalistic sand spiritual growth through again Torah through general spirituality has the ability to steady us, has the ability to anchor us, has the ability to smooth out our turbulence pockm marked sand as we go through life. Anchor yourself in a life of spirituality and the beautiful translucent waters of lnos will help to smooth out your personalistic sand. And so who tells Arau that ultimately again your offspring will be like the sand by the sea or the dust of the earth. Perhaps one day we will be that numerous or perhaps it's hyperbolic. We certainly have had a more dramatic influence than any other nation on the face of the earth. But it could be I want to tell you the four ways in which your children will constantly excel. Number one, they embrace their individuality and embrace the individuality of everyone around them. Number two, when we are trampled upon, we compact. We compact. We grow closer together. The particles come close together. The way we answer every adversity, difficulty, and tragedy is through. Number three, the power of the pivot and the power to adapt. Sand could do it and so can we. And number four, even when our personalistic sand is overwhelmed and pockmarked by so much difficulty, trials, tribulations, and tragedy, even when we feel overwhelmed by what's happened in life and we feel scarred and we feel broken and we feel overwhelmed, just like the sand by the shore, when the water washes over, it washes everything away. You can't wash away the stuff that has happened to you in life, but you can steady and anchor yourself. And with the water of Torah, with the water of the water of spiritual growth, I could smooth out my personalistically challenged sand. I could take the sand that bears the marks of so much difficulty in life and use the waters of spirituality to smooth it and to steady it. This is the message that Hashem gave to our patriarch thousands of years ago. And it's the message which gives us to this very day. Wishing everyone a good night of Shabas and a beautiful Shabas Kesh.