Failure Redefined

foreign [Music] on purpose as we begin our third week of study together I'll take this opportunity to remind everyone that our initiative here is dedicated for a foolish Lima for Ilana Hana paskilla we wish her a refuge speedy recovery Israel so much of what we know about davening so much of what we know about prayer comes from individuals who have preceded us and in particular gazal a rabbis extracts so much in terms of the messages the format the structure and the tone of prayer from our Patriarchs and matriarchs there are many individuals throughout the course of Jewish history but particularly in Biblical history who stand as examples as shining examples of how we should pray and I'm hoping that over the course of our study together we will have the opportunity to look closely at some of these examples individuals who are really paradigms icons and really really very very important role models in this regard this morning I'd like to focus on two of them very briefly not so much for the substance of what we learn but as you're going to see there's a message that I would like to share more broadly the first is from the gemara in brachos daflamide base the gemara tells us that when a person dabbings it is proper to first begin with shavach first by offering words of praise for akadesh barucho and afterwards a person should actually say what they want what they need their bakash as we say the requests and Somali and the command says that we learned this from because we find in the beginning of pasha's vest it says and Moshe them continues and he says Hashem begins his petition in by first offering words of Praise he says Hashem you are so great you are incredible you are the one who created the heavens and the Earth Etc and afterwards Moshe then transitions into a request to go into Earth's Israel Etc allow me to please to pass into the land of Israel so hazal look at this and they say oh so from Moshe we see that when a person davins first begin with words of praise and then and only then transition into Hashem here's what I am looking for here's what I would like can you please help me in this particular area another sample that I'd like to share with you comes from also the man brachos earlier in the massage teaches the name of junda an idea that I think most of us are familiar with and that is that when a person davins they should dive in ideally in the same place what we call a makom kavua now is not the time to get into the details of this and I hope please God to be able to do so at another time to talk about the different aspects of monkey why is important and how do we Define Malcolm cavua and if there are there in what situation should a person um choose not to dive in in a special designated place we'll leave that for another time but for now I just want to highlight the source of this idea rafuna teaches that if a person establishes a set place for wherefore his trilah so the god of Abraham the god of avram will be there to assist them abramovina was the one who teaches us this idea because as the person teaches avram stood up or rather he got up early in the morning and he returned to the place he stood in a place where he had previously stood and because I'll say uh meaning that avrah mavina would get up every morning he would dub in chakras in the same place so from here we learned that there's a concept of what we call so again without getting into the particular substance of these two ideas there's something very very fascinating there's a pattern of sorts if I can call it a pattern with two examples that some of you may already be noticing and I want to highlight it because it's very important over here we have two areas of practical guidance actual practical that we learned that we apply to this very day from tevila and they are learned from two examples not just two individuals but two particular philos one tefila is when Moshe asked to a system in his in his quest to enter the land of Israel and the second one is Hashem to on behalf of the city of stone avram that Hashem should not destroy the city of sadom as was his stated intention as reported to avram by the Mala who came to visit him now what's really really interesting and and maybe beyond that it's quite fascinating is that both of these examples or you would think terrible examples that we should learn from because they didn't work in moshe's case I'll tell us 550 15 times he prayed again and again please allow me to enter the land of Israel and what does Hashem say to him no not only that he says please do not ask again he appealed to akadashburg who he petitioned to him he negotiated back and forth and back and forth on behalf of the city of sadom and at the end of the day his efforts failed and so you would think that these would be the two worst examples that we would turn to for inspiration how to pray why would we want to go ahead and extract meeting Direction why would we want to look as the at these samples as a way to understand how we could pray if anything these are these are terrible examples you know what best to just put these aside and let's take a look at prayers that worked let's take a look at those examples and undoubtedly there are many examples examples of individuals who prayed let's take an example and we learned for example from Hana I don't want to get into Hana right now let's take a look at that Fila as we do and learn many things because we know that Hannah's prayers weren't answered she ultimately had a child they look at this particular example these two examples and they say ah from here we could learn how to pray why should that be that doesn't really make any sense and the answer my friends is because we have it all wrong we think we think that a successful prayer is one in which the person gets what he or she is asking for it again now we can't we can't look at this in the most limited sense ultimately there are times that sometimes we don't get initially what we want maybe we will down the line sometimes we don't get what we want because it's really not good for us there's a lot to unpack here but just to stay sort of focused on the simple idea that so often we Davin or I should say we imagine we think we focus primarily on the goal of getting what we want that's why we are in this and hazal we're so careful to redirect our Attention our Focus from that idea that they looked at philos which at least on the surface seemed like they were failed missions they looked like they they didn't work and so therefore if it didn't work once why would you go ahead and copy that and emulate it and they say to the contrary these are examples of prayers that we should try to learn from and they can serve as as a an example of inspiration for many many generations I would like to share with you a brief quote just an excerpt of a longer quote from my Jonathan Zach's in his introduction to the corn sitter and he writes that prayer changes the world because it changes us at its height it is a profoundly transformative experience if we have truly prayed we come in the course of time to know that the world was made and we have been made for a purpose that God though immeasurably vast is also intensely close that and he quotes the posing from to him that we've been saying throughout the month of avello though my father and mother read May reject me God will gather him it will gather me in hashemi in other words says Rabbi sex that what happens when we dive in is that there are changes that are going on inside of us our attitude our perspective our understanding of the world changes and he writes prayer is less about getting what we want to then learning about what to want our priorities change we become less angular we learn the deep that deep happiness comes from learning to give praise and thanks the world we build tomorrow is born in the prayers we say today Rabbi Sachs reminds us that which I think intuitively we all know and that is that prayer he says so powerfully is less about getting what we want than about learning what to want and we dare not look at those great individuals those pillars of inspiration who prayed again and again and again however mavina would return to that place and he appealed and a patient's petitioned and even though from his very limited perspective or I should say from our very limited perspective you looked at that and you say oh it wasn't it wasn't successful there were no fruits that ultimately came from that effort it was a failed Mission and so therefore we should just sort of move on and try again because I'll say stop right there that is a perfect example that is a that is a that is a perfect example of of commitment to Tila we should look at that how Avril mavino got up every day and he dabbing in the same place even if not especially at those moments where he was on a very very simple on a very simple level he was frustrated he must have been we see the degree to which Abram prayed and requested was pleading with who please allow me to go in and Hashem said no but we still look at those prayers and they serve as Eternal examples for each and every one of us how to Daven we should be inspired not only by Optimal examples and and by moshe's example by the degree to which I'll look at this and they view these as being just perfect perfect samples for us to learn from and it shouldn't be lost on us that for all generations these examples of trila serve as constructive and and instructive examples as to how we are to pray we should never ever ever fall into the Trap of looking at its Fearless being simply as I said last week transactional this is a means to get what I want of course that is part of it and not only that I want to for the final time validate that there is what to be said about that there is a transactional aspect to prayer but it is so much more it is about the relationship that builds between myself and their bonus alolan each time I turn and each time I face and realize as Rabbi sack says although he is immeasurably vast he is intensely close that is more than anything else our primary goal each and every time we turn to Sparkle in prayer thank you very much and have a wonderful day [Music]