Dear Friend,
We absolutely love our new neighborhood but have quickly learned there can be lots of traffic around Chapel Hill Rd/Morrisville Carpenter during rush hour. (We're still learning the best ways to get to 540 during those hours.)
One day this week it was particularly bad. Standstill.
Yet, I found myself perfectly at ease despite not moving much for close to 15 minutes. Actually, I was almost hoping the traffic would last longer.
What was it? Did I recite the serenity prayer that morning?
Not at all. I was listening to a fantastic Torah lecture and didn’t want it to end.
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In the Parsha this week, we recap the journeys of the Jewish People while in the desert. When we think of that time in the desert, we often imagine spending years traipsing aimlessly around the desert in desperate need of a GPS. In actuality, that wasn’t the case. They never were lost. They actually made only 42 journeys during the entire period, the majority taking place at the beginning or end of the 40 years.
Most importantly, however, the trips were not random. Each was meaningful. At each location, they learned new Torah and Mitzvot. Every stop, even those that led to mistakes, was part of the process of their growing into a free people. It was about the journey, not only the destination.
What message does this tell us?
In our lives too, we can instill meaning into our journeys, even those as routine as our daily commute to work or summertime drive to the beach. When we’re with family, we can use that time to connect with our loved ones. And for the many times we’re alone in the car, there is so much quality material to listen to while driving.
Our
website has thousands of classes and lectures on every imaginable topic in Torah and Judaism. They can be listened to from the website or downloaded to your phone or Mp3 player for free. You can also download the app for audio and video classes
here. (And For more advanced classes, I recommend
the excellent app from theYeshiva.net)
Want to download a class with the practical laws of gossip? Click
here. Hear a moving lecture that will start your day with inspiration? Click
here. Learn a meditation for the Kaddish: That’s
here. Dive into the issue of free choice.
Here. Understand the historical background to the Ten Lost Tribes? Get that
here.
I’ll be the first to say it takes effort. Not only to download the classes, but even as far as actually deciding to learn something in the car. On the way to work, it’s far easier to simply turn on the radio and listen to the news or a talk show rather than focus on a class. But once I get started, I’m very happy to have made the choice to utilize this time in a meaningful
way, and frequently see the effect the inspiration has on the rest of the day…
This Shabbos, davening at 4104 Grace Park Drive begins at 9:30 am with Torah Reading and discussion at 10:30 am and a light lunch at around 12:30pm sponsored anonymously.
Good Shabbos,
Rabbi Yisroel and Rebbetzin Chana
BERESHIT- A Kabbalistic View of the First 4 Words of Torah
