Unleashing the Promise of Prosperity & Peace in our Land

The opening words of the Torah portion of Bechukosai are filled with promises of peace and prosperity in our Land. Now, more than ever, we are desperate to witness these game-changing guarantees.

“I will give your rains in their time, the Land will yield its produce, and the tree of the field will give forth its fruit. Your threshing will last until the vintage, and the vintage will last until the sowing; you will eat your food to satiety, and you will live in security in your land.

And I will grant peace in the Land, and you will lie down with no one to frighten [you]; I will remove wild beasts from the Land, and no army will pass through your land; You will pursue your enemies, and they will fall by the sword before you; Five of you will pursue a hundred, and a hundred of you will pursue ten thousand, and your enemies will fall by the sword before you. I will turn towards you, and I will make you fruitful and increase you, and I will set up My covenant with you.”

Vayikra (Leviticus) Chapter 26 Verses 4-9

The promise of these most magnificent blessings of financial prosperity, peace, and nachas comes with strings attached, however. These incredible Divine Assurances depend on our initiation—they cannot be taken for granted, as they require some serious prior effort on our part:

“If you follow My statutes (toil in my Torah study—Rashi) and observe My commandments and perform them,”

Vayikra (Leviticus) Chapter 26 Verse 3

The Torah is telling us that we must do three things: Study more Torah than we are comfortable with, Guard the Mitzvos, and actually perform them. It’s not enough merely to study Torah and perform the Mitzvahs; we need to really toil in Torah study—forcing ourselves to go beyond our comfort zones—in order to bring down these extraordinary blessings. And apparently it’s not enough for us even to conscientiously study Torah. He wants us to sweat bullets over it! Only then will he shower these extraordinary blessings upon us.

It seems as if G-d wants life to be hard for us. Why?

When a young man once complained to the Rebbe that, despite his efforts in Torah studies, he didn’t feel that he was mastering them, the Rebbe assured him that G-d values his efforts far more than his status. His results were far less important than his effort. Satisfaction lies in the effort, not in the attainment. 

Though that young man found much solace in this response, we are forced to wonder what is the point of struggling? What value is there in the toil if we never actually reach our targets?

Would you buy a mismatched suit just because it was made by the hard work of a blind tailor? Does G-d enjoy seeing us struggle?

Is my contribution more beloved to G-d when it hurts me to write the check?

In the Book of Psalms (121:5), King David teaches us that “G-d is your shadow” – Just as a shadow follows your movements, G-d treats us exactly in the same way that we treat Him.

When we do things for G-d that we’re comfortable with, G-d blesses us with blessings that He is comfortable giving us.

But when we go out of our way for G-d with unusual effort, G-d will go out of His way for us, giving us far more than what we normally deserve.

Far from being a masochistic enterprise, our extra effort is a powerful tool that allows us to draw abundant blessings from on high, far more than we could normally draw.

Instead of running from your tzorres, embrace them as opportunities to exhibit your deep devotion to G-d.

When a member of our Shul complained to me about a group of people that he was unable to respect, I told him that this was a golden opportunity for him. If he is wise enough to choose to be kind to these people despite his better judgment, he will be breaking out of his comfort zone for G-d, thus forcing the hand of G-d to shower him with more blessings than he would normally allot to him!

Hence, the extraordinary blessings of the Torah this week are specifically the result of our extraordinary effort in Torah study.

If you feel challenged by the demands of your faith, instead of backing down, take advantage of it to step out of your comfort zones for Hashem, so that He can do the same for you! Recognize your problem as an opportunity for explosive growth.

You can grow in your Torah study quantitatively or qualitatively. Study Torah with us anytime, anywhere at Youtube.com/JewishGardens or JewishGardens.com/WisdomCenter. Alternatively, you can decide to deepen your Torah wisdom through meditation. Simply turn off your phone and close your eyes as you quietly reflect on something you’ve learned well in Torah, for a few minutes. This seemingly simply experience, repeated daily, will unblock the pathways from your mind to your heart, infusing you with a level of passion that you never knew you were capable of reaching.

Instead of feeling like a helpless victim in this unthinkable war on global Jewry, the Torah empowers us to make a meaningful difference. Believe in the possibility of your impact—small changes make a big difference.

Rabbi Dovid  Vigler
Chabad of Palm Beach Gardens
6100 PGA Blvd, Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33418
JewishGardens.com  | 561.624.2223