Sometimes the simplest reminders are the strongest.
And this week we get one of those basic, incredible reminders.
For the past few weeks G-d has been commanding Moses, “Go to Pharaoh!” Suddenly at the very start of this week’s Torah portion, G-d says to Moses “Come to Pharaoh!” First G-d encourages Moses and strengthens his resolve to confront Pharaoh. But after challenging and standing up to the king seven times, Moses gets a different message from Above: I am with you, we are going to Pharaoh together, I will lead, you follow.
(It’s almost like the difference between Home Depot and Goodwill. Home Depot says, “You can do it; we can help.” Goodwill says, “We can do it; you can help.”)
This confrontation and showdown between Moses and Pharoah is the grand story of our lives and it is every little story of our lives. Every time we struggle:
Between doing right or not -
Between despair and hope -
Between giving up or giving it our all -
Between being meek or being mighty -
Between accepting our personal enslavements or demanding from ourselves to let it go already -
Between doing what’s right or doing what’s popular -
Between doing the Mitzvah or missing the opportunity -
It’s always this story again.
And this week, G-d reminds us that we are never in the crisis alone. He is with us every step of the way. We aren’t being dispatched like cannon fodder to face adversaries incomparably stronger than us. He is always with us, His invisible presence more real than all our tangible challenges.
Thus, “Don’t just tell G-d how big your problems are; tell your problems how big your G-d is.”
*****
Then you have the guy who’s parked in his brand-new Maserati, engines revving, and he’s yawning. “This is special? I’ve been sitting in this overpriced, overhyped machine for ten minutes and it hasn’t done a thing!” Hey man, put it in drive!!
Nothing works if you don’t shift out of park (or neutral) and put the pedal to the metal. All the reassurances and commitments from Heaven and earth won’t do any good if we don’t get over the fear and give it a go.
So remember as you face your moments, it’s not just “Go for Me!” It’s also “Come with Me!” Either way to gotta move, but you know you’re never moving solo.