And We Begin Again …

From the Desk of Cheryl Hauer

It's truly hard to believe we’ve reached the end of another holiday season and are already several days into 5786. We have prayed and sought transformation throughout Elul; celebrated Rosh Hashanah and asked for forgiveness during the Days of Awe; fasted on Yom Kippur and rejoiced with friends and family in our sukkah; and finally concluded the season dancing with the Torah and starting the reading cycle over again. That’s a lot of festivities—the perfect way to end the old year and welcome the new.

Unfortunately, though, shifting from a time when almost every day held some kind of spiritual significance back to our normal, mundane lives can be difficult. It is a time in our journey when it is easy to become distracted or even discouraged, as our hyper focus on the things of the spirit gives way to the everyday things of the world. But Rabbi Simon Jacobson reminds us that it doesn’t have to be that way. We should be proud, he says, of the challenging but exhilarating work we have done over the past 60 days. We journeyed  on a road that has been traveled for thousands of years by people in all walks of life the world over. But this year’s journey covered a part of that road that has never been traveled before: your part. Now, says Rabbi Jacobson, the next step is yours.

That raises the question: will we remember the most important lesson of the journey so far? The simple fact is that nothing is truly mundane because God is in everything—every step, every thought, every diaper changed or floor scrubbed, every text or conversation, every battle fought or victory won. He is there, holding us by our right hand and reminding us, if we just listen, that He’s got the destination; we need to focus on elevating the journey from the mundane to the sublime simply by remembering that He is in everything.

Perhaps that is the challenge for 5786: actually seeing God everywhere. Remind yourself that He not only created water thousands of years ago, but He knew then which drops would fill your cup this very morning. He knew which plant on a distant hillside would produce the coffee beans that would flavor it. He knew every grain of sand that became the glass that made your cup and every thought you would have as you savored it. I have learned so much from my Orthodox Jewish friends as I have watched them quietly and discreetly bless the Lord countless times throughout the day, thanking Him for everything from awakening in the morning, to eating different foods, meeting an old friend, drinking water, even upon leaving the restroom.

King David’s statement in Psalm 16:8 is most often translated, “I have set the Lord always before me.” However, the NIV says, “I keep my eyes always on the LORD,” and the Holman Christian Standard Bible translates it, “I keep the LORD in my mind always.” But I think Brother Andrew might have said it best in his little book The Practice of the Presence of God.

Think often on God, by day, by night, in your business, and even in your entertainments. He is always near you and with you. Leave Him not alone. You would think it rude to leave a friend alone, one that came to visit you. Why then must God be neglected? Do not then forget Him, but think on Him often, adore Him, continually live and die with Him.

May 5786 be your best year yet, filled with joy and happiness, permeated with the presence of God. May you see Him in everything.

Blessings and Shalom,

Issachar Community