There is a story that I like to tell.
Of a Jewish mother who comes to the Rabbi to ask a very ‘Yiddishe Mammeh’ style question.
‘Rabbi, I have a dilemma that does not let me sleep at night.
One of my sons sells heating units.
The other son sells air-conditioning units.
Shall I pray for the weather to be hot or to be cold?
The Rabbi thought for a minute and responded:
‘Pray to the Almighty that He provide plenty of business to both sons.
The Almighty is omnipotent; He can do the impossible.’
This weeks Parsha tells us about what is possibly the first recorded story of deception being used in warfare.
The Amalekites wanted to do war against the Israelites as they were poised to enter Israel.
Having previously been defeated by the Israelites (some forty years prior), they were fearful of the superior power of the Jewish people. Not their firepower, but their ‘prayer-power’. They knew that if the Jews pray to Hashem for salvation, even if they would be stronger militarily, they would not be victorious. It was well known from way back that Hashem answers affirmatively to the prayers of the Jews.
So here is what the Amalekites did.
They disguised themselves as Canaanites. Figuring that the Jewish people will call out to G-d in prayer to save them from the Canaanites. Their prayers would be futile. For they were really Amalekites not Canaanites.
The enemies used deception. The Jewish counterespionage kicked in and countered the deception.
The Jewish people sniffed that something was wrong. The language they were speaking didn’t seem to match up with the clothing. Although they couldn’t pinpoint it, they knew that something was amiss.
So, they adapted their prayers to be more generic.
As the Torah relates:
Israel saw that these enemies who were disguised as Canaanites had Amalekite features, so they made a generic vow to God, and said, “If You deliver this people into my hand, whoever they are, I shall dedicate the spoils of their cities to You.”
This story tells us so much.
First, it tells us about the power of prayer. When we acknowledge where our strength and power come from and submit ourselves in prayer before G-d we are truly mighty.
Secondly it shares with us that our enemies are most scared of us when we are aligned with G-d. They will go to great lengths to try and sow religious confusion without our midst. It gives them more strength as it makes us more vulnerable.
And perhaps most importantly it teaches us about the dynamics of prayer in our own lives.
That as much as possible one should be specific in their prayers.
If your business is lagging pray for business success.
If health is an issue, pray specifically for your health and the health of your loved ones.
Create your own tailored ‘shopping list’ of requests from G-d. Hashem desires us to reach out to him and acknowledge that He is the source of all our sustenance. The greatest way of doing this is by beseeching Him for all that we need.
There are many instances though that we don’t necessarily have clarity what outcome we should be praying for.
For that we have the teaching of our Parsha that we can pray generically.
I had the opportunity to put generic prayers to work earlier this week when I had the merit to visit the Rebbe’s resting place on the special day of Gimmel Tammuz. Many of my readers entrusted me with notes to take on their behalf to be read at the Rebbe’s Ohel on his yartzeit. I printed out their names and requests and placed them as customary at the resting place.
The mound of papers grew and grew as notes and petitions were carried in by the tens of thousands who visited on that day.
Besides for praying for those explicit requests, I prayed for all of those with whom I am connected.
This includes YOU.
Not necessarily knowing the specifics of what you need, I prayed generically. For what we all need.
That you be blessed with health. Physical, emotional, mental and spiritual.
With children and with nachas. From yourself and from your loved ones.
And with resources. Money resources as well as time and energy.
And my prayer for our entire people of Am Yisrael were simply
‘Almighty G-d, please make the outcome of world events be most beneficial to the Jewish people and bring Mashiach NOW’.
Some people think that they shouldn’t use their ‘prayer allowance’ as they may deplete it and ask sparingly.
Nothing could be more ridiculous.
He, Hashem, can do anything. Don’t impose your own limitations to your relationship with him.
A year ago, a friend of mine came with his wife and their infant child from Israel to have an operation in Boston children’s hospital. Their Israeli health insurance agreed to pay for the operation which means that they had exhausted any options in Israel. It was such a complicated condition that needed the superior expertise of the Boston facility.
Upon arrival in the USA, they went immediately to pray to Hashem at the holy site of the Rebbe’s Ohel. The husband wrote a note asking for a successful operation. When the husband saw that his wife had written a note praying that there not be a need for an operation, he realized that her level of trust in G-d superseded his and he promptly discarded his note and co-singed his wife’s note.
Upon arrival at the Boston hospital, the doctors did some final pre-op testing. To their huge surprise the surgeon called the surgery off. The medical condition that had seemed irreparable without an intensive surgery had started to heal naturally.
After reassessing the medical situation the operation was called off.
When the husband asked the doctor whether it was a miracle, the doctor said he is not an expert on miracles. He did confirm that he had never seen this kind of remarkable turnaround.
Don’t be scared to pray for what you REALLY want.
And be smart and think about what you really OUGHT to want.
Someone once wrote to the Rebbe that he be freed of his community work as he was ageing and not feeling as healthy as before.
The Rebbe responded: ‘I have never seen anything so strange and distorted. Instead of asking to be relieved of your duties you could have asked for a blessing to be health and vigorous’.
I go back to that story often. It speaks volumes about what a truly healthy perspective on life is.
Imagine if the king grants you a wish and you ask to be first in line for the charity free food handout?
Instead of asking for the king to make you wealthy?
Don’t get stuck in a limited mindset when speaking to an unlimited G-d.
We are in a period in history where things are moving at dazzling speeds.
May we pray not just for the immediate relief of whatever is bothering us, let us pray for the ultimate. To witness the fruition of the dream we have waiting almost two thousand years for.
The coming of Mashiach.
NOW.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Yosef Kantor