Moment of JOI

📖 Parshat Ki Tavo This Week: A.J. Jacobs spent a year thanking over 1,000 people involved in his morning coffee from the barista to the African farmers to the road pavers. When Jews brought their first fruits (bikurim) to the Temple, you'd expect them to thank God for the harvest. Instead, they recited their entire history: Abraham, Egypt, the journey to freedom. Why? Because true gratitude isn't just about the moment, it's about the whole story. That apple in your hand represents countless people, endless blessings, and generations of struggle and triumph. Real thankfulness zooms out to see the bigger picture. Thi...

📖 Parshat Ki Teitzei This Week: When you see someone struggling with their fallen donkey, you must help them lift it, but the Torah uses a key word: 'imo' (עמו) WITH him. You can't just sit back and say, 'This is your mitzvah, you handle it.' But here's the deeper lesson: if YOU'RE the one struggling, you can't just complain that 'someone should fix this for me.' Whether it's your synagogue, community, or organization, change requires your participation. The Torah teaches partnership, not passivity. Yes, we should help each other, but we help WITH you, not FOR you. Want better progra...

📖 Parshat Shoftim This Week: 'Tzedek tzedek tirdof' Justice, justice you shall pursue. This famous verse hung in Ruth Bader Ginsburg's Supreme Court office, but why repeat the word 'justice'? The Torah teaches us that it's not enough to pursue justice; it must be pursued justly. The goal AND the method must both be just. We can't rationalize cutting corners just because our intentions are good. You can't achieve justice through lies, build peace through violence, or create fairness through unfair means. The repetition reminds us: how you do something matters as much as what you do. When you're fighting for wha...

📖 Parshat Re'eh This Week: People often ask me if Judaism believes in 'signs' from God. When Moses speaks about blessings and consequences, he begins with one powerful word: 'Re'eh' SEE. God is always communicating through the events in our lives and world, but the real question isn't whether the message exists; it's whether we'll see it. You can experience something and just move on, or you can pause and ask: 'What is this trying to teach me? How can this help me grow?' The same event can happen to two people; one sees a coincidence, another sees guidance. The cho...

📖 Parshat Eikev This Week: The Torah says God watches over Israel 'me-reishit hashana ad acharit shana' from the beginning of THE year to the end of... year. Notice the missing 'the'? We start January thinking 'this is going to be THE year!' Hashanah with the definitive article. But by December, it's just become 'another year' shana, no 'the.' Why do our grand resolutions fail? Because we aim for massive transformation instead of small, sustainable steps. Real change doesn't happen because we declare it's going to be 'THE year.' It happens through tiny daily choices, little habits, and inc...

📖 Parshat Va'etchanan This Week: After the Holocaust, Rabbi Leizer Silver had a brilliant way to identify hidden Jewish children in monasteries. He'd call out 'Shema Yisrael!' and watch for kids who instinctively whispered back 'Baruch Shem k'vod malchuto l'olam va'ed', the words that follow. These children, separated from everything Jewish, still carried the Shema deep in their souls. In times when being proudly Jewish feels scary or uncertain, the Shema remains our anchor, not just words, but the DNA of our identity. When the world gets loud with hatred or confusion, we have something that echoes deeper than fear: the...

📖 Parshat Devarim This Week: When Moses recounts the story of the spies, he says God heard 'the sound of their words,' not just what they said, but how they said it. The spies' actual words weren't wrong; it was their tone that destroyed hope and changed history. This hits differently as we approach Tisha B'Av this Sunday, mourning the Temple's destruction caused by sinat chinam, baseless hatred. It's a reminder that our tone can build bridges or burn them down. The same question can sound curious or judgmental. The same feedback can feel supportive or crushing. Your children, spouse, and...

📖 Parshat Matot-Masei This Week: When the tribes of Gad and Reuben wanted to settle outside Israel for better pasture land, Moses was concerned. Being isolated from the main Jewish community would make them vulnerable to negative spiritual influences. His solution? He strategically placed half the tribe of Manasseh, known for their spiritual leadership, among them as positive influences. Moses understood a timeless truth: we become like the people we surround ourselves with. Your friends, your community, the voices you listen to, they're not just affecting your day, they're shaping who you're becoming. Choose your influences as carefully as you'd choose you...

📖 Parshat Pinchas This Week: What's the most important verse in the entire Torah? You might guess the Shema, or 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' But the Talmud surprisingly chooses the verse about the Korban Tamid, the daily offering brought every morning and evening in the Temple. The message? Grand gestures of love and faith are beautiful, but transformation happens through consistency. It's not the peak spiritual moments that change us; it's showing up daily, doing the small things repeatedly, and building habits that slowly reshape who we are. Whether it's prayer, kindness, learning, or any positive practice, the secret isn...

📖 Parshat Balak This Week: When Bilam's donkey suddenly stopped walking, he immediately assumed it was defying him personally. But the donkey saw angels blocking the path that Bilam couldn't see. 'You know me,' the donkey said, 'do you think I'd do this to you on purpose?' How often do we assume someone's behavior is a personal attack when they're responding to something we can't see? That child acting out, that coworker being difficult—maybe they're not trying to hurt us. Perhaps they're conveying something they're experiencing that we're unaware of. Before we take it personally, let's get curious: What...

Parshat Chukat This Week: Like walking through a forest where all trees look the same until one falls and reveals its true enormity—that's how we discover greatness. When Miriam died in Kadesh, the very next verse tells us the water disappeared. For 40 years in the desert, one woman's faith and merit sustained an entire nation, and nobody fully realized it until she was gone. How many 'hidden giants' walk among us today? Your teacher, your neighbor, that quiet person in your community—they might be sustaining more than you know. And here's the beautiful truth: you might be someone's hidd...

📖 Parshat Korach This Week: 'Two Jews, three opinions'—we're famously argumentative people! But this week's story of Korach's rebellion seems to condemn disagreement. So which is it—are arguments good or bad? Jewish wisdom teaches us about 'machloket l'shem shamayim' (מחלוקת לשם שמים)—arguments for the sake of heaven. Korach's rebellion was driven by jealousy and ego, focused on tearing down rather than seeking truth. But when we argue with genuine curiosity, seeking to understand different perspectives and uncover deeper wisdom, our disagreements become sacred. The goal isn't to win—it's to grow beyond our limited viewpoint and discover truth together. Argue well. Shabbat Shalom. 🤝
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📖 Parshat Shelach This Week: The spies returned from the Promised Land with glowing reports, 'It's amazing!' but then came the word that changed Jewish history: 'BUT the people are giants and we can't conquer it.' The Hebrew word they used was 'efes' (אפס), which means 'zero', and that's exactly what it did to everything positive they'd just said. When we say 'but,' we erase all the good that came before it. 'You did great, BUT...' 'I love you, BUT...' Next time you want to give feedback or share concerns, try using 'and' instead. It honors both the po...

📖 Parshat Beha'alotcha This Week: Even while eating miraculous manna from heaven, the Jewish people complained about missing the 'free' fish from Egypt—conveniently forgetting they were slaves at the time! Moses, overwhelmed by their constant grumbling, cried out to God: 'Did I give birth to these people? Why is this all my responsibility?' God's response wasn't 'tough it out'—instead, He appointed 70 elders to share the burden. Whether you're leading a community, raising children, or just navigating life's challenges, remember: you weren't meant to carry it all alone. Even Moses needed help. Asking for support isn't weakness—it's wisdom. Shabbat S...

📖 Parshat Nasso This Week: Every Friday night, we bless our children with the ancient words of the Birkat Kohanim' May God bless you and protect you' (יברכך ה' וישמרך). But here's the beautiful paradox: we ask for blessing (material success) and protection from that very blessing. True prosperity isn't about what we accumulate, but what we do with what we're given. When we use our blessings to elevate others and express our highest selves, we transform success from a potential trap into a tool for goodness. May we all be blessed—and protected from letting those blessings define us. Shabbat Shalom. 🙏

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