Mikketz (It Came to Pass) B’resheet/Gen 41:1-44:17
: Mikketz (It Came to Pass) B’resheet/Genesis 41:1-44:17
Haftorah Readings: I Kings 3:15-4:1
Today I have two points for us to ponder. I have read the weekly portions of Torah every week for years and both of these points I have never noticed before so I look forward to sharing these with you today. It will be new for me and I hope for you also.
I would like to start with Genesis 42:1. In this verse we read of a conversation between Jacob and his children. “And Jacob saw that there was food in Egypt, and Jacob said to his sons, Why are you looking at each other.”
Va’etchanan (I Pleaded) Devarim (Deut) 3-7
Torah Portion: Va’etchanan D’varim(Deut.) 3-7
Haftorah Reading: Isaiah 40:1-26
Tonight we read a Torah portion that starts with great sadness. Moshe recounts how he pleaded with G-d to allow him to enter the Land. He uses a word that conveys intense emotion – pleaded, beseeched and yet to no avail. G-d did not allow him to cross over to see that good land.
As I considered this verse this week I thought of how our lives each day are not something to be taken lightly. Our actions have consequences. Life is not a game and we get no do over. G-d is a G-d of mercy and compassion but also a G-d of justice. How we live has results that sometimes carry a heavy price. Our prayers for forgiveness for sure are heard but there may also be a price to be paid. King David is one example. G-d loved him and forgave him but there was still a result from his sin. Here in our portion we see the importance of our actions. Life is not a game but is for us to be perfected and bring us to maturity so that we can come to that place of living each moment to its spiritual fullness, that we can be G-d’s agents of showing a world His goodness, mercy and love.