“Man plans and G-d laughs.”
It’s one of my favourite Yiddish sayings. How often have you made great plans only to watch them whirl down the drain?
Ever dreamed big, only to realise it was, quite literally, just a dream?
Have you gotten excited about a particular ambition and then, shock and surprise, you felt defeated when that ambition didn’t come to anything?
Sometimes, we try in earnest to do the right thing. Yet, you simply cannot see your victories, leaving you wondering whether it’s worth the time, effort and thought when the results were such a letdown.
Let’s say you are arranging a special event for your community – something that could benefit the community and their networks. You put hours into it. You plan every detail from the venue and programme to the food and music.
The special celebration is set to take place in a few days. You started months back, and yet, you can count on one hand the number of responses you’ve received. Some simply stated, “unavailable.”
So, why can’t things just work out the way you want them to? Why does the entire evening feel like a heart-breaking flop that you spent hours and hours planning? Should you even bother going out of your way for this event?
I say yes. By staying positive, you reaffirm your decisions to go ahead with your plans and trust that G-d will ensure it all works out.
Man Plans, But Maybe, Just Maybe,
G-d Cooperates
In this week’s portion, Vayeira, we encounter Abraham recovering from his circumcision. He’s 99 years old. That’s got to be enough reason for him to relax and slow down a little. But Abraham was an intrinsically good person. So, even in his time of pain and discomfort, Abraham was desperate for visitors. He loved to host guests.
Yet, G-d dialled up the sun’s temperature to the max, ensuring no wanderer would dare trek in the sweltering heat. It might sound cruel – G-d making it so guests couldn’t visit Abraham. Yet consider it from G-d’s point of view: Abraham was spared the burden of hosting visitors and provided with time to recover.
That sounds reasonable, doesn’t it?
But being Abraham, rather than accepting G-d’s favour, he felt despondent that there was no one around. Abraham truly loved hosting visitors. All his life, and even now at 99 and post-circumcision, Abraham yearned to be kind to others.
Even though he knew of the impossibility of people venturing into the blazing heat, Abraham went and sat outside his tent and waited for guests to arrive. In fact, he said,
“I will sit here until somebody comes.”
So, seeing his commitment to kindness and welcoming visitors, the same G-d that turned up the sun for Abraham to rest, sent Abraham visitors in the form of angels, for angels could survive the heat.
Sometimes, you need to have faith in the unimaginable – and Abraham did. He had faith that visitors would come. And they did.
Both Abraham and G-d came to the party. They both did their bit.
The Path Best Travelled
Don’t you find there are times when you’re so caught up in dreaming big and running your life, knowing what’s best for you, only for G-d to pump the breaks and say “take what you love the most, and go where I will show you?”
Where is that, you may wonder? Well, it’s the best path in life – G-d’s path.
Every now and then, the Divine sends us a reminder that He has our back. He knows what’s best for us. He knows an even better best than what we imagined. His dreams for us are bigger than our own. All we need to do is have faith and show our unwavering commitment.
Think about that. As soon as Hashem found this commitment from Abraham, Isaac was able to return home unscathed, and Abraham received even more blessings.
You’ve Still Got To Do Your Bit, Though
Sometimes, doing your bit involves having faith in the unimaginable, perhaps even the impossible.
But don’t stop there.
Sometimes, doing your bit is about taking a bold step out of your comfort zone and digging deep for determination to put your best efforts into turning your hopes and dreams into your reality.
And even then – even when you truly believe in your mission and are determined to succeed, ignoring any excuses G-d’s given you, guess what? He might just send some angels your way, too.
At the very beginning of this week’s portion, Vayeira, G-d shows Abraham kindness. It’s sweltering outside, so G-d arranges that no guests will arrive at the tent, giving Abraham the downtime he needs. Yet, Abraham has no intentions of resting. He desperately wants to perform acts of kindness, and simply cannot settle until he has guests.
When those guests, in the form of angels, finally come, Abraham runs around looking after them and at the same time, finds himself relaxing.
You see, when your soul yearns for something that affects you on the deepest and most personal level, you (and G-d) will find a way to achieve the goal.
Just do your bit, and G-d will do His.
Nachas & Drash 