Why Hope? (It's Not Hannukah right now, but the message is timeless)
This past week, we completed the celebration of the Hannukah holidays! This Hannukah season was and continues to be so pivotal for me in this particular season of my life.
One Rabbi said this regarding the Hannukah season, "At the time of the Maccabees somebody could have said 'That is only one jar of oil! Look at our situation! What can one jar of oil do? But, it was that first person who chose to ignore despair and choose hope that re-kindled hope for generations to come." It only took one jar of oil that kindled the light of the menorah that HaShem miraculously allowed to last 8 days!
When considering this, I thought about the current circumstances that many people I know are engaged in right now. Too often, it is expedient to say or think, "That's just one little good thing. Look at all the other bad things around us. What can one little act, word, thought, or gesture do?" I believe this is one of the biggest challenges we face--the stickability to not allow ANYTHING disrupt or interrupt our hope.
To me, in many ways, that one jar of oil symbolizes hope. For eight days we light candles to remember the miracle of Hannukah. Each day the candles get brighter and brighter in some of the darkest and coldest times of the year. I pray that our hope is one that gets brighter and brighter especially during times of challenge and crisis! I pray that we will never "despise the day of small things" but instead recognize the miracles that G-D can and does work with one small jar of oil!
One Rabbi said this regarding the Hannukah season, "At the time of the Maccabees somebody could have said 'That is only one jar of oil! Look at our situation! What can one jar of oil do? But, it was that first person who chose to ignore despair and choose hope that re-kindled hope for generations to come." It only took one jar of oil that kindled the light of the menorah that HaShem miraculously allowed to last 8 days!
When considering this, I thought about the current circumstances that many people I know are engaged in right now. Too often, it is expedient to say or think, "That's just one little good thing. Look at all the other bad things around us. What can one little act, word, thought, or gesture do?" I believe this is one of the biggest challenges we face--the stickability to not allow ANYTHING disrupt or interrupt our hope.
To me, in many ways, that one jar of oil symbolizes hope. For eight days we light candles to remember the miracle of Hannukah. Each day the candles get brighter and brighter in some of the darkest and coldest times of the year. I pray that our hope is one that gets brighter and brighter especially during times of challenge and crisis! I pray that we will never "despise the day of small things" but instead recognize the miracles that G-D can and does work with one small jar of oil!
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