Karen Berg
JANUARY 21, 2024
This article was previously published in 2018.
When I think about the way children learn to walk, I am reminded of how the Creator teaches us to move forward in our lives. We have all seen it before, a loving parent holding his or her arms out encouraging the little one to take a step. Then another, then another. All the while, the parent is slowly inching backwards. With each step the child takes forward, the parent steps another further away. Love is helping the other person to grow and become stronger on their own. This is how we change and improve our lives as adults, too. As frightening as it can be, if we try, we will find that indeed we do have the courage, strength, and capability to keep moving forward.
Author Joseph Campbell once wrote, “I have found that you have only to take that one step toward the gods and they will then take ten steps toward you. That step, the heroic first step of the journey, is out of, or over the edge of, your boundaries, and it often must be taken before you know that you will be supported.”
“The power to make miracles is ours this week.”
This week, the Creator extends out His loving arms to us, encouraging us to walk towards Him. We are asked to take that leap of faith.
Our portion this week is Beshalach. It probably is one of, if not the most, famous we read all year. The Israelites are in hot pursuit by Pharaoh and his army, after having escaped their captivity in Egypt. Their chase comes to a dramatic end at the Red Sea, where the Israelites find themselves between a rock and a hard place. Ahead of them is an impassible body of water and behind them, a raging army bent on killing them. At this point, they beg Moses to return them to slavery in Egypt, but the Creator has a plan. The Creator tells the Israelites to just keep moving forward, to keep going. And they do just that. They head into the Red Sea, and as they do a miracle occurs — the Red Sea parts! Two walls of water are created, and they are able to pass through the sea on dry land, escaping Pharaoh and his army.
What does this mean for us, today in our lives? The power to make miracles is ours this week. The Israelites were indeed frightened, but they took that next step in their journey. Even though it seemed impossible, they were able to create the necessary miracle and access the next level in their spiritual path. We, too, have that same power now. Even though our legs may feel weak or we may feel we are not ready, the power is there for us to take the next step into the life of our dreams.
It is only ourselves who can take that next step. No one can do it for us. We came into this world to build our own lives and walk our own paths. It is imperative that we keep taking the necessary steps in life, especially when that next foot forward seems so impossible to take. For these are the steps that give birth to blessings beyond our ability to fathom.
Whatever “Red Sea” you may be facing, it can be surmounted, and a great miracle is within your reach.
“Whatever ‘Red Sea’ you may be facing, it can be surmounted.”
What path lies before you this week? What new step could you possibly take? This week in your meditations, visualize yourself standing strong. Feel the strength in your legs and the solid ground beneath your feet. Breathe in the certainty of the Creator and remind yourself that you are not alone. There is no such thing as aloneness. All of our fathers and mothers stand with us. All of our guardian angels walk with us. The Creator is with you. Moses is with you. See yourself slowly taking step after step. Walk strongly and courageously in the Light, towards the Creator’s open arms. Like a child learning to walk, feel that same joy and excitement.
This week, feel encouraged to keep moving forward. Perhaps you can feel the courage in the air, inspiring you to take an action towards the life that you were destined to live. If you are open to it, take an action this week that perhaps you were afraid to take in the past. This week, one step is truly equal to a thousand. If you have the faith and take those steps, I have a feeling a great miracle is waiting for you — just an arms-length away.
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