Nov. 22, 2023

Upholding Faith in Adversity: A Reflection on Yaakov's Devotion and the Power of Maariv Prayer

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Season 5

Have you ever been so exhausted after a long trip that you forgot to perform a regular, sacred practice like Davening Maariv, the evening prayer? I have, and I'm sure many of us have experienced this moment, that pang of guilt when we lay our heads on our pillow, finally ready to rest, only to realize we've forgotten to engage in our spiritual routine. This podcast episode is especially for those moments - a reminder that no matter how tired or weary, it's never too late to maintain our commitment to spirituality, even in the face of adversity.

We unfold this through an enlightening parallel between our everyday struggles and the biblical story of Jacob. Imagine being Jacob, in personal exile, facing trials, yet remaining steadfast in his spiritual practice. He even braves the enemy territory to perform Maariv in the holy city of Jerusalem. We draw inspiration from Rabbi Desler's teachings to emphasize our patriarchs' steadfast dedication to their spiritual practices. This episode is not just a bedtime narrative but a profound exploration of the power of dedication and spirituality. It's a testament to the extraordinary lengths one can go to uphold one's faith, even in the most trying situations.

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Questions or Comments? Please email me @ michaelbrooke97@gmail.com



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Have you ever experienced this?

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I pray that you haven't, but the truth is that you probably have, and I say facetiously but very truthfully it is one of the most painful experiences known to mankind.

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After a long vacation, you, the family, you've been away, maybe for a week, let's say it's a holy vacation.

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You went to Eretz, yusrael, and now you're boarding the airplane to return home, to get back to regular life.

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You maybe had a nicer seat on the way there, but on the way back it's all over.

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You're flying in the back of the airplane.

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You're going to be in coach middle seat.

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It's uncomfortable.

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You're schlepping the dunia.

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You're schlepping the suitcases.

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You didn't pack your suitcases very cleanly on the way home, you just threw everything in.

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And if you don't live near to New York or Los Angeles, so you probably need to take multiple flights home.

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One of them probably got delayed and the person who's working behind the counter at Hertz or budget rental car Really isn't exactly an Albert Einstein level intellect.

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So you get delayed there.

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If you get the point.

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You're exhausted.

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When you get home, you finally rest your head on the pillow after you've unpacked the bags and safely brought the family home, only to remember that yes, you guessed it, I forgot to dive in Marav.

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It's a tough challenge.

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Hopefully we all would get up right away.

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I pray that, but at least I mean I put on a hat and jacket, but at least just get up and pray and have a little bit of concentration.

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Maybe just something, but it's something that is a realness.

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But yet, folks, this is exactly what happened to Jacob of Vino, and look in a very mature way how he aced this.

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He's traveling a great distance, a personal exile, running away from his antagonist, spends a couple years learning Tyra, his Shein, v'ever, and ultimately Rashi tells us Vayivka.

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And he bumped into this holy place, jerusalem, mount Moriah.

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Rashi says what, vayivka?

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What happened?

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Why does he know that it's based on Kim Na?

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What happened before?

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He tells us, fills us in because really he passed it.

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He went all the way to Chiron and then he realized, oh, is it possible that I'm really not going to go back and dive in Jerusalem.

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So in this situation, he steadies his nerves, he calms himself, he puts his shoes back on and he walks back to Jerusalem to dive in Marav.

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I didn't dive in at the Coast Cell.

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Not only that, the model student, the poster boy, yakov Vino, walks right back into hazardous enemy territory where he may bump into this crazy demon who's out to get him for revenge.

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But it doesn't matter, vayivka, he bumps into the place because Yakov put his shoes back on, put on his hat and jacket and walked back to Jerusalem.

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Yoy of Daita Ila Mahadur, that is the level of Yakov Vino, and Rev Desler points all of this out.

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But we learn the sugyas of the Ovos in a very real way, in a mature way, not as children's stories.

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And after all of this, it is not even the slightest wonder why the ground contracted beneath him and he teleported back.

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Because after such dedication that Yakov Vino showed to get out of bed after a person has yet to dive in Marav after a long journey, then not only that, to actually institute Marav, yeah, for that situation, it seems, the ground does contract.

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Okay.