Shabbos Table

Parsha Masei, the last Parsha of Bamidbar, talks about borders and keeping possibly negative influences away from us as we strive to get closer to Hashem.  

To get to Israel, Hashem told the Jews they had to destroy the Canaanites living in Israel, the places they built, and their idols. Hashem wanted a clean-up, but why? 

Hashem said the Canaanites would be like pins in the Jews eyes and torn in their sides. And he told them that if they didn’t do as He commanded, he would drive them (the Jews) into Exile. 

Why was this important to Hashem?

I moved into my first apartment about one year ago. I wanted to have a kosher home close to my shul and live nearby kosher supermarkets and grocery stores, and it had to have good energy to it, which meant I needed to connect with the person I was renting from. Lucky for me, she is an absolute blessing. 

Since then, I have been very cautious about who I allow into my space because while being hospitable is rooted in my culture, I also believe that positive energy influences our thoughts and actions and negative energy. 

I also knew that being a part of a Jewish community was necessary for my continued growth in Hashem. Being among like-minded people with the same goal as mine would inspire me to do His work, which I believe is one of my purposes here. As a convert, I still interact with and love my non-Jewish friends and family, but my Jewish community inspires my continued connection to Hashem. It’s where I am continuously inspired to get closer to Hashem and do His work. 

But it’s not just our houses, right? We want our constant dwelling, body, mind, and heart to be free of negativity or sinful influences. 

Our outer and inner space is scary and thus needs to be safeguarded from evil thoughts and actions. 

Hashem was concerned that the Canaanites would influence the Jews to worship their idols. As a parent, I can appreciate Hashem’s concern. My first instinct is to find out everything about a new friend that comes into their lives because I know it’s possible to sway their thoughts, regardless of how wise and intelligent I think my little ones are. As a parent, I would rather keep them in circles of good influence and support toward their goals and dreams. 

I believe that in this new time, idol worshipping isn’t just statues depicting other “gods.” Anything takes our focus away from our desire to be closer to G-d and away from doing his work on Earth. In our world today, our attention is pulled in all directions. We get caught up with keeping up with the Jones, and our focus moves away from striving to fulfill our purpose, which is to show Hashem’s Devine hands in our lives as we show up and be of service to our fellow men. 

We have begun idolizing meaningless things that give us validation and false admiration – social media likes, impulsive shopping, overuse of alcohol and drugs…

I believe Hashem, like me, knew that our children could be swayed easily by a culture that had different values, morals, and goals. 

He needed to be vigilant as we all should be. 

It doesn’t mean we cannot embrace everyone with love and appreciation. However, we should be vigilant and appreciative of what we allow our eyes to see and our ears to hear when we have set goals for our future.