Parashat Vayeira: The Power of a New Beginning
Good evening, everyone. Baruch Hashem, I’m back in Yerushalayim. I arrived yesterday evening and wanted to send you a short message before Shabbos. I hope to give you some food for thought, le’ilui nishmas Rav Shloime ben Rav Yitzchok.
We are living through times of upheaval and change. We see that Hashem is guiding events from above, and we don’t know the exact outcome. These are times to understand the importance of tefillah, of reaching out to Hashem for guidance and clarity so we can act in the best way possible.
1. Avraham Avinu: The Importance of Reaching Out to Others
At the beginning of Parashat Vayeira, we encounter one of the most beautiful examples of hachnasat orchim (welcoming guests) in the Torah.
Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch points out the greatness of Avraham Avinu's hospitality. Avraham had just undergone brit milah. He was elderly, physically unwell, and sitting outside in the intense heat of the day. Under the circumstances, he could easily have excused himself from receiving guests.
Yet Avraham did the opposite. He actively searched for people to welcome into his home.
What makes this episode particularly remarkable is that Avraham was in the middle of speaking with Hashem. Nevertheless, when he saw three strangers approaching, he interrupted his conversation to attend to their needs.
These were not relatives, friends, or important visitors. They were complete strangers.
Avraham teaches us that no matter how much we grow spiritually, we must never become disconnected from other people. Even as he elevated himself through brit milah and strengthened his relationship with Hashem, he remained deeply human, sensitive, and attentive to those around him.
Spiritual growth should not distance us from others. On the contrary, it should make us more aware of their needs.
2. Why Did Avraham Avinu Institute Tefillat Shacharit?
We know that the three Avot established the foundation of our daily prayers:
Avraham Avinu instituted Shacharit (the morning prayer).
Yitzchak Avinu instituted Mincha (the afternoon prayer).
Yaakov Avinu instituted Maariv (the evening prayer).
But there is an interesting question.
All three Avot prayed. Why, then, is Avraham specifically associated with Shacharit? Why don't we simply say that all three prayed three times a day and established our tradition of daily tefillah together?
There is a particular episode in the Torah that reveals the deeper message behind Avraham's institution of Shacharit.
Vayashkem Avraham Baboker: Rising Early to Pray
When Hashem informed Avraham that Sodom would be destroyed, Avraham pleaded with Him repeatedly.
He asked whether the city could be saved if fifty righteous people were found there. Then he asked about forty-five, forty, and eventually ten.
Despite Avraham's efforts, there were not even ten righteous people in Sodom.
After the angels rescued Lot and his family, the destruction of Sodom and the surrounding cities took place.
The Torah then tells us:
"Vayashkem Avraham baboker el hamakom asher amad sham et pnei Hashem."
Avraham arose early in the morning and went to the place where he had stood before Hashem.
Avraham returned to the very place where he had previously prayed for Sodom.
This is the first time the Torah explicitly describes Avraham performing Shacharit.
Why does the Torah emphasize that he arose early in the morning at this particular moment?
The answer contains an important lesson for every one of us.
Never Take Your Success for Granted
Avraham Avinu was a tremendously successful person. He was known as a Nesi Elokim, a prince of God, and was respected by the nations around him.
He had wealth, influence, and the respect of powerful kings. He had overcome enormous challenges and had received Hashem's promise that he would have a child.
By every external measure, Avraham had achieved great things.
Yet Avraham understood that none of these accomplishments could be taken for granted.
A person can have wealth, good health, children, and tremendous success, but circumstances can change in an instant. The people of Sodom demonstrate how quickly everything a person has built can disappear.
Avraham teaches us that precisely when things are going well, we must remember where our blessings come from.
We should begin every morning by turning to Hashem, recognizing that our success is not something we can simply rely on or assume will continue.
And when life is difficult, the same message applies. Whether we are experiencing tremendous success or struggling with challenges, we need to begin our day by reaching out to Hashem.
Tefillat Shacharit is our daily reminder that our relationship with Hashem must remain at the center of our lives.
3. Every Morning Is an Opportunity for a New Beginning
There is an even deeper dimension to Avraham's tefillah.
In Megillat Eicha, when Yirmiyahu HaNavi describes the terrible suffering that befell Am Yisrael following the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash, he writes:
"Chadashim labekarim, rabbah emunatecha."
They are renewed every morning; great is Your faithfulness.
We often understand this verse as an expression of our faith in Hashem: despite everything we have experienced, we continue to believe that tomorrow can be better.
But there is another beautiful interpretation.
The verse does not say rabbah emunateinu — our faith is great. It says rabbah emunatecha — Your faithfulness is great.
In other words, Hashem believes in us.
Even after our mistakes and failures, Hashem gives us another morning. He trusts that we are capable of doing better and gives us another opportunity to grow.
Hashem Gives Us the Opportunity to Change
This is a powerful message.
Sometimes we look at ourselves and feel that certain character traits are simply too difficult to change. Our habits may be deeply ingrained, and improving our middot can require tremendous effort.
But Avraham Avinu teaches us that we must never give in to despair.
Even the people of Sodom, who had become deeply corrupt and lost their sensitivity toward other human beings, were not the end of the story.
The Midrash teaches that two precious individuals would eventually emerge from Sodom: Ruth HaMoaviah and Naamah HaAmonit.
Ruth became the ancestor of the Davidic dynasty, from which Mashiach will descend. Naamah married Shlomo HaMelech.
From a place as spiritually compromised as Sodom, Hashem brought forth individuals who would become central to the future of Am Yisrael.
The message is extraordinary: we should never assume that a person cannot change or that a difficult situation cannot produce something beautiful.
Every morning offers us another opportunity.
When we say Modeh Ani upon waking, we thank Hashem for returning our souls to us. We are acknowledging that we have been given another day, another chance, and another beginning.
"Hashem believes in us. He knows that we can do better, and He gives us the opportunity to start again."
A new morning is not simply another day on the calendar. It is an invitation to begin again spiritually.
4. The Secret to Spiritual Growth: Simcha Shel Mitzvah
So how do we take advantage of these opportunities for new beginnings?
Avraham Avinu gives us another essential lesson: whatever we do, we should do it with joy.
When the Torah describes Avraham welcoming the angels, it tells us:
"Vayaratz likratam."
He ran toward them.
Avraham was frail, elderly, and recovering from brit milah. Nevertheless, he did not reluctantly fulfill the mitzvah of hachnasat orchim.
He ran toward his guests.
He approached the mitzvah with enthusiasm and joy.
This is the meaning of simcha shel mitzvah — the joy of performing a mitzvah.
Going Beyond Our Routine
When we perform a mitzvah with genuine joy, we move beyond simply doing what is expected of us.
We are no longer just following a routine or fulfilling an obligation. We are bringing our whole selves into the mitzvah.
This is one of the defining characteristics of Avraham Avinu.
We see it again in the Akeidah, when Hashem commands Avraham to take his beloved son Yitzchak to Har HaMoriah.
The Torah describes how Avraham arose early in the morning to fulfill Hashem's command.
Hashem had not given him a specific deadline. Avraham could theoretically have delayed.
He could have waited a day, a month, or even longer.
But Avraham did not postpone what Hashem had asked of him. He arose early and went forward with complete commitment.
He understood that if Hashem was asking this of him, Hashem knew what He was doing.
This is the extraordinary spiritual strength of Avraham Avinu: his willingness to serve Hashem with complete trust, commitment, and simcha shel mitzvah.
The lesson for us is that we should not approach our mitzvot as burdens to get through. Whether we are davening, helping another person, welcoming guests, or fulfilling our daily responsibilities, we should try to bring joy and enthusiasm into what we do.
That joy gives us the strength to grow and begin again.
5. A Remarkable Story: The Jewish Family Saved by a Non-Jewish Doctor
I recently read a remarkable story that illustrates the lasting influence of Avraham Avinu's example.
Before the Second World War, a Jewish family living in Warsaw had eight children. Approximately two years before the war broke out, their ninth child was born with a condition affecting his feet.
The family found a non-Jewish doctor in Warsaw who agreed to treat the child and successfully corrected the problem.
When the war began, the family was forced into the Warsaw Ghetto. During that period, the mother gave birth to a tenth child, who also had a similar condition affecting his feet.
The mother remembered the doctor who had treated her previous child. Determined to help her newborn, she decided to risk leaving the ghetto to reach the doctor and ask for treatment.
The doctor agreed to treat the baby.
When the treatment was finished, however, she asked the mother where she intended to go.
The mother explained that she needed to return to the ghetto, where her husband and nine other children were waiting.
The doctor was horrified.
How could she possibly return to the ghetto? Didn't she understand the danger?
Instead, the doctor offered something extraordinary. She told the mother to bring her entire family — her husband and all nine children — and promised to hide them in her home.
The family managed to escape from the ghetto, and the doctor sheltered all of them.
After the war, the family eventually moved to New York.
Years later, when one of the children got married, the family sent the doctor a ticket and brought her to the wedding as their guest of honor.
They asked her what had given her the courage to risk her own life to save their family. She knew that if the Nazis discovered what she was doing, she could be tortured and killed.
Her answer was remarkable.
The Story of Sodom That Inspired an Act of Courage
The doctor explained that she believed in God. As a young child, she had read the story of Sodom in the Bible.
She remembered how Avraham pleaded with Hashem to spare the city if ten righteous people could be found there.
When she saw what was happening in Warsaw, she began thinking about that story.
She wondered what would happen to Warsaw if the Germans killed all the Jews. There might not even be ten Jews left in the city.
She feared that Warsaw itself would be destroyed.
So she made a decision: she would bring ten Jews into her home. In the merit of saving them, she hoped that Hashem would protect Warsaw.
And that is exactly what she did.
A non-Jewish doctor, inspired by the story of Avraham Avinu and his prayers for Sodom, risked everything to save an entire Jewish family.
The influence of Avraham's actions extended far beyond his own generation. His example inspired someone who had learned about him as a child to perform an extraordinary act of kindness and courage.
This story reminds us that the lessons of the Torah are not confined to the past. The actions of Avraham Avinu continue to inspire people and influence the world generations later.
"We see that Avraham Avinu did not only save Lot and plant the seeds for the future of Am Yisrael. His example inspired a non-Jewish doctor to save an entire Jewish family."
6. Taking the Lessons of Avraham Avinu Into Every New Day
Parashat Vayeira gives us several practical lessons to carry with us.
Avraham Avinu teaches us that:
Spiritual growth must bring us closer to others. Just as Avraham remained sensitive to strangers even while growing spiritually, we must always look for opportunities to help those around us.
Every morning should begin with tefillah. Whether life is going well or we are facing difficulties, we need to turn to Hashem for guidance and strength.
We must never give up on the possibility of change. Hashem gives us a new morning because He believes in our ability to improve.
Mitzvot should be performed with joy. Simcha shel mitzvah gives us the strength and enthusiasm to go beyond our ordinary routines.
We are living through uncertain times, and we do not always know what tomorrow will bring.
But Avraham Avinu reminds us that every morning is an opportunity to reconnect with Hashem, improve ourselves, and bring more goodness into the world.
May we merit to use each new day wisely, approach our mitzvot with joy, and continue to see only besorot tovot.
Have a wonderful Shabbos.
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