Saying “thank you.” Apologizing. Spending time with family. Expressing love. Simple gestures but not necessarily easy to do.
Living a healthier lifestyle; sleeping more, eating better and exercising regularly. All simple choices, but not always easy to accomplish.
Focusing on what we need to do now and not worrying about or trying to control the future. Simple in theory, but definitely not easy to achieve.
Our Torah portion reminds us of Moshe’s instruction to the Jewish people as they were about to enter the land: Be simple.
After warning them about falling for the false comfort of the various types of “future tellers”, Moshe tells them תָּמִ֣ים תִּֽהְיֶ֔ה עִ֖ם ה’ אֱלֹקיךָ - “You must be tamim with the L-rd your G-d” (Deut. 18:13).
Translations of tamim vary—“perfect,” “whole,” “complete,” “wholehearted.” But Rashi tells us that here the intention is simple or sincere: “Conduct yourself with Him with simplicity and depend on Him, and do not inquire of the future.”
Trust (bitachon) is more than an attitude, it is a spiritual posture, the deep awareness that G-d is guiding every detail of life.
It’s simple. Release the illusion of control and embrace what we can and must do: the next good deed. Here and now.
But it’s anything but easy. It’s difficult to let go of control, even when that control is nothing more than an illusion.
Simplicity and trust does not mean resignation. Simple trust in G-d imbues us with a fiery refusal to accept the world’s brokenness.
Trust propels us to action: to increase Torah and Mitzvot, to reject injustice, to add kindness and to prepare the world for Moshiach.
While it might not be easy, it is definitely simple.