Have you ever fallen short of a goal? I’m sure you have, and most likely will again. Let me share with you a secret from this week’s Torah portion that will help ensure that next time you set a goal, you don’t fall short. Rather, you succeed just as you planned it to be.
Our ancestors were given a commandment by G-d to offer a lamb as a Passover sacrifice. They did this in Egypt and they continued to do this when they entered the land of Israel. What about the 40 years in between? In this week’s portion we learn that they did this just one time. The commentaries elaborate that the fact that they only brought the sacrifice once while in the desert reflects disparagingly on the Jewish people; they should have brought this sacrifice every Passover while they were in the desert.
However, upon further analysis, one realizes that the command to offer the Passover sacrifice was linked to their arrival in the land of Israel. They needed to be explicitly commanded in our Torah portion to offer it. So what exactly is reproachful about the fact that they didn’t offer it all those years in between?
A fascinating explanation is offered that provides profound guidance for our personal advancement and success: The fact that the Jewish people didn’t offer the sacrifice, in and of itself, is not wrong – after all, they weren’t commanded to! The issue is that they didn’t even request to be able to bring it. They should have demonstrated their willingness and enthusiasm for the mitzvah by requesting the ability to perform it.
Indeed, immediately following this episode, the Torah relates regarding a group of individuals who had not been able to bring the Passover sacrifice when everyone else did, due to their being ritually impure. They begged Moshe to be allowed a “rain check,” they wanted to be able to bring the sacrifice at a later date. And you know what? Their request was granted and even established as a precedent for the future: To this very day we celebrate “Pesach Sheini,” the second Passover.
With recounting these episodes, the Torah is communicating a profound lesson: Make yourself a goal, be specific and realistic; this will enable you to succeed. In your mind’s eye, see yourself as attaining your goal. If you plan it and work towards it, you will achieve it.
Make sure that you have a clear goal; then it is possible to reach it.