Imagine if you only had one day a year to express your thanks to Hashem for everything that He does for you. Imagine if you only had one chance to say ‘thank you’ – What would you say? How would you say it? Surely it wouldn’t be possible to cover everything in one sitting, right? There is so much to be thankful for on a daily basis that most of us wouldn’t even know where to begin!
There was a powerful story going around a few months ago, about an elderly Yid who had been hospitalized and needed oxygen. When he recovered and was about to be discharged, the hospital gave him the bill – $5,000! The man started to cry. Naturally, the staff tried to calm him down. The Yid explained that he was not crying over the invoice; he was crying because for the last 78 years of his life he had been breathing free of charge! He had been receiving oxygen from Hashem all these years and had never paid a single penny! Pointing heavenward the man said, “Do you have any idea how much I owe Him?!”
Over the last year, I think we’ve all been afforded some clarity in the concept of hakoras hatov. With every passing day, we have been able to recognize the difference between needs and wants, and between luxury and necessity, thereby realizing just how much we truly have. We don’t need a calendar to tell us when to feel thankful. Nevertheless, it sure is nice to be able to take our eyes off the headlines for a second and take a prescribed moment of reflection in order to contemplate Hashem’s benevolent ways. On this, I think we can all agree.
With that in mind, we will attempt to highlight not just one, but three songs that aptly convey messages of gratitude as we head into Shabbos Parshas Vayeitzei – coincidentally the parsha containing our first real encounter with the expression of genuine hakoras hatov. (See 30:35)
The first song we will feature is a recent number by the hugely popular Israeli singing sensation Naftali Kempeh. His most recent hit composition is called Lehodos and contains the beautiful words of the Rambam (Ahavah; Brachos 9:26) that so succinctly sum up this vital concept. This powerful song will get you singing Hashem’s praises in no time, and makes for a great choice to kick-off this unprecedented three-part post.
Lyrics:
.לְעוֹלָם יִצְעַק אָדָם עַל הֶעָתִיד לָבוֹא וִיבַקֵּשׁ רַחֲמִים, וְיִתֵּן הוֹדָיָ-ה עַל שֶׁעָבַר וְיוֹדֶה וִישַׁבֵּחַ כְּפִי כֹּחוֹ
וְכָל הַמַּרְבֶּה לְהוֹדוֹת אֶת הַשֵּם וּלְשַׁבְּחוֹ תָּמִיד – הֲרֵי זֶה מְשֻׁבָּח
0 Comments