Parashah Nitzavim
Deuteronomio 29:10 – 30:20
Yehovah gave us the Scriptures to show us what is good and what is evil. But the choice is still ours — we can live according to His Word, accepting the good and rejecting the evil, or we can follow the desires of our own heart and the shifting values of today’s culture.
We cannot control every circumstance that comes our way, but we can choose how we will respond. It’s easy to be joyful and kind when life is smooth — but our true character shows when the storms come.
Even in tragedy, we don’t have to lose our footing. Hard times do not have to shake our faith in Yehovah or turn us into bitter, miserable people. Instead, we can stand firm, trusting that He is still good and still in control.
A well-known psychologist and Holocaust survivor, Viktor Frankl, wrote in his book Man’s Search for Meaning about humanity’s ability to exercise free will even during the horrific circumstances of Nazi oppression and the deadly concentration camps.
Although we might expect a person to be incapable of acting kindly, morally, or humanely under such terrible conditions, Frankl reports that this was not the case — he observed many examples of heroic individuals.
Frankl wrote:
These men] offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms — to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way…Even under extreme physical and emotional stress, we can choose our behavior — whether to love and forgive, or to remain in hatred and bitterness. Most of us will never have to endure such brutal conditions, but every one of us will face choices throughout our lives. (pp.86-88)
Even under extreme physical and emotional stress, we can choose our behavior — whether to love and forgive, or to remain in hatred and bitterness. Most of us will never have to endure such brutal conditions, but every one of us will face choices throughout our lives.
We can choose to be courageous, selfless, and faithful — or we can give in to fear, fight only for our own way, and lose our human dignity, especially in times of severe adversity.