Only One Decision

How many decisions do you make a day? Would you believe thousands? You’re actually making a decision right now. You’re literally deciding something every moment. Most of our decisions are taking place unconsciously and therefore automatically. It’s certainly preferable to be aware of what we are deciding because our decisions are shaping our very lives.
 
Sometimes we make a really important decision that has a major impact on our lives. Once a major  decision is made it can continue to influence us for many years to come. Whenever we get stuck in some unproductive behavioral pattern it can always be traced back to a decision that has outlasted its usefulness or wasn’t so useful to begin with.
 
For example a 3-year old Palestinian boy is handed a rifle and shown a picture of a Jewish person. He is told that that Jewish person is his enemy and has no right to exist. He is told further that since the Jew has no right to exist neither does he have a right to the land that he is living on.
 
In that moment – the boy makes a decision that not only will affect his life but will affect the lives of millions of people.
 
So what happens is that the boy grows up believing in something that he “decided” when he was 3 years old. Why did he decide to believe that Jewish people don’t deserve to exist? Probably for social approval and a pinch on the cheek from his father.
 
The problem now is that his hatred of Jews dominates his life to such an extent that he never asks himself: “what am I getting from my hatred? How is my hatred and violence against Israel helping me to get my deepest human needs met?
 
It may have helped him to feel significant and loved as a child to hold a gun and receive what he thought was his father’s love, but how does it help him now that he has lost his family, home and everything that is dear to him?
 
Isn’t it time for him to update his decision? How is his decision helping him now to protect the people he loves and the cause that he believes in?
 
Obviously it isn't.
 
We the Jewish people are also faced with a decision. Are we to believe that we are at war with our terrorist neighbors; or is the deeper truth that this is a wake-up call from Hashem who is no longer asking but demanding our full allegiance to Him. The Evil Inclination would like us to focus on the evil in our midst with zero awareness that Hashem is in the picture. Hashem, on the other hand, wants us to see that He has hand-picked these violent groups to deliver a message to his people who he loves.
 
If we decide that this is simply between them and us, then we risk having to fight this battle on our own, G-d forbid, without Hashem's protection. If we decide to hear Hashem's call it will lead us to humility and allegiance to Hashem. Hashem can then easily dispense with our enemies in any number of "natural" ways without the need for a single shot.
 
I used to feel apologetic that the Torah calls us the "chosen people."
 
What does it meant to be "chosen?" Chosen for what? A prestigious and cushy life?
 
I don't think so.
 
The truth is that we have been chosen for leadership. That doesn't mean we're any better than anyone else; but it does mean that G-d recognizes our ability to care deeply about the world and about serving Him.
 
"Chosen" means chosen to distinguish ourselves by our moral conduct and observance of the commandments without question. When the Jewish people will do this we will be free from the outdated "decisions" that we made when we were not aware of Hashem; and Hashem will use us as messengers to inspire the nations to serve Him too.
 
There is really only one decision and that is to completely trust Hashem and to defer all of our decisions to Him.
 
When the Jewish people will do this, there will be no more need for war and we will see the re-building of our Holy Temple and full redemption of our people . May it come soon!