Knight Rider and the book of Numbers

Last week, we finished the book of Numbers for our yearly cycle of Torah portions. As we heard the Torah reader say the traditional "chazak, chazak, v'nitchazek!" ("Be strong, be strong, and may we be strengthened") this past Shabbat, I know there were at least a few thoughts of relief that we are now headed for the exciting book of Deuteronomy.

Sunday morning I was reflecting on all that I've learned from studying the "boring books" of the Bible. My absolute favorite Torah portion, Pinchas, is found in Numbers, and I am still awed every time I study Leviticus. But then I had another thought...I didn't always like studying the books of Moses. When I was young, Psalms and Proverbs were my favorites. What happened?

Then I started thinking about how I used to sit down and watch TV with my dad. One of the shows he regularly watched was Knight Rider. When I was young, I thought this was such a boring show. I had no idea what was going on; the only thing that excited me was when Kit, the car, would talk. The only reason I would sit and watch it was because I wanted to be with my dad.

Little did I know that one day I would marry a man that has loved Knight Rider since he was a little boy. What a surprise it was when he pulled out his collection of Knight Rider DVD's and this time, I actually didn't think the show was so boring. I finally "got it"!

And so it is with the G-d's Word. The books that are above our level are "boring" to us at the time. But one thing we have to remember is that not even a yod or a tittle is wasted in the Bible. Every little word is there for a reason. There are so many parts that still seem "boring" to me, but I know that's only because I don't understand them. There's still so much more to learn...and that's the exciting part!

If you haven't begun reading the Torah portions with us yet, now's a great time to start! This week, we begin the final book of the Torah, Deuteronomy (D'varim).

This week's portion: Deuteronomy 1:1 - 3:22