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Elul 7: Choice - God, the Restaurant, and Malbec

Choices are good.
Choices are terrifying.
Choices are God's way of saying, "Hey, human, trust Me; you and I got this, and don't worry, there's no choice that can't be undone."

I'm a holy terror in a restaurant. I eyeball and dissect every possibility. I'm usually the last to order so I can see what everyone else ordered because obviously their choices are going to be better than mine. I torture myself and the wait staff: suppose I order this (and I don't like it) or that (and someone gets something better)? What if I daringly order a house-special cocktail and I really hate it instead of going with something safe, like a glass of Malbec?

Now take that food-ordering mentality and make it macro.

What if I mess up? What if I make the wrong decision? What if I disappoint myself and someone else? What if I make a choice and people stop loving me or leave me?

Here's the beautiful thing about having a relationship with the Holy One of Blessing: Unless I make the choice to go down the path of evil, there are few choices that can't be reversed. (Obviously I'm not talking life/death situations here.) And thanks to the process of teshuvah, every choice - even the evil ones - can be corrected.

Practicing talking and listening to God about what choices to make eventually leads to a sharper intuition for doing the right thing, almost without my realizing it.

And suddenly I'm in a restaurant, knowing instinctively that no matter what I order, I'm ok, the food's delicious, and that bizarre cocktail I decided to wing ... well, if it's really vile, most restaurants will take it back and give me a nice (and safe) glass of Malbec.








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