Do What You Can, Not What You Can’t

This week’s parshah, Yitro, is the parshah of the Ten Commandments.

But we find in the early part of the parshah that Yitro, Moshe Rabbeinu’s father-in-law, advised him about setting up the judicial system.

How did this happen? Yitro saw that every day, those Jews who had issues would line up before him and wait their turn for Moshe to adjudicate each claim. He sat from morning to night, providing answers to their claims.

Yitro said it won’t work. You will tire out. What should you do?

Delegate!

Set up a system of judges and small claims courts. Establish a full court system with various levels of judges. Then, when they need a supreme court, they will turn to you.

Moshe did so, and the court system of Israel was established.

As Reb Noson writes, the Torah is eternal, and every sentence can be applied to us, even today.

Sometimes a person, a very capable person, can set up a “ruling” system where he can run that system, or business, or whatever, as he sees fit.

But we are not infallible. The advice is to learn to delegate. Do what we can, not what we can’t.

A person wants to serve HaShem. He feels that HaShem is so very great, and he wants to do whatever he can, whenever he can, with whatever his knowledge and physical ability allow. But sometimes we “bite off more than we can chew.”

Rebbe Nachman warns against being too zealous (Likutey Moharan I, 72).

Reb Noson speaks of choosing the mitzvot that one can perform.

He does not recommend seeking a goal that is beyond reach. Begin with some Chumash and Rashi, go on to Mishnah, then begin Talmud, Midrash, etc. The same applies with extremes in following the Shulchan Arukh. Begin slowly, then graduate to higher observance. Delegate! That is, spread out your commitments so that observing the Torah becomes a pleasant experience. Then we can truly receive the Ten Commandments and all the other Torah and Mitzvot and feel the pleasantness and beauty of the Torah.

Have a great Shabbos.