Christian Reflection and Prayer

Remember the First Commandment in its entirety?
"I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt,
out of the land of slavery" (Exodus 20:2). More importantly,
think about what is not said in this commandment. God
does not refer to Himself as the Creator of the world, even
though that might have been a more obvious choice.
Instead, He commands that we know Him as the God
who brought the children of Israel out of Egypt. Why?
Because we are commanded to know God not just as the
Creator of the world, but as the Savior of our individual lives.

We are commanded to believe in a God who hears our
prayers and cares deeply for us. We are instructed to
believe in a God who can and will help us out of our own
personal bondage, our own trials and difficulties. So, can
God command us to be optimistic about life? Yes,
because to believe in the God who took the Israelites
out of Egypt is to believe that God can perform miracles
for us, too! He expects that level of faith and commitment
from us.

So next time you come across that proverbial glass,
don’t see it as half-empty or even as half-full. See it as
filling up and believe that it will run over! As it says in
Psalm 23: "my cup overflows" (v.5).

With prayers for shalom, peace,
Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein