Dear One,
Help us be patient, kind and courageous.
As we walk between the seasons of freedom, Passover, and the upcoming receiving of Torah, during the holiday of Shavuot, be with us. Support us to stay close to our hearts as we wander our way through the wilderness. May we ripen towards you.
Right now in Israel the barley is being gathered, one bundle at a time. So too we yearn to be wrapped up, embraced, harvested for service.
We know we cannot go from slavery to freedom overnight. We know it will take time to unclench our habits of fear, anger and apathy.
We when left Egypt, that night as we walked towards the sea, we had no idea what would become of us. When we reached the sea, heard our enemies at our backs, we cried out to you. We begged to go back.
You, Holy One, midwifed us forward. Birthed us again through the sea. Muddy feet and hearts washed with salt water, we walked.
We are still walking. Soon, our Torah tells us we will reach Sinai. We will climb another mountain and listen for your guidance, your teaching, your vision. Each night we count towards the 5oth day, Shavuot, when we will reach Sinai.
Rabbi Sharon Cohen Anisfeld teaches, "We stand to count the Omer and quietly, implicitly assert: It is possible — even imperative — to begin anew. The act of counting beckons us forward, urges us to think not only about where we’ve been, but where we’re going. We are a people profoundly committed to the importance of memory, but we have to tend our hopes as carefully as we preserve our past."
Dear One of Blessing, be with us as we tend to our hopes. Hold us as we grow. Strengthen us as we believe. Enliven us with Your ways.