When Hashem tells Avraham “Lech Lecha mei’artzecha” — “Go for yourself from your land” — Rashi famously explains that “Lech Lecha” means for your benefit, for your good.
At first glance, that seems strange. Avraham is being asked to leave everything — his birthplace, family, comfort zone — and go to an unknown destination. Why call that “for your good”?
The deeper message is that real growth rarely happens in comfort. Hashem was telling Avraham: “The version of yourself that you’re meant to become doesn’t exist yet where you are. You’ll only find it when you step into the unknown.”
Each of us has a personal Lech Lecha moment — a time when we sense that Hashem is nudging us to move, to change, to take a step forward even when we don’t know what awaits.
It might be starting a new job, moving to a new city, deepening our connection to Yiddishkeit, or having that one conversation we’ve been putting off.
And Hashem’s message is the same: “Trust Me. This journey isn’t about losing yourself — it’s about discovering yourself.”
So as we read this week’s parsha, maybe the question isn’t “Where am I going?” but rather “Who am I becoming?”
May we all have the courage to take our own Lech Lecha — to leave our spiritual comfort zones, to believe that every new challenge is “for our good,” and to discover the deeper parts of ourselves waiting on the other side.
Shabbat Shalom!
Shmuel Klein and the JET Team
