David Bark - Dvar Torah

Parashat Yiitro

For those of you who don’t know me I’m a big fan of soccer. I love how the game is all about teamwork, strategy, and everyone playing their part to achieve a common goal. Today, I want to talk about how a story from my Torah portion, Yitro, can teach us something important about teamwork, just like in soccer.

In this week's Torah portion, Moses is facing a big challenge. He’s the leader of the Israelites, and he’s trying to handle all the problems and disputes of the people by himself. Imagine being the captain of a soccer team, and every time a player has an issue, they come to you for help. It would be impossible to handle every situation on your own. You’d be exhausted, and the team wouldn’t perform well.

This is exactly what was happening to Moses. He was trying to do everything by himself,judging disputes, making decisions, and leading the people. But it was too much for one person.

Enter Yitro, Moses' father-in-law, who sees what’s going on and gives Moses some great advice. He tells Moses he can’t do it all by himself and that he needs to delegate responsibility to others. Yitro tells Moses to appoint capable people to help with the smaller tasks, and only to focus on the bigger issues.

It’s like a soccer team; each player has a role. You wouldn’t put the goalie in charge of scoring goals, or the striker in charge of blocking shots. Each player has strengths, and it’s important to use those strengths in the right way to help the team win. In this way, Yitro’s advice is about creating a team, where everyone has a specific job, but all working toward the same goal. Moses listens to his father-in-law and appoints leaders to help judge the people, which makes the whole community stronger. This lesson is important, not just in sports but in life. Whether in school, at home, or in our community, we all need help sometimes, and it’s okay to rely on others. No one can do everything alone, and by working together, we accomplish so much more. It’s all about knowing who can do what, and trusting them to do it.  So, just like in soccer, where the team comes together to win the game, Yitro’s advice teaches us that when we work together and use each other’s strengths, we can achieve amazing things.

I’m so grateful to my family and all of you who are here today, supporting me as I take this important step in my life. Thank you for being part of my team!

Shabbat shalom