There is a moment in this week’s Torah portion, Vayeitze, that hits me every time. Yaakov leaves home with nothing. He is running for his life. He falls asleep in the middle of nowhere with a rock under his head. It is the lowest point he has ever reached. And right there, in the quiet and in the dark, he discovers he was never alone.
That moment is not only his. It is ours.
When I made aliyah, I thought I had a clear plan. I had steady work helping a company in the U.S. Three months after the move, they told me they wanted me to relocate. That was never happening. I remember the fear that hit me first. Then something shifted. I looked around and said to myself, I am here in the holiest place in the world, with my wife, both of us on a real mission, so what am I scared of. We talked about it, and it became clear that the job was never the point. It was only the window into something bigger. We both knew we were guided. Once we said it out loud, the fear lost its power.
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Freed hostage Agam Berger holds a prayer book; she says she prayed to God in captivity
(Photo: Shneur Weber)
Vayeitze is full of that same message. Yaakov thinks he is alone. He thinks he has lost everything. Only then does he learn that Hashem was with him the whole time.
We heard the same message during the war from Israelis who were taken captive. People with no background in religion said the moment they felt Hashem the most was in the silence and in the darkness. When everything was stripped away, something opened. They felt held. They felt watched over. They felt a strength that was not their own.
I felt it too when sirens were going off. I was holding my kids, standing in the bomb shelter, heart pounding. And still, I knew we were not alone. Hashem was there. Not in a poetic way. In a real way.
The point is simple. Being guided does not mean life is smooth. It means you are never walking alone.
That truth shows up in the small things too. My daily time with my kids. Reading Tehillim (Psalms). Exercising each morning. These moments keep me connected to Hashem and to the people who matter the most. They bring me back to center. They remind me why I show up each day.
Every meeting, every client call, every good moment, every hard moment, I see it as contact with the Big Boss. Nothing random. Nothing wasted. Nothing for nothing. That mindset pulls you out of fear and into purpose.
I read my Why each day. It is the exercise that keeps me grounded and pointed in the right direction. If you want to try it, the full method is here.
The message of Vayeitze is not complicated. Yaakov thought he was alone. He was not. We think we are alone. We are not.
If you are in a moment of fear, or confusion, or change, slow down for a second. Look at where you are. Look at who you are with. Look at the mission you are on. You are guided. You are held. And the moment you let yourself feel that, the fear starts to fade.
You are never walking alone. Never have been. Never will be.
Only up.
Nachman (Nathan) Hoffman is a leadership coach, entrepreneur and CEO. With over 20 years of experience in business and personal development, he helps individuals and organizations align vision, growth and values.