The Battle No One is Exempt From

God bless the People of Israel. 

Days after the horrific massacre on Simchat Torah, 130% of the people called to fight have reported for duty. Reservists who weren’t called up to enter the minefields of Gaza refused to sit on the sidelines, and they came without orders.

Israelis stand in line for 10 hours to donate blood to their brothers.  

The support given to the victims of the attacks, soldiers serving on the front, and Israeli refugees who have been evacuated from their homes on both the northern and southern borders is staggering.  

Everybody has abandoned their politics for the good of the nation. Left-wing leaders have joined the right-wing government. Former finance ministers on both the right and left advise Betzalel Smotrich on piloting our economy through this unprecedented war.  

There is so much charity. There is so much unity. There is so much goodness.  

In the merit of Jewish unity, may Hashem bless us with victory.  

The Same Playbook, the Same Tactics 

Our first steps were powerful. We bombed Gaza fearlessly. We laid a total blockade to starve them into releasing our brothers and sisters taken hostage. We amassed hundreds of thousands of troops on the Gazan and Lebanese borders to eradicate our adversaries. 

Moments before we were about to give the go-ahead for our troops to enter Gaza, President Biden announced, without coordinating with us, he was coming to Israel.  

His staff spent seven hours in our IDF war room dictating terms of what we were allowed to do. Suddenly, the siege on Gaza was lifted, and Hamas is eating Swiss chocolate from the Red Cross again. Even when we want to be bold, the Americans put a leash on our leaders and handcuff our army. We are restricted from doing anything that we haven’t done in previous operations.  

The only side that is permitted to do something new is Hamas. As long as America limits us to military and humanitarian actions that we’ve used in the past, Hamas has the advantage. Hamas knows what Israeli actions come next, and they are prepared accordingly. 

Old is the New New 

The only way to win this brutal war is to do something we haven’t done before.  

As a nation, we haven’t prayed before. We haven’t made universal repentance before. We haven’t rallied each other to perform mitzvot before.  

The one exception was the first week in June 1967. We saw the blessing Hashem gave us from our unity, humility, and repentance.  

Unfortunately, the exception did not become the rule. We still rely on the IDF to do the nation’s job of teshuva. There is more to be done and every one of us must do it.  

We still rely on our political leaders to do God’s job. We must petition our Father, Maker of Heaven and Earth to earn redemption, protection, and salvation. It is the job of every Jew to look to our Father to protect us from our enemies. The way to win this war is to cry out to our Father in prayer.  

Before charity, volunteering, and social media activism, our sworn duty is to recite Psalms daily for our brothers and sisters, the people of Israel. All Psalms are powerful. Our Sages recommend Psalms 20, 22, 69, 83, 121, 122, and 124.  

Take one mitzvah and do it with more intensity. Increase your Torah learning. Tell God you love Him.  

God has His eyes on Israel from the first day of the year to the last. He is infinitely stronger than the US State Department. He is immensely greater than Europe.  

Hashem can squash Hamas in Gaza like ants. We must ask Him. Every day.  

This is the battle nobody is excused from.  

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David Ben Horin lives in Afula with his family, millions of sunflowers, and Matilda, our local camel. David‘s Israeli startup, 300 Marketing Solutions, is a lean marketing agency for startups and small businesses that creates and promotes SEO-optimized ROI-driven to the right audience on LinkedIn to make your business the star of the show.