We'll Get Together Soon

"When 'ya comin' home, dad?"
"I don't know when, but we'll get together then, son."

"When 'ya comin' home, son?"
"I don't know when, but we'll get together then, dad."

When you coming home, Dad?

Each day in our tefillos, we beseech Hashem numerous times for Him to return - to return His infinite glory to the world by bringing Moshiach, restoring the exalted throne of Dovid ha'Melech to the magnificently rejuvenated city of Yerushalayim, and of course, rebuilding of the most majestic structure ever known to man - the final Beis ha'Mikdash.
We cry out to Him in our pain, "Hashem! Why do You seem so far from us? Please! We can no longer bear the agony of exile! Return to us!"
However, not a day goes by without our Father calling out to us to come home to Him. He beckons us, "When are you coming home, My dear children? Why have you strayed so far away from Me? Return to Me!"
We are left, therefore, with a difficult dilemma - who is to return to whom? Are we to await for Hashem to come close to us once more, or for us to gain a closeness with Him ourselves?

The atmosphere was filled with awe and fear. The purity of heart and the stirring of the soul was palpable as a sea of white extended throughout the shul with the people standing still just moments before that momentous moment of Kol Nidrei on Yom Kippur night. The holy Rebbe entered and silently made his way to the front to take his position. With his head lowered and talis wrapped around his saintly body, the Rebbe opened the machzor to begin perhaps the most inspiring tefillah of the year.
But there he stood motionless. The seconds turned into minutes. With each united beat of the collective heart of the congregants, the second hand of the clock continued to tick. Again. And again. After nearly twenty minutes of silence, the Rebbe turned to Yankel, the blacksmith, and motioned for him to approach.
The tall Yankel bent over to hear what the Rebbe had to say, responded, and then returned to his seat. Almost instantaneously, the Rebbe's sweet and melodious voice began with brilliance and emotion. The tears streamed down the cheeks of all present as the night's tefillos continued with passion and heartfelt commitment to Hashem.
As the Rebbe descended from his post at the conclusion, members of the shul voiced their curiosity as to the his delay and exchange before davening.
"As I stood there poised to begin Kol Nidrei, a humbling thought struck me," explained the Rebbe. "I thought to myself - how could we, imperfect human beings fraught with flaws and misdeeds have the audacity to come before the Almighty and speak to Him as if we are worthy subjects? How are we to approach Hashem if we are so small? How can we even begin to serve Him when we are so meek?
"I then thought of Yankel. While standing at nearly seven feet tall, I remembered that Yankel's wife is barely five feet tall. I motioned to Yankel, and asked him, 'Yankel, if you're so tall and your wife is so short, how do you speak to one another?'
"Yankel answered, 'Rebbe, it's simple. My wife stands on her tippy toes to speak to me, and I bend down the rest of the way to hear her!'
"It was then that I realized that this is the exact same relationship between Hashem and us! Although He is incalculably taller than us, all He asks for us is to try - to reach up to Him as far as we possibly can ... and then He will come down to us the rest of the way!"

My dear friends! All Hashem asks of us is to do our very best! All we need to do is to muster all of our efforts into serving Him, and He will then take care of the rest!
We desperately wish to regain that special bond - that loving relationship we once had the pleasure of experiencing. There is only one way to accomplish that feat - by trying harder and harder to reach Hashem with all our might! If we are ever to achieve the goals we mentioned above, we must act NOW!
Now reach up as high as you can and you will one day soon be with Hashem!

Say to yourself ten times today:
"Hashem, please give me the willpower to serve You better today! I just want to be closer to You!"