Nishmas Day 29 - Rabbi Shlomo Landau | Are You Smaller Than the Stars?
מִי יִדְמֶה לָּךְ, וּמִי יִשְׁוֶה לָּךְ, וּמִי יַעֲרָךְ לָךְ,
"Who can be compared to You? Who can be equal to You? Who can be measured against You?"
At first glance, it feels like we don't even stand a chance.
And yet, the Ribbono shel Olam Himself tells us: וְהָלַכְתָּ בִּדְרָכָיו — Walk in My ways.
But how can that be? If מִי יִדְמֶה לָּךְ, if nothing can compare to Hashem, how can we be commanded to emulate Him?
Imagine this: You're lying in the Midbar Yehuda on a warm summer night. The sand beneath you is still warm from the sun. You look up, and the black sky stretches endlessly above you, filled with stars, tiny points of light scattered across an infinite canvas.
And in that moment, you feel tiny. You look at the vast expanse, and then at yourself: miniscule in comparison, flesh and blood, here today, gone tomorrow.
And naturally, you begin to question: Do I even matter?
Dovid HaMelech answered this question so profoundly.
וַתְּחַסְּרֵהוּ מְעַט מֵאֱלֹקִים. Yes, we matter. Not because of our size, our strength, or our appearance, but because Hashem placed a piece of Himself within us, a נְשָׁמָה.
The sun is vast, but it is finite. The stars stretch for miles, but they too are limited. A person, though, carries something infinite within them.
מִי יִדְמֶה לָּךְ is true. We can never fully grasp Hashem, and yet we are also a reflection of Him.
And when a person puts in the effort and chooses to live with purpose, that infinite part of us begins to surface, allowing us to accomplish so much more than we ever thought possible.
