We read about the story of Yonah. What is the story of Yonah? It is the story of a man who was instructed, “Go to a city and make them do teshuvah (repentance).” Yonah said, “It’s not going to be good if they do teshuvah.” So he got on a ship and tried to run away to a place called Tarshish, which is Tunisia today. The next thing you know, the ship was almost wrecked, and they had to throw him overboard. He was swallowed by a fish.
What is the story of this story? It is this idea, the idea we started with on Rosh Hashanah, where we said, “Hashem, I am ready to serve. I’m ready to do what it takes. I hear the call to action of the Shofar (ram’s horn).” The story that began with Yonah is the opposite of that. Hashem told him what to do, and he was like, “But I don’t know, maybe not. Maybe I should run away, and maybe it’s not good. Maybe the results are not going to be good.” Hashem said, “That’s irrelevant. I don’t care how you feel about it.”
Then, eventually, he was spit out of the fish and was ready to do what he needed to do. After he made the city of Nineveh do teshuvah, he felt bad. The last chapter has him on the seashore, upset: “And why did I do this? And Hashem should take my life.” Hashem again came to him and said, “What is relevant about this? I don’t care how you feel about it. I don’t care how you felt about it. I don’t care what you think is a good idea or not a good idea.” There’s just one question: Are you ready to do what needs to be done? You and I told you what needs to be done. Your job is to do it.
So, you want to know what to think about in the next two minutes? Before we conclude, what needs to be done by you? What learning do you need to do? What praying do you need to do? What relationship in your home needs attention—with your children, your spouse, your parents, your siblings? What needs to be done? How do you need to say a Beracha (blessing) going forward? How do you need to have kavanah (intention) going forward? How do you need to start talking to people going forward?
“Oh, I always tell myself how I’m supposed to talk, and I always mess up. I don’t care what we always do. You could have been Kohen Midyan (priest of Midian) all your life. You could be choten Moshe (Moses’s father-in-law) in a minute if you just focus on what you have to do going forward.” Once you figure out what you have to do going forward, start doing teshuvah as best you can, but don’t get consumed with all your emotions and regrets.
What does Hashem need from you now? And you know the answer, like the pasuk (verse) says in Devarim, “beficha uvilvavcha”—it’s in your tongue, it’s right there. You know what needs to be done. Figure out what needs to be done and be resolute. All of these thoughts, regrets, emotions, and guilts are not helping you.
So many people think that when they were young, when they were this age, they had dreams, plans, and hopes. And then they get to this age, and they have failures, disappointments, kids, bills, phones, distractions, spouses, bills, phones, bills, phones, and they can’t think straight. They’re just like, “My life is one big mumbo jumbo.” It’s not. The goal of this week is not so complicated. Just think about what needs to be done.