It was a busy week last week. And then Shabbat entered the world, and everything changed.

I started the week with nothing but an idea, and slowly the blog took shape. And when I closed my laptop on Friday afternoon, the site was ready to go. For six days, I had worked. But Shabbat was coming – a time to rest, to look inside ourselves, a time to see the world as it really is.

There’s a moment each week when Shabbat enters the world. For some, it’s lighting the candles. For others it’s blessing the children. But for me, Shabbat enters the world during the Friday night service, when we sing a prayer called the Song of Shabbat. Tov l’hodot l’Adonai, we sing, it is good to give thanks to Adonai. And for me, everything changes.

Those words remind me that it’s good to be thankful. At every stage of my life, I have been helped. In times of pain, there were people who helped me. And in times of joy, there were people who celebrated with me. And at every step along the way, there were sages and teachers whose words fill my soul.

None of us would be where we are without thousands of unseen hands helping us – teachers, parents, friends, community. And each of them, without knowing it, was a messenger from God.

Nachman of Breslov taught that when we light the Shabbat candles, we should remember that every thing comes from God – the candles, the wicks, the fire. But if we do not take these things and use them as God intended, if we do not light one light from another, then the world will be dark. One candle will not light another.

Each of us can change the world. But the words that we say and the actions of our hands are not entirely ours. God has sent us here to do our part.

For six days, I worked on the web site, writing and editing and building the site. And then Shabbat came into the world, and I realized the site was not entirely my own. Without the kids, without the building, that Chanukah story would never have happened. And without my teachers, without Sefat Emet, I would never have noticed the miracle.

Each of us needs someone else to light a candle.

Shabbat Shalom.