Power Up!

What happens when God calls—and the human response is resistance?

At the Burning Bush, Moses doesn’t rush forward as a confident leader. Instead, he argues. He hesitates. He insists: “Who am I?” … “What if they don’t believe me?” … “I am not a man of words.”

In this episode, we explore one of the most honest conversations in the Torah: Moses arguing with God—and what it teaches us about faith, fear, and the dangerous theology of saying “I can’t.”

What does Judaism really mean when it talks about “belief in God”?
In this episode, we explore why the Torah doesn’t ask for blind faith—but for knowledge—and how that changes the way we live.

• The difference between belief and knowledge, and why it matters

• Sinai as a national experience—and why Judaism’s foundation is unique

• How belief becomes something lived, not just discussed

This episode explores what real personal and spiritual growth looks like through Torah, lived experience, and the story of the burning bush. The conversation focuses on how growth often comes through every day moments.

We discuss the balance between prayer and practical action, faith and responsibility, and how Judaism encourages both effort and reliance on God. The episode also examines society’s definition of success versus a spiritual one, asking how wealth, comfort, and ambition can support growth—or distract from it.

Ultimately, this episode reminds us that everyday moments and challenges are not obstacles to spiritual life, but the very places where growth happens, when we make conscious choices and stay connected to purpose.

For more insights, to bring love, meaning and joy into your life check out my book, Living Beautifully!

Forgiveness sounds noble—but what does it actually require of us? And is it even possible in situations of deep hurt or betrayal?

In this episode, Gila Ross explores forgiveness through the powerful story of Yosef and his brothers, weaving together Torah sources, human psychology, and uncomfortable real-life questions. This conversation challenges easy answers and invites us to think more honestly about accountability, repair, and healing.

• What forgiveness really means — and what it doesn’t

• Is forgiveness possible in extreme situations?

  • Yosef and his brothers as a case study

• How forgiveness is earned

Check out my book, Living Beautifully - how to bring more meaning, joy and love into your life based on the timeless wisdom of Pirkei Avot.

How do we light candles, sing songs of gratitude, spin the dreidel, and eat latkes - in the shadow of devastating loss and tragedy?

This episode begins with that tension. On one end of the world, the beautiful celebration of Chanukah at Bondi Beach was shattered by an antisemitic attack. We remember moments when Jews lit Chanukah candles in places like Bergen-Belsen, clinging to meaning when there was almost nothing left.

We reflect on the haunting video of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, and on Viktor Frankl’s insight that “those who have a why to live can bear almost any how.” Chanukah does not ask us to ignore suffering. It asks us to hold light and darkness together - to choose meaning, resilience, and hope, even when life feels unbearably fractured.

Check out my book Living Beautifully - how to bring meaning, joy and love into your life based on the timeless wisdom of Pirkei Avot. https://amzn.to/4aYmuwp

You might know how to light the Chanukah candles but do you know why we light them the way we do?
This episode uncovers the surprising debate behind the mitzvah, the deeper meaning of light in Judaism, and the powerful message the flames are trying to teach us today.

Check out my book Living Beautifully - how to bring meaning, joy and love into your life based on the timeless wisdom of Pirkei Avot - What are we really celebrating when we light the Chanukah candles?
This episode uncovers the surprising debate behind the mitzvah, the deeper meaning of light in Judaism, and the powerful message the flames are trying to teach us today.

If someone walked up to you and asked, “So… what actually makes you Jewish?” — how would you answer?

In this episode, we dive deep into one of the most fundamental — and most misunderstood — questions of Jewish identity. Through the story of Yaakov and Esav, the mysterious struggle in Rivka’s womb, the meaning of the blessings, and the battle that happens inside every one of us, we uncover what it truly means to be part of the Jewish people.

This is an episode about essence, destiny, and the quiet voice inside that knows who you really are.

We open with the deceptively simple question: If gratitude is so obviously good, why do so many of us struggle to express it? What emotional resistance sits underneath?

In this thought-provoking episode, we explore one of the most transformative middot: gratitude. Why is it so hard to simply say thank you - to people, and even to Hashem? Through surprising Torah stories, deep psychological insights, and powerful questions for self-reflection, we unpack the real inner work behind gratitude.

Check out my book Living Beautifully - how to bring meaning, love and joy into your life based on the timeless wisdom of Pirkei Avot - now available as Audiobook as well as hardback and Kindle - https://amzn.to/48mOUNW

Why do we have three Avot?
Why not one towering role model, or ten? And what makes Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov fundamentally different from any other Jewish inspiring figures?

Join us as we take a deep dive into the inner world of the patriarchs, uncovering how each embodied a distinct spiritual quality — and how each was deliberately tested in the area opposite their natural strength in order to achieve inner balance and wholeness.

Just as they faced tests that stretched them beyond their natural strengths, we too are invited to ask:

Where am I strong, and where am I being nudged to grow?
What does balance look like in my life?

Together, Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov form the complete blueprint of a fully actualized human being.

• A new understanding of the Avot

• A lens for identifying your own spiritual “default setting”

• Tools for recognizing the tests that come to develop your opposite trait

Check out my book Living Beautifully - now available in audiobook as well - https://amzn.to/48ez9bv

We all want happiness — but what does it actually take? In this episode, we explore a surprising insight from one of the Torah’s greatest commentators, Rashi, who says something almost impossible to imagine:
Sarah’s entire life was “equally good.”
All the years of her life — from childhood to old age — were equally filled with goodness.

But wait… how can that be true?
Sarah faced challenges that would break most people — being taken captive twice, decades of infertility, uncertainty, wandering, and pain. So what does Rashi mean? And what does it teach us about happiness?

• The mystery of Sarah’s happiness: How Rashi can claim her life was “all good” despite so many hardships.

• The difference between a happy life and a comfortable life — and why they aren’t the same thing.

• Sarah’s inner approach that made her joy steady and not dependent on circumstances.

If you liked this episode, you'll love my book Living Beautifully - available on Amazon