Many wonder what makes the Jewish nation keep on ticking like the Energizer bunny. Answers abound, but one thing is for sure: we remain committed to our faith, and G-d keeps on providing the miracles to make it happen.

Early Jewish thinkers taught that the entire world is made up of four elements. But then there’s an elusive fifth element that lies at the core of everything. The intricacies of Passover chametz law teach us that when it comes to our relationship with G-d, it is this fifth element He seeks.

Challenges, suffering, and pain are unfortunately regular features of life. But is it really so unfortunate? The underwhelming name of the entire second book of the Torah and its opening parshah, “Names,” provides a different message: pain brings the biggest gain.

You’re hungry, yearning for caffeine, and in need of a nap. Is that really what Jewish fast days were designed for? Unsurprisingly, the literature reveals that it’s actually nothing of the sort, as you’ll find in this refreshing look at what would seem to be very un-refreshing days.

“Never despair!” they told you; “all is never lost!” Really? Yes, really. For the Jew with a soul and a luminescent way of life, there really is no corner in life beyond recourse. This is the message calling out to us from the lights of the Chanukah menorah standing in the doorway.

It’s silly to go on vacation and be on your phone all day answering emails. Well, to study Torah and not realize you’re connecting with G-d while doing so is just as silly. From the depths of a miserable pit full of snakes and scorpions, Joseph’s story implores us not to miss the critical point.

No one likes haters, but oftentimes, they’re just part of life’s reality. Instead of wasting time trying to disprove or beat them, our forefather Jacob taught that when you focus on what you need to do, you’ll eventually overwhelm the opposition anyway.

Hey, we can learn life lessons from anyone—warring European kings included. Sure enough, a brilliant military attack launched in 1757 provides a valuable tool for life—one already employed millennia earlier by Jacob: instead of attacking the weak points, reinforce the whole army. 

For many situations in life, the objectively appropriate response isn’t too hard to figure out, as long as we’re honest. But what about those instances when you can truly go either way? When G-d made Isaac look like Abraham and not the other way around, He taught us to err on the side of being too nice.

The very notion seems ridiculous: How can you blow past your breaking point if you’ve already been broken? That’s where the Chanukah miracle—as contrasted with Sarah’s miraculous oil—comes into play: to tell us that when we’re plugged into our faith, we can do the impossible.