Vayakhel- "And he assembled"

Vayakhel (ויקהל — Hebrew for "and he assembled,” the first word in the parshah) is the 22nd weekly Torah portion (parshah) in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah readings and the 10th in Exodus. It constitutes Exodus 35:1-38:20.

Rabbi David Aaron suggests that a Jew is not to come to the Torah to study, but rather to engage...

"...getting involved with the Torah is a living encounter with the author, God... the Torah is not a book, it is a meeting place... We do not study Torah, we immerse ourselves in it..."

"...according to the Kabbalah, you are a soul, and that means that the real you is a part of God. Therefore, when you immerse your true self in the Torah, it is as if the author continues to study His own book through you, the reader, because you are actually a part of the author."

So, moving forward I am trying to practice this notion, Torah immersion (not study)... Torah as a meeting place, not a book.

A few themes stand out this week as these phrases are repeated throughout the parshah...

-Individuals contributing of their possessions as their heart moves them.
-Individuals with G-d given skills working as artisans in the creation of the tabernacle and it's vessels
-The color patter of blue, purple and crimson

So, how to take these items and transform them from concepts/notions to relational dialogue... how to metamorphasize "book reading" into an encounter with my soul which is a sliver... a fragment, of the ultimate ground of all being...

Dialogue... "prayer"... talking to G-d as I read and as I contemplate...

-Lord, may my heart be moved this week to give of myself and means to those things you desire to see actualized in this world.
-HaShem, may I be cognizant of the skills you have endowed me with and use my time wisely... not to obtain the empty praise of man, but rather to live purposefully... to focus my time, attention and energy on what I am called to in light of how you have gifted me. Pursuing and investing in the things that matter in the broad scheme of things in light of what I can influence given my gifts.
-Blue, purple and crimson... you know my thoughts and heart in this.

Oh Lord, as I immerse myself in Torah this week help me to meet, not think... to engage, not observe. To transform, not gather information... It is all returning and remembering... not learning and becoming...

HaShem, aid me in my attempts to become what I was and what I truly am... your issue.

PS I was reminded this week that the temple system was not set up for HaShem's benefit but for that of the peeps... G-d allowed it for a time as Israel needed it given the religious context of the day and times... True service and sacrifice is in the heart... thanks to Rambam for this reminder.