The world looked on in awe as Israel began its miraculous campaign against the Iranian threat. Within hours, Iran’s military leadership and nuclear scientists were eliminated, and many of its missiles and launchers decimated.

The Mossad spied for years. IDF and IAF trained for months. The advance preparation is unimaginable.

And so is the alternative.

Where would we be if this operation hadn’t taken place? If Iran was still marching full speed ahead toward nuclear weaponry? If they were smashing out ballistic missiles by the thousand? As harsh as the situation is now—and thank the Almighty for His constant miracles—without this operation, we would be in deep, deep trouble.

I can’t help drawing a parallel to another operation, one we read about in this week’s Torah portion: Spies, victory, conquest.

Who: the 12 Spies Moses sent. Their task: Scout out the Holy Land. Assess the weaknesses of the Canaanites and determine the best way to victory.

Only in that operation, the result wasn’t as dazzling. The spies came back with negative reports: “We can’t do it. Mission impossible.”

The consequences? A tragedy. Forty years in the desert. The passing of an entire generation.

If not for this blunder, we’re told, the Jewish people would have marched into the Land of Israel with the Final Redemption. Thousands of years of darkness, exile, trials and tribulations throughout our history would have never come to pass.

But the Spies made a fatal error. In their mission to scout out the land, they were tasked with a basic question: How? How should we conquer? What is the best way?

But instead, they asked if. Is it possible? Can we really succeed? And that was their failure.

But the story of the Spies is more than just history. The Torah tells us the story to teach each of us a lesson that remains applicable today in 2025.

Every person is given a mission, assigned by the One Above. How do we figure out our mission? We look for clues in our background and history, our talents and interests, and—of course—the needs we discover in the world.

It is up to us to work out the how, never the if.

G‑d Almighty doesn’t expect without providing the tools we need to succeed.

The mission is timely and critical. The world relies on you to complete your part: We’re marching toward the Final Redemption, a time when peace will finally reign, and you’re at the front.