When a woman calls our SHIFRA Helpline with a pregnancy crisis, there rarely is a quick fix. When she calls, nothing feels further away than a miracle.
Over the last decade at our organization we’ve learned how to help mothers through crisis. We’ve learned the qualities that help a woman face her challenges so she can receive the blessing and miracles buried within the crisis. So she can both give birth and thrive.
To save lives and transform them, we must nurture the woman. We must equip her with whatever it takes. And we must strengthen her.
These three qualities of nurturing, equipping, and strengthening show up in three women in Tanach – Rus, Esther, and Shifra. Each one shows a different kind of emunah, and helps us open ourselves to become vessels to receive miraculous blessings.
Nurture: Kindness Without an Agenda
Most stories in the Torah are told from the perspective of leaders, prophets, patriarchs. Sefer Rus alone is told from the perspective of the most vulnerable members of society: two poor almanos, one of whom is a giyores.
We don’t know exactly what Naomi did to inspire the loyalty Rus shows her. Chazal say Rus only left her father’s house because of what Naomi taught her. Something about Naomi drew her in.
We can imagine that Naomi must have been extraordinarily kind, modeling emunah and purity in a way that was inspiring. Emunah without kindness – without nurturing – rarely has the same impact.
In my own life, it was the kindness and warmth of the homes of two special families, Hadar and Baors, that led me to embrace a Torah lifestyle more than any specific dose of mussar ever could.
Rus reflects that nurturing back to Naomi: “Entreat me not to leave you… for where you go, I will go.” Rus has no grand plan. She has no immediate solution to Naomi’s grief. What she offers is presence. She is willing to walk the uncertain road together.
When women call SHIFRA, we have to do the same. We model our emunah by first nurturing, without diminishing the other person’s struggles. When I was in high school, I had a crisis where I suddenly wasn’t sure if there was really a God. The world seemed very dark, very lonely and very empty. When I cried to my mom about it, she told me “It’s okay if you don’t believe now – I’ll believe for us both.”
In Naomi’s moment of darkness, loneliness and crisis, what she needed was nurturing and devotion. Sometimes, showing up matters more than having all the answers. Sometimes our presence inspires the emunah.
Rus’s story is not openly supernatural. There are no revealed miracles. Just kindness, loyalty, and small choices that slowly lead to redemption and ultimately the birth of Dovid Hamelech – whose lineage will give us Moshiach.
Equip: Whatever It Takes
At some point, nurturing is not enough. People also need practical resources. At SHIFRA, our motto is simple: “Whatever it takes.”
Esther models this.
She risks her life to approach the king, but she doesn’t stop there. Hanging Haman is not enough. The decree of destruction cannot be directly reversed. She has to keep innovating – or the people will still be victims to the decreed genocide. She has to keep innovating – or the people will still be victims to the decreed genocide. She secures permission for the Jews to arm themselves and defend their lives.
She equips her people. Hashem works behind the scenes, and everything turns upside down.
“Equip” models emunah of a different kind – we know Hashem will always provide the tools we need. Our job is to never give up looking for them. Our practical effort and hishtadlus is the last step Hashem wants to bring about the miracle.
At SHIFRA, caring is not enough if she still has no diapers, no crib, no way to get through the month.
Strength: Choosing Emunah Over Fear
Shifra, together with Puah – identified by Chazal as Yocheved and Miriam – model a different aspect of emunah. The strength that comes from fearing only Hashem – and not allowing our fear of others to define what’s possible.
When Pharaoh commanded the midwives to kill Hebrew baby boys, they refused. The Torah says clearly: “The midwives feared G-d.”
Their Yiras Shamayim gave them the courage to defy Pharaoh himself.
They did not just work within the system. They directly opposed the most powerful man in the world. And from their courage came one of the greatest miracles in our history – the survival of the Jewish babies, and ultimately the birth and rescue of Moshe. Again – they didn’t allow Pharoah to define their choices – they created another option rather than allow Moshe to be murdered.
This is another level of emunah. Not just presence. Not just practical solutions. But the strength to face fear directly and act with only Hashem in mind.
Many women who call SHIFRA are living inside fear. Fear of finances. Fear of judgment. Fear of repeating a painful chapter. Those fears limit their feelings of optimism and options.
It is the strength that comes from emunah that allows us to remind ourselves and SHIFRA clients that fears don’t have to define what’s possible. With Hashem’s help, we have strength to draw from more possibilities than our fear can imagine.
On the door of my refrigerator, I have a collage of SHIFRA baby pictures. Babies who were almost never born because their mothers felt so afraid and alone. Where fear didn’t win, emunah did.
The Miracle of NES
With Naomi and Rus, emunah looks like a nurturing presence.
With Esther, emunah looks like practical action – whatever it takes.
With Shifra and Puah, emunah looks like strength in the face of fear.
Their stories move from the least supernatural to the most supernatural. From quiet kindness, to victory in battle, to open defiance that leads to redemption.
But in all three cases, the manifestations of these righteous women’s emunah were catalysts for transformation and miracles.
This article was found in Nekuda Tova Nashim Tzidkaniyos / Pesach.
