Jacob felt fortunate. Instead of going camping, his parents allowed him to visit his cousins in Eretz Israel. He arrived on Tuesday, and by Wednesday morning he was standing for the first time in front of the Western Wall (Kotel Hama'aravi). Everyone around him was praying. Jacob was so excited that he had a hard time concentrating on the words in the prayer book (Siddur).
Suddenly he felt a tap on his shoulder.
"The first time, right?" asked a man with a white beard, kind eyes, and a friendly face. Iaakov nodded.
""Too excited to pray?" asked the old man, who, with a kind smile, continued asking: "Do you know what the parashah of the week is?""
""Vaetjanan," Yaakov replied in shame.
""Aha!" exclaimed the old man. "There's a lesson about prayer right there for you. How does the parashah begin?""
Iaakov already felt comfortable with the old man. "Israelis strike up a conversation with anyone they meet," he thought, recalling his long chat with the taxi driver.
""The parashah begins with Moshe Rabbeinu's prayer to HaShem to let him enter Eretz Israel," Yaakov replied.
""Did HaShem accept your prayer?" the old man asked.
""No. He even told Moses to stop praying, but my teacher told us that Moses kept asking.".
""Aha! What a good teacher! Why did Moses keep praying?" Jacob didn't know...
""When my dad tells me no to something I asked for, I ask again.".
""And again, and again," the old man interrupted. "When we want something, we insist. However, when your father tells you no over and over, you don't ask anymore. Why? Because you're asking for something for yourself. Moses was far from asking for things for himself; he didn't want anything for himself.".
""Do you think he wanted to enter Eretz Israel to taste the delicious fruits and see the beautiful landscapes? No! Moshe Rabbeinu had only one thing in mind: the mission that HaShem gave him.".
The old man paused for a second, and then continued.
""Moses was sent to lead the Jewish people out of Egypt, prepare them for the Torah, and guide them to the Land of Israel. He constantly thought about his goal and wanted to accomplish it. He asked God to let him fulfill his mission and bring the Jewish people to the Land of Israel. If God had accepted his prayers, the Geulah Shleimah, the Complete Redemption, would have arrived.""
The old man looked at Yaakov. "That's what a Jew asks for in his prayer. You, I, and everyone else must continue to ask for the Geulah, like Moses. And very soon, HaShem will accept our prayers.".
Excerpted from Please tell me what the Rebbe says