"Moses stretched out his hand over the sea and Hashem moved the sea with a strong east wind all through the night, and He turned the sea to damp land and the water split."
In one of the greatest miracles of all time, the Jewish people, trapped between the Reed Sea and the fearsome Egyptian army, cried out to Hashem for help. With nowhere to for them to go, the sea splits and the Jewish people are able to escape into the dry riverbed. Our sages teach us that as the Jews were traveling though the now dry sea, some of them began to complain about the mud on their sandals. They said: "We had mud on our sandals back in Egypt while we were forced to make bricks, and we have mud on our sandals now as we walk though the riverbed- what, then, is the difference, what have we gained"?
Incredible as it may seem, there are some very small-minded Jews who can only see the shoes on their feet, only looking down at the mud. Even as this great miracle was taken place and the Jews were being redeemed from Egypt in the grandest fashion - still, they could only see the mud. Yes, there is mud on this journey, but in the big picture it is insignificant.
For some the redemption process must come about without mud. They sit around and wait for that "knock" on the door telling them to come home, that the long-awaited Mashiach has come, that all is good. For them it must be a smooth ride, no bumps along the way. Unfortunately, though, this is not the way that the redemption works.
As the Jews left Egypt after the tenth plague, their joy knew no bounds. Finally, after more than 200 years, the Jewish people were freed and on their way to the Promised Land. But lo and behold, we find that instead of "putting miles" between the Egyptians and the Jewish people, the Jews stop and actually start to return to Egypt! "Hashem spoke to Moses saying, Speak to the children of Israel and let them turn back and encamp before Pi-hahiroth". Imagine what the Jewish people thought when this happened: Why in the world are we heading back to that nightmare? Many wanted to run away, many thought about giving up. How could this be part of the redemption process? Certainly there must be some mistake!
Unknown to them at this point, all this was done by Hashem in order to cause the ultimate downfall of the Egyptians, but for the Jewish people, in the midst of the redemption process, it just did not make sense. Similarly, we find that when Moses first went down to Egypt to bring the good news that the people will be redeemed, right after that king Pharaoh decreed that no more straw would be given to the Jewish people. The Jews cried out bitterly, and even Moses complained before G-d, saying: Since I have come back to Egypt, not only have the Jews not been redeemed, but things have gotten worse. Even Moses did not understand how the redemption process would work out. In his understanding, it had to be a journey "without mud."
Today, too, many are waiting and waiting and waiting for the redemption to take place, not understanding that in the redemption process one must take an active part! And that there are many turns and curve-balls thrown at us throughout, but ultimately, the job will get done. If one looks back over the last hundred years or so, one can see the rollercoaster ride that our redemption has been: Building up the Land, rebirth of a nation and its language, victories and many tragedies - but ultimately the "job" is getting done. It is vital to understand the process and to know that it is not a ride without its "mud"- but this is the way that it is meant to be. The small- minded ones will unfortunately miss the ride, while they keep looking at their muddy shoes.