The Small Mitzvah That Saved a Soldier From Gunfire Once Again

Jewish law even guides something as simple as putting on shoes. According to halacha, a person first puts on the right shoe, then the left. But when it comes to tying them, the left shoe is tied first, and only afterward the right.

Why? Because the right side represents importance and strength, while the left side is associated with the mitzvah of tefillin, which is worn on the left arm. By tying the left shoe first, we symbolically give honor to that mitzvah. Even this small daily act becomes a quiet expression of faith.

About twenty years ago, a soldier survived the Helicopter Disaster after taking upon himself to be careful with this halacha. Recently, a strikingly similar story unfolded.

A Small Commitment

Daniel Levi, a soldier who has been growing in his observance and regularly attends the classes of Rabbi Ravid Nagar, shared a moment he says he will never forget.

Daniel had accepted upon himself to put on and tie his shoes according to halacha. It was a small but steady commitment.

One day, he was standing with a friend at the Zikim Junction, near a reinforced shelter. Suddenly he remembered that earlier that morning he had forgotten to put on his shoes in the proper order.

He turned to his friend and said, “Yalla, I didn’t put on my shoes the right way.”

His friend was puzzled. “There’s a halacha about shoes?” he asked.

Daniel replied, “Come, I’ll show you.”

The two of them bent down. Daniel removed his shoes and put them back on properly, right shoe first, then left, tying the left and then the right. His friend followed along. It took only a few seconds.

The Seconds That Saved Them

In those exact seconds, while they were bent down, a burst of gunfire erupted.

Had they been standing upright, Daniel says, they would not have survived.

Later, he told his rabbi, “Rabbi, you won’t believe it. I felt it clearly. I saw how I was saved because of a mitzvah.”

The Power of a Personal Resolution

This was the same student who had previously taken upon himself to remove his earring as part of his spiritual growth.

Sometimes a mitzvah can seem small. Putting on shoes in the correct order does not appear dramatic or heroic. Yet when a person accepts even a modest commitment and remains faithful to it, it strengthens his bond with Hashem.

We cannot always understand how Divine protection works. But stories like this remind us that no mitzvah is insignificant. A few seconds devoted to doing the right thing can carry immeasurable meaning.

And sometimes, those few seconds can change everything.