Every nation in this world has an angel representing them in the
other world. The nation of Amalek also has an angel representing them, their
angel is the Yetzer Hara (Evil Inclination). Every single person also has a piece of the Yetzer
hara in them. We all have that inclination in us that makes us do bad.
Therefore every time we overcome our Yetzer Hara we destroy Amalek. By
subjugating Amalek we preform the Miztvah of destroying him.
The great Tzefat Emet says that the key to serving G-d is not to make
it a burden, it shouldn't be heavy and it shouldn't way you down. Religion must
be preformed with simha (happiness), a comfortable exuberance. The Yetzer Hara's mission is
to make Judaism seem heavy on us. His goal is to make it seem weary on us and
not want to do it.
Isn't it odd how when it comes to going out we are never tired,
but as soon as someone mentions learning Torah for one hour we all become tired
or busy? In that situation he has accomplished his mission. Don't let him
succeed!
The Arizal says that the only reason he achieved his greatness
is because every Mitzvah he preformed, he preformed it with simha. So use this
opportunity of Purim and be happy! Do every Mitzvah b'simcha. Mishenichnas Adar
Marbim B’Simcha (when Adar arrives we increase our happiness, Taanit 29)!
Shelomo Hamelech Says in Kohelet “Tovim haShenaim min haEh'ad…Ki im ipol haEh'ad hasheni Yakimo...ve im itkefo haEh'ad, haShenaim yaamdu negdo ve hah'ut hameshulash lo bimhera inatek” Trans: “Two are
better than one; For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow; And if
a man prevails against him that is alone, two shall withstand him; and
a
threefold chord is not quickly broken.” What is this Threefold Chord Shlomo Hamelech is referring to?
The answer can be found in what the Zohar Hakadosh says in parashat Aharei Mot, “Oraita, Am Israel, ve Kudsha Barich Hu Had Hem” (The Torah, The Jewish people and Hashem are all one). When Am Israel is connected to the Torah, we get connected to Hashem and that
is the “Threefold Chord that is not quickly broken”(Jews,Hashem,Torah). However, Shelomo Hamelech teaches us that the only way to get to such connection with Hashem and the Torah is through “Tovim Hashnaim min haEhad” (two are better than one). When always considering the other person and always helping each other that is the way we connect to Hashem and the Torah, just like the pasuk says “VeAhavta Lereacha Kamocha, Ani Hashem.” When Jews love and care for each other then “Ani Hashem:” Hashem is part of the Jewish nation
and therefore no type of force or army in the world can hurt us.
I believe that is also the reason for the success of the Hashmonaim. When the Greeks tried to fight the Jews and force them to assimilate Matityahu ben Yohanan and his four brothers got together, prayed to
Hashem and went to the war against all chances and won! Then the Greeks
came back again with a much bigger army, however; the Hashmonaim didn’t lose hope! They fought back and miraculously won the war. When we are together with one heart and mind, then Hashem joins us and we will never
lose, which is the strength of threefold chord and the reality that it is afterwards not quickly broken.
It’s a lesson of history that the only thing
that’s keeping us here is our unity with each other, or in other words: our unity
with Hashem. We should all be mitzhazek in Ahavat Heenam, because Hashem
promised us that this is what will bring the Geula Hashelema :].
Hannukah Sameach, may Hashem send each one of us much beracha and Hatzlacha and we should all see the real Yeshua and the Beit
Hamikdash rebuilt in our days!
“And they sat to eat bread, and they lifted their eyes and saw a caravan of Yishmaelim coming from Gil-ad, and their camels were carrying spices, balsam, and birthwort to bring down to Egypt”
Bereishit 37:25
Yosef was
going through the most difficult part of his life. His brothers left him in a
pit with scorpions crawling around him. He was about to be sold as a slave,being sold to many different
masters in a short period of time. This was followed by imprisonment, in a
dungeon, where he would stay in a dark room for around 12 years. Yosef
definitely had a bumpy road ahead of him! Rashi shows us when Yosef was being
sold, he was travelling in the back of a caravan. The caravan travelling all
the way to Mitzriyam carried nice-smelling items. It was filled with fragrant
smells, as opposed to the normal cargo that of petroleum and that would have
smelled disgusting and dirty. Because Yosef was a tzaddik and Hashem loved him,
He arranged for a small comfort along
the way to ease his journey.
If Hashem is
watching His Tzaddikim, then why couldn’t He just save Yosef from all of the
suffering that he was about to endure?
Why did G-d arrange to have Yosef to be sold in the first place? Why bother making Yosef have a comfortable
ride, if his ultimate journey was so unbearably uncomfortable?
In our life’s
journey, we will travel on many different types of roads. Some will be bumpier
than others. But no matter how the road is paved, no matter how smooth or bumpy
our journey is, we will ultimately encounter a fork in the road. At that
juncture, we will have to make hard decisions. Which path do we choose? We will
have to decide whether to take the high road and do the right thing ,no matter
how difficult it seems, or whether to
take the low road, which seems so much easier to do.
These life decisions are what makes our journey,
uniquely OUR OWN PERSONAL journey. We can not control what happens to us in our
life. That is in G-d’s hands only. But, what we can control is : how we REACT
to these challenges when they do arise. Will our response to strife be… to
become utterly devastated and to shrink inward?? or will we grow
infinitely from these experiences and
rise to reach the greatest heights that
our souls can soar to.
Unfortunately,
at much too tender a young age, I have learned exactly this lesson. I was like
any other teenager, living my life moment by fun moment. You could say I was
travelling life in a fast red Ferrari. Then, I hit a huge bump in the road,
that made my entire life veer off course.
At the tender
age of 16, I lost my mother, my confidante, and my best friend. When my mother
was diagnosed with cancer, her medical team had to decide the specific amount
of chemo to administer which would yield the optimal results… results
culminating in the ability to kill the cancer cells, but still allow the infection
fighting cells to live and to fulfill their purpose. G-d knows with certainty,
the exact treatment plan to implement for each one of us. He knows how to
administer the specific dose of suffering that will annihilate negative
influences residing within us and around us, as well as how to
administer the proper amount of challenges which will allow our positive
character traits to emerge, enabling each one of us to fulfill our life’s
mission. One merely needs to gaze at a single sunrise, or to examine the
intricate beauty of a budding flower, in order to understand with complete
clarity, how perfectly formed, every creation is in this world. If we do
believe that every creation was made perfectly, and was created with all that
it needs to function and beautify this world… what does that say about the
creator of that incredible beauty? It says, that the creator of this world , is
clearly a master artist! If we believe that G-d is a master artist then we
believe that every living creature, from the smallest insect to the largest
tree has exactly what it needs to live it’s entire lifespan. How much more so, does a human being, who was
created in the image of this perfect creator, have all that it needs to thrive
in this world. G-d endowed every human being with a perfect soul with which to
connect to Him. When you understand that the master plan, is a plan that is
perfectly custom made for each one of us, you will understand that everything
we are given, be it something we perceive as negative or positive, it is a gift
from g-d and it is for our own good. Like a father who needs to punish his
child in order for the child to become a better person, G-d needs to give us
challenges which sometimes are accompanied by suffering in order to become
better people. Even when He does that, G-d
administers our tests with compassion, as he did with Yosef. We too,
pray for a ride in this world where we are surrounded by sweet smelling
blessings, no matter what caravan we have to travel in and regardless of how
many bumps we encounter as we travel on our life’s journey.
Yaakov left Be'er Sheva and started going towards Haran. On the way he stopped at a "makom" and the Midrash says it was Yerushalayim (Har Hamoria).
The Pasuk says "Vaikach Me'avnei Hamakom Vayasem Lerashotav." The Midrash Raba Siman 11 says that Yaakov took 12 stones and each stone said "the tzadik should rest his head on me," so Hashem then connected all 12 stones into one big stone.
Each stone represent a Shevet (tribe) from Am Israel and Yaakov (the Tzadik) represents the Torah. From here we can learn that when Am Yisrael follows the way of Hashem together then Hashem makes us one.
We saw that also in Maamad Har Sinai, "Vayichan Sham Ha'am Tachat Hahar:" Hazal say "keish echad belev echad" meaning all of Am Israel were together with one heart, and then they were ready to accept the Torah.
Once that happens, we will be Zoche to see the dream of Yaakov, "sulam mutzav artza ve rosho hashamaima umalachim olim veyordim", that explains the angels who went up and down the Sulam (ladder). On a rational level it should be the opposite where the angels should go "down (from the Heavens) and up (back)?" This is explained through the Hagim and the arrival of millions of Jews at the Bet Hamikdash to bring sacrifices to Hashem. During these beautiful occasions and celebrations, many angels would be created and go up to shamayim (the Heavens) from the power of their Mitzvot and Berachot (blessings). That's another explanation of the dream of Yaakov but that can only take place when we are united!
Especially in our days we should be mitchazek (strengthening ourselves) in Ahavat Hinam (brotherly love), "Et Tzara he leYaakov umimena yivashea." With every suffering Hashem is the One who redeems us.
Shavua Tov Umevorach and bH only besorot tovot (happy occasion).
In
last week’s Parasha, Parashat Veyerah, we read about Hagar and Yishmael. Our Sages teach us that Yishmael at the end of
his life did Teshuvah (repented for all his bad deeds). Hashem judges by people’s
current situation and always accepts our Teshuvah. The way Teshuvah works is that
Hashem, being all merciful, judges by the present state of a person. He does not
judge us on our past or future. He erases the past if a person wants the
past to be erased. If you want goodness and you do Teshuvah then all your Aveirot (sins) become Mitzvot (good deeds).
The Stages of Teshuvah:
1. Look at the past and regret it;
and reflect on it.
2. I no longer see the sin to be for my benefit.
3. You accept you had to get to that low situation in order to reach where you are now.
We
have to judge people on where they are and look at them positively. The Zohar
says “The blood thirst of Yishmael is like the rage of a slave to a master.” In
the zechut that Yishmael had a Berit (circumcision) at the age of thirteen Hashem gave Yishmael
1,300 years to rule Eretz Yisrael. So from 610 C.E. the Yishmaelites ruled Israel for
1300 years (until 1910). The Vilna Gaon said that the Jewish people will be going to Israel at the end of days and that there will be a bloody battle with the Arabs over the
land of Israel, but this will be the last battle. Now the Arabs are losing the
land because it is going back to its rightful owners. The prophesy that Hashem
gave to Hagar is coming true: when Hagar left (the first time) Hashem promised
Hagar that He will make Yishmael into a great nation. Yishmael did do Teshuvah
and followed in the ways of his father at the end of days even though he did go
off the derech for most of his life.
B'Zchus the Refuah Sheleima of Kayla Rus bas Chaya Rachel
Shavuos: All Night Long?
We know that Shavuos is the holiday when we celebrate Matan Torah (the giving of the Torah). Nowadays (and for the past 500 years or so), we Jews have the minhag (custom) to stay up all night Shavuos night learning Torah. The question I’ve always wondered about is, is that really the smartest idea? Speaking practically for a minute, most people who stay up all night learning are usually spending most of the next day sleeping anyway, so what’s the gain? Additionally, we all know the quality of most of the learning that takes place after the clock strikes 2. At the end of the day, it would seem that one would actually learn more Torah both quantitatively and qualitatively if one would learn for a couple hours at night and then several the next day. So why do we have this seemingly counterproductive minhag of staying up all night learning Torah?
I believe a possible answer is that we do it because we need to make a statement for ourselves. We need to capitalize on our inspiration and make it into something real. We’ve been counting down till Shavuos for 49 days! We’ve been waiting for this moment for seven weeks! We’re so pumped for Shavuos! We’re so inspired! But then what happens? The same thing that happens a little after every time we get inspired. The inspiration fades away. So how do you make the inspiration into something real, something that will last? You have to immediately get on that train at the inspiration station and ride it until the end of the track. That’s why I believe we learn all Shavuos night! It’s not about the hours of learning. Perhaps it’s not even about the quality of learning. It’s about not letting the moments of inspiration just come and pass. It’s about taking advantage of those inspiring feelings and doing something real with them. May we all be able to do this and have a truly elevating Shavuos!
The word Gefen, grape, in hebrew has a beautiful meaning behind it. If we combine its letters, Gimmel Pei and Nun we find the three levels of a person, which each letter representing a level.
The first letter in Gefen is Gimmel, representing the Guf, or body/covering of the person.
The second letter in Gefen is Pei, representing the Panim, or face/facade of the fruit.
The third and last letter in Gefen is Nun, which is the highest form of man representing the word Nozel which means to drip. This is the verb that represents the dripping fruit juice that contains the sweetness and essence behind the fruit. This symbolzies the human's Neshama, soul.
From Gefen, grapes, people produce Yayin, wine. Wine is the child, offspring of what is derived from the fruit. This shows us when someone uses all of the parts of what is contained in themselves to their potential, they receive the best results. Wine has the same Gematriya as "Sod" which means Secret in Hebrew. Therefore, by learning to understand the Gefen, the inner self of the friend, the Jew, the fellow; one can really understand the "sod" behind who he/she is.
I recently came across an article titled, "New York: Dating Getting Out Of Hand?" by Yitta Halberstam. In her article she advises mothers to encourage their daughters to get plastic surgery in order to 'fix/solve' the dating crisis.
My reaction? Shocked. Emotional. Upset.
Thousands of young girls and mothers are reading this article. Thousands of insecure girls are considering going 'under the knife' to increase their chances of getting married because of this article. This is not the proper education that young Jewish girls should be learning.
Of course I think that it's important for a girl to feel attractive and to have confidence. I feel that it's necessary that a girl should take care of herself and look her best, especially if she's looking to get married. But it is over the line to tell parents, "There is no reason in today’s day and age with the panoply of cosmetic and surgical procedures available, why any girl can’t be transformed into a swan. Borrow the money if you have to; it’s an investment in your daughter’s future, her life."
If only the author was joking.
Mrs. Halberstam conveys the story of the Satmar Rebbe,zt"l, who wouldn't eat the bread he was given in the concentration camps due to his concerns about the Kashrut. A woman named Hannah, who worked in the kitchen, knew this and risked her life by smuggling potatoes for him. The Satmar Rebbe was filled with gratitude for what she had done for him, and when he saw that Hannah was having difficulties in getting married due to losing all her teeth during her years of privation, he gave her a large amount of money so that she could pay for dentures.
I fail to see how this story relates to our situation. Hannah didn't have any teeth at all! I doubt that the Satmar Rebbe would voluntarily pay for Hannah's nose job, had she needed one.
I believe Mrs. Halberstam was genuinely trying to help young girls who are struggling with getting married and losing hope. And I agree with her assertion that it is important for women to look their best and that parents should (subtly) try to help them if they can. If someone has a daughter with extremely kinky hair and caterpillars as eyebrows, they shouldn't just sit back and think, "Hopefully her soul mate is into the whole jungle-safari type of look..."
But at the end of the day, God made everyone look unique; they're beautiful exactly the way they are. No parent should encourage their child to change themselves.In such a situation, a mother should make sure to tell her daughter that she is beautiful but that maybe some hair-gel or a blow-dryer could enhance her hair, and perhaps a pair of tweezers could help open her face.
My advice to the singles is the following:
Girls: If you're looking to get married, take the time and make the effort to look your best. Even a little mascara and lip-gloss can make a world of difference. But always remember, "No amount of make-up can mask an ugly heart."(And also remember that taking care of yourself and looking good doesn't end when you get married. If anything, you should take care of yourself even more once you are married!)
Guys: Looks aren't everything. Of course you need to be attracted to your wife, but what's a pretty face without a pretty heart? Good character is the most important thing to look for, so don't be too picky and don't be shallow!
With God’s help, may we all strive to make ourselves so beautiful on the inside that it will automatically show on the outside. And may all Jewish singles get married at the right time, with clarity and ease.
Parshat Ki Tisa/Purim & current events: In this past weeks parasha were told that we will give a 1/2shekel as a donation. Asks Rav Mugrabi based on the mefarshim - why did we have to give ½, wouldn't it have been easier if we just gave a whole coin?! Rav Alshich answers beautifullysaying it is because Hashem wanted us to learn that a Jew can never reach wholeness when he stands alone, only when he joins with his fellow Jew is he completed, whether it be a simpler Jew or a richer one than you, we are only whole &complete when we are together. Only together can we form the whole coin.
In the Yerushalmi there's a pasuk which is explained as follows- “When there is unity among Israel even if we serve idols we will defeat our enemies, but as soon as we lose basic respect for each other, speak slander of one another and have baseless hatred among our people we will not win, rather we will fall before them”. We need to fear more the disputes within our own nation than the disputes between ourselves and other nations.
When Haman speaks about our people he says, “There is a nation scattered and divided among the nations”. In response to the terrible decree Esther tells Mordechai “go and assemble the Jewish people”, she unites them as one, with one united goal and a united means to achieve it. They all needed each other in order to be saved from the terrible decree. The above idea of the ½ shekel is then beautifully connected to purim, the chag which is so much about uniting our people. We spend purim giving food baskets and charity to the poor, to bring us all together in happiness.
There is a beautiful story told about a father on his deathbed. He calls his sons and gives each one a special vase, and then tells them each to break it. He then gave them one bundled vase to break, but they could not. Explained the father, when you are alone, separate from one another, even you are special and great people, alone, anyone can break you. The smaller vases also break into many more small pieces make it harder for it to ever be put back together. But when you are together bundled and united nothing can break you.
In gemara Yevamot it says “a person who loves his neighbors and brings them close then when they call Hashem will listen”. Over 100 missiles came down on Israel this Shabbat, leaving 1 seriously injured and 7 others slightly injured. Israel is facing some intensely scary times right now. Whether you are in America, England, Italy, Switzerland, north Israel, south Israel or central Israel, we are united and everything that happens to just one of our people happens to us all. We are all in danger. The missiles may be physically hitting only a few cities in Israel but in reality we are all being hit, because Iran wants us all dead, not just the people being hit.
We all need each other, especially right now, to get us through this time and merit greater times of peace and good news. So please in spirit of purim and in light of all the terrible news in Israel please do something for your fellow Jews, reach out to someone in some way, anything you can think of in order to bring us closer together, anything you do can make the greatest difference. It says in the Gemara “saving one life is like saving the world”. So you don’t need to think big, you don’t need to reach millions, but by doing one small act for someone else you may be saving the entire world.
In Shema it says “ and we will never give up and we will never fail because in you G-D we trust”. Trust in Him, pray, trust in the difference you can make, stay strong, don’t give up and never lose hope and G-D willing we will merit to see the end of all the violence and the coming of Mashiach, a time of peace and good news for all of Am Yisrael.
A Guest Writer shares her Emunah in Hashem through her mother's passing...
"at my darkest hour i only need to look at the moon"
The moon is said to control the tides, and this has a connection with womens monthly cycles. A mother is able to bore children only because of her cycles. My mother gave me life, but much more than giving me life she showed me the purpose of life. As jewish women did not give up their jewlery to make the golden calf and such were given the day of the new moon off from work, my mother symbolized a jewish woman who stood up for anything she believed in, and more importantly stood up for me whenever I called upon her. However my mother never took a day off from being a mother until she took her final breath on this physical earth. I understand that although her physical body might not be with me, the goodness of her neshama and her teachings live on forever. The moon which comes out at the darkest of times reminds me that my mothers light always shines down upon me, no matter how dark life may become my mothers light continually guides me.
For the Refua Shlema (speedy recovery) of Binyamin ben Blanka:
This week I had the most unbelievable Yeshuot (miracles) and I think I figured out the secret!
Anytime we daven (pray) for something or we ask Hashem for something we need to look deep into ourselves and think why is it that we want what we are asking for. Is it for personal interests? Or are there ulterior motives involved?
So the secret is to do everything Lichvod Hashem Leshem Mitzvah! This means to do it 100 % for Hashem and for the ratzon (intention) of doing a mitzvah not because you want a reward but because you love your Abba (father) and want to make Him proud. Elul is mamash around the corner and we need to prepare ourselves for this upcoming month. Maybe if we pray to Hashem in this way it will help. Anything we lack in life is actually just a way to get closer to Hashem. Hashem has no problem giving us what we want. But He wants a relationship with us and the only way we will cry out to our Abba is when we are in need of something.
So its actually a wonderful opportunity. When we daven for health we need to ask Hashem to keep us healthy so we can serve Him! So we can do mitzvot! If you know someone thats sick in the hospital then daven to Hashem to make this person healthy for Hashem! Its for Hashem so Hashem can see Nachat from this person when he gets better and is able to do the usual things. He can continue teaching Torah or she can continue taking care of her family or baking challot for shabatt and so on. If your legs are weak then pray to Hashem to make your legs better so you can run to catch Minyan for the sake of the Mitzvah. If you want that this year that Hashem should give you a house then tell Hashem what you would do with your nice big house and all your rooms and your big dining room table. Show Hashem that you want it all for Him, to give it all back to Him and that your asking Lichvod Hashem Leshem Mitzvah. You could say that you want a huge kitchen and a huge dining room table for guests.
But why is it that you want all this? If your dream house has 10 rooms then pray for what you want in each room. One room can be a library of Torah books, another room can be to hold a gemach, another room can be for the sake of a minyan every friday night!!! Don't be afraid to dream big because if you want it Lichvod Hashem Leshem Mitzvah, G-d has no problem giving it to you. If this year you want to get married then pray to Hashem that you want to get married only so your Avodat Hashem can be complete! So you can serve Hashem better! It's Lichvod Hashem! If you are praying for Parnassa then tell Hashem what you would do with the money He grants you! Think: Do you want the $50,000 this year to buy another mercedes or another Rolex watch or for the women another Gucci, Prada, AND Chanel bag. Or do you want the $50,000 to pay for your childrens Yeshivah Education be chavod (with respect/pride)? Pray to Hashem for good Parnassa so you can be the shaliach (messenger) to bring chessed and goodness into the world. If anyone is trying to move to Israel (AKA me, I am talking to myself) then we need to think why we want to be there and how it will make us closer to Hashem? Are we moving because we are sick and tired of the cold winters and all the snow? Are we moving because Israel is just more fun? Because the food is better?
No. We have to tell Hashem that its for Him! Tell Hashem all the mitzvot you would do in Israel that you CAN'T do in America. Tell Hashem that you want to move because you appreciate and are thankful for this present He gave us. Whatever it is that your asking for you don't need to worry because at the end of the day we are only expected to try.Try and Hashem will do the rest.
Dont forget its all Lichvod Hashem Leshem Mitzvah
Beautiful Song to get us excited for ELUL (next Hebrew month):
Aharon's job in the Mishkan was to light the Menorah everyday.
The pasuk says "Va yaas ken Aharon" (Aharon did so),
Rashi says on the spot "lehagid shivho shel Aharon shelo shina" (to praise Aharon for not changing)...
What's the big deal about this translation? What does it even mean?
This one short pasuk is one of the biggest lessons for our lives!
Aharon went every single day and lit the Menorah as if it was the first day, meaning, he did not change his attitude towards his job.
He was always excited as if it was the first time he gets to light the Menorah in front of everybody else..
How many of us can do something on a daily basis and love it as if it was the first time we did it?! The Torah however teaches us that it is POSSIBLE!.
We buy a nice car, we love it, we drive it every single day, and then 3-4 months later we get a sick of it already...
Another example is after 2 months of summer we want to go back to school and feel like we need to do something with our lives and then 1 week into the semester we hate it.
Just like Aharon went everyday to do his job without changing his attitude, so too we need to wake up everyday and thank Hashem for giving us our life back and start the day as if it was the first day we are doing anything.
A person that lives by this will always grow, because if the way you ended your day yesterday becomes your starting point today then nothing can become worse than before!
...keep that in mind
and always remember:
Eizehu heAshir hasameach bechelko (Rich is the person who is happy with his lot!)
In Tehilim it says "Ki Amarti Olam Chesed ibane" (I said, kindness will build the world) There is a big question about this pasuk.
Shouldn't it say "Olam be Chesed ibane or Olam ibane bechesed" (World will be built with kindness).
David Hamelech is coming to teach us an amazing lesson regarding others lives as well as others.
The only way to make it through this world is to do good to others. Helping others makes us happy, and might change others lives.
Just like Hashem is doing Chesed with us every day that we wake up and our body functions fully, we have to always help others regardless of age/ethnicity/etc.
That is the MAIN part of the world and without it the world will NOT exist, that is why it says "Olem Chesed ibane".
When we do good to others, Hashem will do good with us.
When we give money for Tzdaka, Hashem will give us more to give out.
Just like it makes a father happy to see his children helping each other, that's the pleasure Hashem gets when we help each other. Chesed brings to unity, and unity brings to peace.
It says even if the Jews will be doing avoda zara but they are unified Hashem will not leave them.
So just notice how such a minor thing as helping someone else can make such big difference in the world.
Here in the CLD this is our main goal, Lehachzir Banim el aba shebashamaim and unify the Jewish Nation and thank you all for being a part of it!!!!
Every second during the week, even when we are "relaxing" we are in constant move, our brain doesn't stop thinking for a second. It's always another email, text, phone call, tv show, there's always something going on, even when we sleep, we dream about the day we had, the 10 page paper we gotta hand in tomorrow,and we didn't even start the introduction, but thank G-d, we are jews, we got an exceptional gift, we got the Shabbat. Notice how the Pasuk is written: - "Yom Hashishi, veichulu hashamaim ve haaretz, vechol tzvaam" (the sixth day, the Heavens and the Earth stopped and all their "army" (stars, plants, malachim,etc). And only then: - "Vaichal elokim bayom hashvi mikol melachto" (god had finished all his work in creating the world). And then there's a third part: -"Vaishbot bayom hashavi mikol melachto asher asa." So what's the big deal? The first one is to welcome the Shabbat were the Heavens and the Earth, and you know what they got in return?, every 7th year we have Shnat Shmita, a year, that we let the land rest, we don't plow, we don't harvest, we let it "breath" for a year. When the Heavens and the Earth were ready to welcome the Shabbat (already on the Sixth day) now Hashem himself stopped all his work and that is exactly the second part of the Pasuk. The third part says "vaishbot bayom hashvi", it doesn't say Hashem or specifies anyone, this part refers to Adam and chava, which means, to us. There's big musar here. When we make the first move towards Avodat Hashem, not only Hashem will come forward to us, He will bless and reward us 365 times more!. Since the Heaven and the Earth started welcoming the Shabbat on the sixth day, Hashem said "not only once a week you will rest but every 7th year, you will rest for the entire year!. There's another big thing here. After we stop doing any Melacha what does Hashem do? "Vaivarech elokim et yom hashavii ve ikadesh oto" - G-d blessed the 7th day and then Sanctified it!, and why? Only because we pulled out of any distraction that we would usually have during the week and welcomed the day Hashem himself stopped his work!. So we learn from this, that we can only enjoy the Hollyness and Blessing of the Shabbat ONLY IF we do our part in welcoming it! Ok so what's in it for us? We will enjoy one day, and then what? But Hashem tells us no, "Shabbat is the source of blessing" and "every day of the week, is blessed on the behalf of the Shabbat!!!" So a person who truly keeps the Shabbat will see blessings in what he is doing and the Shabbat will protect him at time of disaster! Look how much Hashem loves us! Every week, He gives us a day to actually LIVE, and not only that, He rewards us with blessings in our lives and forgives us for all our sins, just for resting! Can you imagine?! Likrat Shabbat, lechu venelecha, ki hi mekor haberacha! I want to wish you all that we will be welcoming the Shabbat in the third beit hamikdash together b"H, AMEN KEN YEHI RATZON!
Shlomo Hamelech says in Shir Hashirim, “shechora ani ve nava” (I am black, but comely: definition=attractive).
How could such a Pasuk make any sense? The answer is given 2 Psukim later, where it says “Al tiruni she ani shecharchoret, she shazaftani hashemesh” (Look not upon me, because I am black,because the sun hath looked upon me), This Pasuk, is the answer to all our problems in galut.
G-d chose the Jewish nation and by that separated us from the rest of the nations, the reason He did that was not for us to take the Torah (the manual of the world) and keep it to ourselves but to be a light onto the nations and teach them the word of G-d.
What does that have to do with the two psukim mentioned above?, We the Jews, are counting the Months and Years according to the Moon while the rest of the world counts according to the Sun. the Second Pasuk clearly says “Look not upon me, because I am black,because the sun hath looked upon me” Meaning, the sun, which represents the Nations of the world, which have been influencing and persecuting the Jewish nation and therefore we had turned Black (dirty and impure).
Every day, the moment we step out of our houses we are being bombarded with the life style of the Goyim. Whether it’s minimal clothing, sexuality, politics, etc.. and that can cause us to assimilate and become like them, however, we have something much stronger than this: we have the Torah.
Hashem loves us so much that after everything we had done, and all the times that we had doubted him, he says “em lo tedi lach, hayafa banashim”(if you don’t know, you are the most beautiful woman), When Rabbi Akiva read this Pasuk he started crying, they asked him why is he crying and he answered, “No matter how many times we had tried Hashem, and how many times had we gone off the way, he still loves us more than anything!”.
Even though we are deep in exile and unfortunately we think that we are dependent on the goim, Hashem tells us NO, all we need is Emuna, trust in Hashem.
“Et tzara hi leyaakov” (time of crisis is to Jacob) – The nations of the world have no interest in us or the state of Israel, We are trying to defend ourselves yet being accused for attacking innocent people. No one is fighting terror today; it’s all a cliché and a war of interests and politics. So who else do we have to turn to if not The creator of the world, our Father, Hashem!
History doesn’t Lie, when we turned to Him and asked Him for help He was always there for us and now it’s time to finally ask Him for redemption!
B”H I want to wish all of you who took time to read this, and also those who did not, and all AM Israel, Hatzlacha and Osher, Ve B”H Od Hashana beyerushalaim habnuya!!!
Guest Writer: Ohav
Anyone craving to write for theCLD? Share your Chizuk Now!
Im sitting in the subway waiting for my train while this young chinese lady came over to me and said, "wow thats so beautiful! What is that?" I was knitting a kippa with different shades of blue and white. I was taken a back because in NYC when does anyone ever stop to be friendly and havea convo with you. I mean come on, for sure in Eretz Yisrael, but in NYC? Anyways for some wierd reason she was fascinated and started asking me questions. I told her its called a Kippa. She asked me then why Jewish men have to wear it. I told her in a very simple way that Its there to remind us that there is a G-d above and it reminds us to act in a proper way. ....
Its so important to be Or la Goyim. We are always being watched even when we dont realize it. This was inspiring for me because it served as a reminder how chashuv it is to be proud of who we are and what we represent. Weather its reading tehillim on the train or davening Mincha in the corner of a department store. Thats how we can be mekadesh shem shamayim. Hey there a lot of Jews out there that you would never ever know are Jewish. Who knows if you secretley inspire a complete stranger on the street who happens to be your brother! Maybe it could be simply by always saying Good Morning or Good Afternoon. Chances are if your reading this you have a connection to Hashem. So go out there and show the world who we are and never be embaressed to do a mitzvah in public! Even when I am by myself outdoors and I dont think there are Jews around. You never no... So I still say a bracha outloud and maybe one day I will turn around to hear a loud AMEN from someone you would never guess was.....
I would have liked to express myself in Hebrew, but to be sure we can all read it I will keep it English. I feel the need to express my feelings, mainly bc i have a happy feeling in my heart thinking of all of us together, thinking of us growing spiritually and growing in simcha. Also because people in our world today forget where everything comes from, and I love all of you. Hashem is always with us. I'm sitting on the subway and I look around, almost crying to hashem for how thankful I am for being a Jew. We take it for granted. We have it better than anybody, not only being Jewish, I'm speaking specifically about our family. We are loving, smart, g-d observing, nice, well respected people. We are blessed with baruch hashem good looking parents whose beauty fell on to us, this is something we take for granted. We have parents Baruch hashem that have blessed us with everything good in the world that we have no excuse to ask for more. Sometimes it's hard to hold ur feelings in when were upset but we have to be strong and try harder. Aba, you work very hard and we know it, you should know it! We can not forget that in the end what we have left is our family and if we stay strong together nothing will keep us from growing, because we love hashem and we love eachother and hashem loves us, bc were Jews and good people. We must be modest and always be happy with what we have and help each other grow. What makes u happy? Why are we here? Why did hashem bless us with the things we have? We are good ppl and we need to grow stronger for each other. Each of us has tremendous potential and i can see it everyday that we are all trying harder. We are growing as a family and bh it should not stop. Strive to be the best ppl that we are. We have Hashems blessing lets cherish it and do good things with it. Not take advantage but utilize his love in order to reach our potentials and grow strong together. Baruch Hashem we have smachot coming up to celebrate and we should be happy and make them as kadosh as possible. Each one of us should have something personal to say, to take upon ourselves to make us grow better and pray for each other and become bigger in the eyes of hashem. I love u all and my heart feels big when i think of all of us together and happy and dancing like we are at any simcha. It should always be a simcha always and always bc we shine together. We are special people and we need to be modest and grow in fear of Hashem in love of Hashem and love within each other. I love u all and I love Hashem and while writing this all I can think about is you buba and how good you are and how peaceful u are and without ima and you we wouldnt be anywhere today. I love u ima and I love u Aba. I love u m and I love u a. And of course x. He is becoming a man and were going to have a lot of guests Baruch Hashem. Let's be the happy people we are and grow and move in hashems way. The right way. Happiness, goodness, kindness, simplicity, peace, love, devotion, consistency, community, and knowledge defines the Jewish people and we are amongst those special people and even more so because were are more loving and thruthful than anybody I know. I am proud of all of us. And I pray that we all move only forward b.h in life. Love you all באמת. You are special people and I am proud to be part of our family, as you all should be. I love u! And I love hashem! Let's do mitzvoth! Let's get strong! Let's get bigger in the eyes of Hashem!
