Caring Is Sharing

"But it's no sacrifice, no sacrifice, it's no sacrifice at all" (EJ)

Start your day off with a fresh mitzvah!

How far would we go in order to fulfill a mitzvah?
How much are we willing to sacrifice?
Or perhaps we should ask ourselves if it's really a sacrifice to fulfill the mitzvos, or rather an opportunity? Perhaps, this is the decisive difference that will either encourage or discourage us to perform the mitzvos. Are they a burden or a blessing? A pain or a pleasure?

Rav Yosef Sholom Elyashiv, shlit"a, one of our most beloved and integral Torah leaders in the world today, has a very intense and busy daily schedule of learning. He utilizes every moment of his day in the loyal service of Hashem. Engrossed in learning most of the day, he sleeps very little. In fact, his day begins at 2am!
When his rebbetzin, a"h, was still alive, she, too, would get up at that incredibly early hour - in order to make her husband a cup of coffee. Since she dearly wanted to partner in his learning, she extended herself for years in this manner. After a number of years, the electric water boiler was developed, and their daughter wanted to alleviate her mother from the hassle of waking up early by purchasing one. This way, Rav Elyashiv would still not have to spend his precious time away from learning since the water would be available immediately, while the aging rebbetzin could get her sleep.
The rebbetzin, however, adamantly refused. She cried,"This mitzvah you also want to take away from me?"
Rebbetzin Elyashiv continued to happily and loving sacrifice for her husband's learning, and in doing so, partnered in the reward. Indeed, he attests his Torah accomplishments to her wholehearted and unwavering support throughout her life.

Waking up at 2am was not the only act of personal sacrifice Rebbetzin Elyashiv performed. She was a living example of and testament to the everlasting will-power of a Jew. Yet, this incomparable energy and passion is present at the very core of every single Jew - it is just a matter of who will make the necessary steps to tap into these vast resources. If we care enough, and want enough, we can achieve truly great heights.

Say to yourself ten times today:
"Hashem, please give me the will-power to fulfill Your mitzvos properly today!"

Faith Lift

"Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes, turn and face the strange … just gonna have to be a different man” (DB)

Are you ready to show
your faith?

Human beings have a natural defense mechanism that becomes activated when we learn new facts that change our perception and conduct in life. It casts a pessimistic and negative shadow upon this new information, which immediately leads us to denial. We reason that if it contradicts our previous knowledge, then it simply cannot be right. By accepting it, we admit that we have been wrong - which is difficult for most people to achieve.
But it gets worse. There are people who align themselves with certain groups that have agendas, yet do not even know what they are denying with those agendas. To deny a fact, a person must first understand the fact itself. To change something, a person must know what it is he is changing ... and if it truly needs changing at all.

A sociology professor in college once called on one of his students and asked, "Johnson, you're a Christian. Please tell us something about your religion."
Johnson stood up, made his way to the front of the class, and spoke for ten minutes about Christianity.
When he was done, the professor continued, "Mohammad, you're a Muslim. Please share with us something about your religion."
Mohammad approached the front of the room and spoke about Islam.
Then the professor said, "Goldstein, you're a Jew. Please explain a bit about your religion."
"I'm sorry, sir, but I can't," he replied.
"Why not, Goldstein?" the professor probed.
"You see, sir, I'm Reform."
"Well, Goldstein," answered the professor, "don't you think you should know something about your religion before you reform it?"

It is painfully unfortunate that there are countless Jews who are brought into this world and are raised in an atmosphere that lacks the knowledge of the basic fundamentals of Judaism. As they grow, they may recognize their spiritual status and may associate themselves with a religious faction, yet they often don't know why. They are who they are by default, not choice. As their brothers and sisters, it is our obligation to share our knowledge with them in a way that is both loving and inviting. It is our responsibility to provide them with a faith lift - to empower them with the beauty of our religion so that they may see that there is nothing needed to reform.

Say to yourself ten times today:
"Hashem, please give me the ability to uplift my fellow Jew ... and myself!"

I'm a Believer

"Now I'm a believer, not a trace of doubt in my mind" (TM)

Are you a believer?

People often say, "Just show me a miracle and I'll believe. If I were to see a miracle like K'riyas Yam Suf, I'd have complete belief in Hashem!"
Others similarly question, "Why doesn't Hashem perform any miracles these days? We read about so many that took place in the times of old, but what about now?"
There are many explanations to these comments, one of which becomes exceedingly clear in the following story:

Rav Yisroel Salanter once met an innkeeper who he noticed had declined in his religious observance.
"What happened?" Rav Yisroel questioned.
"Well," explained the innkeeper, "There was a heretic staying at my inn not so long ago, and he sat down to eat. He took a piece of non-kosher meat, and announced, 'If there truly is G-D, I should choke on this meat!' He continued to eat the meat without issue, so I figured that there was no G-D!"
As the innkeeper spoke, his daughter came home with a diploma attesting to her excellence in music. Rav Yisroel proceeded to ask her if she would play the piano for him in order to prove that she was indeed an accomplished musician.
"Why should I perform?" she responded. "I have a diploma that shows that I am a master musician!"
"Please, I don't believe your diploma!" Rav Yisroel insisted.
"What do you mean you don't believe it?" the daughter snapped back. "My diploma proves it! I don't have to perform for every skeptic!"
Rav Yisroel turned to her father and said, "The Torah testifies to the fact that Hashem performed miracles. That is His proof. He doesn't have to perform for every skeptic!"

Hashem "proved" Himself countless times - both in the past and in the present. His miracles have never and will never cease. Indeed, infinite miracles unfold each and every moment in time.
We think.
We move.
We breath.
Miracles!

Say to yourself ten times today:
"Hashem, I believe in You! Always!"

Killing Time is Murder

Ticking away the moments ... fritter and waste the hours ... and then the one day you find, ten years have gone behind you" (PF)

Time to save time

How long does it take to become a lawyer?
One would need to attend four years of law school and complete difficult examinations.
How about to become a doctor?
One would require at least seven years of medical school along with extensive testing.
What about to become a huge talmid chochom? How long does that take?

Someone once asked the great Chasam Sofer how he had become such a towering sage.
"It took me five minutes to become a talmid chochom," answered the Chasam Sofer.
When he saw the puzzled look on the man's face, he continued to explain.
"There are so many five minutes through a person's life, most of which go to waste. In the five minutes here and five minutes there is a world of opportunity. I made sure to utilize those five minutes each time, and in those five minutes I became a talmid chochom!"

Well, there you have it! It takes only five minutes to become a talmid chochom.
You look down at your watch. You have five minutes of free time now - don't kill it! That would be murder! You're killing the talmid chochom within you!

Say to yourself ten times today:
"Hashem, please give me the strength and wisdom to use my time wisely today!"

The Age of Unlimited

Talk is cheap.
Silence is golden.

Enough said.

Unlimited voice. Unlimited text. Unlimited data.
What can be better, right?
Well, not necessarily.

Rebbi Nachman once said, "A person learns to speak when he is a child, and learns to be silent when he his an old man. One of the worse pitfalls of mankind is that we learn to speak before we learn to be silent!"

Here's a thought to ponder. What makes gold and silver expensive? It is because they are rare. They are limited. If our words become unlimited, how much will they be worth?

Say to yourself ten times today:
"Hashem, please give me the willpower to use my words properly today!"

A Jew, A Jew!

"Take me as I am ... drawn together bound by destiny ... now and forever" (C)



It's what's in your head,
not what's on it

Tolerance.
It is one of the most fundamental facets of Judaism, and the lack of it is the source of our continued exile.
Unfortunately, people tend to focus on people's exterior, but fail to realize the inner beauty and tremendous value of each and every Jew.

It was a well-known fact that the saintly Satmar Rov, tz"l, was very close to and fond of Elimelech "Mike" Tress, tz"l. One day, a follwer of the Rebbe approached him and questioned, "How can the Rebbe be so close to Mr. Tress if he doesn't have a beard?"
The Rebbe answered warmly, yet firmly, "After 120 years, when Mr. Tress comes before Hashem in Heaven, they will call before him, 'A Jew, a Jew! But where's the beard?' Yet, when it comes to your time, they will call out, 'A beard, a beard! But where's the Jew?'"

There is more to a Jew than a beard - or color and size of his yarmulka, style of clothing, or Hebrew pronounciation. Each one of us share commonalities - our soul and Jewish identity. Rather than shun another Jew because of his religious practices or customs, we must embrace him simply because he is our brother. Let us accept one another, since after all, when we "get up there," don't we all want to be accepted, as well?

Say to yourself ten times today:
"I love Jews! I love every single one of them!"

Thanks a Lot!

"How 'bout me not blaming You for everything ... thank you, thank you" (AM)

And don't forget to
say thank you!

Please, please, please!
Sound familiar? We all do it. We all ask for a lot of things. And rightfully so. There's nothing wrong with that. Just as a child asks his parents for a list of things, we can and should always feel free to turn to our Father in Heaven and ask for whatever we wish.
But what happens if we do not receive what we asked for? What is our reaction? Who do we blame?
Do we ever question why we were not granted our wish? Do we ever consider that Hashem certainly heard our prayers, yet didn't provide us our wish because of something we did or did not do?
And what if our prayers were answered - did we ever say thank you?

A great tzaddik once relayed the following story that he experienced:
I once had a dream that I rose up to the Heavens and saw a spectacular sight. I was ushered into a magnificent chamber where tens of thousands of angels were scurrying about from one side to the other.
I asked in bewilderment, "What is this chamber?"
"This is the chamber of the prayers of the Jewish People who ask for salvation," was the answer I was told, "and these are the angels who are transporting them."
I then passed into a second large chamber where I saw the identical vision. Tens of thousands of angels were rushing from one area to another.
Again I asked, "And what is this chamber?"
"This is the chamber of answered prayers," replied the angels, "and we are hurrying to deliver them to those who prayed for them."
Finally, I passed into a third chamber. In this chamber, however, I saw a completely different scene. There were very few angels, and even those were not moving quickly, rather they were carrying along quite slowly and lazily.
I asked once more, "And what is this chamber?"
"This is the chamber of thanks and appreciation from those who received salvation," was the sad response. "In truth, this chamber should be the busiest of all. However, as painful as it is, we do not have much to do."

Sad, but true.
Just as we appreciate when others offer us gestures of thanks and gratitude for our kindness, so should we demonstrate our thanks to Hashem for everything we have.
And we all certainly have infinite reasons to thank Him!

Say to yourself ten times today:
"Hashem - thank You, thank You, thank You ... for everything!"