Discovering Life's Blessings Beyond Measure (Day 64 - Orchos Tzaddikim | Happiness 12)

00:01 - Intro (Announcement)
You're listening to Rabbi Aryeh Wolde, Director of TORCH, the Torah Outreach Resource Center of Houston. This is the Jewish Inspiration Podcast.

00:13 - Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe (Host)
Welcome back, my dear friends, to day number 64 in the Orchah Tzaddik and Ways of the gate of happiness, habitochon hashishi, the sixth type of trust in Hashem that assists in us being happy. When we relinquish our need to be in control, we're the happiest people on earth. I'll give you an example. A child can be very worried what's going to be with this, what's going to be with that? But when they know that their parent is there to take care of it, they're no longer anxious, they're calm. That's the way we need to feel in the hands of the Almighty, hashem is controlling the entire world. He's got it all in order. I'll give you an example. I'll give you an example. I'll give you a very easy example. Look at the world we're living in today. The world we're living in today is a world that's filled with chaos. It's filled with uncertainty. It's filled with what's going to be. What's going to be? What's going to be with politics? Which party is going to win? Who's going to be in the White House? Who's going to be in control? We're looking at Israel like, oh my goodness, what's going to be with Hamas? What's going to be with Hezbollah? What's going to be with Iran? What's going to be with Turkey? What's going to be with the Houthis? What's going to be with all of our neighbors? We just had a terrorist attack from Jordan. Hashem is in control of the entire world. We have nothing to worry about, nothing to worry about. You want to know who's going to win the election. It's not relevant. Who cares? Yes, go vote. We mentioned this yesterday in our class Go vote. But just because one may get more votes or one may get a greater outcome in the electoral college, it does not mean that they will actually be the one in the White House, because Hashem decides who is king, hashem decides who is queen, hashem decides who leads. And even if one wins, there are ways in which they don't end up winning right, not because they didn't get more votes or because they didn't get the electoral college, but because Hashem chose they shouldn't be in office. So we have to remember that we have nothing to worry about. Take the stress off your back, relax, ah. Take a deep breath. Realize that we're in the magnificence of Hashem's world. Hashem wants us close. So day number 64 on page 383. Habitach on page 383.

02:48
The sixth form of trust that we need to have to maximize joy in our lives. That is, you see, there's a great fear. Why do we do good deeds in this world? Because we know it's the right thing. But Hashem promises us that if we do good things here, we get good things there and we get a much greater reward in the world to come than we would here. But there's a great fear. What's the great fear? You know, I was just driving on the highway and I saw that there's an $800 million lottery. I was like you know what it's a dollar and a dream. You know what I'm saying it's like and what would happen if I won that $800 million. Who knows if I were to play the lottery, which I don't frequently do, but imagine I played the lottery and I won. Who knows if that joy and that pleasure of being able to assist all of these organizations and all of these good causes, who says that that's maybe not taking away one centimeter of my reward from the world to come? Maybe Hashem is saying you know what? Maybe Hashem is saying. You know what? Maybe Hashem is saying I'm not. Maybe Hashem is saying I'm not going to give you the reward in the world to come which is olam shekula tov, the world of all good. Olam shekula aruch. Right, it's, it's, it's the, the, the it says.

04:21
It says in the Talmud that all of the pleasures of the entire world combined, meaning all of humanity, take all of humanity and take all of their pleasures together and combine them of their entire lifetime. So that means billions and billions and billions of people who came through this earth over the last 5,784 years, since the creation of Adam and Eve till this very day, and all of the pleasures that they all collectively experienced. All of those pleasures combined does not equal one millisecond in the world to come. All of the pleasures of this world combined does not equal one millisecond of pleasure in the world to come. So now there's a great fear. Maybe Hashem is going to give me maybe the great life that I have, maybe the roof I have over my head, maybe the delicious food that I eat, maybe the amazing wife and the incredible children and the ability to learn Torah. Maybe that is taking away from my reward in the world to come. Maybe I'm eating up my reward in this world and not in the world to come, says the author here.

05:39
You must have trust in Hashem that he is going to give you your reward in the world to come and he's not going to take it off your account in this world and he should have trust in Hashem that he will protect you. Hashem will protect you from all of the terrible things like plagues and sword and famine and evils. Why? What happens? If those things happen, then you're going to need the special mercy of Hashem to be protected from it. That may take away from your reward in the world to come. So if Hashem saves your life, perhaps let's take a modern day example. Imagine there was a former president who was on a stage in Butler, pennsylvania, and imagine that a young, 20-year-old, disturbed individual takes his rifle and tries to shoot that former president and he barely misses knocking his brains, splattering them all over the stage on live television. Is it possible that that person's life was saved and that would potentially take away the reward from the world to come.

07:06
Hashem says I'm going to protect you here, I'm going to save you here from that bullet, because I'm eating up all of your reward from the world to come. We don't want to give up our reward in the world to come. We want to have our full package. So if we're in a place of grave danger, like in a famine, or we have. The Talmud says that if you have a sword on your neck, on your throat, they're ready to kill you. Don't count yourself out from the mercy of Hashem.

07:42
But I don't want, maybe I don't want Hashem to have mercy of Hashem, but I don't want, maybe I don't want Hashem to have mercy, because that mercy will take away from my account in the world to come, says the author here. Don't be concerned about that. You have to have trust in Hashem that he will always have your best interest in mind. And when you have that proper trust in Hashem, don't say you know what I've done so many good deeds, hashem is going to protect me, but rather, do everything that you do, hashem. I'm doing this for you. You know why you should save me. Not because of my past, not because of all the great deeds I did, not because I have so many merits, not because of what I'm going to do. I'm going to continue doing for you to make your name great in this world. Who raised and uplifted him in this world and did good to him?

08:42
There is the moment in your life. You hear this Lauren, you hear this Bobby, you hear this Stephen, you hear this Courtney. It's amazing, amazing, amazing. Get excited about this. There isn't a moment in your life that God wasn't showering you with goodness. Not a moment in our lives that wasn't the greatest gift from Hashem. We're so worried sometimes. Oh, hashem forgot about me. Hashem forgot about me. Hashem doesn't even know that I'm here, right. And then Hashem sends that little rattlesnake. Hashem sends that little rattlesnake to say hey, you think you? I don't know that you're here, I'm there, right. Stephen Hashem sends it to us because Hashem is communicating in many different ways with us. There's not a single moment in our life that Hashem's kindness wasn't fully on display.

10:05
Let me ask you a question. So, by show of hands all of those here in the room and all of those here online, those listening on the podcast by a raise of hands, any trillionaires in the room? Any billionaires? No trillionaires, no billionaires, any millionaires, all right, nobody's raising a hand. I'm a trillionaire. I didn't even win the lottery. I'm a trillionaire. You want to know why, and I'll tell you why. Each and every one of you are a trillionaire.

10:33
Okay, so let me open up my checkbook here and I'm going to show you something really incredible. I'm ready to sign a check. I got a pen right here in my hand and I'm ready to sign a check for $100 million. Who's ready for me to cut off their right leg? Anybody Volunteer? $100 million? I'll give you a check. $100 million, no more leg, nobody. How about this? I'll up the ante. Okay, how about for a billion dollars? Okay, I'll write a check. It's a lot of zeros. A billion dollars. I'll cut off your right leg and your left arm. Okay, totally. I'm not leaving anything else. So there's no. Okay, it's like totally off. Okay, anybody. Any volunteers show of hands? I don't see any show of hands. Nobody's volunteering.

11:31
How about for a trillion dollars? A trillion dollars, that's, I think, 12 zeros. A trillion dollars. I'll throw in an extra one A trillion and one dollars. Okay, both hands, both legs, anybody.

11:52
So let me ask the question again. We all have hands, we all have legs. We're not ready to give that up for a trillion dollars. Any trillionaires in the room? Yes, we're all trillionaires. Raise your hands up high. We're trillionaires, we're gazillionaires. You know why? Because, look what, we're not ready to give up for a trillion dollars. You're not ready to give up your arms and your legs. Are you ready to give up your intelligence, your taste buds? What are you ready to give up? We're not ready to give up anything.

12:22
Imagine Hashem gave it to us. For what? How much does it cost us? Imagine Hashem gave it to us. For what? How much does it cost us? Free, gratis, free? Hashem gave it to us for nothing. Isn't that amazing? Hashem gave us our bodies with all of the gifts, for nothing. Hashem didn't say, oh, you're going to have to pay a hefty sum for this.

12:46
Imagine if we did need to. All the kindness in the world, all the good deeds in the world that we would try to do, wouldn't be enough to pay for those limbs, for those pleasures that we're able to enjoy in this world. Shehein olav b'chol rega, these pleasures are every moment of our lives. Ve'achar sheyach shuv kol zeh yiv'tach el hachaz dey Hashem baruch hu shuhu gom el chesed v'hu merachem al odom yosem imasav shol odom. Hashem is so merciful upon us More than we can possibly imagine. There's no goodness in the world that we can possibly do that can equal the kindness that Hashem bestows upon us. There is nothing that we can possibly do that is even remotely close enough to pay for all the goodness that we benefit from.

13:41
Ki berachamav no sein lechem l'shrotzim v'lebeheimos v'lechayis v'lovo, because Hashem's mercy is so great and so magnificent that Hashem feeds the, the animals, hashem feeds the creeping things, the beasts, the animals, the birds, and he sustains the entire world. V'hu zan kol olam mikarni, re'emim v'ad beit sekinim, from the wild oxen down to the lice eggs. That's what the Talmud says. V'ikashem erachim al'elu, when God has such incredible mercy on all of those creations, lo b'shvil ma'aseh matovim, why does Hashem do that?

14:24
Not because they're doing great deeds for one another, not because they're being selfless, not because they're doing acts of kindness, not because they're overcoming their anger, not because they're being unlazy. They're overcoming their procrastination. Someone told me he says I'm a pro in procrastination. He's a pro in procrastination. He's a pro in procrastination. Guess what? The animals don't have that, and Hashem still feeds every single animal on planet Earth. Every single animal gets its food, gets exactly what it needs, every single day. Why? Because Hashem is all merciful. They don't have to do anything for it.

15:09
Ach b'shvil racham avagdolim kachirachim alav. Only because God is merciful. That's what we need to have trust in Hashem, that he's merciful on each and every one of us and he will take care of each and every one of us. And then the seventh form of trust that we need in order to be abundantly happy to trust in Hashem, who is in control of everything. Baruch Hu, you know what you have to have trust in Hashem. Look at the Jewish people, look at the challenges that we have, look at all of the difficult things that we're experiencing as a people.

15:59
The October 7th, the terrorist attack that keep on happening to our people, hashem protected us in a most magnificent way. A terrorist was coming in from Canada to blow up a synagogue in New York City. Hashem has such mercy on us, but when is this all going to end? That's what we ask. When is this all going to end?

16:26
The author here says we can never let go of our trust in Hashem, that he's going to bring the end to this exile speedily in our days, and he's going to rebuild Jerusalem the way it should be. And he's going to restore our temple, our third temple in Jerusalem, the way it should be V'lo tia kavanas bitchono kde lichios b'shalva g'dola asher tia. Jerusalem the way it should be, and a person shouldn't be wishing for it, so that, as we know, in the times of Mashiach there'll be unbelievable prosperity, unbelievable peace in the world. Imagine nations of the world are going to have the due respect for the Jewish people. The nations of the world are not going to fight. There's not going to be any more war in the world. It's going to be an incredible time to live. Imagine that.

17:17
That's not why you should want Moshiach. That's not why Ve'lecho, ha'peros, ha'tovasi You'll be able to eat all the great fruits of the world and all the fresh wine. That will be the fine wines. You know why you should wish for the coming of Mashiach? So that you can serve Hashem without distraction. Why do we have to earn a living? It's a distraction. Why do we have so earn a living? It's a distraction. Why do we have so many things Sports?

17:56
Sports is a very, very important distraction for the nations of the world. Do you know that if the nations of the world didn't have sports, we would be their soccer balls. We would be their baseballs. They would hit us with those bats. We would be their baseballs. They would hit us with those bats. We would be their footballs. Instead, what do we have? Hashem made this incredible invention sports. So that they're busy going for the Astros and going for the Texans and going for. So that they're busy with that instead of beating us up, that's the truth, but it's still a distraction for us. Beating us up, that's the truth, but it's still a distraction for us. It's a distraction for us In the time of Moshiach. We're not going to have distractions, we're going to have absolute clarity.

18:39
I remember if you want to just have a vision of what Moshiach was like I remember when AT&T like right when they started with cell phones, it was an advertisement of people were riding. You would see regular, ordinary people in New York City, around the world, just going about their life. You know, this one was shopping and this one was riding their bike and suddenly there was a bright, bright, bright light and everybody turned, everybody looked up and I remember when I was seeing that advertisement for AT&T, for them it was like more bars, more bars in your cell phone connection. That was their ad. It was so bright. Everybody was just mesmerized by AT&T more bars, right. But I was thinking that that's the way it's going to be in the time of Moshiach.

19:26
In the time of Moshiach, people will stop everything and just jaws dropping. They're going to see with clarity Ki Hashem, hu Alokim, that Hashem is the King, that Hashem is the Creator of Heaven and Earth and that Hashem is the one power over this entire world. The entire world is going to come to their senses. They're going to say, oh, now I get it. Now I see with clarity they're going to be looking up. I remember not to compare between holy and unholy I remember when the Notre Dame in I believe it was in France was burning down Remember that it was a few years ago. There was a big fire and I remember that moment where, everywhere I went, everybody was looking at their phones watching live coverage of this church burning down. I said it's just a test run. It's like Elon Musk before he did his spaces with President Trump in their interview, he did a test run of 8 million live viewers to test it out, to see that it works, to see that it can handle such traffic, to see that it can handle such traffic. Perhaps Hashem is test running the cell towers, making sure that we can run a Notre Dame type of event on a much grander scale the coming of Mashiach.

20:58
Imagine that the whole world's going to come to a halt. People are going to be shopping. They're not going to be looking on the shelves for what they're shopping. They're going to be looking at their phones. Oh, my goodness, the Messiah is here, mashiach is here. He's standing on the rooftop of the Holy Third Temple to be built in Jerusalem. Amen, speedily in our days. So the whole world's going to know Yehudu es Hashem. They're all going to know Hashem. You know what's going to happen then there's not going to be any deterrent, not plague, nor famine, nor war, nor preoccupation, but all will be free and all will achieve great heights in the knowledge of Hashem. Everybody, the entire world.

21:52
The problem is which is why I encourage someone who does want to convert get those wheels turning, move it, because by the time Mashiach comes, there's no more converts. Whoever's in is in, whoever's out is out. It's use it or lose it moment, right now. We got to do it. And in those days, in the time of the coming of Moshiach, suddenly everyone's going to be so wise.

22:19
Suddenly, everyone's going to be like oh my goodness, it's like hindsight is 20-20. Everyone's going to become a Monday morning quarterback. Everyone's going to be like we should have done this, we should have done that. Everyone's going to be so bright Because they're going to see, for the earth will be filled with knowledge of Hashem as the waters cover the sea. Everyone's going to know that Hashem is there. Everyone's going to feel an abundance of closeness to Hashem as the waters cover the sea. Everyone's going to know that Hashem is there. Everyone's going to feel an abundance of closeness to Hashem, according to their ways prior. So this is Rosh Hour, my dear friends, and here the Orch HaSaddikim brings us in such a magnificent way. He brings us into that moment of what's going to happen and that we need to have trust in Hashem, that Hashem is going to make it happen and that Hashem is going to allow us the opportunity to be close with Him at that time. This concludes day number 64.

23:19 - Intro (Announcement)
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Discovering Life's Blessings Beyond Measure (Day 64 - Orchos Tzaddikim | Happiness 12)