Gmar Chasima Tova! I hope Rosh HaShana was meaningful for you. May Hashem bless you and your families with much bracha, hatzlacha, and siyata d'shmaya.
Now that we're getting into Aseres Yimei Teshuva, I'm sure we're all focused on how we can change ourselves. But before we get to that - a word about our relationship with HKBH.
Rav Dessler points out in Michtav Me'Eliyahu that the Western world's concept of Love is mistaken. They think that love is purely by chance - people fall in love, and they fall out of love. It has nothing to do with the effort a person puts into it.
Judaism, says Rav Dessler, dispenses with this whole notion. The word for love in Hebrew is "ahava." In Aramaic, "hav" - the middle part of "Ahava" - means to give. Explains Rav Dessler, love is created through giving. When Reuven gives to Leah, love grows inside of Reuven for Leah. This is how love works. This is why a husband and wife married for 30 years love each other more than two newlyweds. They have given for a much longer period of time. This is why parents love their kids more than kids love their parents - the parents have given to their children so much that it is nigh impossible not to love them, even when they do ridiculous things.
So giving creates love. This really requires a longer discussion, but the above paragraph will have to suffice for our purposes. Now, think about how much Hashem gives to us. He gives us everything, doesn't He? In fact, Hashem gives the whole world to us; He gives us life, He gives us existence, He gives us the enjoyment of this world and the next. What does this say about our relationship with HKBH?
My friends, this tells us that Hashem loves us. He loves us in an immeasurable way! Can you imagine how much love is generated by the amount of giving that Hashem does for us? And if Hashem loves us that much, He must care about every single little thing that we do! He cares if we get to minyan on time. He cares if we sneak a little ice cream before the 6th hour, or if we hold ourselves back until that 6:01 mark. He cares if we decide not to look as we pass by the pritzus on our streets. HE CARES ABOUT EVERYTHING! He is proud of every single nisayon (test) that you pass, every little fight against the Yetzer Hara that you win.
How incredibly comforting, how exciting! We don't have to feel alone when we do Teshuva this week - we can feel as if Hashem is looking down at us, arms crossed, smiling, proud of His child that He loves so much! What an encouraging thought!
If we approach Teshuva this attitude, then iy"H our Teshuva will be so much more meaningful, and it will be accepted on Yom Kippur, kein yehi ratzon.
Hatzlacha Raba!
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