Author Archives: Orit Esther Riter

BS’D

Today’s daily dose of emuna is dedicated to the refuah shleimah of Dovid Baruch ben Chaya Tova a young man who has cancer in the late stages. May Hashem send him a complete healing refuat hanefesh v’refuat haguf among all of Klal Yisrael who are sick and suffering b’karov, b’rachamim, Amen.

Lasting change can only occur if we answer ‘no’ to the following question, “Can I continue living this way?” We can achieve change in every aspect of our lives ONLY if we feel there is absolutely no way we can remain where we are.  To emphasize this point even more this feeling must be accompanied by a fiery, passionate and burning desire to change paths; “there is no way I am going to continue living like this!”

For instance if you wish to change your relationship with your spouse, are you willing to at all costs:

• Invest a greater amount of unconditional love even if he is not receptive?
• Express your desire to go to all lengths to bond with him?
• Extend yourself beyond human efforts to revive this relationship?
• Take the time to contemplate the benefits this would have on the rest of your family ~ thus motivating you to stick with your commitment to change.
• Visualize how your life would change if you could give or do more and be more accepting?

By addressing the above you will soon determine how strong your desire is for change in any area of your life, including your relationship with Hashem Yitborach!  The answers should paint a clear picture of where you need to grow and improve to achieve that change.

BS’D

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Being honest and true to our feelings is the only way to attain genuine emotional and spiritual wholesomeness. This is based on the Torah teaching that Hashem’s signature is the ‘Seal of Truth’ thus coming to our inner truth attaches us in turn to Hashem.  Therefore it follows that if we are not truthful with ourselves essentially we distance ourselves from Hashem, the only source of wellness.

What are feelings?  What are emotions?  Feelings are the physical sensation of touch through either experience or perception; another words they are reactions to inner and outer stimuli.   Emotions are a person’s state of mind and instinctive responses that are not impacted by anything.  Our feelings are prone to change to fit into a given experience and environment. As a result we can easily drift away from our inner point of truth.

Who is the ‘real me’? The holy G-dly spark of Hashem within.  Therefore, as we discover our true self in turn we reveal our inner G-dliness and as we seek out Hashem we find our inner truth.  In that vein that is why when we do teshuva (which is equated to self-therapy and healing) we effectively get in touch with ourselves; as we wipe away the sins through the teshuva we remove the barriers that distort our true sense of being.

What is the process of reaching within and finding our truth?  We need to be honest with ourselves and take responsibility for our weak points and transgressions.  For example, ‘I know that I shouldn’t have done…. I need to make it a priority that I learn how to better control…’ From that truthful state we find Hashem and polish the illuminous diamond of greatness within.

BS’D

Today the 4th of Iyar is the yahrtzeit of Rabbi Yosef Dov Soloveichik of Brisk (1810-1892), famed talmudic scholar and author of the Beis HaLevi commentary. In 1854, Rabbi Soloveichik joined the leadership of the famed Voluzhin Yeshiva, the center of Jewish scholarship at that time. He was known for his great piety; it is said that his fear of sin was comparable to an ordinary person’s fear when his life is in danger. He became rabbi of Brisk, Lithuania, thus launching the famous Brisker rabbinic dynasty; his son was the famed Rabbi Chaim Soloveichik. (Aish.com)  May the merit of the tzaddik serve as an advocate for Klal Yisrael, Amen.

We cannot force ourselves to be optimistic, particularly if we were not raised in such a way. The way to live a life full of hopefulness is by setting goals that will excite and inject new zest into our lives. In other words, pump ourselves up by visualizing the objectives and jumping up and down with delight over how wonderful we will feel when we achieve them. Once a decision built on fiery passion is made, rest assured that you are without a doubt that much closer to the end goal than you were a second before you made that decision. In fact, the Mesilat Yesharim states that it is actually easier to do the deed than it is to decide to do it.

We have very little control over our successes and failures; ultimately it is only Hashem Who brings forth the outcome. But we are required to make the first move. Irrelevant whether we think it is ‘logical’ and makes sense that we can succeed and really change ourselves, we need to ‘partner’ with Hashem and beseech His assistance.

It cannot be repeated too many times how important it is to have a strong belief system in oneself as well as a solid Emuna relationship with Hashem. The reason it is of such great value is because the fuel feeding our engine is the positive energy we invest in meeting our goals. How strongly do we believe we can do it? If our foundation is not rock-hard, the inner conflicts and negativity will creep in and disrupt our progress.

It doesn’t matter how long you have gotten ‘used to’ living your life not believing you can realign your habits, responses and way of thinking. You don’t have to be who you were yesterday. You can be a ‘new you’.

It begins first with your unwavering desire to do so.