Jewish Inspiration Podcast · Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe

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

00:07 - Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe (Host)
Welcome back, my dear friends, to our study of the Orchos Tzaddikim, The Ways of the Righteous. We are on page 417, 417. We're in the 10th gate. As we have been discussing trade after trade after trade, the trade we're up to now is the gate of worry.

00:29
When someone is worried, they're concerned, they're afraid, they are uncertain. Some people get anxiety. Not a good thing. The worry is not a good trait. It is visible on one's face. It is visible as the verse states. They saw them, they saw their face and they were troubled. And further it states in Nehemiah why is your face downcast if you're not even sick?

01:09
One of our sages said ve'omer echad menachachamim eini motzeh klal be'anshi nefoshesel yonos siman do'ogo. I do not find even a single trace of worry in all of the people who are of uplifted spirit, someone who is spiritual. Now we're going to explain why. We're going to explain why someone who is of an uplifted spirit doesn't have worry. Someone who is holy doesn't have worry. We'll see why in a minute. Doesn't have worry. We'll see why in a minute. Hadagah ala olam hazeh lahasig me'uma hi miguna ma'od. Someone who has worry over material matters in this world is extremely disgraceful and is not found in all of those who trust and believe in Hashem, v'hi lo, nim'tzeis v'klal, ba'anosh, ma'abot, ch'mesheim, hu, ma'minin. Bo shame ומאמין בו. ה-דעגו וה-יוגון הם מחלם ה-לב, והם חולי הגוף.

02:07
Worry, anxiety, sorrow, they erode the heart and are the sickness of the body. וה-דעגו הרע שבכלל. ה-דעגו היא שירדוף אחר ה-העברות. The worst of all worries is pursuing sin, and worrying and suffering is not attaining all his heart's desires.

02:36
One who has Someone was telling me today. He said you know what People who are extremely wealthy do? You know what they're looking for? Do you know what they're looking for? You know what they're looking for. They can buy anything they want. So what pleases them? Buy another house, buy another car, buy another watch, like what is going to please them? He says what pleases them is when they're able to buy something that nobody else can buy. I have the only one. I have the only pair of sneakers signed by some hero. I have the only kind of that Rolex.

03:18
Worry, worry is a big, big problem, big problem. So if someone is not able to attain and acquire all of the material that they desire, they get worried and they get concerned and they get stressed out. Someone who's worried about their worldly matters is distancing themselves from Torah from mitzvahs and prayer L'chein yachush ma'od letakin hamidas. Therefore, it's very important for a person to strengthen themselves in this area and not be overwhelmed with worry. L'chosir osomein menu, to not have it within ourselves to be worried, and we'll see in a minute what that is. You're saying you're worried? Huh, you get worried. Let me tell you how to get out of that worry. We don't have to elaborate more on how terrible worry is. Ki chol ha-tovos ha-bovos min ha-simcha ein hipuch b'da'aga. Anything that is good to a person when they're happy is terrible for a person when they are worried. Worry is a terrible. Stress is like worry. Anxiety comes from worry. So let's think for a second before we continue. What do you think are the reasons that a person gets stressed out and worried? Why does a person get stressed out? Why does a person worry? What is going on that a person gets worried? Say, just tell us something very, very important. That is as we'll see soon.

05:04
Worry means that I want to be in control. Worry means that I have to figure out what's going to be. Worry means that I feel like I am so powerful. I need to have the solutions at hand. I need to foretell the results, the finished product. But who's in charge of this world? The Almighty God, creator of heaven and earth. It's all His world and Hashem is in charge of everything. Hashem knows what's good for us and Hashem knows what's not good for us. Hashem will give us exactly what we deserve to have and Hashem will take from us everything that we don't deserve to have. Therefore, if a person is worried, what is it saying? I don't rely on Hashem. I don't rely that Hashem will take care of my every need, that Hashem will take care of my every need.

06:07
You know birds, dogs, cats. They don't have a degree from Harvard or Yale or UT. They don't have any degrees, and yet they're able to support their family and they have no worries. If you see a cat, think, oh, I got some back pain I have from stress Really hurting me. No, no such thing. You don't see an animal complaining like that. Why not? Because they have a reliance on Hashem. Mankind, that's.

06:42
One of the challenges that we have is that we have a difficult time because we feel, particularly in our generation, it's a real big problem because people think that I had to turn off the broadcast because everyone's complaining about the sound. I'm sorry, so we're just going to continue on podcast and Zoom and figure out what the problem is next time. I have no idea what the issue is, so hopefully on podcast it's coming out okay. Who knows, let's get the recording on over here on the. There you go. So that's my backup In case the podcast doesn't work, at least this will work All right.

07:31
So what happens is that every person feels, especially in our generation where we have a smartphone in our hands, we have devices that give us the false security that we are in control of things. On our phones, we can control the lights and the AC, and we can control the alarm to our house and we can control our car, and if you have a fancy Tesla, you can even summon the car to come pick you up from your front doorstep and you can control everything. But suddenly there's something in my life I cannot control. Oh, we get all anxious and we're all worried and it's a big, big problem.

08:18
Therefore, there is a form of positive, there is a positive aspect sometimes to worry, as the prophet says. The worry. For what should a living man lament? Each one should lament over his sins. That means the worry of my sins, the worry of I'm not doing it with a pure heart, the worry of that perhaps I'm falling short of my potential. God thinks that I can produce a 10 and I'm producing a 3. Yeah, that's something to be worried about. Okay. So he says like this and I'm producing a three? Yeah, that's something to be worried about. Ve'at ha'tizboni Okay. So he says like this Ha'chotei tzarech lahagdil yagon.

09:17
The sinner has to increase the sorrow of his heart and groan in bitterness of heart over having rebelled against his creator. Right. Imagine God believes in us, he loves us so much, gives us so much, and then we fall short of our responsibilities. A person loses some money. We're concerned. Oh, what happened? I'm missing my phone, I'm missing my watch, I'm missing my wallet. What happens if a person loses his livelihood? They lose their home. Oh, total devastation. The same is true with all afflictions. His grief is eternal and sorrow fills his heart.

10:25
V'yoseh ro'u shi. Yitzdor v'yei onach al shehimro neged sheh Hashem yisbarach v'lozohach ha'soda v'torosav olaf. It would be more fitting for a person to suffer this pain over his rebellion against Hashem and his failure to bear in mind Hashem's loving kindness and good deeds towards him. It means if a person forgets how blessed he is and now just lives a life vacant of godliness, because he just doesn't realize that Hashem is right there, he loves us and he takes care of us. That's something to be worried about. V'daki madregos ha-tshuva ha-kol lefi otsem ha-yogon Know that the levels of repentance correspond to the intensity of one's sorrow. So you see, there is a worry. That is good If a person worries that they are not producing well enough for the Almighty.

11:24
Again, god believes in us. He gave us potential. Imagine your child. You know that your child is able to do well in school. You expect them to do well in school. If your child is not capable of doing well in school, you don't expect them to do well in school. But if they are able to do very well in school and they fall short of that, then what happens? We're disappointed. Hashem gives us our potential as well, and if we fall short of that potential, hashem is disappointed, and that is something for us to be concerned about. The only form of worry is the worry that comes before the Almighty.

12:26
And what is a parable to this? Comes before the Almighty, and what is a parable to this? A melech asher, hich isuhu yelidei beisoh ha-krovim elav. Imagine a king who had become angered by those born in his palace, those who are close to him Veheim, mei, atzilei, ha-aretz ha-nechpadim, the honored princes of the land. That's who they are. Yet he is more disposed to grant them pardon and mercy than he would those more distant and lesser than they.

12:59
As we see, in very modern times, the Hunter Biden pardon is a very fatherly act. My son did something wrong and I want to protect him from being punished for it. Now, that's another question. Whether or not and every person can ask this question and answer it however they want whether or not it's good parenting or not good parenting, that's not the discussion here. The fact is is that every father cares about their child, and when they see that their child rightfully, wrongfully, is irrelevant again is being targeted intentionally, not intentionally, rightfully or not rightfully, it doesn't make a difference. A father's instinct is to protect their child, but it's easier to protect my own child than somebody else's child. Protect their child, but it's easier to protect my own child than somebody else's child.

13:49
Yitin lehem, yoser chanino v'chem lo, m'chem loso, m'chem loso ala rechokim v'apchusim. Yet he is more disposed to grant them pardon and mercy than he would those more distant and lesser than they. So someone who's in my palace. Someone who's in my family, I'll grant them mercy, but someone who's not in my family a lot less, even though I expect more from those who are in my family. Therefore, we have to understand that the Almighty has more mercy on us.

14:28
God pardons us on a regular basis from our sins. Imagine we come to Hashem on Rosh Hashanah, on Yom Kippur. We say, hashem, please forgive me, and Hashem says oh, you're my son, I'll pardon you, I'll pardon you from your sin. Hashem does that for us, which is why Yom Kippur is the happiest day of the year, because we get a pardon. I hope that the president's son is really happy right now that he got a pardon, because he should be happy.

15:08
I know the world has made it very, very political, but that's not relevant Not relevant really to it happened, it's done, the president did it, he signed it Done. But that's what Hashem does to us Every year. So we have to be careful, because if we say, hey, that's unjust, he should pay the price for his sins, then perhaps that's going to be our judgment, where Hashem will pull up that record on Yom Kippur and say oh, you want me to forgive your sins? Let me pull up a recording here where you're the one who said that you know a hunter should sit in jail and rot because of his sins. Oh, hashem will say well, maybe I shouldn't forget your sins, maybe I shouldn't pardon you for your sins. So we have to understand that there's something different here. When it's your child and hopefully you have proper mercy for your child on their wrongdoings, because we are the children of Hashem and Hashem has mercy on us and Hashem pardons us every single year. You remember this. Hopefully, lauren, you'll remind me before Yom Kippur this year, we should do an episode, you know, saving hunter right. Saving hunter right. So that we should.

16:28
We also want to get pardoned, right, all right, but I think it's very important for us to remember this and this is what King David said Hashem, all of my desire is before you and my sighs are not hidden from you. It means you see my sorrow, you see my worry, you see my concern that I sinned. Tears come from sorrow and worry and we know our sages tell us that the gates of tears are never closed. The gates of tears are never closed. You have a special prayer that you need heard shed a tear. The gates of tears have never been closed, as it is written in the Talmud. My eyes have shed streams of tears for not having observed your Torah and for I will declare my transgressions. I will worry over my sin. Y'avoni agid edag nechatosai Bil'olam yikach yogin bil'vavo al ma sha'ovar bi'yidag al ha'osid.

18:12
A person should definitely take concern in his heart for what has passed and worry about the future and be concerned that perhaps he may not have fulfilled his requirement of repentance. As it is written Praised is a person who is always concerned. His requirement of repentance. As it is written ikseyev ashe adam efach etomen praised is a person who is always concerned, meaning it's a good thing, it's a virtue for a person to be worried. So there is a form of worry that is very good Worry that I didn't fill my potential, like we said, or worry that I didn't properly seek repentance.

18:57
I was once needing a witness for a wedding. I was officiating a wedding and I approached a rabbi, asked him if he can be a witness under the chuppah. He said to me no, I can't. I said why not? He said because I became religious later in my life and I'm afraid that I didn't have proper repentance for my sins of my youth and anyone who's able to say that is definitely a very righteous person, in my opinion. Someone who's able to say I didn't properly repent, someone who's that delicate and sensitive, that's probably the guy you want as your witness. So I had him as the witness under the chuppah Afilu im hoya achshav zakai v'etzadeh gamor yireh le'olam sham y'avu chet liyadom.

19:50
So what's if a person is righteous, a person is holy, a person is doing the right thing, they're good. Come on, overall in general I'm a pretty good guy. So what am I to be worried about? Say, just say, you have to be worried, perhaps you will fall into sin.

20:08
We see this about Yaakov, our patriarch, in this week's Torah portion. Even though God said I will watch you wherever you go, still Jacob was concerned that he will fall into sin. So did King David said I cannot securely believe to see the good of Hashem in the land of the living. Even though he knew his righteousness, king David, he was concerned that perhaps he might get too comfortable there and sin might keep him from the pleasantness of the righteous. And a person should always be concerned that perhaps his deeds are not loved by the Almighty. Maybe there's a tinge of arrogance. Maybe there's a tinge of arrogance. Maybe there's a tinge of laziness, maybe there's a tinge of an act that's not being done appropriately or with the proper heart. Who asked this of you, you tramplers of my courts? Therefore, he should increase his strength every day.

21:51
Alken Yosef ometz, b'cho yom v'yom Umase, b'cho chom echod choro echod ech odom echod doig Amalot, a man once, a sage once saw a man worrying. He says if your worries are over this world, may Hashem diminish them and take them away. Take away your worries. However, if your worry is over the next world, and take them away, take away your worries. However, if your worry is over the next world, then may Hashem add worry to your worry, meaning that's a good kind of worry the worry over our possessions, the worry over our materialism, the worry over our worldly concerns not a good worry, but our worry over our world to come. That's a very good worry and Hashem should increase your worry.

22:50 - Intro (Announcement)
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