Tag: spiritual growth
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What Korbanot, Birkat Kohanim, and Shmoneh Esrei Teach Us About Showing Up With Kavana Sometimes, I catch myself in the middle of Shmoneh Esrei and realize… I’m not even there. I said the words. I bowed in the right places. I even remembered to pause before Modim. But my head? Somewhere else entirely. And yet…
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We don’t usually say this out loud, but we all feel it:We want to enjoy life. To wake up with excitement. To move through the day with clarity, purpose, and peace of mind. But here’s the question nobody asks: What if the most enjoyable life isn’t found on a beach or in a bank account…
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Don’t Miss the Point These days, antisemitism is on everyone’s mind.And rightfully so. We’re worried. We’re hurting. We’re searching for answers. What should we do?More security. Better PR. Stronger hasbara.We have to fight back.We have to protect ourselves. And yes — we absolutely need to do hishtadlut.We have a responsibility to act, to defend, to…
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You’re already in shul.You might as well daven.You’re already learning.You might as well put your phone away.You already have a gym membership.You might as well use it.You’re already at the gym.You might as well work out. A friend of mine used to say this line all the time:“You’re already here. You might as well.” It…
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This past week was Pesach Sheni, the “second Passover,” and it offers us a powerful window into something much deeper than makeup offerings and second chances. We learn about Pesach Sheni through the story of a group of men who were tamei (ritually impure) and couldn’t bring the Korban Pesach at the proper time. They…
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Choose Life. Choose Joy. Choose Geula. There is a powerful idea toward the end of Parshat Acharei Mot: “Ushmartem et chukotai… asher yaaseh otam ha’adam vachai bahem” – “You shall keep My statutes and My laws, that a person shall do them and live by them” (Vayikra 18:5). What does it mean to “live by…
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Parshat Acharei Mot tells us not to live like the nations of the world: “Like the ways of Egypt… and of Canaan… do not do.” (Vayikra 18:3) Why? Because their society was built on a belief that this world is all there is.If life ends at death, then why hold back?Why not mourn with despair?…
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We all hit those weeks. I’ve been building Living the Dream with everything I’ve got— Courses on Bitachon and Gratitude. The 4-Minute Gratitude and Habitachon programs. Journals in the works. Mashal Monday videos. Content every day. And behind the scenes? I’m learning, davening, showing up for family, and trying to grow it all. Most weeks,…
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Parshat Shemini opens with a powerful phrase:“Vayehi bayom hashmini” — And it was on the eighth day. But before that?Seven days of repetition.Seven days where Moshe built the Mishkan… and took it down.Again and again. Day after day. Build. Dismantle. Repeat. Imagine the frustration. The confusion.Why pour your heart into something, only to undo it?Why…
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How can someone so holy, so close to Hashem, be punished so harshly? In this week’s parsha, we read the shocking story of Nadav and Avihu, the sons of Aharon. Filled with spiritual passion and awe, they bring a korban that Hashem did not command—and are immediately consumed by a heavenly fire. They had just…
