Kosher Fish: Going Against the Flow - Rabbi Akiva Fox

there's another another way for us for people to be able to see or to feel connected Tosh em to come to closeness and to realize how much of a presence God is in our everyday life and to realize how close he is to us and cloud how close he is inside us and this is what's called in Hebrew it's called a kiddush this is kind of a surprise not typical not what you expect you know there's a the Gomorrah says something very interesting if you want to know how can you tell if a fish is kosher or not how can you see a kosher fish the famous give filter fish obviously the only way to know if it's kosher is if it has a carrot on top with a little red horseradish on the side but there are other ways to paddle up something if a fish is kosher the Torah says specifically that if you look at the fins and scales on the fish you could tell if it's kosher but the Camaro says something fascinating a fish that swims against the stream a fish that goes against the flow that itself is a sign that it's kosher why why does something that goes against the flow why does that mean that it's kosher that it's more pure and the answer is because the Jewish people always go against the flow because the ability to define nature the ability to go one way when everybody else is going another way that's Jewish that's kosher that's God it's a certain amount of hand of a shim a certain amount of miracle that gives the Jew the ability to do that I've ROM Abraham was called a Brahma how every every is from the word Hebrew comes from the word to eat every but in truth what it means is every he was on the other side because when the whole world was going one way in denial of god or idol worship of rum was going the opposite way as a famous joke that this old Jewish man Harry Goldstein is driving the wrong way on a one-way highway and everyone's beeping at him and his wife calls them she's like Harry what's the matter Hinda there's a news report and the news report says that somebody's driving a Cadillac the wrong way down a one-way highway I'm just making sure it's not you so he says yeah I heard it also but the highway on driving on it's not just one person going the wrong way the whole highway is going the wrong way a person to be able to go against the stream is not easy what gives a person the ability to do that in life and we're not talking about driving what gives a person the ability to do that in life to go against the forces of nature and we're not talking about flying like Superman we're talking about the forces that bring a person down emotionally and spiritually a person who has that ability if he wants to know where he gets that power that's from God that's God working not him I'll tell you something interesting there's something in the world called addiction addiction is when a person has something that pulls him that controls him that controls his life his mind his emotions he needs a certain thing and he cannot control that urge or that desire that need or that want the books tell us and I'm talking about books about psychology and addiction that a person who is a true addict will give up family money love his job there is nothing that has importance to him when he is suffering from his addiction nothing has any significance except the thing that he is addicted to whether it's cigarettes or it's drugs or it's alcohol or its internet or its shopping that is a force that is so powerful it sucks man like a vacuum like a whirlpool and he has no ability to control it when a person loses control that is called addiction and there exists something called the 12-step program the 12-step program has helped hundreds of thousands if not millions of people to overcome their addiction it's not a religious program it has nothing to do with religion but the first three steps four steps of the 12-step program have to do with realizing that there is a power greater than you and learning that the only way to overcome that power is if you connect to God who is greater than the power that controls you because the only way to go against the flow the only way to defy those forces that are so powerful is if God does it because you can't we as humans are vulnerable we as humans we're sucked in we don't have the power we don't have the ability the only way for a person to control to overcome to go against the forces that are sucking him in is if he had God with him that's it this is why the kosher fish the fish that we eat is the one that goes against the stream because going against the stream defying the forces of nature going against the flow that's something holy that's something that God does that we don't do if a person whatever addiction he may have or whatever forces that may bring him down in this world whether they be emotional for example depression whether they be spiritual for example sins or succumbing to your e 8 Sahara to your evil inclination the Gomorrah tells us L male Hashem is right a new yahoo life a Shem doesn't help you to overcome your Yates are harder to overcome your evil inclination and aioli then you cannot do it it is impossible ask any addict or former addict is it easy is it possible to overcome your addiction it's impossible you need a miracle you need the hand of God if you want to see God in the world if you want to believe in God you want to have faith that there is a God and he's close to you and look at yourself look at the ability that you have to overcome difficulties look at the ability that you have the power that you have to control yourself whether it's controlling your anger whether it's controlling your desires overcoming temptation it could be overeating it could be hatred to somebody it could be addictions it could be smoking it could be alcohol whatever it is if you want to find God in your life if you want to discover God close to you how connected you are then when you realize that you have the ability the miraculous power of control over yourself even one time even when one time the forces are going against you and you're able to fight that's god that's not you that's miraculous that's the hand of a Shem the person wants to realize how close he is to God look inside yourself look at what you have look at the ability that you have to conquer to overcome any inclination any desire any temptation when you have that ability when you use that ability then God is right there with you the kabbalists the great rabbis have told us that one of the most important and prime times to pray to God is right after a person overcomes his evil inclination his gate Sahara why because God did it because it's God it's a Shem that gives you that power and the second he gave you that power to fight to overcome right then he's right next to you is inside you take advantage and pray now because he's right here imagine if a person needs that cigarette he needs that drink he needs the fix he's burning with anger and he shuts his mouth and he decides no I'm gonna fight it I'm gonna go against I'm gonna defy it that's God doing it that's Hashem right now when I Shems right here when he's in your heart in your mind now pray now as God say I Shem you're so close to me you've given me the miraculous power to control to overcome now god please hear my prayer and answer me in the other things i need to you want to discover God look inside yourself you