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Inspiration is cheap- Beshalach On Fire
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Would you have been of the 1/5 that left Egypt or the fourth fifth that stayed ? Don’t be so sure
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>> Let's ask an uncomfortable question. If
you lived in Mitsry in the times of Yias
Mry's story, would you have been part of
the 1/5if that left or would you have
been part of the four-fifths that stayed
behind and were killed? Now, it's
tempting to blurt out that are you
kidding me? Of course, I would have been
part of the 1/5if that left. I'm a fu. I
go to Ding. I learn a bit. I keep
Shabas. Those crazy Jews who stayed
behind in Egypt and got killed during
Makas. I would never be like them. Oh
no, not me. Well, let's explore this
because perhaps we should pump the
brakes on our confidence a little bit.
Let's ask a brutal, brutally simple
question. How is it even possible that
after the Jews in Mitzime saw what they
saw, miracles the likes of which
humanity has never witnessed before and
will probably never witness again, there
were Jews who still chose not to leave.
They watched the Nile turn to blood and
they saw frogs crawl into ovens and beds
in people's mouths. They watched wild
animals tear through Egyptian streets.
They saw hail made out of fire and ice
falling from the sky. They saw all their
neighbor animals just drop dead all at
once. This wasn't subtle. This wasn't
like symbolic. This was loud and violent
and unbelievable reality reality
shattering revelation. And yet the maj
says inal
giml that the Jews who died during makas
died because they didn't want to leave.
Not because they couldn't go, not
because they didn't believe, but because
they didn't want to. How does that make
any sense? But you had Mosher Rabenu, a
man who had light literally reading from
his face standing in front of you
saying, "Hashem is taking you out to
freedom to become holy, to build a bamed
to be a light onto the entire world."
And their response was, "Nah, I'm
staying." How can a person watch nature
literally collapse, watch Egypt
literally implode and choose to stay
there? That question should bother us
because if it could happen to them, it
probably could happen to us. And this
doesn't just happen to the Jews in
Mitzim. This pattern repeats itself
again and again throughout Jewish
history. The Jewish people walk through
a desert surrounded by open miracles.
Mun is falling from the sky. There's
water coming out of a rock. Clouds are
protecting them. A pillar of fire is
leading them. And yet, what happens?
They build a golden calf. They believe
the spies. They complain and panic and
rebel again and again and again. What?
How does that make any sense? Fast
forward in Jewish history. You have this
dramatic showdown between Elio Anavi and
450 false prophets of Bal. A a public
national confrontation and fire comes
down from Shemayam. Not sparks, not like
symbolism, a roaring fire that consumes
the carbon, the altar, the stones, even
the water. And the entire screams,
"Hashem hikim with tears, with passion,
with clarity." And you know what happens
like a few chapters later in
they go right back to serving of a des
how is that even possible? Then you have
the era of san arrives to destroy with
the largest most terrifying army in the
world. An empire that had crushed
basically everything in its path. And
overnight miraculously the entire army
is just wiped out. Tens of thousands of
elite soldiers gone. No battle, no
strategy, just pure divine intervention.
A miracle that shook the entire ancient
world. And yet, what happens a little
later? Clyra slowly slides right back
into the same spiritual mediocrity it
had before. What? How is that even
possible? Or take the Pum story. A
genocidal decree is reversed. The Jewish
people are saved in the most obvious
orchestrated way imaginable. Hidden
miracles that are woven together into
this one massive reveal. You would think
there would be this spiritual explosion
unlike we've seen. And yet when Ezra a
little while later secures permission
for the Jews to return to rebuild
Bikdash, the overwhelming majority say,
you know what, I'm good. Like thanks but
no thanks. Like I'm going to stay here
in Persia. What? After everything you
saw, after everything that they
experienced, like what in the world's
going on? How can people witness
earthshattering revelation and still not
change? How can people see the greatest
possible form of inspiration and still
say stay the same person they were five
minutes earlier? How does it make any
sense? The answer is actually simple,
painfully simple. The answer is three
words. Inspiration
is cheap. That's the whole answer.
Inspiration comes, inspiration goes.
Unless inspiration turns into concrete
action, it makes absolutely no
difference how big, how flashy, how
emotional, how earthshattering that
inspiration was, it will fade. Like,
this isn't some worn out, outdated
philosophy. This is basic human
psychology. Inspiration feels powerful
because it activates the brain's
emotional reward system, especially
dopamine, the part of the brain that
reacts to excitement and big moments.
But that system is built for short-term
motivation, not long-term change. Real
change happens in a totally different
part of the brain that controls habits
and automatic behavior. And that part of
the brain only responds to repetition.
It doesn't respond to emotion. The brain
likes to conserve energy. So, it prefers
thinking about change instead of
actually doing change because thinking
produc requires a lot less energy. It's
a lot more cost effective. That's why
inspiration can trick you into feeling
like you've progressed even when nothing
actually changed. Because real growth
happens only when an action is repeated
again and again. Each repetition
strengthens the pathway in the brain.
Each repetition makes it easier until it
becomes normal. That's why lasting
transformation never comes from one big
emotional moment. It comes from small
actions done consistently. Inspiration
lights the match, but repetition builds
the fire. So when the Jews in Mitzime
witnessed the makos, of course they were
inspired. Who wouldn't be inspired?
Blood, frogs, darkness, death of the
firstborn. It it shook them. It moved
them. It made them emotional. But
inspiration alone doesn't move a person
out of Egypt because they didn't attach
that inspiration to action. They watched
what was happening. They reacted. They
may have cried. They may have sung. They
may have said a cute vart. And then the
next morning, back to work, back to
routine, back to the rat race, back to
chasing material life. And before they
knew it, a few people were packing their
bags to leave miter. And they said, "You
know what? I'm good. Like, I'm not
interested. I got my business here. I
like the idea of starting this whole
holy nation thing, but like I like it
conceptually, not practically. So they
stayed and ended up dying in Makas. This
sounds insane, but it isn't. Nobody in
history saw more miracles than the Jews
in the desert. And yet once the
inspiration wore off and it got a little
hot or a little cold or a little
uncomfortable, the fire disappeared.
Yeah, fire came down from heaven on Hara
Carmel. But that was weeks ago. Now I'm
busy. I've got meetings. I've got plans.
I've got shows to see. I've got
restaurants to try. I don't have time to
be spiritual. Yeah, Perime was a crazy
story. We were saved. Amazing. But now
I'm building my vacation house here in
Shushan. I'm not going back to rebuild
the Bikash with Ezra. Ezra will find
someone else. I'm sure I got a life.
Throughout history, it's been the same
story. Jews get inspired and then the
inspiration leaves. And unless something
turns that inspiration into action, it
will remain inspiration. and inspiration
is cheap. Which brings this painfully
close to home. Why are we so confident
we would have been among the fifth who
walked out of and not among the
four-fifths who stayed behind? Why are
we so sure we would have packed our bags
and gone with Ezra to rebuild the
Bameikdash instead of staying in Shushan
saying I'm good right here in Persia?
Let's be honest. Don't we basically do
the same thing? All of us have been
inspired. All of us had moments where
the hand of Hashem was so obvious and
loud and undeniable. And yet, how many
of us quietly just drift back to the
same old versions of ourselves, sort of
spiritually stale, inconsistent,
increasingly obsessed with money and
comfort and status and indulgence. Most
of us went to yeshiva and seminary and
we came out on fire. So, how is it that
3 months into working in Manhattan or
managing properties in Delaware or doing
graphic design in Chicago and we start
slipping into the gayish world around
us? How do we slowly become more
impressed by paychecks than by spiritual
growth or more excited by upgrades than
by what happened to the hundreds of shir
and schmooen and lectures and tapes and
CDs and flash drives of inspiration that
we pumped into our heads? Where did all
of it go? Why didn't it stick? What
separates the Jews who actually grow,
who actually build, who actually become
spiritually great from the Jews who
don't? What did the Jews who walked out
of possess that the four-fifths didn't?
Why did the Jews who packed their bags
and went with Ezra, what did they have
that everyone else lacked?
The answer is that they understood
something most people miss. They didn't
let inspiration sit in their heads. They
did something with it. They went home
and changed one small behavior. Nothing
dramatic, but real action, something
concrete. They didn't leave the
inspiration as thoughts because thoughts
are the cheapest, flimsiest form of
inspiration. They're easy. They're
flexible. They feel meaningful. And they
cost you nothing. And that's exactly why
they hate Zahara loves when inspiration
stays in the brain because emotions are
here today and they're gone tomorrow.
But action leaves a footprint. When you
hear an idea and then actually do
something about it. You're not just
feeling inspired. You're rewiring
yourself. You're creating new muscle
memory, a new default setting. That's
what changes a person. And being that
inspiration alone is not good enough to
change people. I'd like to give five
simple realistic tools that work to
ensure we don't just in live inspired,
but we actually do something about that
inspiration. Here's tip number one. Pick
one action, not a whole new identity.
When people feel inspired, they usually
say, "I'm going to become a better
person." And that sounds meaningful, but
it's also useless. Instead, choose one
small behavior. Not, "I'm going to work
on lashinhara, but for the next week, I
will pause 3 seconds before speaking
about people."
I'm not I'm going to learn more but
after Marv I will learn for seven
minutes because big declarations feel
holy but small commitments actually
happen. Here's tip number two. Attach
the action to a time and place. If an
action is not connected to a specific
time it usually never happens. Your
brain treats like vague intentions as
wishes. So instead of saying I should
start learning say every night at 10:15
I'm going to open a safer for 5 minutes.
Not I'm going to learn at some
unspecific time at an unspecific place.
No, no. I'm going to learn at this and
this time and at this and this place.
This is why fela has fixed times and
there's a concept of makum kava. That's
why carbonos have schedules because when
something has a slot on your clock or a
spot in your space, your brain stops
treating it like an idea and starts
treating it like reality. Here's tip
number three. Say it out loud to one
person. Tell someone you trust, I'm
working on this this week. And once you
say it, it becomes real. Private
intentions sort of fade. But spoken
commitments, they stick. If you never
said it out loud, you probably never
fully decided. And before you know it,
it's gone with the wind. Tip number
four, build a speed bump. Most spiritual
failures are not acts of rebellion.
They're acts of autopilot. People don't
wake up saying, you know what, today I'm
going to go mess up. They drift. They
slide. They fall into habits without
thinking. So don't rely on heroic
willpower. Sort of design your
environment. create friction. Want less
phone time, so leave the phone in
another room. Want less mushroom? Put a
small note in your wallet that says
pause. Or want more learning, so leave a
saver open on your table. Make good
behavior slightly easier. Make bad
behavior slightly harder. Small
environmental changes quietly reshape
behavior. Now, here's tip number five.
Review yourself once a week. Take five
minutes and that's it. Ask yourself
every week, what did I try this week?
Did it actually work? If yes, so then
keep going or gently strengthen it. But
if no, make the goal smaller and try
again. No guilt. Don't beat yourself up.
Just honest adjust adjustment because
Judaism is not about overnight
transformation. It's about steady
realistic growth over time. Here's the
big idea. Stop asking how do I become
different person and start asking what
is the one small behavior I can repeat?
Because repeated behavior becomes
identity becomes who you are. That's how
people leave Egypt. Not with inspiration
alone, with small consistent steps.
Because change doesn't happen when we
think something. Change happens when we
do something. Here's a story.
There was a boy in yeshiva who was
struggling badly. He wasn't like a bad
kid. He just he wasn't rebellious.
Learning was simply hard for him. He
felt lost. He was out of place a little
little by little. He began slipping
through the cracks. And one day he
walked over to his rebi. said, "Rebi,
I'm leaving yeshiva. I'm taking up
wrestling." And the Rebi tried to talk
to him. He tried to encourage him, to
slow him down, to convince him to
reconsider, to inspire him. Nothing
worked. The boy made up his mind. He was
wrestling. He walked out. He found
himself a wrestling coach. And that
world quickly became his entire life. A
year later, right before Rashashana, the
Rebi walked into the yeshiva and noticed
that someone was sitting inside who he
barely recognized. bigger, broader,
muscular. And it took him a moment to
realize it was the same boy. And after
diving, the boy approached the Rebi and
said, "Rebby, I need to talk to you."
They sat down and the boy said, "I've
gotten into a relationship with my
wrestling coach's daughter and we want
to get married. She's Christian. She
told me that she will only marry me if
I've become Christian. So, I just wanted
to let you know that I am becoming
Christian." And the Reb is just stunned.
And after a moment, he said quietly,
"You know, maybe you should go to Israel
for a few weeks just to think about this
decision." And the boy looked at him. He
said,"I was I didn't come here to ask
you. I came here to tell you." And he
stood up and he walked away. A few weeks
passed and one day the Reby's phone
rang. It was the boy. And he was out of
breath. "Rebi, I am at the airport. I'm
about to catch the last flight to Israel
before Shabas. I'm not thinking about
anything. I'm just going, but I don't
have money for the ticket." And the Rebi
quickly, he opened up his laptop. How
much do you need? I need $3,000. The
rebby opened his bank account and click,
he sends. Done. Sent. Go learn. Make me
proud. And just like that, the boy was
on a plane headed to Israel. Now think
about that. The first time around, the
boy thought about his future and it
nearly destroyed him. But the second
time, he didn't analyze. He didn't map
it out. He didn't debate. He stood up.
He sprinted to the airport and he took
off. And that's what saved him. That is
how you utilize inspiration. Inspiration
in your head doesn't really change your
life. Inspiration that turns into
movement does. Sometimes the difference
between losing a soul and saving a soul
isn't like some brilliant idea or a deep
philosophical breakthrough. It's one
simple step taken before your brain has
time to talk you out of it. Because
sometimes in Judaism, less thinking and
more doing is how you're going to become
great in life. You see, all of us are
like this in like this. Inspiration is
everywhere. All of us hear shim and
speeches and watch extremely powerful
moving videos. The difference between
the Jews who walked out of Egypt with
Mishenu or the Jews who stayed behind or
the difference between the Jews who went
with Ezra and the Jews who stayed in
Persia, the difference between people
who walk with Hashem and people who
fight Hashem their whole lives is not
who heard more. It's not who saw more
videos. It's not who understood more.
It's who stood up and moved. Because
inspiration that doesn't turn into
action isn't inspiration. It's just
spiritual entertainment. So the next
time you feel drowning in inspiration,
realize something. You don't need more
inspiration in your life. You just need
more small actions. That's how the Jews
left Egypt and that's how you'll leave
your Egypt.
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