Living On The Crest Of The Wave - Parshat Noach - Rabbi Yaakov Asher Sinclair

[Music] on the day after y I was sitting with my son on the beach watching the Mediterranean Sea crashing down against the coast of our holy land and he said to me you know Daddy it's amazing how the waves are so powerful they rise so high and a moment later they're gone there just so much foam it's a bit like the holidays the Kim you have a wonderful time and then it's gone the tal in Abra dad Al says that someone who never saw the second temple that Herod built has no idea of what a beautiful building is Herod built the outer walls of the beta mikdash the temple using aquamarine and white marmura marble herod's idea was to cover the entire worldall with gold but the sages told him he should leave it the way it was because the different colored strata of the marble resembled the waves of the sea now our sages were not in the business of giving decorating advice so there must have been something much deeper in their words King David says inim in Psalms you Hashem ruled the grander of the sea at the height of its waves you praise them although the crest of the wave is but for a brief moment that's the moment that Hashem chooses to praise them for doing his bidding Hashem had great joy in the building of the beta mikdash the mishna says that when schom refers to the day of Hashem Joy the joy of his heart he means the day that the temple was built now no one knew better than ashem that both B mikdash both temples would stand for but a few hundred years and then like a wave come crashing to the ground nevertheless that was the day of the joy of his heart the wave at its height at its Crest and thus the Wolves of the basa mikdash should resemble the waves of the sea that the beta mikdash should be praised at its height even though that Glory would pass there are many times in life when we know that things will not be as good as they are right now and nevertheless we should always focus on that wonderful moment that's now and and not become downcast by the thought that it may not and will not last forever Judaism says that we should not live for the moment but we should certainly live in the moment we should thank God for all the wonderful things we experience in this world even though those moments will pass and I think that's a very good lesson to take away from the end of yam [Applause] [Music]