Preparing for Pesach in Purity | Rabbi Nachum Binder

I think we all realize we're living in very turbulent times. Earthquakes, solar eclipse, and then, just a couple of days ago, the unprecedented, an Iranian attack on Eretz Yisroel. What does Hashem want from us? What are we supposed to do at times like these, when the world is shaking, the ground is literally shaking under us and everything seems so scary? The Mashgiach, R’ Don Segal, zol zei gezunt un shtark, said a Schmooze a couple of weeks ago, and he addressed this very question. What does Hashem want from us now? And he quoted a Rashi in Parshas Tzav. Rashi tells us that the clothing that the Kohen used for the Avoda was not the same clothing that he used when he took out the דשן off the מזבח, to be thrown away. And the reason for that is, Rashi says, because one does not serve the king in the clothing that he used to prepare the food for the king. In other words, we don't come into the dining room with our kitchen apron still on. When one is serving the king, we make sure that the clothing we are using to serve him are pure. And the Mashgiach R’ Don said, It's not only talking about the literal clothing, but we all use all our senses to serve the Ribono shel Olam. We use our eyes, we use our mouths, we use our hearts. One must make sure that when serving the Ribono shel Olam with his senses, that those senses are clean, pure. מוריי ורבותיי, it's a time of before Yom Tov. It's a time when we're all busy getting ready for Yom Tov. Everything we're doing now is serving Hashem, whether it's going to the grocery store, shopping for clothing, whatever we're doing, preparing, is all Avodas Hashem. Let us make sure that we're serving Hashem with clean clothing. Let us try to work our הכנות for Yom Tov will be pure, will be clean. It may not be easy. We're going to be amongst many people. We're going to be walking through stores. We're going to be walking through streets. But if we have that pure conviction, we are going to be clean, we are going to be pure, and we're going to serve Hashem with pure clothing. That is showing the Ribono shel Olam that, yes, we are taking the message to heart. And in this zchus, we will אם ירצה השם be zoche this year to בניסן עתידין להיגאל במהרה בימינו, אמן.