See Beyond Yourself - Rabbi Akiva Fox

so as we continue on our journey of discovery into what what is faith how to get faith how to come closer to God and realize God's got God's hand in the world God's existence in the world we need to have we need to start with a disclaimer there's a I forgot the name it happens there's something called the inkblot test where psychologist I guess I go through this all the time where psychologists they have little blotches of ink and they show it to somebody or the you know the the patient or the client and judging on what he sees and judging on what he will say that he appears in front of him they can understand his mindset because in truth he will see what he wants to see her what he's thinking about or what's on his mind so this famous joke at this perverted sick murderer is in in the psychologists office and he shows him you know first ink blot watch and he's looking at in his like I see murder him blood and knives and guns shows him the next one he's like I see perversion and disgusting things and and each one is something sicker and more disgusting so after he finishes so the client says to the therapist he's like so what do you think how did i do on my test and the therapist says when I say man you're you're a sicko you're a pervert is I'm a pervert you're the guy who walks around with these pictures in your desk what does that mean people see what they want to see you are limited you are restricted your vision is very much blocked by what your heart desires as the Torah says LoCicero a curry Leviathan baccarin ahem don't stray after your heart and after your eyes because your heart and your eyes are very much in tandem they see what you want to see what you desire to see not only that but you cannot see what you don't want to see you won't be able to see it in order for a person to begin the journey an earner for a president to start off you need to clear your mind you need to have a free unlimited perspective into what we're about to do you can't be withheld you can't be beholden you can't be chained down to certain things that we want to see or that we don't want to see in order to start you need to take a step away before you take a step forward if you're not willing to leave the confines of your desires or of your pre-existing beliefs or of your preconceived notions of what there is or isn't in the world then you will never be able to take a step forward in order to truly learn about faith and how to have faith you need to be able to see beyond yourself you know there was a great rabbi you passed away about four years ago his name was rip Nelson sphere Finkel he was the Russia Shiva of the greatest biggest institution the greatest yeshiva in the world with thousands and thousands of students and thousands and thousands of alumni called the mirror Sheba he suffered from Parkinson's terribly I remember watching him when he would give a discourse or a lecture and he would literally be shaking so much that people had to go up to help him stand still he would be sitting in his chair and he would be all over the place and he got up on the last row Shoshanna the last Russia tion of his life and he said something to inspire the hundreds and thousands of people that were there this is right before the show for blowing right before too a sofa and he had his five minute speech and you have to remember that every word for him every word was hard sometimes he would be able to speak and sometimes it just didn't work and he got up there and he said and this is the last powerful message of inspiration before the rosh hashanah which is the decree the final decree in the jewish year of if jews are going to live or die and he said do something to somebody else don't just think about yourself think about other people also and then he sat down now that wasn't just a message of brotherly love and it wasn't just via half the Loreal come oh I love your neighbor like yourself that wasn't his message that was part of his message but the other part of his message the hidden part of his message was see beyond yourself don't just live as a taker because if you're a taker then you think that the world is coming to you and you'll never be able to see beyond your wants your desires or your needs because if you live for yourself then you look at the world as belonging to you if you want to live as a good Jew if you want to exist as somebody who believes in God and has a relationship and is connected to God then you need to step outside yourself then you need to look beyond yourself don't just think of me think of the other person don't just be a taker be a giver what that message is is an eternal message for our existence which means look out of my dolla thomas look out of my confines see beyond think of somebody else so you don't just exist for yourself think of the world not just as my domain not just as what is in the world for me but what am I here for the world what is wanted or expected from me not just what do I expect from others this was his message if you want to begin the journey of faith and you want to learn about a ship and you want to learn about God and you want to come close to him and you want to realize where is he what does he do how do I bring him closer to my life the first step you need to do is go out of yourself stop focusing on me don't be a taker be a giver don't be somebody who looks at the world as a big party that is here to please me but on the contrary I will be here for a purpose perhaps for the world I am here to accomplish not just to take the world is a circle the circle of life and I have to find my place in that circle and the whole everything is going around and around in cycles where do I fit in what can I add to it what can i bring out of it this is how we discover this is how we come closer touch them by first taking a step away from ourselves so we can take a step closer to us you