Self Help

some people would sell you Judaism by telling you that it's the world's greatest self-help program that if you keep the mitzvahs you will lose 20 pounds get fresh breath clear complexion everything okay like like its deodorant or or toothpaste in other words what is Judaism gonna do for me and what when usually what do they say what's good for your family it's good for your home life it's good for stability it's good at all types of things I even heard somebody who was told in yeshiva when we learned Talmud it sharpens our mind for business now between you and me and everyone else here you just turned the whole Torah into a means to an end you basically just said God is a tool that I use in order to achieve something that's really important not like God I mean he's the most powerful so I got to play by his rules but I'm going after I'm going for the gold I'm going after a good life and if I had I have to go through god there's no way around him other than they go through his system in order to get the good life that I want okay so I'll play by the rules I'll do it God wants that's one approach another approach is am i doing mitzvahs because I think it's gonna give me a good life hadn't it hadn't even occurred to me that was my that was on the list have a good life I have one thing on my list live in accordance with the design that my maker made me with use every moment serving my maker being functional being productive how's that gonna make me feel how's that gonna work out what kind of life am I gonna end up with if I do all that I don't know I guess if you force me an answer I suppose anything that is constantly working totally consistent with its design is probably gonna end up pretty good but that's not why I'm doing it he's my maker he designs me I'm gonna stick with that plan and then you just get in the zone and you just let yourself be that clear conduit you let that energy move through you seamlessly effortlessly get rid of the ego the eg oh the edging got out you let it all move through you and it happens to feel really good the moment you realize by the way oh this is feeling good that you killed it uh forget it stop focusing on it just do it just do it because that's what you're meant to do you