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Can't Fool The Ribbono Shel Olam

The other day I received a phone call from a father of a young lady who called me up about a shidduch with a boy who once learned in the Yeshiva [and is presently in America].

"Is it true that he is a genius?" he asked.

Now, this boy is a genius like I am the Queen of Tanzania.

I told the father that he is a wonderful, sweet, diligent boy - but not a genius. [By the way, I don't think that intellectual superiority makes for a good husband but that's besides the point.]

The father was surprised, "But he was presented to me as a genius?"

That got me thinking. Aren't people EMBARRASSED to lie??? Especially a lie that is so easy to uncover.

We stand before G-d on Yom Kippur and spend a whole day confessing. But do we really mean it??

Example [one of many]:

"Al chayt she-chatanu lifanecha bisikkur ayin" - I am SO SORRY for all of the forbidden things I saw this year. Am I getting rid of my TV, the repository of so many inappropriate sights? No. Am I getting rid of, or at least a filter, for my internet? No. Am I going to make sure that my eyes are firmly planted on the pavement when I walk down the street on those hot days when [presumably due to the effects of the scorching heat] so many young women forgot to get dressed that morning? No.

SO WHY AM I APOLOGIZING? I DON'T MEAN IT AND G-D KNOWS IT!!

Maybe the answer is that hopefully when I hear the words coming out of my own mouth the stark contradiction between what I am saying and my true intentions will be too much for my soul to bear and that will be the catalyst for a real change for the better.

So the secret is to say it like you mean it, ponder the words and then develop a concrete plan to overcome those destructive behaviors that serve as a barrier between you and your Neshama and between you and G-d.

Have a sweet day beloved friends and remember -

TOMID BISIMCHA!!!!!!!


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Segula - 40 days at the Kotel

About me

  • I'm Rabbi Ally Ehrman
  • From Old City Jerusalem, Israel
  • I am a Rebbe in Yeshivat Netiv Aryeh.
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