Parshat Vayakhel

In this week’s Parsha, Parshat Vayakhel, the Jews are told to observe the Shabbat. The Torah tells us, “Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall have sanctity, a day of complete rest to the Lord”. A couple questions arise when reading this passage.

If the uniqueness of Shabbat is that it is a day of rest, why does the Torah preface the commandment with “six days work may be done”? If Shabbat is special because we must rest, then isn’t it obvious that we are allowed to work during the other six days of the week?

Another question I’d like to propose is; what is this idea of Shabbat? Is it a paid vacation every week? Are Jews are really so lazy that we need an extra day to sleep every single week?

The answers lie in the very words of the parsha. Let’s reread what the Torah says: “Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall have sanctity, a day of complete rest to the Lord”. During the six days of the week, we need to work. Whether it’s investing our talents into our job, our family lives, volunteer work, or hobbies; we must be working. Each of us was blessed with our own talents and the Torah says that we need to use these talents to make the world a better place. We have six days in the week to do that.

Have you ever been so invested in something that you never got to enjoy it? Have you ever planned a big party and gotten so caught up in the details, that by the time you could finally relax the party was over? Sometimes we get so stressed out with the work that we don’t have the time to appreciate the results.

For this we have Shabbat. Shabbat is not a day to forget about life and to sleep. Shabbat is a day of “oneg” of enjoyment, to experience the fruits or our labour.

The Torah tells us: “work during the week. Accomplish everything you can. But don’t forget about what is important. Don’t forget about why you work. Take some time to enjoy your success, and share it with those you love.”

If you spend your days working hard at a thankless job to support your family, then take a day every week to spend time with them. If you love your job but find it to be stressful at time, take some time to remember what it is all really about. That is the message of Shabbat-work hard all week, but don’t lose focus. Take one day out of your week to really appreciate why you work so hard.

Jews aren’t supposed to be lazy. We are supposed to work, but we are also supposed to remind ourselves what is really important in our lives.

Shabbat Shalom, and may this Shabbat bring you the inspiration you need to get you through the next week.

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Upcoming Events:

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Creating a Foundation for Long-Term Happiness and Success

Shabbat Times:

Friday:

5:30pm Candle lighting

7:30pm Carlebach-style services

8:00pm Dinner

Saturday

10:00am Services

10:45am Youth Program

Followed by a kiddush Lunch

6:37pm Havdala

To Be or Not to Be? Happy, I Mean.

Happiness comes from within.

You’ve heard that before. Yet when you stop everything you are doing and meditate on who you are and what you stand for, do you find happiness? If you deny yourself all the material pleasures of the world, will you be happy? I would hope not…

So what does it mean when they say that happiness comes from within? Before answering that, we must first understand the meaning of the word happiness. According to dictionary.com, happiness is “good fortune; pleasure; contentment; joy”.

I look at that definition and see contradictions; if contentment is happiness, who needs good fortune? And really, when was the last time you experienced pleasure and said “Now I have everything I ever needed to be happy”?

What do I do when we don’t like the definition we find online? I make up my own definitions! Let’s start with redefining happiness and pleasure.

Pleasure: Pleasure is a very temporary feeling, it’s a feeling we get when we do something that we physically enjoy. Getting a massage is pleasurable. Eating chocolate gives us pleasure; Coffee-withdrawal, not so much.

Happiness: Happiness is a character trait. I can be happy when I have a headache. I can be unhappy when I’m eating ice cream (although I am experiencing pleasure). Some people are kind, some people are arrogant, some people are happy. Happiness is a description of one’s personality.

It is written about Adar: משנכנס אדר מרבין בשמחה “When Adar comes, joy increases”. If the Talmud is telling us that we must be happy, chances are that happiness is a quality that can be achieved. How do we achieve happiness?

Happiness is an attitude. Happiness comes from a lack of expectation. If you feel that you deserve a million dollars then you will not be happy with only $900,000 dollars. On the other hand, if you expect to make $60,000 a year, and you get a $1000 bonus, you are delighted. When you don’t expect a lot from life, you appreciate even the smallest of gifts.

Adar is a time to reflect on who you are. You are one of more than 6 billion people in the world! You represent an insignificant dot in the enormity of the world, yet Someone cared enough to give you everything you have. It’s amazing to think about.

When we stop feeling entitled to what we have, the smallest things can fill our hearts with joy. Waking up healthy in the morning, a sunny day, a best friend, a steady job; these are things that we can decide to be thankful for or to take for granted. It is up to you. Do you choose to be happy?

Upcoming events:

Creating a Foundation for Long-Term Happiness and Success Series

Kollel Business Dinner

Miriam's Legacy