Devarim 26:16-19 Sforno (Note: If you are able to, please pre-read the verses quoted above and the Sforno) Choice vs. Compulsion How are we raising our children? Are we compelling and inspiring them, or allowing them to experience the magic of the Mitzvotthemselves and then make their own choices? How are we living our own religious lives? To generate passion and energy for our Avodah (spiritual practice) we need to make a mindful choice to live a life of Shemirat Motzvot(religious observance). While parents, teachers or rabbis can c..

Change! You can do it – and Now is the Time   Devarim 26:1   Positive Thinking How powerful is positive thinking? Have you tried it? If you have, you probably found, as I have, that sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. Here’s why: If merely thinking positively about something made it happen, no one would be wanting for anything. Clearly it requires something of us that isn’t that easy. It requires i) courage, ii) selflessness (the absence of ego) and iii) absolute trust in Hashem. With these factors, positive thinking almost always works. Without them, i..