A Sacred Time – Av #5
As the Month of Av draws to its close, we consider how to repair the ruins of the Temple. We need Mashiach, our righteous redeemer, to pull the world out of the flaming conflagration of greed and corruption that threatens to consume it. In a world where no one needs to be hungry or lack shelter, so many people suffer from poverty and lack. What prevents this world from being the paradise that it could be? Our own human failings.
The positive side of this is, of course, that when people change themselves, they hold the key to changing the world too. The Baal Shem Tov, z”l, would say that the first stage in bringing the redemption is in discovering my personal redemption; by fixing my many spiritual weaknesses, I do my part to bring Mashiach. Rebbe Nachman, z”l, explains that we must do this one day at a time.
The verse states, ‘Today, if you will listen to My voice.’ This means that each person should focus only on today. It is hard to accept to keep to the straight and narrow for a long period. But anyone can upgrade their actions for only one day. By focusing only on the twenty-four hours in which I live right now, I am able to rectify my many defects a little at a time.
My Creator! Please help me see that I prepare the world for Mashiach by living in the moment. Let me see that every second is a one-time, priceless opportunity to fix the world.
