R’ Shaul Yedidyah of Modzitz zt’l always had a smile on his face, even in Poland during the Holocaust.
When people asked him how he was so happy and not worried like everyone else, he replied with the following:
“I’m also worried, only I keep my worries tied up and stored away. Once a day, I take out my worries to look at them, and then I immediately tuck them away until the next day. That’s how I can maintain a happy disposition.”
~ Imrei Shaul
Performing a mitzvah once with tzaar (pain/difficulty) is the equivalent of performing a mitzvah 100 times without it.
~ Avos d’Reb Noson
In Heaven, Hashem has angels who serve Him with perfection.
Hashem created man and put him on earth because He wants something new from us, something that doesn’t exist in Heaven.
The novelty is a human being who has a yetzer hara, and yet overcomes all obstacles to serve Hashem.
That is the unique service that Heaven awaits from us.
~ R Elimelech Biderman
When you daven, Hashem is listening.
People pay so much money for someone to listen to them.
Hashem is the best therapist!
He’s a free therapist!
Talk to Him.
He’s listening.
~ R’ Yisroel Majeski
The Beis HaLevi states that the mitzvah of Ahavas Yisrael can be fulfilled by harboring love for every fellow Jew within our hearts, which indicates that this mitzvah can be performed constantly, regardless of one’s location.
Expounding upon this concept, Sefer Yesod V’Shoresh HaAvodah (1:7) suggests that even in impure environments, where prayer or study is unfeasible, one can fulfill this mitzvah through contemplation alone, by filling his mind with thoughts of love for a fellow Jew.
Why in the world are you worried about tomorrow?
I’ll tell you why – because you think you did today.
You don’t realize that today was from Hashem!
If you knew that today was a gift, you wouldn’t ask about tomorrow.
It’s all Hashem’s gift to us.
~ Michael Safdie
If a person constantly keeps his mind focused on doing mitzvos, his mind will be free from thoughts that lead to sadness.
~ R’ Pinchas of Koretz zt”l (1725-1791)
You ask, “How can I be happy if I am not?”
True, you can’t control the way you feel, but you do have control over your conscious thought, speech and actions.
Do something simple: Think good thoughts, speak good things, behave the way a joyful person behaves — even if you don’t fully feel it inside.
Eventually, the inner joy of the soul will break through.
~ R’ Tzvi Freeman
Chazal (Beitzah 15:2) say “If one wants to ensure that his property will remain with him, he should plant an adar.”
The Bnei Yissaschar explains that he should implant into his heart the lessons of Adar, the emunah that Hashem dwells in this world, and everything is from Him.
This emunah will grant him success and wealth.
~ R’ Elimelech Biderman
According to the Arizal, one should recite before Shacharis, “I accept upon myself the mitzvah to love my friend as myself.”
A child asked his father, “I would understand reaffirming one’s love for Hashem before prayer, but what is the connection between loving other Jews and prayer?”
The father smiled, “That’s a question that makes sense from your vantage point,” he told his child, “but one day, when you’ll be married and have a family, you’ll understand. Parents are so happy when their children come to them and say, ‘I love you,’ but that happiness is secondary to the joy they feel when they see that their children love each other. That’s what makes a parent’s heart sing. He wants to hear that we love every single brother and sister.”
~ R’ Yitzchak Dovid Grossman
Emuna Daily 