Hey, good morning rabosai, I hope everyone's well. Mizmor lesoda, הריעו לה׳ כל הארץ, עבדו את ה׳ בשמחה, bou lefanav birnana. דעו כי ה׳ הוא אלקים, הוא עשנו ולא אנחנו, amo vetzon mar'iso. And the meforshim here in Tehillim explain in terms of the flow of the pesukim that the basis, or a basis, for עבדו את ה׳ בשמחה is the fact that hashem hu elokim. When a person is assured that the schar for avodas hashem is a basis for the avodas hashem besimcha. Itachen that this fills in a very very important part of the picture for us. The pasuk in Parshas Ki Savo, תחת אשר לא עבדת את ה׳ אלקיך בשמחה ובטוב לבב,
which of course the context of the pasuk is the tochacha. So it's something that, I don't know, I think we struggle to understand in that avodas hashem besimcha seems to require a very high level of avodas hashem. Now, if you ask me to eat an ice cream cone besimcha, so that's something I have a very natural capacity for and I don't find it too much of a challenge. But I don't know, but you say avodas hashem besimcha, I don't know, that's already, for all of us. So there is something lichora extraordinary which is highlighted here by Dovid Hamelech in this kapitel. The Rambam comments, he says that the philosophers say it and they were mechaven in this to a pasuk in Yirmiyahu that wealth, for instance, which often in olam hazeh people find to be a source of simcha, is really something which is totally external to the person. And the significance of the fact that גלגל הוא החוזר בעולם and that rachmana litzlan a person can lose his wealth is twofold. Number one, that reality in and of itself certainly undercuts the simcha in it. But number two, let's say a person pushes back at that and says, okay, so I've heard the horror stories. But for every one person who has a dramatic reversal, a thousand people don't have that dramatic reversal. So I'm not going to lie at bed at night, I'm not going to lie awake at night in bed worrying about a one in a thousand or one in ten thousand chance. So that, there's a lot of cogency to that. But the significance of pointing out that a person can lose wealth, it's significant even if a person has a guarantee yavei Eliyahu veyomar that he'll never lose the wealth. The fact is that it just highlights the fact that it's something external. It's not me. There's my bank account and there's me. And it highlights the fact, the fact that it's not enduring beyond that, within olam hazeh it can be lost. Even if that second would never ever materialize, and baruch hashem for many people, especially when they make the hishtadlus of being responsible... But it highlights the fact that it's something external, and how can a person's fulfillment be from something which is totally external? Let's say a person, again the Rambam continues, again saying that the philosophers explain this and the mechaven to the posuk in Yirmiyahu. Let's say a person enjoys robust health. He's competitive for the gold medal in the decathlon, ad kedei kach. So it's the same point, highlighting the fact that A, it doesn't endure beyond Olam Hazeh, B, even in Olam Hazeh, a person can't guarantee his own health. The significance of the fact that one can and does hear stories of people overnight go from being healthy to the first symptom and getting a diagnosis and, Rachmana Litzlan, being totally unhealthy. The significance of that goes beyond its actuarial significance, because again, it highlights that it's not me. Va’hareya, in the blink of an eye, it can be lost. So again, it's closer. And obviously a person is the point of this is not to be mezalzel one's health, one is supposed to be careful about one's health. So obviously that's not the apshat, but it does highlight again that it's not me, it's not something how can a person really take joy? So what does give a person then simcha? Again, talking about a person who's not holding on high madreigos of avodas Hashem. Pashute basar vadam. So if you tell me that if I'll do A, B, and C, that I'll be zoche to chayim nitzchiim, so that's me. There's nothing external about that, right? It's not something which doesn't endure beyond Olam Hazeh and it's certainly not something which can be lost in Olam Hazeh. So if you'll explain to me that all I have to do is the here's the fountain of youth and all I have to do is drink from this fountain and I can cancel my order for the hair dye and everything will revert back. Okay, so and that's something which is guaranteed and it's going to last. So that's already something internal because it became something which is inseparable from me. So what's the point? The point is, and this is again, l’chora, at least one small aspect of what David HaMelech is teaching us here is that on whatever madrega a person is, he should be able to relate to avodas Hashem besimcha. Because even if I'm not holding on a madrega that I respond to the incredible zechus and bracha of being oved Hashem, על מנת שלא לקבל פרס. No, I can't even cholem about those madreigos yet. I'm not there. Mutzav artza without the rosho bashamayim, but a person can always, the most basic instinct and the strongest desire a person who's emotional. That's the strongest instinct, the most basic instinct a person has is the desire for life, because that's the Ribbono Shel Olam’s plan for the world, and that's why He gave us such an instinct of hachayim. I don't have to be holding by that yet. דעו כי השם אלקים. דעו כי השם הוא אלקים, right? Ne'eman leshallem sakhar. So it’s an amazing thing. Whatever madrega a person is on, so with reflection, he’s in a position to be עבד את השם בשמחה. Maybe the simcha initially, not maybe, definitely, the simcha initially will be partially linked to the to the sakhar nitzchi which is promised. Okay, so let that be the simcha at this point. מתוך שלא לשמה בא לשמה, so then gradually the percentages within the avodas Hashem besimcha so gradually they shift. And the degree to which the simcha is based on the shelo lishmah, gradually again, it begins to shift in favor of the lishmah. But if we stop and just take enough time to reflect and properly frame avodas Hashem, it can and therefore should always be besimcha. When is something not besimcha? When it’s a burden. When it’s a burden. I don’t know. Doing your taxes is not besimcha. I don’t know, I don’t know, maybe if you’re an accountant and this is your parnassah, so maybe it’s a shikl besimcha. But otherwise, I don’t know anyone who feels euphoric at the sense of, oh, I’m going to sit down and do my taxes now. Okay, you gotta do it, it’s a burden, so you do it, but there’s no tremendous simcha in doing it. The only way something is if something is either inherently meaningful or it’s something that that’s going to give me what I cherish most, so then a person does it besimcha. And avodas Hashem is always that, on every level a person is at. It doesn’t matter what level a person’s holding at. Avodas Hashem is the source of simcha. If a person is not holding on a high level of ruchanyus, okay, so what is it that that’s my most basic and fundamental desire? V'chai bahem. That’s my most basic and fundamental desire. And the path to that is avodas Hashem. מתוך שלא לשמה בא לשמה, a person moves, he moves a few rungs up on the ladder. So then avada the simcha is lifnei Hashem. And that’s why there’s always עבדו את השם בשמחה. Ribbono Shel Olam created us in such a way that on every at every rung on the ladder, at every stage in life, so it’s it’s the only, when you think about it, the only real genuine source of simcha, and then mimmela is עבדו את השם בשמחה.