Emuna has two sides

– just as we believe in Hashem, we must believe in ourselves and in our genuine desires to get close to Hashem...
People fall into depression and despair because they don’t realize that their main job is desire. A totally crass bumpkin can become a Rebbe Akiva if his desires for holiness are strong enough. Rebbe Akiva was an illiterate laborer, the son of converts. Yet, according to the Gemara, he surpassed Moses. With enough desire, anyone can become a Moses or a Rebbe Akiva.

By: Rabbi Shalom Arush   read the rest of the article at
http://www.breslev.co.il/articles/spirituality_and_faith/personal_growth/every_last_drop.aspx?id=18320&language=english

Our lives are full of treasures that we do not appreciate.

We are all like peddlers; if everybody would believe in what they're selling, they'd sell all their merchandise at a premium price. A salesperson can't possibly sell his or her own wares if he or she doesn't believe in the quality of their own merchandise.

The same goes for our own prayer and Torah. If we'd believe that Hashem derives limitless gratification from every word of Torah that we learn, we'd be plowing away in Torah all day long. If we'd believe that Hashem stops everything He's doing to listen to the voice of a person that prays to Him, we'd be praying with super enthusiasm; people would flock to the synagogues, and nobody would have to tell the people to stop the idle chatter. If you had an audience before a great king, no one would have to tell you not to talk to the butler at the same time. A person would be crazy to do so.

As such, we put little effort into Torah and prayer because we don't believe in their power, and we don't believe in our own power...

With self esteem, when you realize that every minute of your life is important because of what you're capable of accomplishing every single second, is it logical to squander time. When all the money in the world can't pay for the smallest mitzvah, is it wise to chase money?

One of the things we look forward to in the full Redemption of our people is the restoration of our national self-esteem, when people will be proud to don the crown of Torah, speedily in our days, amen.

By: Rabbi Shalom Arush  from Breslev.co.il

From the Shiur "No Bad in the world" by Rabbi Lazer Brody based on the teaching of Rabbi Shalom Arush

Ingratitude is heresy.

Often a person has one of 3 responses to problems:
1) They blame themselves
2) They blame someone else.
3) They blame "nature"

All 3 of these responses are heresy, because everything, even our problems, come from Hashem.

My Purim Grateful List

From Rabbi Lazer Brody-

Rabbi Shalom Arush, may Hashem bless him always, says that if you haven't seen miracles today, it's because you haven't said "Thank You" to Hashem.

Since Purim is a time for miracles and gratitude I wanted to share this:

Thank you Hashem for bringing me to a point where I was so sick that I felt that I had no choice but join OA.

Thank you Hashem for helping me to find an amazing sponsor and stay Abstinent since day one (kineinehora),

Thank you Hashem for helping me to lose over 45 pounds.

Thank you Hashem for Helping me to see what a difference this has made to my health, by having the doctor tell me that the difference is as dramatic on the inside as on the outside.

Thank you Hashem for helping me by elevating my learning through writting for this Blog.

Thank you Hashem for bringing me readers from around the world so that I feel that there is Torah learning and chizuk happening because of this Blog and that encourages me to learn more.

Thank you Hashem for making me a compulsive over eater so that I found OA.

Thank you Hashem for snowing me in so that I was able to focus and learn more today to prepare for Purim.

Divine aboundance

From the book "Forest Fields" by Rabbi Shalom Arush

Prayer is the means whereby we bring Divine abundance from the upper spiritual world to our low material world.  The words of prayer are vessels of abundance.  Imagine that a person is a wheat field at the time of harvest: the owner of the field invites him to take home as much wheat as he can carry.  An unprepared person tries to stuff as man;y wheat grains as he can in his pockets, and carries whatever he can in his fists.  Maybe he'll walk away with a pound or two of wheat.  But if the same person comes prepared for a burlap sack, he'll be able to walk away with a fifty pounds of wheat.  Even more,so, if a person comes  to the field with a pack mule and four burlap sacks, he'll walk away with two hundred pounds of wheat.  In like manner, the more we pray, the more we create receptacles for Divine abundance.

Self-discipline saves limitless troubles .

From the book "Forest Fields" by Rabbi Shalom Arush

The Gemara says (tratate Berachot 7) that one measure of self-discipline is more effective then a hundred lashes. As such, the self-disciplined person saves himself limitless troubles in life.

Since I have started OA I have seen many areas of my life improve.

Chocolate covered poison

From Rabbi Shalom Arush , "In Forrest Fields"

The temptations of transgressions and bodily appetites are like eating chocolate covered poison. Delicious on the outside but deadly once you get going.

In a meeting today someone shared that when you start a binge, you only enjoy the first bite. After that you are consumed by doubts and compulsions that make you miserable.