Got Hope written by Chaya Rivka Zwolinski | March 17, 2020

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUWO6Tvs6Es

Do you need more hope? What can you do to become more hopeful? Chaya Rivka Zwolinski explains.

Parshat : Zoom-In On Your Good Points written by Chaya Rivka Zwolinski | March 17, 2020 In Parshat Vayakhel, Moshe Rebbeinu assembles the entire Jewish people and talks to them. He reminds them to observe and tells them that Hashem wants them to help build the Mishkan. We can see how Moshe Rebbeinu cared for the Jewish people. He was with them every step of the way in the desert. He not only led them and guided them, he successfully prayed for them, too. He begged Hashem to forgive their transgressions (for building the , etc.)

How could Moshe pray so successfully on the behalf of every Jew?

Moshe was the tzaddik. The tzaddik has the unique capacity to zoom in on each person’s good point, nekudah tova. He looks away flaws and mistakes that people make, willful transgressions, and so on. The tzaddik has a tremendous love for Hashem and a tremendous love for Hashem’s children, which is why he yearns to offer up only the goodness in them when he prays to God.

This is why each of us needs a relationship with the true tzaddik. The true tzaddikim have so much to teach us. In the true tzaddik Rebbe Nachman’s teachings you can find yourself. He really understands the deepest yearnings and fears, the turbulent confusion and great potential you are going through.

The ultimate thing that he teaches us is that we are a portion of Hashem, and very precious to Him. We are His beloved. Rebbe Nachman teaches that you should focus on the good point that you have inside. When you do, that will become a self- fulfilling prophecy – in a good way. When you appreciate the mitzvot you do, you’ll find yourself doing more mitzvot. When you notice your good character traits, you’ll build on them. When you pay attention to your acts of kindness, your positive commitments and your good thoughts, those things will increase and the negative will diminish, and fall away over time.

Focus on the goodness you are capable of. Focus on your own nikudot tovot, just like the true tzaddikim do.

May you have a day in which you embrace and celebrate your good points and may you build on them.

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Work Out and Build Your… Emunah Muscles written by Chaya Rivka Zwolinski | March 17, 2020 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S57rBi1UQ_U

Like anything else worth attaining, emunah requires effort. Chaya Rivka Zwolinski explains.

Why We Should Talk About the Tzaddikim written by Chaya Rivka Zwolinski | March 17, 2020 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7q9cO_P5p34

Discussing the lives of the true Tzaddikim will invigorate and inspire you. Chaya Rivka Zwolinski explains.

Parshat Ki Tisa: Corona Virus in the News written by Chaya Rivka Zwolinski | March 17, 2020 In this week’s portion, Ki Tisa, the are waiting at the foot of Mount Sinai for Moshe to return with the tablets, and they’re growing anxious. They miscalculate the time and day when Moshe is supposed to return. They start to get really worried. Then they start to get frantic and they panic. So, what do they decide to do? They build a golden calf.

They build the calf because their fear takes over and they can’t think clearly. They begin to think that they can’t directly get what they need from Hashem without an intermediary, in this case, an idol.

It’s not that they don’t believe in Hashem. They do. But their anxiety impacts on their ability to remember all the miracles that Hashem performed for them as He took them out of Egypt. They aren’t thinking about the crossing of the Red Sea. They aren’t thinking about the Manna that fell and sustained them in the desert. They don’t even have the presence of mind to remember that they are standing there at Mount Sinai, after having the tremendous experience of hearing Hashem Himself. Somehow, there is a disconnect. In their confusion, they felt that Hashem wasn’t close to them, and wasn’t sustaining them, and that they had to do something extraordinary to achieve what they needed. They had to act, even if the action flew in the face of logic.

In Likutey Moharan 62 Rebbe Nachman explains that some people believe that Hashem must work through an intermediary – intermediary force, action, or authority. They think that they can only earn a living if they have the exact right degree, the right connections, and the right job. Otherwise they don’t feel that they will be sustained. They think that a sick person can only be cured if he has the most famous doctor and the best medicine and the most proven or cutting-edge treatment. They forget that Hashem is really in charge.

Hashem created a world in which the system is that we must actually make hishtadlut, take material actions. We must take certain actions because the actions create the vessel into which Hashem pours what we need. So, we go to work in order to receive a paycheck which supplies necessary money to live. We keep up with the news on the Corona virus and try to ascertain if the trip overseas we’re planning is truly necessary. We take some extra vitamins and wash our hands more often.

In truth, Hashem doesn’t need to go through these forces and these intermediary means. He can give us what we need directly. He can give us homes and fill them with food and protect us from even the most virulent sickness. Rebbe Nachman says that we must view these intermediary actions as important and absolutely necessary in and of themselves, however. That’s because our actions are actually advancedemunah -building exercises. The trick is to pray to Hashem directly to fulfill all our needs, even as we go about working, washing our hands, or whatever it is we must do. We must do our hishtadlut while remembering that it’s Hashem that is sustaining and providing for us.

May you have a day in which you really feel and believe that Hashem is there for you directly. Hashem is the True Healer.

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How To Be Happy written by Chaya Rivka Zwolinski | March 17, 2020

There are many different methods of achieving genuine happiness. In this audio mini-lesson, we learn to “borrow happiness.” Chaya Rivka Zwolinski explains.

To hear a BRI Women Breslov audio mini-lesson daily, click on this WhatsApp Invitation and join the group. Pray for Clarity written by Chaya Rivka Zwolinski | March 17, 2020

We can ask Hashem for everything we need – even clarity, awareness and understanding. Chaya Rivka Zwolinski explains.

To hear a BRI Women Breslov audio mini-lesson daily, click on this WhatsApp Invitation and join the group.

It’s So Hard to Make A Fresh Start: How You Can Turn Things Around written by Chaya Rivka Zwolinski | March 17, 2020

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4nGFuJg_DA

Even though it’s hard, you can do it! Chaya Rivka Zwolinski explains.

PURIM: The Spiritual Energy of JOY! written by Chaya Rivka Zwolinski | March 17, 2020 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSxnkIU_dLA

Rebbe Nachman teaches that by tapping into joy, you are actually preparing for Pesach. Chaya Rivka Zwolinski explains.

Parshat Tetzaveh written by Chaya Rivka Zwolinski | March 17, 2020 In Parsha Tetzaveh we learn about one of the most mysterious and compelling items in the Torah, the choshen mishpat, the breastplate of the Gadol, the high priest. On the choshen mishpat were four rows of precious gems mounted in settings. On each of these twelve precious gems the name of one of the twelve tribes was engraved, as well as the names of Avraham, Yitzhak, and Yaakov.

The Holy tells us that included in the breastplate were unusual accoutrements called the urim vetumim. On the urim vetumim were the forty-two and seventy-two letter names of Hashem. Whenever a Jew needed advice he would go to the Kohen Gadol and ask a question about what was bothering him. When he did so, the urim vetumim, would light up the letters in a specific sequence in the gems of the choshen mishpat, spelling out the answer to the question. The person would be able to see the advice with his own eyes.

Sadly, the urim vetumim, the choshen mishpat and all the holy vessels were lost to us during the time of the destruction of the first Beit Hamikdash. Now, we can’t get answers like we used to. It can be so frustrating, even painful, when we have to struggle to make a decision, and when we don’t have rock- solid answers and advice. But Reb Noson tells us that we can still get very high-quality advice by looking in to the Torah. The Torah doesn’t just mean the , the five books of . It also means the rich teachings of Rebbe Nachman as well as many other books, like the Holy Zohar. Reb Noson says that when a Jew looks into the Torah with truth, sincerity, simplicity, the Torah’s letters and the Torah’s light are going to give him an answer about which path he or she should go on.

Today one of the biggest sufferings people can endure is not knowing which direction to go. It’s a constant theme for many of us. We come to a problem and we’re not sure which way to head, what choice to make. It can be a legal problem. It can be a material problem such as which doctor to see, or which job to take. It can be a more spiritual problem, like “Which path do I take to serve Hashem?” Whatever the question, if we really delve into the Torah and learn it with pure faith and belief, and if we trust that the answer lies within, eventually we will be directed along the right path.

May you have a day in which the Torah lights up your path.

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