The Might to do What’s Right
"Oz", the Hebrew word for might, also includes courage, inner strength, and the boldness to withstand social pressure when the whole world is fighting against you and trying...
Hashem gave all of us the power to kick the habit, for Hashem gives might to his people – the might to do what’s right.
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Dovid Hamelech (King David) said in Psalm 29, “Hashem will give might to His nation, Hashem will bless His nation with peace.” This passage has a deep intrinsic meaning for all generations, which exemplifies the Torah’s eternal truth. Although it appears as if Dovid Hamelech is talking to the nation of Israel as a whole, his message carries a far-reaching significance to each person as an individual.
Hashem will give might to His nation – might in Hebrew is “oz.” “Oz” connotes much more than sheer physical power. Oz also includes courage, inner strength, and the boldness to withstand social pressure when the whole world is fighting against you and trying to make you deviate from what you know is right. Dovid Hamelech, the King of Israel, Hashem’s anointed and the great grandfather of Mashiach, foresaw the flood of ordeals that this – the generation before Mashiach – would have to withstand. We, as that generation, have been blessed with the inner strength, conviction, and courage to stand up for what we know is right.
Hashem will bless His nation with peace –the second half of this verse also has a private meaning – the blessing of peace follows the blessing of oz, or might, to teach us that the inner strength of conviction is the prerequisite for inner peace. A person who doesn’t stand on his own convictions, and yields to social pressure or to the negative influences of the outside world, will never attain inner peace. It’s impossible to do something that you know is wrong and be at peace with yourself at the same time.
Battling the Yetzer Hara
The bulk of a person’s inner strength is required in the battle against the Evil Inclination, the Yetzer Hara. The Yetzer Hara bombards a person all day long, telling him that life is a drag, that there’s no hope, and that everything looks dismal. The Yetzer Hara’s claims are the exact opposite of those of emuna. Since emuna is an instant connection with Hashem, and Hashem is the epitome of truth and holiness, emuna is truth and holiness. The Yetzer Hara, as the opposite of holiness, is the dark or unholy side of the spiritual spectrum, the opposite of truth. So if the Yetzer Hara tells a person that he has every reason in the world to be sad, depressed, worried, and stressed out, emuna tells that person that everything in his life is a reason for joy, singing, and dancing. Even trials, tribulations, difficulties, and confusion are for one’s ultimate spiritual benefit.
Everything that happens in our lives comes from Hashem, and is therefore for our benefit. Everything that happens in our lives is designed to help us get closer to Hashem.
Slaves to Whom?
The Yetzer Hara will let us do literally anything — as long as we don’t get close to Hashem. Since sadness and depression are brick walls that separate a person from Hashem, the Yetzer Hara does everything in its power to keep us sad and depressed. It tells us that we’re not capable of kicking our bad habits, and that we’re not strong enough to do what’s right. It confuses us and convinces us that it’s our friend by occasionally throwing us a cheap thrill. Yet, the Yetzer Hara is out to destroy us, to bury us alive, and will take every measure to assure that we don’t become close to Hashem.
Every human is born with physical urges and lusts. Some like to eat, some like to sleep, some are slaves to their libido, some have lust for fame and prestige, and so forth. These physical urges and lusts are raw material to help a person do his job in the world. For example, if the body didn’t have a lust for eating and drinking it would suffer from thirst and malnutrition. Yet, we should eat for the sake of keeping our bodies healthy in the service of Hashem, for they house our souls.
Look what happens the minute that the means become the goals: We said that eating and drinking is a means to give our bodies the life-sustaining substances they need. But the minute that eating and drinking – the means – override the true objective of health, and they – the bodily lusts – become the objective, then people start eating greasy junk food with meteoric calorie value. They eat prepared foods full of chemicals, or go to Chinese restaurants to zap their bodies with salt and MSG; two hours after the $200 meal, either their bodies are ravenously hungry, or they have a splitting migraine.
Smoking
With this in mind, let’s take a look at smoking. Smoking is not good for the body. It destroys the lungs, the cardiovascular system, and rather than calming a person – like smokers choose to think – smoking actually increases stress. Since it’s a lust with no physical benefit, tobacco consumption is 100% the product of the Yetzer Hara.
So what happens when a person is hooked on cigarettes? He becomes a slave to the Yetzer Hara. He loses his freedom. He can’t last for 30 minutes without a pack of cigarettes. He squanders money and health. Since he’s a slave to the Yetzer Hara, he can’t be a slave to Hashem. For heavy smokers, Shabbat (or paradise) is a purgatory, because they can’t have a cigarette. In extreme cases, smokers are willing to violate the sanctity of the Shabbat to sneak a weed. The smoker is enslaved to the Yetzer. This is only one example of how physical lusts and habits can make a person lose his personal liberty.
Hashem gave all of us the power to kick the habit, for Hashem gives might to his people – the might to do what’s right.
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