Despair is worse than any other sin
Continuing the series of translations of Rabbi Eliezer Berland’s words from the You will succeed! book. Click HERE to buy the book in Hebrew.
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If a person falls down, or he can’t do something, so he should just start over from fresh.
Every day, make a new start.
But if a person says, I’m finished, I’m done… So, this is harder than anything else, these types of thoughts and these types of confusion. They are difficult and damaging. And this is the most awful thing of all. It’s worse than all the errors and sins and transgressions, from the moment you were born until today!
All the mistakes that you made, all the sins that you did from the day you were created, from the day you were created in the root of creation, until this day – this is not equal to just one single word of yeoush (despair).
When a person says, God forbid, “I’m done, I’m already gone…”
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At every second, you can be like the Rebbe, Rebbe Nachman of Breslov.
The kindness of Hashem won’t finish, and His mercy never ends. Hashem is not going to leave you.
You have absolutely no idea how much Hashem loves you.
And how much He wants to help you, and how much Hashem wants to bring you up higher and higher, until the level of ein sof (infinity), until ein tachlit (beyond purpose). You have absolutely no conception of this.
When a person is thinking thoughts of despair, “I’ve already blown it, I’ll never be able to learn, and I’ll never be able to pray well, and I’ll never be able to get up for chatzot, and I just can’t guard my eyes…”
This thought is worse than all the sins, and all the blemishes that have occurred to your eyes.
From today, I AM going to guard my eyes! How? Hashem is going to help me. If you want it – Hashem is going to help you. Hashem is going to make you a shining example, and from today you will guard your eyes. From today! From now!
The despairing thoughts are worse than all the sins!
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Hashem only wants to help you, and to make you into another Moshe Rabbenu, mamash.
You don’t know when you are going to become that Moshe Rabbenu, and so you get grumpy and annoyed.
You have a big hope, at every time, every hour and every moment. The kindness of Hashem won’t finish, and His mercy never ends. You have no idea just how deep His mercy and His kindness really is, for those who truly seek Him.
If you really do want to be holy and pure, so you will certainly be successful! Because this is Hashem’s will. Hashem will turn over all of the worlds, all of creation, in order for you to become truly holy.
And even if you are still stuck at the pinnacle of all the spiritual blemishes – it’s enough just to want to change.
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So beautiful…thank you for the translation! I really needed this today.