Understanding the Influence of the Yetzer Hara on Decision Making and Spiritual Growth (Rabbi Doctor Abraham J Twerski Z"L)

There's a reason they're called specialists. They are individuals that people will fly across the country to have a short visit with. They will pay top dollar to these people for their services. Quite frankly, these specialists seem to be able to see things that others can't, and they have the knowledge and the experience to back up their decision making. And in this specific episode we are dealing with the specialist of all specialists. Parashasmatos tells the story how Bnei G'ud Ubnei Ruvane came forward with a simple request that they have a lot of possessions and that it would not be in their best interest to cross over the Jordan and to go into battle. But instead let us, if you please, moshe, stay on the opposite side of the Jordan River, outside of Eretzi, australia. They created the space for their livestock and their possessions. So we don't want to go into battle, we don't want to cross. Would that be okay? It seems even like a request that had some merit backing it. But Moshe Rabbe knew the ultimate specialist, the ultimate roife. He sensed that there was a misarranged sense of priorities, that financial success was taking precedence over the spiritual world and spiritual success. He objected to their request. Moshe Rabbe knew, actually made sure that the conditions of what would be needed to really acquiesce to their request would be laid out exactly why yes, why no? Tonight, cuffle the double edge. Tonight, everything must be clear as day and ultimately, after Moshe Rabbe knew his rebuke and his help to clarify what they really wanted, bnei Gadubb and Eruvain actually led the charge for the battle on Canaan, the takeover and conquest of Eretzi. Australia we see from here, says Rav Iruchem, that a person, anytime he seeks to relinquish an obligation to be poyreik ol, and he really thinks it's the right thing for me to do to sleep in today, it's the right thing for me to do to not go to Yeshiva today, to you know, I need more time at this thing. I shouldn't go learn, I shouldn't go diving, I'm putter, I'm putter. You have to be Khoshesh yourself. You have to really think is this the Yaitzahara getting involved in my decision making? We lay out our conditions, why yes, why no, and we're Khoshesh ourselves. Am I really making this decision for the sake of the Almighty? And how do we know if we're truly acting altruistically, with our best interest in mind, to connect with Hashem? After all, we don't have a prophet around as manazeh. We don't have the ultimate specialist in Moshe Rabbenu to turn to. Well, perhaps I have some piece of advice that I can forward along that I once read from the great Khacham the doctor, the great Rav I, dr Abraham J Tworsky. He gave over how to know how we're really thinking about our decisions. He said when there would be God forbid a patient who would check into his clinic after having fallen back into substance abuse, getting involved in these illegal chemicals that are so bad for the body, he would ask them why did you do it? Why did you turn back to the drugs or the alcohol? Why, why, why? And they would say multiple reasons. Well, I had a tough day and then I lost my job and then my dog died. And right, torsky said, I discovered that often, if a person has multiple reasons that don't each uniquely and individually hold weight, that needs to build a tower of excuses in order to exonerate himself. Well then you know that you are not talking and thinking honestly. We must have one concrete decision making process, one valid reason to do what we're doing. That was his advice. It has proven true in my life so many times To be cautious. Why am I doing this? Is it a bunch of different things that I need to sleep in because I'm tired and I was up late and it's cold outside, and and? And? Or is it because, no, I'm just being lazy?