“U’s’fartem lachem … sheva shabbasos t’mee’mos tee’yeh’nah w You shall count for yourselves … seven weeks; they shall be complete."  Leviticus 23:15 

“V’sa’farta l’cha sheva shabbsos shanim, sheva shanim sheva p’amim, v’hayu l’cha y’mei sheva shabbsos ha’shanim taisha v’arba’im shanna w You shall count for yourself seven cycles of sabbatical years, seven years seven times; the years of the seven cycles of sabbatical years shall be for you forty-nine years.."  Leviticus 25:8

Here is a beautiful essay written by R’ Shmuel Silber, shlit”a (of Baltimore), with several emendations:

We are now nearing the end of the Sefirah count:  God commanded us to count the days from Pesach leading up to Shavuos, a seemingly simple commandment aimed at linking these two experiences. We are taught that Exodus was not an end in itself; it was a means to receive the Torah at Mount Sinai. We were not taken out of Egypt simply to be free and without a human master; we were emancipated because we had (and have) something to contribute. Our nation has the ability to be a light unto the nations – but in order for the light to burn and illuminate there must be fuel. The Torah is our fuel, the commandments are the oil for our national wick allowing us to burn bright and dispel the darkness. We count the days from Pesach to Shavuos to remind ourselves that our freedom must be used for spiritual accomplishment. We count the days of Omer to remind ourselves of our national mandate to make this world a better place.

There is something very interesting about the verbiage used in the verses quoted above. All of the mitzvos being mentioned here have to do with the passage of time. The Torah does not simply tell us to make note of the new month – rather, the new month will be “for you”; we are not only commanded to count the weeks between Pesach and Shavuos – rather, these weeks shall be “for yourselves”;  and there is not only a mitzvah to count the years of the shemittah and Jubilee cycles – rather, these years and the cycles they represent shall be “for yourself” and “for you”. What is the meaning of these phrases, making the passage of time “yours”?

God is trying to convey to us an all-important lesson for meaningful living: the sanctification of the new month reminds us that we control our months; the counting of the days between Pesach and Shavuos reminds us that we control our days and our weeks; the counting of the sabbatical years and the observance of the Jubilee year tells us that we control those years. The put it simply, we are in control of our time.

Time humbles all men. Influence, power and connections can get you many things. But the one thing that no amount of “protexia” can procure and acquire for you — is time. Time is a finite, non-renewable resource. No matter how much you yearn for more — you simply can’t create it. However, although we can’t generate additional quantities of time — we can most definitely control the time we have been given.

Time is the greatest treasure God bestowed upon us as a free nation. It is the currency of accomplishment and self-advancement. Without it you can do nothing, go nowhere; with it, the sky is the limit. People often say “if only I had more time - there are so many things I would like to do.” These mitzvos remind us that we have complete autonomy over how we use our time. It is true that there may not be enough time to accomplish everything we want to accomplish; the Torah is telling us to choose wisely. We must decide what is important and focus our energies on those things that truly matter! We are limited in the duration of our time in this world, but we have sole discretion as to how to use the time we are given. Time is the start-up capital for our greatest initiative — life. Therefore, the Torah tells us to invest it wisely.

Perhaps, this is why the Torah uses the word lachem or l’cha (i.e. “for you”) by all of the aforementioned commandments:  God is not simply telling us to count and/or make note of time. He is instructing us to make it count for ourselves! The month is yours — decide what you are going to accomplish. The week is yours — decide what needs to get done. The day is yours — contemplate how to maximize and squeeze precious meaning and productivity from every holy moment. The years are yours – what will you do with the precious years of your life to make them count!?

Not a week goes by without a new “time saving device” being introduced in the technological marketplace. We are constantly connected, wired and plugged in. Ostensibly the goal of our devices is to maximize productivity and “save time.” But have we really saved any time? And even if we have, how do we use this newfound time-windfall? The reality is that for many of us the time saved is just used for more work. The additional time has not gone to our family, to our learning or to acts of chessed; it has gone to more emails, more meetings and more deals. For others this additional time has led to more time spent online surfing the net and posting every last bit of information (much of it too personal for public consumption) on one’s blog or Facebook page. Blogging, tweeting, friending and surfing have a limited place — but unfortunately they can end up taking over our life! Our time on this earth belongs to each of us – the hours and minutes, the days and months and years belong to me and it is up to me to use them purposefully.

As we participate in the mitzvah of counting the sefirah, anticipating the excitement of Shavuos and the holiday of Matan Torah,  let us find the courage and strength to maximize our days  and weeks and thus find  meaning in all times, taking advantage of every moment.

… and for Others

And here is a beautiful vort written by R’ David Ashear, shlit”a posted recently on his ‘Daily Emunah’ mailing, with several minor emendations:

In the beginning of last week’s parsha, Rashi zt”l brings down that the older people are commanded to help the younger people. We have a mitzvah of zee’kui ha’rabim – working on behalf of others, helping those less fortunate and giving of our own time and energy on behalf of the community.

The Gemara [Eruvin 54b] tells of Rabbi Pereda, who had a student with learning difficulties. The Rabbi would teach him each lesson four hundred times, until he finally understood. On one occasion, the boy was distracted, and even after the four hundredth time, he still did not comprehend. The Rabbi, with an enormous amount of patience, proceeded to explain the lesson an additional four hundred times, until he understood. When he finally finished, Rabbi Pereda heard a Heavenly Voice declaring that as a reward, he could choose to receive an additional 400 years of life or bring his entire generation with him to olam haba, The World to Come. The Rabbi, once again with self-sacrifice, chose to forgo the extra years and benefit his generation. But Hashem replied that he would give him both.

The Torah teaches that the path to greatness is by giving of one's self. The Sefer Madregot HaAdam states that people are afraid to give up of their own time, because they think it will stunt their own growth. In truth, it is exactly the opposite:  The more a person is willing to give of himself, the more Heavenly assistance he will receive. 

Rabbi Yechiel Spero shlit”a told the story of a man named Shimon Deutsch, who spoke in front of a large gathering with tears in his eyes, about how he became a G-d fearing Jew, with children and grandchildren who are all yirei Shamayim. He was the lone survivor of the war from his entire family and, at the age of eighteen, made his way to England. He tried to enroll in a Yeshiva, but he hadn't learned since he was eleven and he was a complete beginner. The Rosh Yeshiva told him that he was welcome to stay, but he did not recommend it – it would be very hard for him to find study partners (as he had never learnt Gemara) and all the other students had been learning intensely for years. But Shimon said, "I have nowhere else to go. I'll give it a few days. If it doesn't work out, I'll go get a job." He hung up a sign asking for people to learn with him, even though he was a beginner. He sat alone at a table, waiting – but nobody came. 

After three long days, he decided that it was time to leave. Just at that moment, two boys approached him and asked if he was Shimon.  "Yes," he replied. One of the boys introduced himself, "Hi. I am Moshe, and this is Tuvia. We arrived at the Yeshiva a few days late, and we just saw your sign. We would love to learn with you; I could learn with you in the morning and Tuvia could learn with you in the afternoon."  "But, you know I don't know anything, right?" said Shimon. "It's okay. We want to help you." And so these two boys helped Shimon over the next three years, until he saw success in his learning.

R’ Shomon Deutsch concluded his speech, "If you are wondering whether these boys lost out because of what they did for me, then I must reveal to you their full names:  ‘Moshe’ is Rav Moshe Sternbuch, shlit”a and ‘Tuvia’ is Rav Yitzchak Tuvia Weiss, shlit”a – two outstanding Talmidei Chachamim, who today serve as the leaders of the Eidah Hacharerdit in Yerushalayim. Always remember, you never lose by helping others."

We are here on this earth to reveal k’vod Shamayim – the glory of Heaven and Hashem’s greatness. The more people we bring close to Hashem, the greater the glory to His name. Time spent on this endeavor will never be ‘lost’.