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The Fear of the Meraglim

Saturday, 21 January 2012

We are powerless over our addiction in the same way that the Yidden were powerless to overcome the seven mighty nations in Eretz Yisrael. So what was the sin of the Meraglim? After all, they were RIGHT by saying that we couldn't overcome our enemies?

To quote Dov (our forum moderator - sober in SA for 13 years), who was replying today to someone who was desperate for help and felt like he was about to fall after viewing some questionable TV shows and internet sites. Dov writes the following:

There's nothing bad about the desperation you are describing. Actually, I believe it is precious, and we all need to keep it in a bottle for use many times during the day - not just when we feel badly enough about our behavior because it's already in the 'awful' category. We ourselves are unable to beat this thing - period. Like the Jews about to go into Israel: They were absolutely powerless to beat the seven nations there, as Moshe makes clear in D'varim. The only mistake of the spies was that they incited the crowd to forsake G-d's love and intervention. That, I say to you, is your only real enemy - not lust at all. And certainly not the internet nor the TV show that you saw.

As Dov writes above, it is not the claim that "we CAN'T do it" that was the sin of the Meraglim. It was forsaking Hashem who CAN do it, that was their sin. Our real enemy is not lust, it is "forsaking Hashem".

In the 12-Step groups they call FEAR = False Evidence Appearing Real (see the article below). When Hashem is in the equation, there can be no fear at all. No matter how impossible our reality seems at times, if we let go and let G-d we don'tNEED to have the strength and wisdom to do what we need to. Even if all the evidence points to failure, it's really only False Evidence Appearing Real.

Hashem is the only real truth, and He can do ANYTHING.