Day 22/50: Building Your Foundation

הִתְיַצְּב֗וּ וּרְאוּ֙ אֶת־יְשׁוּעַ֣ת ה’ אֲשֶׁר־יַֽעֲשֶׂ֥ה לָכֶ֖ם הַיּ֑וֹם

Stand FIRM and see Hashem’s salvation that He will do for you today

Why do Chazal refer to the area of kedushas habris as yesod, “foundation”? The foundation of a building supports the entire structure and makes it possible for every part of the building to function properly. Although it is tucked away deep underground, completely out of sight, it prevents the entire building from falling apart. 

A person might do wonderful and productive things such as learning, davening, writing checks for yeshivos, and doing impressive acts of chessed, but if his yesod is flawed, the entire ”building” of his life will be unstable and unsafe. If a person does not get this area of life under control, he will be living in a state of chaos, and all the other wonderful things he does will be on very shaky ground.

Building a proper yesod is necessary for every person, but our generation in particular has seen how it is crucial for our existence as bnei Torah. We are living with nisyonos of historic proportions in the realm of kedushah. If we do not exercise self-control, we simply won’t make it. Technology allows every type of yetzer hara to be at our fingertips in the most literal sense. Our lives will have stability only if we remain in the “driver’s seat” and make real decisions to repel harmful influences.

A bachur must realize that the time to build his personal foundation properly is in his single years. This cannot be pushed off to a later time in his life. Imagine someone who tries to build a three-story house and only afterward begins to dig its foundation. That house will turn into a pile of rubble!