Every Second Counts

0:55So, the Gaon of Vilna one time had a shiur about Gehinnom, and one of his students passed out. Why did he pass out? Because he heard that there's a malach in Shamayim, an angel in Shamayim, that has one job. He only has one job. What's his job? To give you an accounting once a person leaves this world and tell you what you did at every moment, every rega. Guys, let me tell you, when you see this leg up and you were thinking about the girl, and then you spent money on something that was not Torah-based, you need to understand the significance. You see, at this moment, you were thinking about nothing. How could you think about nothing? There's a whole discussion about nothingness, and it illustrates to us the importance of making an accounting of every single second that you live. When a person really thinks that he's in this world to just do what he wants and there's no accounting in Shamayim, and no one cares, and no one counts it, and no one records it, then he's going to live in the world and operate in the world as if he runs the world. That's why I say that atheists are the most religious people in the world. They not only want to make sure that you know that they're atheists, but they want to make other people atheists.

2:14If we were as zealous as the atheists, the Mashiach would have come already. They're not embarrassed of their beliefs. We are. But it's because the atheists think that they're running the world. We say Hashem runs the world, but b'toch tochenu, inside us, sometimes we have a little bit of doubt. We have a little bit of safek. Because we don't really know how He runs the world, who, what, when, and how. And we never knew, maybe even until now. that there is an angel assigned in Shamayim for each and every one of us, that after 120 years, the neshama (soul) of a person, who he really is, leaves the body, and he meets an angel. Hi, hello, how are you? How's everything? Okay, now I'm going to give you the cheshbon (account). What cheshbon? What are you talking about? I just arrived. I haven't even done anything yet. No, no, no. I have to tell you everything you did. Where? What? Last week? No, no. Two seconds ago. And then three seconds ago. And four seconds ago. And five seconds ago. And six seconds ago. For 120 years. Anyone who really thinks about this should pass out. Remember when you thought about the things you weren't supposed to think about right next to your wife? He's going to tell you about that.

3:40Remember the things you did when you signed the deal, but you knew it wasn't really telling the truth? He's going to remind you about that as well. Remember when Hashem gave you a lot of money and you used it for things that were against His will? Remember when you had an opportunity to do chesed, but you thought, "Nah, somebody else will do it. There are so many wealthy people in the community. Why should it fall on me? I don't have to give. Let someone else do it." The rich people, they're going to do it, and so on and so forth. When Hashem shows us this malach, we're going to be more afraid of him than anything else. Why? Because there are no second chances. So when a person works and ensures that every second counts, he maintains yirat shamayim. Where he knows, okay, I'm working. I can't learn Torah like I want to learn. I want to go to kollel. I want to go to yeshiva, but either I don't have the emunah, or I don't have the ability, or I don't have this, or I don't have that, but I do have yirat Shamayim. So what am I going to do?

4:46I'm going to use my money for whatever is necessary aside from my basic expenses. Instead of building 401(k)s, IRAs, three-car garages, and three-floor homes because one isn't enough, and so on and so forth, I'm going to make sure that there's more Torah in the world. I'm going to do everything possible to ensure that more Jews in the world actually know they are Jewish. There are a lot of Jews, Baruch Hashem, in the world, but most of them don't know the difference between a Jew and a Goy. So a person that works to that extent, he sees the malach, he gives him a high five, saying, "Hey, how are you? Buddy, come. Let me show you what I do to the other people. Let me show you what I do to the other people that didn't do what you did." Why? Because every moment you spent in the world, you worked for Hashem. Every second. Even when you were sleeping. You went to sleep. Why? You had to get energy. Why? So you could work tomorrow. Why are you working tomorrow? To publicize Torah. You're working for Hashem 24 hours a day. If you're working for Ferraris, you're working for Mustangs, you're working to make sure that everybody knows what your next thought is or what your next meal is on Facebook. He's going to tell you about those moments: "Oh, you remember that moment when you publicized the cheesecake that wasn't kosher? Remember that? Oh yeah, why? Seven people went to the non-kosher place because of you, and they ate the same cake, so they all sinned against Hashem because of you. Thank you."

6:11This is, to me, one of the scariest things I've heard Hashem say. Why? Because no one ever thinks, no one ever imagines that someone is out there, like Hashem says, like Shlomo HaMelech (King Solomon) said, that at the end Hashem does all the accounting, and everybody has a visual of every single thing they did. A person that sees this understands it and lives his life very differently, very, very differently. A person that doesn't will do things like, maybe, one of the stories I will tell you later tonight - things you would never think somebody could even do in a modern, civilized world.