Free Will II

Your original point of free will is not up to you. It is merely your starting point. Where the point of free will exists, you are accountable.

The free will point changes with every choice made. As you act, move or decide something it changes. Every time you make a correct decision, you elevate the point.

The effect of all this is that your free will point becomes more refined, and thus more difficult. The result is that you are a wee bit stronger than before the correct decision. These wee bits add up over time. (mtzvos goreros mitzvos).

If you take piano lessons from a teacher and then become better than that teacher, you need to find a new, more challenging instructor. It is like music itself. Once you master a piece, you must go on to attempt a more difficult piece otherwise you stagnate.

The more power, the more adversities. In the gym a five pound weight may be challenging for a week but then you must upgrade the weight. Each weight is more challenging.

We must be locked in battle with our own physical self, our guf. The whole purpose of life is to refine our character from the first original point of choice. It is not about remaining stagnate at any level across a large spectrum of different choices,be they psychological or physical, or societal.

A definition of good and bad is only how the power is channelled. Let's say you have a desire for cake, if you channel the desire for weight loss, you will consider the piece. If you have a desire only for pleasure, you will consume the whole cake.

Let's say you were born a greedy person. You could channel everything to you, or you could start giving to others.

There was a story of a Torah student who became very rich. He fled the community and isolated himself in the biggest house in town.

Many years later the Rabbi stopped by for charity. Many people had been turned away and so the Rabbi was concerned about the man. He knocked at the door and the man greeted him. The Rabbi needed $1,000 for the marriage of an orphan girl. The man said "Of course, here Rabbi." and he handed the Rabbi a penny.

The Rabbi went on and said "Oh, how generous sir. Thank you." and he left. The Talmidim that were with the Rabbi said "How could you say this, you know flattery is not halachically permitted?"

The Rabbi said: "Nothing changes immediately. This man doesn't know how to give. We'll just take it slowly."

At that the man called the Rabbi back into the house and gave him another penny, over and over again. Before the Rabbi actually left, the man gave him the entire amount, bit by bit.