גְ דִּ י מְ קוּלָ ס A Yid Is a Warrior Against His Yetzer Hara, And His Tactics Are His Weapons
There is a Machlokes between the Tana’im regarding how to roast of the Korban Pesach. One Tanna says that the insides of the sheep were placed back into the stomach, and all you saw was the body of the sheep. The other Tanna says that the insides had to be left outside the sheep. Rashi explains that they were on top of its head, and it looked like a copper helmet of a fierce warrior, like Golyas HaPelishti. Some say it hung like a weapon on the side of the sheep. Either way, this tiny (less than one-year-old sheep) had the appearance of a soldier with armor. What is a docile sheep doing with armor?
It says: ו חֲמֻשׁ ים ע לוּ ב נֵי י ש ר אֵל מֵאֶרֶץ מ צ ר י ם בשלח יג יח the Yidden left Mitzrayim with weapons, and it also says: י צ אוּ כ ל צ ב אוֹת ה' the “army” of Hashem left Mitzrayim. And the Medrash says that: ו חֲמֻשׁ ים means that they were carrying five different kinds of weapons. What kind of war was going on? We can suggest that it all means Milchemes HaYetzer; and they left with all kinds of tactics to win the Yetzer Hara. And indeed, the Midbar was loaded with Nisyonos. A Yid becomes a Yid with the sheep of Korban Pesach; and as Eidel as a Yid should be in his: ה ת ב ט לוּת submission to Hashem like a sheep, he still needs weapons.
There is a time for the softest type of person to show a tough front, or else he can end up with nothing, Chas V'shalom. You can’t let Reshaim (or your Yetzer Hara) step all over you, and many people need to learn how to be assertive. Also, even if you are a weak (sheepish) type who isn’t from the big Ovdei Hashem, but he tries to act like a soldier, he’s already ideal!
Like the person who is in a heavy addiction of Kin'ah, Ta'ava, Kavod, or Ka'as and Bittul Torah, etc. who makes that phone call to ask for Eitzos how to improve. Or he learns a measly 5 minutes of Mussar, since his severe ADHD doesn’t allow for more. Or he at least tries to read stories of Tzaddikim, since he isn’t into learning B’hasmada (diligently).
Or he kvetches all day: “I wish I could improve”; all these are tiny efforts, but are of utmost value in Shamayim. Leaving Mitzrayim is something we talk about daily, and people should always try to escape from their latest new “Mitzrayim” (Yetzer Hara). One of the worst Yetzer Hara’s is when you must feel that you accomplish like everyone else.
All you need to do is to be a fighter! Or else you’re in a Treife Mitzrayim mentality, and מֵ יצ ר means being confined and: מ צוּמ צ ם restricted where you must succeed and have the whole world respecting your great Hatzlacha (in Torah or Chesed). But by Hashem, it’s: אֶח ד ה מ ר בֶה ו אֶח ד ה מ מ ע יט, וּב ל ב ד שֶׁי כ וֵּן אֶת ל בוֹ ל ש מ י ם משנה סוף מנחות irrelevant whether you accomplish a lot or a little, the main thing is that your intentions are L'shem Shamayim.
