Investing in Avodas Hashem
The Divrei Yechezkel (Shinov) zt'l writes that by watching how people are involved in their parnassah with all their heart and soul, you can learn how to be devoted to avodas Hashem. This is the meaning of the words תרומה לי ויקחו. The Torah urges every Yid to elevate himself and become more spiritual.
(תרומה means to elevate oneself.) But how can one do so? How can one train himself to be devoted to avodas Hashem? The answer is לבו ידבנו אשר איש כל מאת, copy the people who vigorously pursue their parnassah. They work so hard, by day and by night. You should do the same in your avodas Hashem. They work to succeed in this temporary world, so you should certainly work as hard to do avodas Hashem, whose reward is eternal.
The Chasam Sofer (Toras Moshe, Ki Seitzei, יאמר או ה"ד) writes this lesson on the words (Tehillim 119:98) לי היא לעולם כי מצותיך תחכמני מאויבי. The Chasam Sofer writes, "The mitzvos are לעולם, forever... So, if for a tiny pleasure – nothing more than a fleeting moment and then it is gone – a person works so hard, certainly one should toil to earn a mitzvah, for that is eternal."
