Emuna Beams

Today's interview shares one of the greatest comeback stories ever. A headbanger deep into drugs, booze and heavy metal morphs into a pious Torah scholar and a master artisan, the world's only Chassidic luthier (string-instrument craftsman). Meet Z.Z. Ludwick:

Without emuna, life's tribulations look like a lion about to devour us. No wonder so many people succumb to fear and anxiety.

With emuna, life's tribulations still look like a lion. Yet, the lion is only a costume that our loving Father in Heaven is dressed up in. That changes our outlook completely, as we're about to learn.

She's incredible. One of less than ten women in the entire USA who is a 7th degree blackbelt and Taekwondo Grand Master. The only Jewish woman in the world with that distinction and a mother of six as well. She was a Pan Am Games gold medalist and a US Olympic hopeful who became poster girl for United Airlines, Coca Cola and McDonalds. Her agent wanted to strangle her when she gave up a million-dollar Hollywood contract to pursue an Orthodox Jewish lifestyle. Meet this amazing superwoman, Sunny Levi:

Challenges don't knock people down. Negative thoughts do. With that in mind, today's podcast is an emotional rescue squad. If you're feel worry, depression or anxiety, try this proven ploy.

Here's a brief but especially important lesson in marital peace, designed predominantly for the man of the family. A couple came to me for marital counseling. The husband complained that his wife was a spendthrift who owns 350 pairs of shoes...

Many people are skeptical when I tell them that three words are capable of illuminating the soul. An illuminated soul leads to inner peace. Hard to believe?

Do believe that a diabetic individual sees a dramatic improvement in health by getting off of junk food and sugar? Are you aware that a few minutes of exercise every day also enhances good health? Both are obvious, right?

The same principle applies to the soul. By focusing on three simple words, which constitute one concept, we dramatically enhance emotional and spiritual health.

Did you ever stop and ponder Hashem's magnificent creation of Planet Earth, with all its wonders like the Northern Lights, the Grand Canyon, Niagara Falls and much more? That vast Planet Earth of ours is only a miniscule part of the solar system, and only one-millionth the size of the sun. Yet, our entire solar system is like a grain of sand within the Milky Way Galaxy, which in turn is like a fleck of dust within the vast super-galaxies that extend beyond our imagination. Now stop and think: Hashem momentarily turns aside from His entire vast universe to create a rain drop, make a flower blossom and help a newborn chick hatch out of the egg. Imagine what He does to perfectly direct every tiny facet of our lives in mind-boggling Divine Providence. Why? Because He loves you so very much, more than you can ever imagine.

Welcome to the functional fitness "Brodie meets Brody" series. Here, world-class exercise physiologist, strength and cycling coach Menachem Brodie (NSCA-CSCS, USAC-PBT) teams up with Senior Fitness Trainer, Health Coach and Nutritionist Rabbi Lazer Brody (CHC, CPT, CHN). Today, they show how both women and men can stay fit at forty and beyond, decade by decade.

There's one major difference between people who succeed and people who don't. The ones who succeed are totally focused on their goal. The ones who don't are not. Any marksman knows that you can't hit a target if it's out of focus. Today, we're going to learn what it means to focus on our goal and how to focus.

Few people are able to understand what they see. To paraphrase the old saying, they're in a big area with oak and pine trees all around them but they don't see that it's a forest.

Divine Direction is the Creator's active determination of every detail and occurrence in the world. The more we enhance our emuna in Divine Direction, the more we improve our spiritual eyesight. This lets us see the Creator personally directing our lives. Few things are more rewarding.

There are five main ploys in enhancing our emuna in Divine Direction. These ploys are:

Realizing that We Don't Run the World – Hashem does

Learning to be Happy with Our Lot in Life

Appreciating Life's Countless blessings

Remembering the Many Salvations we have seen in our lifetime.

Looking for the Divine wisdom in every creation

Let's examine them, one by one.