In the olden days, people used to worship the stars. In fact, idolatry was called "star-worship" (avodat kochavim).
But nowadays, who can imagine worshipping stars? What would it even entail? Getting a poster of your favorite star and hanging it on your bedroom wall? Joining millions of others in signing up on twitter to become your favorite star's "follower"? Grabbing and sharing every new photo that surfaces of your star?
That's just crazy talk! Today, we have matured and achieved progress and modernized thinking. Right?
Maybe. But today there is arduous devotion, bordering on worship, for stars and some other shiny objects.
While these things are important, sometimes even crucial, none of them will ever be as important as, say, the sun and the stars. And since intelligent people tend to worship only important things, Torah cautions us on blurring the lines between understanding something's importance and truly believing that your good fortune depends on it.
And since the Egyptians were the masters as blurring those lines, they were perpetually heated up about things that deserve indifference or at best, cool attention, and perpetually chilled about things that deserve fiery passion.
So G-d turned their water (coldness) into blood (warmth) and sent frogs (cold-blooded amphibians) into their ovens (warmth) to turn them around and set them straight.
*****
Most things in life, including the most important things, are means to an end. Very few things are actually ends unto themselves. And them we call the purpose of life. Those are ends unto themselves with no outside purpose. They ARE purpose. And they deserve worship, passion, all the warmth and enthusiasm you can muster.
But outside of that, everything else is a means to achieve the purpose. Look good, feel good, get educated, make a living, be comfortable, be popular, and do it all happily! But don't forget, those are not ends. They are only means, and they don't deserve your deepest feelings and worship. They require hard work, dedication, focus and dertermination, but never worship.
Things best served chilled:
1. Business meetings and deadlines.
2. Stock patterns
3. Pau Gasol's free-throw average
4. College applications
5. Facebook Like's
6. Weight loss
7. Social trends and fads
8. Clothing brands
9. Letterman vs. Oprah
10. The UN
Things to keep warm:
1. Your marriage
2. "Are my children good people?"
3. Making sure G-d Likes your Page
4. Attending the Wednesday night class
5. Your mother
6. Your brother's financial woes
7. Shabbat candle-lighting times
8. Really caring about other people's problems
9. Tzedakah
10. Your child's Bar/Bat Mitzvah
Stay thirsty my friends.
Shabbat Shalom, good Shabbos!
