Our Mission

G-d instructed Moses how to light the Candelabrum every day. He must set up the lamps upon the pure Candelabrum, before G-d, regularly. 

Leviticus 24:4

This verse teaches us that the lamps of the Candelabrum must be cleaned out before they are refilled and relit each day. The ashes

that are leftover from the previous day’s wicks are considered holy, and thus may not be used for any non-holy purposes.

We can learn from this the following lesson: G-d instructs us to engage in whatever mundane pursuits are necessary for our livelihood or overall well-being. He asks that we do so, however, “for the sake of heaven,” i.e., having in mind that these mundane pursuits serve a higher purpose – that of enabling us to fulfill our Divine mission and draw closer to G-d through our explicitly holy pursuits, for which we should allot the appropriate amounts of time and resources.

It sometimes happens that we are able to tend to our holy or mundane pursuits in less time (or with less resources) than we anticipated. In such cases, these “leftovers” should themselves be used for holy purposes, rather than for mundane pursuits – just like the leftover ashes of the Candelabrum.

— Daily Wisdom 3