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The minister preaches from Deuteronomy 28, a passage he calls one of the most difficult in the Torah. He notes the severe curses—pestilence, failed crops, enemy occupation, madness, and even parents eating their own children. The key question is what sin could warrant such horror. He points to verse 47: "Because thou servest not the Lord thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things." The curses come not from failing to obey every command, but from serving God without happiness. The minister traces the connection back to the Garden of Eden, where God gave Adam and Eve every tree to enjoy, but they focused on the one forbidden tree. Their sin was dissatisfaction—having 99.9% of everything but craving the 0.1% that was not theirs. The antidote, he teaches, is "hakarat hatov"—recognition of the good. Happiness does not come automatically from having good things; it requires being consciously aware of God's goodness and thanking Him for it. He illustrates this with the law of bikurim (firstfruits), where the farmer recites Israel's history to recognize his blessing and then rejoices with the Levite and the stranger. The minister applies this to believers today: ingratitude and grumbling bring a cursed existence; gratitude and joy in every circumstance bring life. He closes by pointing to Jesus singing a psalm on the night of His betrayal, showing that joy is not dependent on circumstances.