Today we will begin another mini-series, in preparation for that great moment of Yom Kippur Ne'ilah . There are five pesukim in Ne'ilah that we will explain. The first pasuk starts off with a few introductory words. ואתה ברחמיך רבים רחם עלינו /God, in your great mercy have mercy on us. כי לא תחפץ בהשחתת עולם /You don't want the world to be destroyed. You created the world to continue. The Sefer Ikarim says the reason these ten days are so powerful is because it's when God created the world. And when God created the world, we tell God, God, You created the world. You know who we are, and You know that we need Teshuva to keep it going. That is why every year, when God wants to renew the world (and He has that same desire to have a world), with that comes a desire to cleanse us. If not, we couldn't have a world. We cite a pasuk as proof that God doesn't want the world to be destroyed. (Everything needs a pasuk. ) It's a pasuk that refers to these ten days ( Yeshaya 55,6) דִּרְשׁ֥וּ יְהֹוָ֖ה בְּהִמָּֽצְא֑וֹ קְרָאֻ֖הוּ בִּֽהְיוֹת֥וֹ קָרֽוֹב׃ Search for God when He is to be found, Call out to Him when He is close. That's our proof. If God has a time of the year that He's with us more than ever, and closer more than ever, then I know that He wants to keep the world going. Now, let's first understand these two terminologies: -Search for Him when He is to be found -Call to Him when He is close The Pachad Yitzhak, in his sefer on Yom Kippur (essay 1) quotes the Rambam's Hilchot Teshuva (chapter 2, Halacha 6), that says there are two things going on here. Number one is that during these ten days, the our teshuva is especially accepted. Additionally, our prayer is especially accepted. Dirshu Hashem B'Himatzo/Search for God when he is to be found is discussing Teshuva . Teshuva means return to God. 'I don't know where He is. I lost Him.' ' Now , You'll see Him.' And KeraUhu B'Yoto Karov/Call to Him when He's close, is for Prayer -. He's always close, but He's especially close during these days. So if God created a time that He's easily found and easily called upon, that means He doesn't want the world to be destroyed. Ne'ilah is from those last moments of this special time. There's a beautiful Mashal - a true story, a great Hasidic rabbi whose children were playing hide-and-go-seek. One of the children came in crying. The Rebbi asked this child, Why you crying? He answered, " We were playing hide-and-go-seek, and I found such a good hiding spot that everyone just gave up looking for me. I was just sitting there and they all stopped looking for me and left me there!" The Rebbi heard this and suddenly burst out crying. His students were shocked. It was only a game. Why the tears? He explained that he was not crying for his child. He was crying for Hashem . God created this world / Olam , ' He'Olam' - the root of the word Olam is Alam / hiding . God is hiding in the world. He's hiding in every apple, in every orange and every pear, and no one's looking for Him. That's why the Rebbe cried. Sometimes you play hide-and-go-seek and the kid has a good spot. But sometimes the kid is clumsy and his foot sticks out of the closet, so you can see him, and say, " Oh, there he is!" That's what Aseret Yeme Teshuva are. God is easily found and therefore, we have to take advantage of this time. The Or Yisrael, in Kochvei Or , letter five of Rav Itzele Peterberger says it's like somebody insulted someone, and the person who was insulted goes to the place where the person insulted him, and waits there, to give him the opportunity to apologize. " Oh, he's right there! I wasn't going to travel to find him, but he's right in front of my store. Let me go out there and say I'm sorry." That's what Hashem does during these days. And it's Aseret Yeme Teshuva. It's Yom Kippur. And the last moments is Ne'Ilah . The Pesikta d'Rav Kahana (letter7) says, It's like a king that is in the city where the people are upset with him. The king is about to leave the city to call the army. But one of the people sees the king leaving and tells everyone, " Get him before he leaves, catch him on his way out!" That's what we're supposed to be feeling at Ne'ilah . He's about to leave. Now's your last chance. So we quote this pasuk דִּרְשׁ֥וּ יְהֹוָ֖ה בְּהִמָּֽצְא֑וֹ קְרָאֻ֖הוּ בִּֽהְיוֹת֥וֹ קָרֽוֹב׃ Come back to Him right now when you can see Him, call out to Him, give your last prayers when He is close , Don't give up hope. You can do it. You can make it. This is a special responsibility in the final moments of Ne'ilah , and of course, throughout Aseret Yeme Teshuva, to return, to find him. B'Ezrat Hashem , with that, Hashem will bring a beautiful new year.