I started reading Touched by the Haggada (i think that’s the name) by Yechiel Spero. (It takes the haggadah and inserts divrei tora, drashim & stories accordingly.) There’s an intro by R’ Nosson Sherman. A small part of the intro is the following:
When the yidden crossed the yam suf they sang uz yashir- praising Hashem that He is the greatest… however, throughout the midbar we hear of the yidden complaining, even saying it would’ve been better to stay in mitzrayim. What’s pshat of this ungratefulness? In mitzrayim Hashem kept up the slavery and torture so that the yidden shouldn’t forget they’re in galus. Unfortunately, most of klal yisroel became comfortable with being a slave; it bacame a way of life (“oh well, that’s life”) and they lost hope of a yeshuah ever arriving. They stopped hoping and BELIEVING. All those that gave up were killed in makas choshech. The small percentage that were saved were the ones where the feelings of hope and belief lay dormant and Hashem was able to arouse that feeling and bring them out of mitzrayim.
(This is just a small point that came into the big picture/intro. I hope I’m not ruining it and that I chapped correctly.)
I felt this was very applicable to things we’ve been discussing in many threads. being thankful for our every day things, realizing Hashem is behind everything, realizing it’s for our good, always keeping positive and hoping for moshiach. Like the yidden in mitzrayim, we all shrug our shoulders and say “oh well, this is the way life is, can’t help it” and move on. We don’t try to change; we don’t even WANT to change anymore! But all Hashem needs is for us not to give up wanting, hoping, believing- and with that He will at least be able to take something that lies dormant and arouse it and bring the yeshua- B’KAROV B’YAMEINU AMEN