With a hopeful look in their eyes, the children asked: "What can we do on Shabbos?" The Rabbi answered emphatically: "Nothing; you can only sit and do nothing."

This is one of the opening scenes of the Broadway musical "The Soul Doctor," a musical that chronicles Shlomo Carlebach's unrelenting drive to inspire the nation with his poignant nigunim. This scene eloquently expresses the sentiment that many people possess regarding the torah in general and Shabbos in particular: the limitations that the torah imposes on us are burdensome and overly intrusive. That Torah observance is tedious, constraining, and doesn't provide enough flexibility for personal desires and behaviors.

This unfavorable impression of the commandments, however, reflects a misconception of the purpose of the limitations that are set upon us.

My Rabbi explained that through the fulfillment of the torah we are cementing the relationship between us and G-d. We can, therefore, obtain a deeper understanding of the nature of our relationship with G-d by examining the dynamics of our own relationships.

In a marriage, for example, where the wife tells the husband that "you can do what you want, when you want to," it is evident that the wife does not greatly feel for the husband. In stark contrast, an affectionate marriage is characterized by a husband who is constrained by chores, limited by commitments, and has to sacrifice for his spouse.

Analogously, the fact that G-d imposes restrictions on us is a manifestation of the relationship between G-d and us. Let us, therefore, embrace the constraints that are placed on us and appreciate that they represent the loving relationship between G-d and us.