108. Adornment / הידור
Adorning a mitzvah shows love of Hashem, for a person who serves out of fear is only interested in discharging his duty, while the one who serves Hashem out of love will lovingly take care to do it in the most exemplary manner. When a person who beautifies a mitzvah even more, he proves that he loves Hashem with his whole heart and being and wishes to increase the glory of Hashem. How terribly shamed one will be in the World to Come when if he was a person who was meticulous about his garments or other personal items or about his living quarters that they be in perfect shape and spotless, and if he decorated his home with paintings and the like, but when it came to the mitzvos of Hashem, he did not care if they were unsightly or otherwise deficient.
Fortunate is the man who loves his Creator and honors Hashem with his possessions and spend freely on beautifying mitzvos. He will receive blessing from Hashem, the Master of Legions.
On the other hand, in matters pertaining to this World, one should not care about adornment, to build ornate homes and to wear fine clothing, or to insist on using fancy utensils of all sorts — for we are but sojourners in the Land, like travelers and like guests seeking a place to stay overnight. Now, it is true that if Hashem graced a person with wealth and many possessions, he may dress himself and build homes in accord with his wealth, but it is not proper to waste valuable time in order to amass wealth once he has enough for his needs for food, clothing and lodging — for it is all “futile and a vexation of the spirit.” Therefore, even if Hashem did grace the person with wealth and possessions, and then later his circumstances were reversed to the point that he was forced to live a live of hardship, with minimal food and drink and to live in a dark home, let him not be upset and sorrowful, for everything in this World is empty and vain. All we have in our lives is to serve our Creator and to do what is pleasing to the One Who fashioned us. This should be our only striving and goal in life.