Commenting on the verse "ve'asu Aron," the Ramban says that building the aron is its own mitzvah. The Ramban points out that when the Torah uses the plural form in commanding a mitzva, it is indicating that the mitzva is incumbent upon individuals.
How is the commandment of ve'asu Aron fulfilled? The Ramban suggests three possibilities. Either he can donate materials, participate physically in building the aron, or " sheyechavnu ladavar" - having the appropriate intentions represented by the aron. If a person has the proper passion and intensity in studying the Torah, and recognizes its primacy, he is fulfilling this aspect. The Ramban writes in Parshas VaYakhel that the Torah describes the people who contributed to the building of the Mishkan as those who were "nesa'o libo", those who were inspired. Where does one see that a measure of inspiration was necessary to be involved in the building of the Mishkan? The Ramban pointes out that if a person wants to build a magnificent edifice for G-d, one would normally look for experienced workers to build it. The Jewish people had no training, no experience, and no resume. How can an untrained laborer build such a stunning structure? Apparently, inspiration and dedication can overcome even objective difficulty. If a person is motivated and acts with effort, he can accomplish building the Mishkan, as the verse in Divrei HaYamim says, "VaYigba Libo BeDarkei Hashem" ("and his heart was elevated in the ways of G-d").
Sometimes, when studying Torah, one can fall into moments of despair. The Torah is so vast - how can one continue to acquire more Torah knowledge? Recalling and being proficient in past materials learnt is difficult enough, let alone achieving mastery of the entire Torah. The answer is that when a person is inspired, and has the proper passion, this can be accomplished.
The Sefer HaChinuch writes that birchas haTorah and birchas hamazon are both blessings of thanks, but with one major difference between the two. Whereas one cannot make a blessing of thanks on food until finishing eating and being satiated, one must make a blessing of thanks on learning Torah even before commencing to learn. This is because one must realize the splendor and privilege of studying Torah before actually doing so.
The Gemara in Nedarim (81) comments that the reason the land of Israel was destroyed was because they did not say birchas haTorah before studying Torah. The Elglei Tal writes in his introduction that many bnei Torah make the mistake of thinking that the process of maintaining concentration and achieving hasmada is an excruciating one. In fact, he writes, quite the opposite should be true - the study of Torah must be something accompanied by enjoyment. When Tosfos says that the blessing of la'asok bedivrei Torah is connected to the phrase veha'arev na - make pleasant - by a vav, and is therefore one blessing, that is not just by way of teaching us a halacha in bracha hasmucha lechaverta, but also teaching a life lesson in how to relate to the study of Torah.