The right way is to say it is b'techila, in the beginning, there with the Avodah Zarah (idolatry), achshav, and now we changed. Mittechila sounds like it means from the beginning till now. What does it mean, till now? The midrash (rabbinic homily) says—Rashi says something very powerful.
He says that when the Jewish people went through the sea, really Hashem was a little angry. Because there was a man called Michah, who would have a story in the book of Shoftim, who had a pesel (idol), who had an Avodah Zarah, and was walking through the sea. Are you crazy? Hashem is right now performing for you the greatest miracle the world has ever seen, and you have an idol with you? And that's why Hashem had the pesel. It doesn't say the water was a choma. It says it without a vav (the letter vav), because the water was chema—Hashem was a little upset. But even when He's upset, He's still performing the miracle for that person too. What's hinted in “mittechila Avodah Zarah hayu avoteinu” is that originally we're idol-worshippers.
But we're not totally clean today. It's from then, and it's a little bit till now. And even though we're not totally clean, even though we're not totally perfect, Hashem is still holding us, and still guarding us, and still protecting us. And I think that this year, even as we're watching what's happening in Israel—no, not everybody in Israel is perfect. Not everybody in Israel even acknowledges Hashem's existence. Hashem performs miracles even for those people. And Hashem comes up with an Iron Dome and all different things, and whatever that should—an arrow. What's the arrow thing called? Hashem comes up—what's it called? Arrow of David or something? There's something that relates. David's Sling.
David's Sling is another miracle that Hashem came up with. Just as the miracles are falling, as the missiles are falling, Hashem came up with an Iron Dome and a David's Sling, all different things to protect our people. Even if we're not perfect. Even if we're not the greatest. Sometimes there are people who think, “I'm not good enough, and therefore Hashem is not on my side.” “Mittechila ovdei Avodah Zarah hayu avoteinu” means we weren't great then, and we're still not perfect now. And still Hashem is watching us.