Welcome to Emotional Wellness Daily. Yesterday, we spoke about the importance of meaning and purpose in bringing happiness to one's life, and we discussed two things to have in mind. One is the Beracha of SheAsa Li Kol Sorki/that I have exactly what I need to fulfill my mission in life, which might just be to smile at somebody.
The second one, also a beracha we say every morning, is HaMechin MisAdeh Gaver/ God prepares the steps of man, and it comes from a pasuk inTehilim 37,23
מה׳ מִֽצְעֲדֵי־גֶ֥בֶר כּוֹנָ֗נוּ
from God are the steps of man,
They're set up….
Regarding this, the Chatam Sofer says that Hashem puts us in the situation we're supposed to be in, so we can, in his terms, ”Take out the sparks of holiness from that spot.” That means there’s a specific reason for every place that we end up. Nothing that happens is happenstance. Sometimes you get stuck in traffic and wonder, “What am I doing here?” Or you get stuck at some stop-over at an airport somewhere, wherever it may be. We don't know what our job is. We don't have the kabbalistic eyes to see that we're performing and accomplishing, wherever we may be. It says the Jewish people went through 42 Masa’ot/travels in the desert, and for each one, it says they traveled and camped as Hashem decided. Sometimes they'd stay in a place for a day, sometimes for a month, sometimes for week. They never knew when they were going to leave or how long they’d stay.
The Or HaChaim Hakaddosh explains that the reason this happened is because they had to accomplish something by being in that spot. And so too, for every spot you're in, you're there for a reason. Every interaction you have with a person is for a reason. The Gemara says, What does God do all day? And it says He's veMezaveg Zivugim/ He makes matches, which, on a simple level, means He makes marriages. But I once heard that He makes matches refers to the people that you're going to meet, who you sit next to on a plane or bus, or in whatever situation you happen to be in…it's all for a reason.
There's nothing that's not for a reason. We don't know what we’re fixing, what we’re, correcting, or what we’re connecting to. We have no idea. All we know is, Hamechin MisAdeh Gaver -God puts us where we're supposed to be. And again, having these thoughts gives us meaning and purpose, because if we don't believe that everything is prepared, predestined and set up for our perfection, then a lot of times, the question is, What am I doing here?
This brings to mind the story I have told in many forums, about Rav Yehezkiel Abramsky, a big Gadol and Sadik, who was sent to Siberia by the Russians for teaching Torah.
One morning, after waking up, he was about to say Modeh Ani, but he paused for a moment and wondered, “What am I saying Modeh Ani for? I don't have a Gemara. I don't have a Chumash. I don't have a Siddur. I get up every morning and chop wood. My hands are cracked and bleeding. What am I getting up in the morning for?”
And then he said to himself, “I say Modeh Ani that I can say Modeh Ani. I can recognize Hashem and I can say Thank You, even in these situations. That's what I'm saying thank you for. That's what I'm getting up for.”
Nobody wants to be in Siberia, but Rav Abramsky ended up there, so that's where he needed to be, obviously.
I once heard from Rabbi Ades that when Rav Shach eulogized Rav Abramsky, he said, “I'm not jealous of his books. He wrote books and I wrote books. What am I jealous of? I'm jealous of his years in Siberia.”
Only a great man could say that. Who wants to be in Siberia? but Rav Shach understood that if Rav Abramsky was sent there, he grew from that experience. He became great from that experience. That's something that we have to believe. That's meaning and purpose.
Rabbi Ades once said that when a man has mono and he's in bed for six months, what is he supposed to be doing? His answer is, “Stay in bed and do it as best as you can.” It's not always easy to understand, but that's why we need to have that Emunah/belief, to give us meaning and purpose, in whatever we're doing, wherever we are.
So, every single day take out the time to have kavana that, “SheAsa Li Kol Sorki/God made me with everything that I need to have to get to what I need to be.”
Rabbi Yisrael Salantar’s student once told him, “If I had Rabbi Salantar’s wonderful Middot, and had the great mind of the Shaagas Aryeh (who was a giant and Torah), and if I had the heart of the Yesod V’Shoresh Avodah (another great rabbi), then I could serve God properly.
And Rav Yisrael Salantar answered, “With your head and your heart and your Middot, you can become a great servant of God.”
That's the secret to happiness- coming to peace with who you are, coming to peace with yourself.
Have a wonderful day.