The Elder of Novardok uses his understanding of the two advantages of Bitachon (the byproducts of getting what you want, and the ultimate goal of what he calls the Bitachon approach) to explain a pasuk in Mishleh (13/25), which says:
צַדִּ֗יק אֹ֭כֵל לְשֹׂ֣בַע נַפְשׁ֑וֹ וּבֶ֖טֶן רְשָׁעִ֣ים תֶּחְסָֽר׃
The righteous man eats to the satisfaction of his soul, and the stomach of the wicked is lacking.
This means that the righteous person, when he has food, (or anything else) is not concerned about tomorrow’s worry, and therefore, he eats to his satiation. As for tomorrow, his bitachon approach will solve tomorrow’s questions, so he doesn’t worry about it today.
The Rasha, on the other hand, relies on his own efforts. His stomach is lacking, because he is concerned. He will not eat to satiation because he is worried about tomorrow. Furthermore, he will hoard from today until tomorrow, and his stomach will be lacking. The one who relies on Hashem is solid. He is not worried about tomorrow. He has the Bitachon approach. For him, all times are the same- just like Hashem prepared for him today, He will do so for tomorrow as well. He has nothing to worry about.
One of the students of the Elder of Novardok said that it’s laughable to see a child who holds his plate as if he’s afraid that his parents will take the food away form him. His parents are only interested in giving him. This is similar to the person who holds onto his assets or hoards, because he is afraid to use them, and he doesn’t realize how much Hashem wants to give him.
There’s a story that illustrates this, about the great Rav of Brisk:
At the beginning of World War II, the Brisker Rav (a grandson of Beis HaLevi), was in Warsaw. Each day, he would eat the food he had for that day; he would save nothing for the following day, fully relying that Hashem would provide for him then.
Two days before Yom Kippur, although he had his regular amount of bread, he ate only some of it, saving some for Erev Yom Kippur, when there is a mitzvah to eat. “One cannot rely on bitachon to fulfill a mitzvah” he reasoned.
On the morning of Erev Yom Kipur, a Warsaw baker knocked on the Brisker Rav’s door. He was concerned that Rav would not have what to eat before the fast, so he especially baked several rolls and cooked a pot of fish for him as well. However, the baker apologetically explained, as he rushed to bring these to the Rav, it all fell down and got ruined.
The Rav commented to his son that he realized that he was mistaken in saving food from the day before. “Had I not saved the small piece of bread,” he said, “the baker would not have dropped the food, and we would have had plenty of bread and much more!”
This story teaches us two lessons:
1- Don’t worry about tomorrow
2- Furthermore, your worry will actually cause you problems.
The Elder of Novardok backs this up with a story told in the Yerushalmi, Masechet Shabbat, chapter 6.
It says there was a Ger/convert who was an astrologist. One day he wanted to go on a trip but determined that it was not the right time to go- based on astrological signs, he saw that it would be a dangerous trip.
But then he had second thoughts. The whole reason he decided to join the Jewish nation was to be separate from these things. Jewish people don’t have to rely on signs and symbols and horoscopes.
As the pasuk says,
ואתה לא כן נתן לך ה׳ אלקיך
We don’t listen and follow these signs
He decided to take the trip.
Then, as he was on his journey, a ferocious animal came close to him, so he threw his donkey at the animal. The animal ate his donkey and walked away.
The Yerushalmi comments that he only fell into this dangerous situation because of his original worries. His original thoughts and concerns created the problem.
So why was he saved?
Because of the regrouping and refocusing he did on second thought. His reliance on Hashem is what saved him.
This is an important lesson. If a person relies on Hashem, and he’s solid, he’s not afraid of anything. He is not afraid of wild animals, he’s not afraid of wild viruses, he’s not afraid of anything. Another hidden lesson is something we’ve mentioned in the past: פַ֣חַד פָּ֭חַדְתִּי וַיֶּאֱתָיֵ֑נִי
I feared a fear and it came upon me.
Our fears are self- fulfilling prophecies. The stronger we are, and the more solid we are in our Bitachon, the more we will be able to say, “I have for today, tomorrow is tomorrow,” which is the Bitachon approach.
This is what we are trying to work on. Bezrat Hashem, we will reach that level, and realize that today , and every day comes with its blessings.
צַדִּ֗יק אֹ֭כֵל לְשֹׂ֣בַע נַפְשׁ֑וֹ
The Sadik is able to enjoy whatever he has, without any concerns about tomorrow. Have a wonderful day.