We will now discuss the first thing that can possibly ruin our Bitachon.
The Hovot Halevavot, as we know, is a systematic book. Everything is very organized, broken into topics or “gates” and set up in a certain system. Shaar Bitachon, which we have been studying, is the fourth gate of ten. The first gate, Shaar HaYihud (Recognizing that G-d is One) , is somewhat philosophical, so most people start from the second gate, Shaar HaBehina, ( the Gate of Finding G-d in Creation).This was Rabbi Miller’s life’s work, learning and seeing plan and purpose in everything. After you get through Shaar HaBehina, and learn to recognize G-d in creation, you go on to the third gate, Shaar Avodat Elokim (Service of G-d), because the whole purpose of finding G-d, and realizing His wisdom and concern for us, is to eventually serve Him.
Then we get to our chapter, Shaar HaBitachon, which talks about Bitachon, because you can’t serve G-d without relying on Him.
So, if this is the case, and we don’t have the previous introductions clear then, as he says, our Bitachon might be weak. We can only get to Bitachon if we have Shaar HaBehina, ( the Gate of Finding G-d in Creation).
Unlike a typical ladder, where once you get to rung three, you don’t need the first two rungs in order to climb, your “Service of G-d” ladder needs all the levels below. You can’t forget about step one even when you’re on step three. That’s why Rabbi Ades says a better mashal would be to think of it as baking a cake, where all previous ingredients are necessary for the outcome.
So, we have to go back to Shaar HaBehina to find out what causes us not to have a feeling for G-d and a relationship with Him.
There are reasons that we aren’t waking up every day, and dancing in our beds before we get dressed. That’s what we really should be doing.
If someone won a lottery or just had twins after not having children for twenty years, they’d wake up and dance on their beds. Why aren’t we?
To quote the Hovot Halevavot in his introduction to Shaar HaBehinah “G-d’s goodness is to all creatures. We all have G-d’s goodness, as the pasuk says, טוב ה׳ לכל - G-d is good to all. Yet, most people are blind to this, and don’t recognize, or delve into the beautiful things that G-d gave us.
What is the problem?
The first reason for this is that we are so busy chasing after worldly pleasures, and focusing on what we don’t have, rather than on what we do have. We’re always onto the next thing, looking for what’s next.
You bought a house? Now you need a summer house. Have a summer house? Now you need an apartment in Florida! We are always onto the next thing, so we don’t see what we have.
The second reason we aren’t dancing on our beds is that we come into this world as children, with nothing, but by the time we become adults, all that we have becomes habit. We don’t get excited about it anymore.
Yesterday’s luxuries become today’s necessities. I remember as a child, when we got our first car that had power windows. We were so excited! We felt like the wealthiest people on the block. All we had to do was press up or down! We had power windows!
Well, who cares about power windows these days? We don’t get excited about them, and we don’t get excited about anything. Not about our eyes, our ears, our wives or husbands, parents or children. We have them our whole lives and we are used to them.
The third reason we aren’t dancing in our beds is because maybe we are over fifty and our knees hurt- Which is to say that things don’t always going our way, so we aren’t happy.
We don’t appreciate the benefit of when things don’t go right.
Let us recap ,we aren’t dancing on our beds every day because
1-we want the next thing,
2- we are too used to what we have, and
3-things don’t always go right.
This is one reason our relationship with Hashem is not the way it’s supposed to be. Because we don’t feel His goodness, it’s hard to rely on Him.
That is the first our lacking that will prevent our Bitachon.