The Puppeteer Pulls the Strings
I was once in desperate need of a large amount of money, in order to purchase a temporary building for our institutions in Eretz Yisrael, until the permanent building in Ashdod was completed. I arranged a meeting with two philanthropists in chutz la’aretz for this purpose.
I was distressed to discover that the men never showed up at our meeting at the time we had made up. As more time passed, I realized that the meeting would not happen. Obviously, they were not meant to be the angels of deliverance.
This brought to mind the pasuk that Father, zy”a, constantly quoted (Yirmeyahu 17:5), “Accursed is the man who trusts in people.”
I immediately realized where I had gone wrong. I had placed all my hope in these individuals, leaving no room in my heart for hope in Hashem. This was my punishment for lack of trust in Him. I did complete teshuvah and resolved to trust solely in Him for my deliverance.
I turned to go to the airport as I had no further business there.
As I retraced my steps, who should hurry toward me, but these two philanthropists! They apologized profusely for completely forgetting about our meeting. They had just remembered it a short while ago, and rushed to the place we had arranged.
They confided in me that they had a certain business problem. They felt that the merit of assisting in a worthy cause would extricate them from their difficulty. I relayed to them our financial worries and stated that I needed a contribution, to the tune of one hundred thousand dollars. Without delay, they promised this amount. Now I was able to leave with a calm spirit, thanking Hashem for His great kindnesses to me.
It is not worthwhile placing one’s trust in human beings. They are not capable of helping whatsoever. What are people, after all? Merely Hashem’s messengers. They are puppets who do His bidding. Isn’t it wiser to trust in Hashem, the Puppeteer? Then He will fill our needs, pulling the strings so that His puppets act upon His command.
