A woman once phoned me and bitterly related that her husband had left the ways of Hashem and no longer followed the path of Torah. They had been married for many years and merited raising a family in affluence, honor, and ease. Instead of thanking Hashem for his good fortune by observing mitzvot with an expansive heart, her husband chose to move farther and farther away from his Creator.
I was very pained by her words. I thought that if I had a tête-à-tête with her husband, I might be able to influence him positively. I asked her to tell her husband to come to see me, as I had something important to tell him. The woman had her reservations regarding this meeting, but Hashem helped her out in her altruistic mission.
That night, the man could not sleep. Suddenly, he fell into a deep slumber. In his dream, he saw me yelling at him, “Why have you left the path of Torah and betrayed your G-d?! How dare you violate the Torah’s mitzvot! Aren’t you ashamed of your ways?!” I struck him soundly for his wickedness. Then he woke up.
The next morning, he confided his frightful dream to his wife. She wisely suggested he see me to discuss it.
When he came to me, I confirmed his dream by roundly rebuking him. I attempted to encourage him to mend his ways. Finally, he accepted my words and averred never to return to his foolishness. Bisiyata di’Shemaya, he has since made strides in his path to Hashem.
