Direct Delivery
Shortly before I was scheduled to fly from The States back to France, a poverty-stricken Jew approached me. He asked that I bless him with livelihood. Of course, I blessed him from the bottom of my heart, in the merit of my forefathers. But afterward, the man insisted that I bless him to find sustenance before the upcoming Shabbat.
At this request, I immediately handed him money to supply Shabbat provisions for himself and his family. But he declined my generous offer. “I am not interested in the Rav’s money,” he averred. “I want my sustenance to come from the Creator, and no other.”
I took back my money and blessed him that Hashem should send him his needs by the coming Shabbat.
A short while later, I left my house to travel to the airport. As I made my way to the waiting car, I was met by an unfamiliar man who was holding an envelope of money. He said the envelope was earmarked for a destitute man who did not have the means to buy provisions for Shabbat. He himself knew of no one who fit the bill. Therefore, he asked if I would be kind enough to direct him to such a person.
I turned on my heel, and directed him to the local Beit Hakeneset. I pointed out the man who had previously asked for a blessing for Shabbat provisions. This man had cast his burden upon Hashem and was now immersed in the recital of Tehillim. The envelope exchanged hands, much to the delight of both parties.
When I noticed the pauper’s joy at receiving the envelope, I could not contain my curiosity. “Why did you refuse to accept my donation,” I began, “while you take the envelope from this man with apparent joy? Isn’t this also a form of charity?”
But the man had a ready reply. “The money in the envelope came to me through Divine intervention. The donor has no idea who I am, and that I am in dire need of immediate funds. He was only Hashem’s agent to transfer the money to me. In contrast, the Rav wanted to give me money from his own pocket, when all I had asked for was a blessing for siyata di’Shemaya.”
There is no doubt that this is true reliance on Hashem. Only in the merit of trusting that Hashem would not forsake him did this man merit having his wishes filled in an honorable way, feeling that the money came straight from Hashem.
