8 Billion Messengers
There are times when a person finds himself in a tough situation and doesn't see any way of getting out of it. In the past, he had someone to turn to for help but now that person is no longer around. The Maggid of Dubno gives a mashal that can give us chizuk for these types of situations. He said a poor man has to take care of all of his own needs, whether it is cooking, cleaning, or any other type of household chore; he’s the one who has to get it done. A rich man, however, doesn’t involve himself with these types of chores because he has hired help to take care of them. When mealtime arrives, his housekeeper sets the table, when it is over, she cleans it up. She does the laundry, the vacuuming, and so on. But even better than a wealthy man is a king. He doesn’t just have hired help, he has a different person for every single task that needs to get done, one person’s a chef, the other is a butler, one’s in charge of his stables, one’s in charge of cleaning, and the list goes on. But even better than a king is the מלך מלכי המלכים הקב"ה ! Hashem has every single person in this world working for Him, and if we ever need help, all He has to do is use one of the 8 billion people on this planet who are at His disposal, and give it to us through them. We should never feel helpless because someone who used to help us is nothing more than just one of the 8 billion people. A woman told me her brother excelled in the mitzvah of kibud av v’em. He took care of his father day and night until his father passed away. In the past, when this man had a big expense, like the wedding of a child, his father’s good friend would always give him $5000 to help. Recently, this man was making a wedding, but now that his father was gone, there was no more connection to that friend any more and he didn’t have any other source of help for the money he needed so badly. When someone has been counting on a certain source for help and that source is no longer available, the person usually feels a sense of hopelessness. This man, however, knew that his real source of help was, is, and will always be Hashem and therefore he channeled his energy towards asking Him for help. A different, much younger, man named Shalom Hyman, who was very fond of this man’s father, found out that this man needed help for his wedding. Shalom, on his own, approached him and handed him an envelope with $7500 in it to help him with the wedding. Shalom is an entertainer, especially for children, who brings smiles to people’s faces at parties and events. And when he gave this man the money, he brought the biggest smile to his face. The woman telling this story felt that it was so clear. Her brother took such good care of her father while he was alive and now, from the Olam HaEmet , her father was involved, sending someone else to come and help him. Of course we know the real source of help was our Father in Shamayim who is always the one who helps. We never have to feel desperate or that we have no one to help us because at all times, in all places, Hashem is available to help.