The Best Possible Outcome

To subscribe to the “Daily Chizuk” emunah message go to livingemunah.com or send a request to livingemunah123@gmail.com

————————————

The other day I was talking to man who suffered from anxiety attacks. At any given moment he would start worrying about different types of negative scenarios. He said that it was controlling his life. People have told him, "Have Emunah that everything will be okay." "But what if it's not?" he asks, "What if some of the things I worry about actually do happen?" In a similar vein, someone told me about a father who called for professional help on the night after his first son's Berit Milah. He was so worried about supporting his child in the future, he began abusing various medications to calm his nerves. Worry can ruin what are supposed to be the most joyous times in a person's life-a brand new baby, a first-time father.

Just a few weeks before, another young man approached me after having his first child. He was so overwhelmed with happiness and gratitude to Hashem. He asked me what can he do to always keep these feelings of being indebted to Hashem. Those are the feelings we are supposed to have.

How can we overcome these anxieties and enjoy life more? A person must know: While it is true that we are not guaranteed to always have the outcomes we desire,  there is still nothing to worry about. One thing is for sure, Hashem carefully plans out every single event. If He determines that a certain outcome should happen, that means it is the best possible outcome. There is nothing to fear, because we are in the best hands.

A person should not worry about losing his job. If he has a job, he should appreciate it. If Hashem ever decides that a person should lose his job, that is because He knows it is best for the person at that time not to have a job. This point cannot be stressed enough. People ask, "We hear so many stories with a happy ending. But what about all the times when there is not a happy ending? What are we supposed to be thinking then?" As hard as it is to understand, we should be thinking, "The best possible outcome did happen, because Hashem only does what is best."

We are never subject to happenstance. If we do have to go through a painful situation, it is because Hashem determined that it was necessary. He also determined how long it will last and when it's best to stop.

Someone told me that last year a man who lives in New Jersey for the Summer, slept one night in his Brooklyn apartment. He lives in a small building shared by only three families. The next morning someone picked him up to go to work, but as he was leaving the building, something didn't feel quite right. After driving a few blocks, he asked his driver to please go back, saying "I have a very uneasy feeling." When he returned, he looked around and suddenly he heard a voice yelling from the elevator. His neighbor was stuck in the elevator with no cellphone and no one else in the building. Baruch Hashem, he called for help and the neighbor was brought to safely.

It is a very scary situation for a person to be stuck in an elevator alone in an empty building. But he was not alone! Hashem was with him the entire time. For reasons we cannot fathom, Hashem wanted that man to be stuck in that elevator for a certain amount of time. But when the time came for him to come out, Hashem made sure to get him out by giving his neighbor that uneasy feeling.

Rabbi Pinson, the director of Chabad in Nice, said that they are currently running a summer camp for children. On that night of terror, July 14th, four counselors from his camp were watching the fireworks. Minutes before that driver began his deadly journey, all four counselors were in harm's way. Suddenly, one counselor suggested that they all cross the street, so they did. As they walked over, the truck started driving, and everyone who stood where they had been was killed. Baruch Hashem, they were all fine. We don't understand why some people had to die and others were saved. But we do know that Hashem was there, and He is always controlling everything.

Someone who knows how loving and caring Hashem is never has anything to worry about.

Join the thousands of people benefiting from Rabbi David Ashear’s Daily Emunah emails. To sign up visit Rabbi Ashear’s site at DailyEmunah.com. You’ll receive a short “emunah boost” in your inbox every weekday. Daily Emunah is brought to you by Yeshiva Ateres Shimon of Far Rockaway, NY in conjunction with YAD YOSEF Torah center of Ave. J (Brooklyn, NY).