The Moment I Turned to Torah, Everything Began to Change

“I work independently in deliveries—not the easiest job,” begins this heartfelt story, originally shared in the book Compiled Miracle Stories – And You Chose Life. “About a year ago, I took on several delivery routes under a contractor. The deal seemed good, so I rented refrigerated trucks and hired drivers. With Siyata Dishmaya—help from Heaven—I set out, hopeful everything would go smoothly.”

But things didn’t go smoothly at all. “By the second month, the contractor began delaying payments. He owed me about 70,000 shekels and promised it would arrive in a few days. I wanted to back out, but he pleaded, and I agreed to stay in. Then came the third month—I was paying drivers, fuel, taxes, and VAT out of pocket. After three and a half months, I was 170,000 shekels in debt. The downward spiral felt unstoppable.”

His brother stepped in to help and tried to take out a mortgage loan for 120,000 shekels. “Even that hit a wall. It didn’t move forward. I was exhausted, overwhelmed, and completely stuck.”

At the height of this crisis, he met a close friend—a Torah scholar—and shared his situation. The friend looked at him and said with quiet conviction: “If you truly want to see salvation, start learning the weekly Torah portion with the Or HaChaim’s commentary.” (Or HaChaim refers to Rabbi Chaim ben Atar, a great Moroccan Torah sage whose commentary is deeply spiritual and uplifting.)

“I brushed him off. ‘Leave it,’ I said. ‘I’m not up for it.’ I couldn’t even think straight.”

But a month later, while spending Shabbat in Jerusalem with his brother and that same friend, something shifted. Right after Shabbat, they drove together to the resting place of the Or HaChaim on the Mount of Olives. Standing there, his friend shared a teaching from the Or HaChaim: when someone brings the words of a righteous person into the world by learning their Torah, that tzaddik (righteous one) returns the favor from Heaven. “I was so moved. I leaned over the grave and quietly promised—without making a vow—that every Friday I would learn the Or HaChaim’s commentary with my friend. I begged Hashem to help me.”

Then came Sunday. “I got a call from my brother. He was shouting into the phone, ‘You won’t believe it! I went to the bank on a different matter and decided to ask about the mortgage. They said the person handling it was on vacation. I sighed and said, ‘Too bad.’ But the clerk asked for my ID anyway and checked the system. After a few minutes, he looked up and said: ‘Your mortgage was approved—today!’”

The timing was so exact, it gave them chills. “You committed to learning his Torah,” his brother said, “and the approval came that very day.”

Even more striking: “The whole mortgage process moved forward in sync with my weekly learning. One week, my study partner was abroad. He thought I wouldn’t study alone. But I pushed myself and did it anyway. That Sunday, my brother called to say half the mortgage was approved—and the other half would come two weeks later.”

But beyond the financial help, something deeper had changed. “The real gift was the Torah itself—learning the Or HaChaim. It lit something inside me. And then, after a year of struggle, the contractor paid me back—every last shekel. It took time, but Hashem didn’t forget. I’m telling you, it’s worth it. Study the Or HaChaim—you’ll see for yourself.”

Rabbi Chaim ben Atar, known as the Or HaChaim, was a Moroccan Torah scholar who moved to Jerusalem and passed away at age 47, less than a year after arriving. He’s buried on the Mount of Olives, and the Baal Shem Tov, the founder of Chassidut, once said he was a spark of the soul of the Mashiach. His teachings continue to bring light to those who seek it—with open hearts and a little bit of faith.