An Envelope, a Prayer, and an Answer from Above

I Opened the Envelope and My Eyes Filled with Tears

“I never imagined it would turn out this way,” Yaakov says quietly. “In all my years, I’d never received even a quarter of this amount from a student.”

Yaakov, a father from the Stamford Hill neighborhood in London, shared his moving story in the Hashgacha Pratit bulletin. It began with a joyous but overwhelming moment: he had received three shidduch (matchmaking) proposals for his daughter—and didn’t know which one to choose.

But alongside the excitement came a burden. “As I pictured the moment we’d drink l’chaim to celebrate the match, I couldn’t stop thinking about the shadchanus (matchmaker’s) fee,” he explains. “I didn’t know how I’d pay it. And I really didn’t want to borrow money.”

Yaakov lives simply. “We’ve always managed with what we have,” he says. “When there’s money, we buy what we need. When there isn’t, we manage with less. That’s how we’ve raised our family. I do what I can to earn a living, and we trust that Hashem takes care of the rest.”

But this time felt different. “The pressure was new. I didn’t recognize this feeling. It surprised me. Where had all those verses of trust gone? Where was the confidence I usually had in Hashem?”

So Yaakov turned to prayer.

During the daily Amidah prayer, in the blessing “You grant wisdom”, he poured out his heart. “I didn’t just ask for help choosing the right match. I asked Hashem to help me step aside and let Him lead the way—to remind me that He’s the one guiding it all.”

And then he added a second, quieter plea: “Please give me the wisdom to know how much effort I need to make to get the money for the shadchanus—and how much I need to simply let go and trust You.”

Days passed, and the picture became clearer. The right match stood out. Hashem had guided them to it.

As the engagement celebration approached, another wave of worry came over Yaakov. He knew the matchmaker would be at the party. Still without the money, he once again turned to Hashem with the same prayer: “Please, I want to have confidence. I don’t want to borrow. Let me feel that I’m trusting You.”

Then, he added something even more personal: “Master of the Universe, take whatever little confidence I do have and accept it as if it were complete. I’m doing my best.”

The night of the celebration came. And then—something unexpected.

“I was handed an envelope,” Yaakov recalls. “I opened it—and I was stunned. Inside was 2,000 euros. I had never received anything like it. Not even close.”

Tears welled in his eyes. He didn’t know who had sent it, or why. But in that moment, he understood: Hashem had heard even his smallest whisper of trust.