A Test of Faith: The Car Won't Start - Why Now?!

Shimon, a manager who values order and punctuality, had one of his workers, Zebulun, show up late to work several times. Shimon, the manager, cautioned Zebulun, the worker, on multiple occasions, but the issue of tardiness persisted. Eventually, Shimon told Zebulun, 'Look, this can't continue. If you are late to work again, I have many replacements for your position...'

Zebulun heard the threat with fear and decided, that's it, from tomorrow, I'll ensure to be on time.

The next day, Zebulun woke up early, prayed, returned home, and quickly ate breakfast to avoid being late for work, leaving his house with ample time to arrive at his office punctually.

And then, as he goes to start the car, the car won't start... Zebulun is stressed, trying to check the problem from every direction, but to no avail. He starts to feel anxious and senses a conspiracy aiming to enrage him with anger and fury: Why now... Didn't the car find any other time to stop except now when I'm stressed and threatened to be fired from my job...

However, as a believer, Zebulun tells himself, I see that Hashem wishes to test whether I will accept this event with love and willingly. He leaves his car, stops his edgy efforts, hails a passing taxi, and reaches his workplace on time, blessed be Hashem.

This is the duty of a man of faith, not to fight with reality, as reality is determined by the decree of the Almighty. Don't insist on selfish desires; instead, yield your will to His will. Every act of restraint like this gives much pleasure to the Creator, and with this, one also achieves his purpose, as this is the man's goal—to embrace life events with love and willingly.

How often do we find that a person hurries to work, like in this case, or to an important meeting, perhaps related to a lucrative deal or purchasing a house or car. Should they be late, the deal could be lost since another might come in the meantime. And precisely then, there is traffic congestion, and movement is slow, and during such intense times, he needs to remain calm and believe whatever Hashem desires, so it shall be. I only make an effort; beyond that, it's not my duty, and I'll never lose because of it, for I can't be blamed as lazy or idle. Therefore, if despite all this the deal, meeting, and so on are canceled, this is the decree of the Almighty who truly seeks my good.

How often does it happen that a person is in a hurry, and at the moment of stress - suddenly loses a document or keys, precisely when the pressure is on, can't find a suitable outfit to leave now; the shirt is not ironed, or he discovers a stain on the suit that needs cleaning, a button is missing on the coat requiring a delay to sew it. All these are tests for a person, and Hashem tests the righteous, for surely the Creator could prevent this delay. And the keys, document, clothes could have been found, the car would start, etc. Couldn’t Hashem have made everything work out without a miracle, just naturally? Nonetheless, Hashem orchestrates these delays for a person, why? To make them suffer, Heaven forbid, or to anger them, Heaven forbid? Isn't Hashem good, "Good is Hashem to all and His mercy is over all His works"? Why then would Hashem cause factors that would upset them, when if another person did this to his friend, we would call him cruel? Could one suspect the Creator of cruelty upon His creations?

Rather, we have a problem; we're not clearly aware of our purpose in the world. We live in a world with a blurred recognition, resembling an envoy sent for a specific role, ignoring his task while spending his time in denial or at least neglecting his mission.

Our role in the world is not to fulfill our needs in this world. To fulfill our worldly needs, a holy, pure soul would not need to be immersed in a coarse, material body. Quite the contrary, our role in this world is how we react and deal with the lack of our worldly needs, and every lack of a person’s need in this world is a challenge to uplift and raise if he responds adequately according to faith. This is one of the reasons for the trials, as trials are mere tests to see how someone reacts to the disappointing event that has occurred. Will he accept it with a pleasant countenance, in accordance with his belief with full faith in the Creator's will for his benefit, or otherwise, will he view his lack of need angrily, with suspicion in Hashem's conduct? And one who stands firm in these tests, which are but mere illusions, is the true hero.

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The more possessions, the more anxiety, for the worry about possessions shortens one's life. However, worry for Torah, although it is a great concern, when thinking about law until one speaks clearly in its essence, such concern cannot harm him, even though naturalists say sorrow is a heart illness and worry is a weakness of the heart, yet worrying in Torah adds length of days and years of life, as Solomon said, (Proverbs 10:27) "Fear of Hashem increases days, and the years of the wicked shall be shortened." (Rabbenu Yonah Avot 2:7)

The article is taken from the book "Living with Faith." To purchase Rabbi Yaakov Yisrael Lugasi's book click here.