You look like the loser, because you
gave in to the other side. The truth is that in desiring to preserve the peace,
you did Hashem's will – you're the winner…
My esteemed teacher, the monumental tzaddik Rabbi
Yehuda Zev Leibowitz of saintly and blessed memory, said that in order to
safely weather the difficult times that precede the coming of Moshiach, a
person must be careful to observe the mitzvoth between human and fellow human.
Particularly, he said that we must give in to one another. When does a person
"give in"? "Giving in" means avoiding an argument when your
opinion is the correct one. If you're wrong in the first place, that's not
called "giving in". Sure, you are justified. The other party insulted
you. The other party acted cruelly toward you. The other party was
inconsiderate and selfish. You have every right to react strongly and
retaliate, but you don't for the sake of peace. You want to avoid strife and
arguments. On the short term, it looks like you're the loser, even foolish, but
that's arrogance talking. The truth is that in desiring to preserve the peace
and to avoid arguments, you are acting according to Hashem's will. Therefore,
Hashem will save you from the birth pangs of Moshiach. Even if you're
surrounded by World War III, you'll emerge unscathed. That's the power of
giving in, being soft like a reed rather than rigid as a cedar. Reeds weather
strong winds by bending, but the same strong winds can break a cedar tree.
We must
have mercy on each other. When we do, Hashem has mercy on us. A person with
emuna is never cruel toward others. He harbors no hate in his heart, nor does
he ever seek revenge against those who hurt him. Why? He knows that everything
comes from Hashem and that anyone who does him harm is a mere stick in Hashem's
hands. In these difficult times, we all must strengthen ourselves in emuna so
that we can always have mercy and each other and to avoid strife among
ourselves at all costs. We need emuna to truly live in peace and harmony with
one another.
We must
never wait until the Heavenly Court judges us. Rebbe Nachman teaches that we
must judge ourselves before the Heavenly Court judges us. We must live in a
law-abiding society both collectively and personally. On an individual basis,
this means that we must adhere to the laws of the Torah. When a person
transgresses Torah, it means that he or she has violated the law. Their
individual society is rendered lawless so in order to function properly, it
must be rectified. One's rectification of violating the law is simple – by
daily self-assessment, we judge ourselves and ask forgiveness for whatever we
did that was wrong. This is so effective, because when we judge ourselves, the
Heavenly Court cannot judge us. So, with daily assessment, Hashem in His
infinite mercy judges us, rather than the Heavenly Court, which is exacting and
stringent in upholding justice. With Hashem, a person is always forgiven, but
with the Heavenly Court, a person is almost always guilty. That's why Rebbe
Nachman so urges us to judge ourselves daily.
If judging
ourselves is so wonderful, then why doesn't everyone do it? The reason is that
when people have difficulties in life, and things don't go according to their
plan, they think that Hashem is acting unjust with them. Instead of judging
themselves, they judge Hashem. A person harbors such a thought because he or
she lacks the simple emuna that everything Hashem does is for the very best. If
a person would believe that everything Hashem does is for the very best, every
single minute of the day, he wouldn't harbor any negative thoughts about
Hashem. Those negative thoughts constitute a breakdown of one's personal
judgment system, because they're not true. King David, despite all his trials
and tribulations in life, nonetheless declares in Psalm 92, "Hashem is
just, my Rock in Whom there is no wrong."
People
have difficulty overcoming their bad habits and bodily urges. They also have
difficulties overcoming the fantasies that embed themselves in their minds,
such as the fantasy that Hashem is unjust with them, or doesn't treat them
fairly, Heaven forbid. People ask, "How can I serve Hashem, when He
doesn't give me a decent income? It's impossible to serve Hashem under such
circumstances." Such people think that Hashem is acting unfairly or
unjustly toward them. This is not only false, but it's a gross lack of emuna
that triggers troubles in life. Why? Nothing invokes stern judgments like a
lack of emuna. When a person reacts to a difficulty in life without emuna, the
situation becomes even more difficult. In this case, the lack of emuna means
that the individual thinks that Hashem is not fair with him, that Hashem is
unjust. Such an attitude triggers immediate accusations in the Heavenly Court,
which says, "You think Hashem is unjust? Fine, let's examine your file and
see what you really deserve." Once the Heavenly Court opens a person's
file, the Heavenly prosecutors discover all types of offenses that Hashem in
His mercy hadn't punished the person for. The court discovers that Hashem has
actually been lenient with the person, and that the person doesn't deserve the
lenience and loving-kindness that Hashem has been giving him. That's when the
trouble starts.
Hashem is
always good and merciful. To think otherwise is a perversion of justice. Even
when life is difficult, we shouldn't budge from our emuna that Hashem is doing
everything for our ultimate good. As soon as we remind ourselves that Hashem
loves each of us and is doing everything for the very best, we not only
encourage ourselves and give ourselves the strength to withstand whatever
challenge in life that is facing us, but we can thank Hashem for the seemingly
bad as well as for the good. Even more so, we can sing a song of thanks to
Hashem, and then we see the gates of salvations open wide before our very eyes.
Why? Nothing invokes such Divine compassion and miracles like songs of thanks,
especially in the face of difficult challenges, for when a person expresses
gratitude under stress, this is the greatest expression of emuna that can be.
