Parnasa with Emunah

Living Emunah By Rabbi David Ashear

Parnasa comes from Hashem. Those who know that are much calmer when it comes to earning a livelihood. A man said he contacted a well-known photographer regarding the possibility of having him take the pictures at his daughter's wedding. At the end of the conversation, the man said he would think about it and get back to him. The photographer replied with the following words, "No problem. I'll wait until I get a final answer from you. But at this point, I won't be able to reserve the date. But you should know, it doesn't make a difference. If Hashem decided I should be your photographer, it'll work out. And if not, it won't." The man then said to the photographer, "It sounds like you have a lot of emunah. That must be why you're so successful." The photographer proceeded to tell him stories that showed how clear it was that Hashem decided his parnasa. Another man said he attended a siyum and was very inspired to want to finish a masechet himself. He was very busy at work and didn't know how he would fit it in. He spoke to a couple of people and they found a rabbi who wanted to teach them every day in the office from 2 to 2:45. He started the class but was a little concerned that it may affect his earnings. A very short time later, someone called him with a business offer that would enable him to earn a much higher salary with less hours. He saw how quickly Hashem could give him parnasa, and he felt that his push to learn was what gave him the zechut for it. A woman said her husband works for a certain yeshiva and last year he was offered a similar position at a different yeshiva. This yeshiva was offering a higher salary but required him to travel a little more. They were not sure if he should accept it. They said to each other, Hashem is in charge of parnasa, and they prayed that He should lead them in the path that He wanted them to take. They prayed very hard and then asked their rabbi what to do. He told them they should take the new job. This year, unfortunately, that first yeshiva had to close down. The woman said, "Hashem didn't want my husband to be out of a job even for one day. He arranged for him to get that other job and take it before anything happened with the first yeshiva." She was so thankful, especially, to see the loving hand of Hashem in their lives. Another man from Israel said he was experiencing real financial difficulty. He didn't know where he would get the next shekel. He prayed everyday for a yeshuah. He had heard stories of people suddenly getting repaid just when they needed it for things they had done years before. But he knew he wasn't owed any money from anyone. But he also knew Hashem could bring his salvation in a way he could never imagine. One day, he got a call from an organization for tutors saying that last year his brother was learning with one of their tutors and this year they mistakenly kept taking money from his parents' account, even though his brother was no longer there. They just realized the error and were calling to see if his parents perhaps wanted to donate the money or whether they wanted it back. He asked them why they were calling him, and they said his was the only number they had on file. He called his parents to tell them, and that gave him the opening to tell them that he could really use the money. They had no idea about his financial situation and told him to tell the organization to give him the money. It was exactly what he currently needed. A couple of weeks later his parents told him their neighbors wanted to sponsor tuition for the children of a family who needed assistance. She told them about him and they were happy to pay. Just like that Hashem took him out of his financial crisis. Hashem can bring parnasa in unlimited ways. If we could internalize this, we'll be calmer and we'll pray with the proper emunah.