Parshas Behar/Bechukosai- Big Things Come In Small Packages

            In this week's Parsha, Hashem commands the Jewish people regarding the Shmitah year. Every seventh year, the land in Eretz Yisrael is to lie fallow and not to be worked or sown. The pasuk states that although the land shall not be harvested, "the land will give its fruit and you will eat your fill; you will dwell securely upon it. And if you will say: 'what will we eat in the seventh year? Behold! We will not sow and not gather our crops!' I will ordain my blessing for you in the sixth year and it will yield a crop sufficient for the three-year period." In other words, Hashem would triple the abundance of crops in the 6^th year so that it would last through the Shmitah year and the year after. Hashem had told Bnei Yisrael "don't worry, the land will still provide for you during the Shmitah year. I am your Father, I am not going to let you starve, so there is nothing to worry about!" Now obviously, Hashem only speaks the truth. Which brings us to our question- why would people still feel the need to ask "what will we eat" if Hashem had just told them that He will provide and they have NOTHING to worry about!?

            The Rav of my Shul once equated this type of questioning of Hashem to a husband coming home from Shul on Shabbos and asking his wife "is there going to be food for lunch?" What an insulting and chutzpadik thing to ask! That would be extremely insulting! She has been cooking yummy delicious food for years now. And now, out of the blue, you ask if there will be food!? Why the sudden doubt? On the same vein, Hashem had already done so much for Bnei Yisrael, going back to their time of slavery in Egypt. And now they question if they will have food??? Obviously, Hashem only has our best interest at heart.

            One possible answer is that the Shmitah year attested to our level of Emunah and Bitachon in Hashem. For those that did not question Hashem, they were zoche to the bigger miracle where the QUALITY of the food was tripled. If they previously needed 3 slices of bread to feel satiated after every meal, it would now only take one slice to feel satiated. The quantity of food remained the same, but Hashem performed the miracle that the same amount filled you up 3 times as much! It was a hidden, non-visual type of miracle, so it required a higher level of Emunah in Hashem. Not everyone could be on the level where they could believe that if they ate one bowl of cereal, it would really be the equivalent of three bowls. Some people just needed the visual. They needed to see the giant steak, not just the small slice of it. They were the ones who asked, "What will we eat in the seventh year? Behold! We will not sow and not gather our crops!" For those types of Yidden, that did not have this higher level of Emunah and needed more "hishtadlus," Hashem said He would physically multiply the actual produce in terms of its quantity.

            I heard the following mashal from my rebbe, Rav Eiseman, Shlita: Imagine if you were interested in purchasing a machine for listening to music. You know nothing about technology. You go to an electronics store and the sales rep tells you, "well you can buy one of these large obsolete 'boom boxes' which weigh about 50 pounds and are bulky and clumsy, and can only hold one CD at a time; or I can sell you this IPOD device which looks about the size of a box of matches and weighs less than one ounce. However, it can hold over 10,000 songs that you can carry in your pocket. Which one do you want?" Since you know nothing about electronics, you do not know what to say. However, you are cynical so you tell the man, "Oh, you can't fool me with that little silly toy called an IPOD. I can see from looking at that thing that it cannot possibly have as much music capacity as the big boom box where I can see the actual CD turning in the compartment. Please give me the big boom box; I need to have as much music capacity as possible." When we fail to notice that less is really more, when we fail to allow the small blessings of Hashem to be able to really satisfy us, we force Hashem to give us the big boom box, which unfortunately is not to our betterment. When Hashem blesses us with what we may initially think is small, it is, in truth, really all we need. A dear friend of mine once told me that the greatest bracha that he ever received from his Rebbe was that "whatever Hashem gives you should be (and is) your biggest bracha." We may think we know what is best for us, but we do not know. There may be times when we are convinced that we should take the boom box. Those are the times though, when we must recognize that the Salesman knows better.

            Rav Frand, Shlita, compares this idea of less is more to parents who give more attention to their disabled child than to the other children. Logically, one would think that the other children, who bring home good grades and bring a lot of nachas to their parents, should get the attention and get more reward. Obviously, this is not the case. It is the disabled child who gets the attention. Why? Because he/she is the one who really needs it. The other children maturely understand that their rewards will come- in Olam Haba. They don't need the physical, visual gratification, because less is more. No reward in this world can ever come remotely close to the reward that we will IY"H experience in Olam Haba. The two cannot even be spoken about in the same breath. Olam Haba is much greater! But we don't see Olam Haba now! It is hard to understand the great reward if there is no visual! To that, I answer simply- that is where Emunah and Bitachon come into play. How do you KNOW Olam Haba exists? You DON'T. But yet we toil in the Torah every day to greaten our portion in Olam Haba. Why? Because we BELIEVE. Believing may not necessarily mean seeing, but seeing is definitely NOT believing. If we just went after the visual in regards to our Avodas Hashem, we would be in big trouble.

            This is the lesson of the Shmitah year, but it is really applicable to our everyday lives. Everyday, we will be faced with dilemmas and questions. More often than not, we try to solve our problems in ways that we think are best. But how often do we stop for a moment and think to ourselves 'if this isn't coming to me so easily, maybe it really isn't the best thing for me. Hashem knows what is best better than I do.' Hishtadlus is certainly an important thing. But too much of even a good thing, is not necessarily good. Sometimes, less is more. Less Hishtadlus is more Emunah. A famous saying goes "If it ain't broke, then don't fix it." Any attempt to improve on a system that already works is pointless at best, and can even be detrimental. I venture to say the same thing regarding our faith in our Father. If it doesn't need Hishtadlus, then don't do it. Why ruin a good thing? I think it is safe to say that Hashem's original plan for all of us, His original bracha, is the best bracha we could ever ask for, even if we do not always see it right away, or at all for that matter. We say in davening "Rabos Machashavos B'Lev Ish, V'atzas Hashem- Hi Sakum! Atzas Hashem L'Olam Ta'amod Machshavos Libo L'Dor Vador" "Many thoughts and plans may go through the heart of man, but it is the guidance of Hashem that prevails. The counsel of Hashem will endure forever, the designs of His heart from generation to generation." I similar pasuk in Mishlei (16:9) states- "A man's heart will plot his way, and Hashem will set his steps aright." In Yiddish, the saying goes "Mentsch tracht, Gott lacht." Man plans and G-d laughs. So when in doubt, one can never go wrong in putting all his marbles, his trust, in Hashem. Why settle for the small miracles when Hashem has much bigger and better plans in store for you!? Anyway, what the shrek is a boom box?!