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Ddobh Chapter 17

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Jon Benton
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59 views2 pages

Ddobh Chapter 17

Uploaded by

Jon Benton
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The following is an excerpt from the new

“A Daily Dose of Bitachon”

17
written by Rabbi David Sutton

Don’t Be the Bank


Teller; Use Bitachon

L et us continue exploring the relationship between wealth and


bitachon:
If a person possesses an item but doesn’t have bitachon, he
doesn’t really own it. For example, imagine a man who is excited
about the great new phone he bought after plenty of research and
comparison shopping. He doesn’t think, “Hashem allowed me to
find a good deal,” but rather, “I really know how to make a wise
purchase.” Then, suddenly, the phone starts malfunctioning and
he is terribly upset. Why? Because without bitachon, a person can
purchase an item, but won’t be able to deal with disappointment.
Bitachon gives us a mature understanding of our assets.
The Chovos HaLevavos warns us that our money might only
be a deposit. Without bitachon, we are like a teller at a bank. We
can touch the money, but it is not ours.
When I was a child, my mother would send me to ShopRite.
I would pay the cashier and watch her at the register, where
she had piles of cash at her fingertips. I once came home
and told my mother I wanted to work in ShopRite as a
cashier. When my mother asked me why, I told her it was
because of the amount of money the cashier collected. Of
course, my mother pointed out that it’s not the cashier’s
money at all, that she was just handling it for the owners.

Don’t Be the Bank Teller; Use Bitachon n 71


That memory comes to mind when I think of what the Chovos
HaLevavos is teaching us. There are many people holding onto
money, but without bitachon, it’s just a deposit. They are being per-
mitted to handle it, but if they think it is theirs, they are deluding
themselves as much as the cashier would be deluding herself if she
looked into the register and said, “I’m rich!”
The Chovos HaLevavos bursts any illusion to the contrary,
telling us bluntly that we are just watching over it until it goes
to someone else who is supposed to have it.
With this stark warning, he is offering us a secret to success:
Whatever we have — a car, a watch, a house, a bank account — if
we want to enjoy it, and not just hold onto it for the next person, we
must find out how to enjoy it correctly.
How do we do so? When we rely on Hashem for an item and
say, “Hashem, I have a car, but I know it’s really Your car — please
allow me to use it,” we’re correctly understanding our possessions.
When we tell Hashem, “Thank you for my stomach that is digesting
my food,” we are ensuring that we will enjoy the food our money
has purchased.
Reliance on Hashem unleashes, for our benefit, all the potential
that’s already in our hands. Then we aren’t just guarding our wealth
for someone else.
.
PRACTICAL TAKE-AWAY
Remind yourself often to keep Hashem in the picture
when you earn money or buy something with your
earnings. Then you will merit keeping what He so
graciously puts in your hands.

72  n  A Daily Dose of Bitachon

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