Learning to Trust- Bitachon

By Moshe Reuven Sheradsky

4 of 10 Steps

1) Trust versus Faith

In the works of Kabbalah there is a fundamental, while simultaneously, game changing, difference between the Hebrew word, “Bitachon” (meaning Trust) and the Hebrew word, “Emunah” (meaning Faith).

In short, faith begins and ends in the mind, trust digs deep into one’s actions.

One can have faith that the One running the show, is a good G-d, cares about you, loves you, only wants good in the world, while, subsequently lives completely contrary to such thoughts. Doesn’t live a life that bespeaks that there is a Creator that is conscious of life’s content. Doesn’t show that they know things are going in a good direction in life, or even believe it slightly, or even worse, doesn’t hope it to be the case.

How do you see that? They may cheat to get ahead because they don’t believe that G-d gave them the tools, opportunities and abilities to make an honest living. They may never open their schedules to having enough time for what G-d asks and expects of them. When things get difficult, they delve into their desires to escape the difficulties, instead of holding on to living a true and pure lifestyle.

Now, this isn’t always so black and white. Sometimes, it’s very subtle with a person. Only arising every so often and in a very unassuming manner. Sometimes it is limited to a very particular scenario, like, “I trust You G-d, I know you really have my back… but if I have to go there, and this and this happens to me. That’s too much! I can’t go there! I’m not made to handle that! How You have things now are fine!”

It’s different for every individual, in their particular way, in their unique state and place they find themselves. We all have these struggles in our own way.

Yet, this is the difference between faith and trust. This is the difference between, “if I fall backwards, I know you’re a good guy and you won’t drop me.”.. and actually falling backwards.

This difference changes our lives, because many people are too shackled by doubts, negativity and fear to fully live and experience life and the potential within them. Yet, if you’re able to walk a journey with G-d, a journey of real trust, and not just philosophical, rainbow and blue sky, faith, you can turn life into that rainbow and blue sky reality. You can transcend circumstances, perceived limitations and walls. You can unlock the inner powers and talents that lay dormant deep inside your soul.

2) Nature vs Above nature

An important aspect of developing trust, is to understand how the physical world’s nature is in relevance to its Creator. The physical world and the supernatural world, in a sense, are both the same to G-d. They both are a creation of His that He has to constantly force into existence. With that being said, if everything is created and exists from and within its Creator, than nothing in the entire universe, happens without first being okay’d by its Creator. The space and time that it is happening in, is all part of its Creator. It’s actively being created by its Creator. Therefore, there is nothing that happens that is not meant to happen. Everything that happens is divine providence.

There’s a story of the Baal Shem Tov, who, when walking through a forest with his students, told one of them to pick up a leaf that had fallen from a nearby tree. The student realized the moisture on the leaf was hydrating a dried caterpillar. The Baal Shem Tov said, “If it was meant to be that this small leaf had to fall in order to save this tiny bug’s life, how much more so is everything meant to be, even the tiniest details of your life?”

3) The Nature of Good is to do Good

The first part of this step, is a person has to truly believe that G-d runs the world. If a person doesn’t believe that, the rest of what I have to say won’t really bring a tangible effect into the way you view things. That’s why I prefaced with step 2.

Now, being that G-d runs the world, there’s a line in the talmud that states, “Everything that comes from G-d’s mouth is a blessing.” Meaning everything He creates at every moment is a blessing. Every happening in time, is a blessing. The simple fact of the matter, is that G-d is good. What’s the nature of something that is good? It wants to do good. Even more specifically, it wants to do good by your definition of the word “good”, not just its definition. So too by G-d.

G-d is good, therefore G-d wants to do good, not just good by His definition of good, but good by your definition of good.

This is commonly the more difficult aspect to really believe. Some people can’t believe that G-d’s good that He wants to give is going to have anything to do with their good. That is why it’s so hard for them to trust in G-d even though they believe in Him. Such a person, knows there’s a G-d, knows He is good, knows everything He does is good by His definition of the word good. Yet, because that may have nothing to do with what they understand what good is in life, they can’t align their lifestyles with G-d, because ultimately they think He doesn’t really care about what they care about. Yet, this isn’t entirely what we mean when we say His nature is to do good. G-d wants a relationship with His creation. He wants to do good by His creations’ definition of it, because giving is in terms of the recipient. True giving doesn’t have to do with the giver, it has to do with the receiver and what the receiver appreciates. Therefore, we can say that G-d wants to do good by us, regardless of if we are worthy of it or not, regardless if we have done wrong or right in life, G-d wants to do good because G-d is good.

4) Trust Brings About The Desired Result

So are we done? Is it really that simple? G-d wants to do good, end of story? So if that’s the case, what did i really take away from this? Additionally, why did this one thing happen that one time and why do I find myself in this situation, or I did find myself in that situation? If G-d is good, then why don’t I always see it?

Now, (in regards to why bad things happen in life, that will be covered in the full 10 steps of bitachon but is not for this specific article) there is work on our part that we must do to continually manifest this good into our lives. What’s that work? It’s trust. Trust creates a channel for the good G-d wants to constantly give to us, to flow through. When we lack in our trust, we cause blockages in that channel. Kind of like when a Quarterback throws a pass to his Wide Receiver, he leads him a certain amount on the pass, meaning he throws it a certain amount of yards in front of the receiver. This is so that by the time the ball meets the receiver the receiver will be where the pass was headed to. Imagine if the Receiver just stopped and said, “Hey, the Quarterback threw it too far.” Well duh He threw it to where you were going, not to where you are now. So too by HaShem. We may or may not see the ball, we may not see the quarterback, but He tells us, “I’m constantly throwing you perfectly placed passes. Just trust in Me, keep on going, and keep doing your part in the matter.”

Posted on https://www.thriveglobal.com/stories/32569-live-kabbalah-learning-to-trust

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