If the means are available to us and we are able to carry out the work of service which we had previously chosen, we will receive bounteous reward for having chosen God's service, for having intended to discharge it, and for having carried out its act with our external limbs. And if our limbs are unable to carry out the acts, we will receive a reward for having chosen and intended to do them, as we mentioned earlier. The same is true in regard to punishment for transgression, whether committed or only intended. In secular affairs it has not been revealed to us which means are better or worse than other means or which are harmful or not harmful, for we do not know which profession is best for us and more worthwhile for securing a livelihood, preserving health and for general well being, nor do we know which business venture, journey or other worldly pursuit will succeed when we try them. It therefore follows that both in making a choice and implementing it, we must turn to GD that H...

The Baal Shem Tov says that one of the reasons why people's prayers are not accepted is that they only pray for sorrow to be removed from them, and they do not contemplate that the one who brings sorrow upon them is their loving Father, and He does this only to awaken them to call to Him: "I heard a parable from the Baal Shem Tov of blessed memory: When suffering comes to a person, let him think of this parable: A father who has a small son changes his clothes in order to frighten his son and instill fear in him.  When the son knows and understands that it is his father, and calls to him 'my father,' He becomes filled with mercy for him, removes his strange clothes, shows himself before his son, and removes the sorrow. And so it is with a person - when some sorrow comes to him, GD forbid, if he understands in his mind that there is nothing besides Him, blessed be His name, and He is frightening him with this sorrow to see if he will have the knowledge to call to GD, ...

  On the 15th of Tammuz falls the 282nd anniversary of the passing of our Rabbi Chaim ben Attar, author of the "Or HaChaim" commentary on the Torah. Please receive a little about his holy figure: 1. Rabbi Chaim ben Attar, known as the "Or HaChaim" after his Torah commentary, was born in Morocco and immigrated to Jerusalem. He passed away at age 47, less than a year after immigrating to Jerusalem, and is buried on the Mount of Olives. 2. The "Or HaChaim" earned the title "holy." In addition to him, the Alshich and the Shelah are also called by this title. The words of the Baal Shem Tov are well known, who said that the "Or HaChaim" is a spark from the soul of the Mashiach. 3. There are countless stories of miracles that occurred to Jews who prayed at his grave and committed to study his Torah commentary. One of the famous miracle stories concerns the Gaon Rabbi Hillel Schlesinger, who was childless for many years. One of the specialist d...

 If a person relies on GD in the very choice of serving Him and says, " I will neither choose nor resolve to do anything in the service of the Creator until He chooses for me what is best," he strays from the straight path and deviates from the right way. For the Creator may He be exalted has already commanded us to choose the performance of His service and to direct our intent toward it with vigor, resolve, and whole heart for the sake of His great Name, and he has instructed us that his is the right way  for us in this world and  the next 

 Human actions that constitute either service of GD or transgression can take place only if three factors are present. 1. Choice by the heart and mind 2. Intent and resolve to do what one has chosen 3. The effort to complete the intended act with one's outer limbs and bring it into actuality In regard to what is not hidden or removed from us such as the choice and service or transgression and the intent and resolve to carry out what one has chosen relying on GD in these would be erroneous and foolish for the Creator may He be exalted has left to us the choice of serving Him or rebelling against Him as it is written 'Choose life" (Devarim) But the carrying out of the intended act of service or transgression He did not leave to us but made it dependent on external means that are sometimes present and at other time unavailable