Nasso 5782 – The True Test of Bitachon

The Bottom Line

A person’s choice of parnassah does not determine how much money a person will make. Hashem alone gives a person his parnasah and He wants us to believe in Him. One could work as a rebbi and have enough to live on, or even have more disposable income than a ‘regular’ professional who went to school. We all know this and have seen examples of this, yet we continue to believe in our hishtadlus, education, and connections, rather than focusing on the real source of our parnasah. As long as we continue to rely on our ability to earn our livelihood, true emunah and bitachon will evade us. This coming week, when I am shopping for Shabbos – and notice the ever-increasing food prices in my local kosher store – I will remind myself of the gemora in Beitzah, that my expenses are fixed from Rosh Hashanah, except those of Shabbos, Yom Tov and my children learning Torah. I will try to remember that only Hashem is giving me my parnasah, so I can confidently buy the same amount of food for Shabbos as I used to buy before the recession, and not be concerned at all!