The Real Confrontation

Never a dull moment here in the beautiful Land of Israel: the new regime in Egypt has threatened to double the price of natural gas to Israel. Not only that, but Sinai is now de facto controlled by lawless Bedouin bandits who make a living smuggling drugs and armaments into Gaza. These are a combination of criminals and terrorists, and they've already twice sabotaged the Egypt-Israel natural-gas pipeline.

So what does Hashem do? You'll love this: He gives Israel a super off-shore find of natural gas that's enough to fulfill our needs for years to come, G-d willing.

 

 

 

Amazing, but as soon as anyone threatens Israel, Hashem not only gives us an immediate alternative, but whoever threatens us pays a dear price. The UK tried to discourage tourism to united Jerusalem, saying that part of the Holy City doesn't belong to us, and Hashem closed down their tourism for weeks with a weird Icelandic ash cloud that just "happened to hover" over UK airports.

 

It’s beautiful to sit back and watch how Hashem fights our battles for us. The little runty kid on the block isn't afraid of all the bullies that surround him, because his Dad is the toughest guy in town. You mess around with the son and you incur the wrath of the Father…

 

Meanwhile, despite our neighbors' renewed promises as of late to declare so-called Palestinian independence as the first step of their goal to push us into the sea, Rabbi Shalom Arush shlit'a continues to promise that the land of Israel is the safest place on earth for any family that observes the Sabbath and grants their children a Torah education. So, like we've said numerous times before, the struggle between now and the coming of Moshiach will be spiritual, where each one of us will have to fight to hold on to our faith amongst a sea of atheism and agnosticism. This is the real confrontation. We shouldn’t waste a moment worrying about Iran’s military capabilities. On the other hand, we should occupy ourselves day and night with strengthening our emuna. Rebbe Nachman of Breslev foresaw this spiritual struggle 200 years ago; his disciple, Rebbe Nathan of Breslev, wrote (Sichos HaRan, 35):

 

Rebbe Nachman said, "A great wave of atheism is coming to the world."

 

Many times he told us that the world's many sins are resulting in great disbelief. Happy is he who is strong in his faith.

 

The Rebbe said that the fact that he is predicting this will not prevent this Godlessness and confusion from increasing. Thousands of years ago, Daniel and others predicted that this would happen in the days before the Messiah. They said (Daniel 12:1), "Many will purify themselves and be refined, and make themselves shining white. The wicked will be evil, and only the wise shall understand."

 

It has already been predicted that there will be great temptations before the Messiah's coming, when "many will purify themselves and be refined, and make themselves shining white" in faith. Fortunate indeed is one who resists these temptations and remains firm in his belief. He will be worthy of all the good promised to us by the prophets and sages of old.

 

Knowing full well that this has already been predicted, it would seem ridiculous for one to succumb to any temptation to abandon his beliefs. It would seem obvious that every Jew would have enough intelligence to remain firm. But still it is a great trial. Many will fall away, and for this reason it is written that "the wicked will be evil."

 

The Rebbe said, "Still, I am revealing this for the sake of the few faithful who will remain strong in their belief. They will certainly have great conflicts. But when they see that this has already been predicted, it will give them additional strength and encouragement."

 

Don't be discouraged. Rebbe Nachman also foresaw the Teshuva movement, when he wrote that, "Many will purify themselves and be refined, and make themselves shining white in faith." Hashem has indescribable joy from every person's slightest spiritual gain. He recognizes our good efforts, and will reward us for them when the time comes. Meanwhile, Hashem doesn't make bombastic demands of us – all He wants is that we should cling to Him and His Torah with simple, uncomplicated faith. He wants us to avoid causing harm, pain, or insult to our fellow human. He wants us to respect each other, to tell the truth and to deal honestly. He wants us to learn about emuna. Basically, that's all we need to do in order to win the spiritual war. Keep the faith, and don't fear anyone or anything except for Hashem. Your steadfast faith is your personal key to happiness, success, and a very bright future.