A HEARTFELT PRAYER
February 28, 2017In a little village lived a poor Jewish man who made a living from running a small inn. The patrons of the inn, who were peasants who lived in the area, were also quite poor, and only rarely had money in their pockets. This is why the Jew had a hard time providing his family with food and their other basic needs.
Despite his poverty, the man was happy with his lot and never complained about his difficult condition. He barely knew the words of the davening and chapters of T’hillim, but he tried to say as much T’hillim as he could during the day. One thing bothered him though, and that was that he seldom saw a Jew in his village. Even Jewish beggars avoided this out-of-the-way village.
How happy he was then, when one fine day, the Baal Shem Tov and his students came to his village. The man was very surprised to see these distinguished guests. The Baal Shem Tov’s students were also surprised that they had come there, but they were used to their master’s mysterious doings and did not ask any questions. They knew that if it became necessary, the Baal Shem Tov would explain things to them.
The innkeeper placed a little bread and vegetables before his guests. It was obvious to all that this was all he had and that it was taking food away from his starving children. Before they left, the Baal Shem Tov told him that he was collecting money for a worthy cause and if the man wanted to take part in it, he could also give a donation.
The innkeeper, who hadn’t seen a coin in a long time, wanted very much to have a share in this great mitzva. He pawned his wife’s candlesticks and his boots and gave the money he received in exchange for those items to the holy Baal Shem Tov. Then the Baal Shem Tov and his followers left.
After escorting his important guests, the innkeeper went back to his house and found his wife crying. The children were starving and there was nothing to eat. Nor was there anything to sell and not even to pawn. The man began davening Mincha and when he reached the words, “Open Your hands,” and remembered that Hashem sustains all of His creations, he sighed heavily and a tear rolled down his face.
That night, the family went to sleep hungry. In the middle of the night, there was a knock at the door. He opened the door and there stood a drunken farmer who asked for a drink. The innkeeper let him enter but he had no vodka to give him because he had served the last of his vodka to his important guests, the Baal Shem Tov and his students.
Searching around, the man took the glasses left by the Baal Shem Tov and his students that were nearly empty, poured the remains into a glass, added a bit of water, and poured a cup for the farmer. The farmer drank it down in one gulp and said in amazement that this vodka was the best he had ever had. The innkeeper was thrilled and hoped the farmer would pay him so he would be able to buy bread for his children. But the farmer said he had no money and he left.
The next day, the same thing happened. The farmer came, asked for the same tasty vodka, drank and exclaimed how delicious it was, and then left without paying. When he returned the third night and licked his lips after drinking the excellent vodka, which now contained more water than vodka, he took out a coin, held it out to the Jew, and said, “Here is an old copper coin. It may not be worth the value of this delicious vodka and your working in the middle of the night, but this is what I have …” And he left.
The innkeeper was happy to be finally holding money in his hand. He began rubbing the old coin which suddenly sparkled as though it was made out of gold. In fact, it was gold.
The farmer became the Jew’s regular customer. He came, asked for the special vodka, and paid with an old coin which he said was made of copper. When the Jew once asked him from where he got these coins, he said he had dug in the forest and found many like them.
One time, the farmer came and ordered a glass of that vodka. Before he left he said to the innkeeper that he would not be able to come anymore. He was old and his children wanted him to be with them in another village, far from there. “And this is the last coin that I have,” he said. “I will never forget this vodka because I have never drunk anything like it before.” The farmer left and never returned.
The coins the farmer brought were all gold and worth a lot of money. The poor Jew became a rich man. Business was good and he built a nice house and bought many fields. His inn became a busy place. His life changed from one extreme to another.
A year passed since the Baal Shem Tov and his students had visited his poor home. They returned one year later, just as unexpectedly as the first time. This time, the Jew welcomed them with great honor and generosity. He told the Baal Shem Tov how his fortune had changed since he had the privilege of hosting his important guests.
“Now I can tell you,” said the Baal Shem Tov, “that all this wealth was set aside for you for a long time. But in heaven they decided to delay giving it to you because until then you had not prayed with such a broken heart; you did not sigh heavily and did not shed a tear.
“That day that you prayed Mincha with great concentration, it was decided that the time had come for you to become rich. You yourself opened the pipeline of wealth, and the bracha came to you because of your actions.”
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