Bitachon is not measured by your success in climbing over the gate. Bitachon is measured by your response upon seeing the gate -- whether you grimace and give up, or whether you appreciate that Hashem has put the gate there for your ultimate benefit.


True joy has nothing to do with ease in life, or with things going well. Rather, our joy must come from who we can become in the face of trying circumstances. True joy comes from resolution within oneself. The Talmud says, "There is no joy like the resolution of doubt." Joy comes from embracing life on its own terms, because you have a basic belief that life is good and as it should be and that challenges are an integral part of life.

Bitachon requires that we respond: "Although I don't like what's happening, I'm not going to surrender to a sense of calamity. Instead, I'm going to let the crisis move me forward. I'm going to be a person who does more acts of kindness; I'm going to learn more Torah. I'm going to see Hashem's hand in day-to-day events. The locked gate is there for me to climb over it."

The pasuk says in Tehillim, “יחל ישראל אל ה' – we should place our hope in Hashem.” Some people are afraid to get their hopes up because they don’t want to be let down. To those people, David HaMelech says, “Get your hopes up – put them in Hashem.” The rewards for recognizing Hashem’s abilities and believing that He can help are unfathomable.

Having hope in Hashem is a mitzvah and when it comes to mitzvot, no matter how difficult they might be, we do them to the best of our ability. Some might say, “Why should we hope to Hashem? We’re not worthy of being helped.” The pasuk continues, “כי עם ה' החסד – Hashem has so much kindness." He helps us not because we deserve it, but because He is kind and loves us so much.

But even then, people might think, “Why should we get our hopes up? There is no way for us to be helped anyway. We have explored every possible option, and there is nothing left to do.” To that, David HaMelech says, “והרבה עמו פדות – Hashem has an abundance of salvation". He helps us in ways we would have never imagined. He doesn’t need our help figuring out how to solve a problem. There is always a way to be helped because Hashem could do anything.

Hashem could help us with the big problems as well as the littlest issues. יחל ישראל אל ה'. Our job is to hope to Him all of the time, because He is filled with kindness and knows how to help.

I have not been on for a while aside from lurking, (which im doing now), but its gratifying that this thread generated much interest. im feeling down now, and its nice to see the different contributions regarding bitachon.

Higher, you have a huge zchus from everyone who comes on your thread and posts and get's chizzuk!

When a person comes down into this world, Hashem takes his neshama from under the Kiseh HaKavod and brings it all the way down here. Why? Because where the neshama was before, there was no way for it to grow. As well, inOlam Haba, there is no way for theneshama to grow. A person is given a small pocket of time, in all of eternity, to utilize to overcome nisyonot and achieve greatness. The opportunity is in this world, and Hashem gives each and every person their own set of tests, based on their background, their knowledge and their capabilities. The goal is to pass every test and thereby fulfill our full potential.

This world is the world of tests. Hashem makes each one of them tailor made for each person based on where he is holding in his life. If we are able to overcome them and stay loyal to Hashem, we’ll utilize our opportunity in this world, we’ll fulfill our potential and we’ll enjoy for all of eternity.

Hashem wants us to know that each person is unique and nobody else in the world could do his job. When a person makes a beracha, he is making a tikkun in creation which no one else in history could have done besides him. When a person keeps strong in kedusha, says a perek of Tehillim, does an act of gemilut chasadim, each of those pe’ulot is creating spiritual worlds. We can’t imagine how valuable even one day of life is. Even people sick in the hospital and unable to move are accomplishing so much enduring their yissurin. They are making tikkunim that nobody else can make. Some people get down on themselves because they feel that they have no purpose. If they would only know how much purpose they have, how much all of history is counting on them to fulfill their mission. If someone understands he has a purpose, he can get through any situation in life

The pasuk says in Tehillim, “הרחב פיך ואמלאהו– widen your mouth and I will fill it.” How does a person widen his mouth? The sefer Ki Ata Imadi brings an explanation from the sefer MiHashem Yatzah Hadavar, when a person smiles and is happy, that is how he widens his mouth. Kavayachol, Hashem is telling us in this pasuk, I want to see you smiling. I don’t want you walking around in My world sad all the time. Hashem is ready to reward us by fulfilling our requests if we can overcome our nature and be happy in all circumstances. 

Chazal tell us in Masechet Berachot, “נותן הודאה על העבר וצועק על העתיד – we should constantly be thanking Hashem for everything that happened in the past and then, right afterward, pray to Hashem regarding the future.” The question has been asked, if we immediately ask for help after we thank, doesn’t that diminish the thank you? As if to say, we are only thanking so that we can ask for more. One explanation is, asking Hashem for help actually makes the thank you even better because it shows that we realize we can’t even go another minute without Hashem’s help.

The Seder Hayom gives a different explanation. He writes, when a person appreciates what Hashem does for him and thanks Him for it, it becomes an Et Ratzon, it is an opportune time to make requests from Hashem, and therefore, of course, we’re not thanking Hashem in order to make requests of Him, but once we thank Him, we can’t let the golden opportunity go by without asking. If by thanking Hashem for revealed good, it becomes an opportune time, how much more so when we thank Hashem when we don’t see the good. That is when Hashem says, Please smile, widen your mouth and be happy so I could fulfill your requests.