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Punishment Hides Blessing

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Everything G-d does, He does for the sake of our good, even if we can not understand that. That's why man must accustom himself to always answer on whatever happens in his life - whether the occurred event seems to be good or bad - "Whatever Heavens send - everything is for better." Coz all punishments Hashem sends to man are hidden blessings indeed. And it can be seen from the following story.

Once rabbi Akiva was caught by night while on his way. He started knocking at every door of the village, situated next to forest he went through, but he found no lodging for the night.

- Whatever Heavens send - everything is for better, - said rabbi Akiva, putting himself up for the night in the forest. And there's a need to say he always brought a donkey for his luggage, a cock serving him as alarm-clock and a candle. Behold, he just had a lie down when lion jumped out of thicket and tore his donkey to pieces. Then wild cat jumped off the tree and tore his cock. Right after that, wind gust extinguished his candle. It came to be here at all not gaily for rabbi Akiva. But he said in this situation too:

- Whatever Heavens send - everything is for better.

The same night the village was attacked by band of gangsters. They killed all residents.

In the morning, when rabbi Akiva saw what happened, he said:

- It confirms the rightness of the saying: whatever Heavens send - everything is for better. If my candle burnt, the gangsters would find me. If a donkey or a cock remained alive, they would betray my presence with their cries. The Holy, blessed is He, caused all those little failures to me to save me from much more terrible fate.

Sure, each of us experienced the events we treated as a failure at the moment, and then they turned to be a great luck. There are many stories: about some businessman who was late for a plane he had to fly by to strike a million-dollar-profit bargain - his delay saved his life coz the plane crashed down; about some conscientious worker who was fired to his big grief - after he had to launch his own business, he became unbelievably rich person. The matter is not stories, but...

...The deepest trust in G-d can save people from lots of unnecessary anxieties. He won't be a subject for a permanent fear which is usual for modern society and makes people approach psychiatrist and use various antidepressants to get rid of stress. Vice versa, a person, devoted to Seven Laws observing and to the straight life way, will be in the tranqwillity of spirit despite all winds of this world blowing. He will be always sure, everything Creator prepared to him can lead to the better only!

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