Financial crisis is a very difficult challenge. It can hit with great intensity and disrupt the routine of life as an entire family is thrown into the abyss of confusion and uncertainty. What was until then firm ground suddenly becomes a stormy sea of challenges and frustration. But sometimes, it is specifically during those difficult moments that the power of emunah is revealed, and the crisis itself becomes a huge springboard for spiritual growth. That is what happened in this story – a true story that was submitted and adapted to preserve the privacy of those involved.
Reb Chaim worked hard for a living and did well for himself. He didn’t live a luxurious life, but he earned enough to support his family with comfort. But then, all at once, things turned upside down. A small mistake snowballed into a severe financial crisis that decimated his assets and left him heavily in debt.
From that day, his world was transformed. He saw his family struggling to get used to their new reality and it broke his heart. It was so difficult to calculate every single penny of their daily shopping – which in the past was done with little thought – and now, they found themselves forgoing many things that they had become used to buying. Things grew worse, and even the basic needs of the children became a heavy burden. The bit that Reb Chaim earned was barely enough for survival, and there was no choice but to cut back on food, electricity use and even water. And when you have to fight for the basics, not only the body and soul pay the price – the spirit is also affected. The joyous atmosphere that used to pervade the house began to disappear.
At night, Reb Chaim could hardly sleep. The worries were relentless, the nightmares gave him no peace, and the fear of what was to come weighed on his heart. Every moment he was awake, or even when he was sleeping fitfully, he felt trapped. During those torturous nights he recognized the truth of the words of Chazal “a poor man is considered like dead.”
One day, after reaching a nadir, he was overcome with pain at his inability to provide for even the basic needs, Reb Chaim decided to go to the Kosel and pour his heart out to his Creator. He stood there, bent and broken, leaning on the ancient stones, and whispered a silent prayer, as hot tears rolled down his cheeks. Ribbono shel Olam, how much more can I carry? he whispered with hot tears rolling down his face.
He cast about for a zechus that would lift the harsh decree, seeking to take upon himself to become stronger in a certain mitzvah, something he could invest his heart and soul in, and which he could keep at persistently. But what could he be stronger in? The thoughts raced through his mind, and he could not decide. Finally, he decided to open a Tehillim and to pour out his heart passuk after passuk, word after word, with the hope that during his recital Hashem would illuminate the path for him.
As he progressed through the chapters, he felt like he could truly identify with the pesukim describing the suffering of the evyon, the indigent person. Then his eyes fell on the passuk (9:19): “Ki lo lanetzach yishakach evyon.” He repeated the words over and over, and when he studied the words in depth, he discovered something remarkable. He noticed that the acronym of the words “כי לא לנצח ישכל אביון” are numerically equivalent to amen. As a regular reader of Vechol Ma’aminim, the subject of answering amen was close to his heart, and when he discovered this, his eyes lit up.
“Here’s the answer!” he exclaimed to himself. “I have to strengthen myself in answering amen.”
Reb Chaim continued to read the chapters with emotion, drawing much chizuk and strength from them. When he reached the end of the sefer, he stopped again. His eyes caught sight of another passuk (109:31): “Ki ya’amod l’yemin evyon lehoshia...” His heart beat rapidly. He looked at the passuk again and realized that here, as well, the acronym of the words formed the word “amen!” Now he had no doubt. The message was so clear. From Above he was being given a sign that he could not miss.
Reb Chaim resolved to strengthen his answering of amen. From now, he’d begin his day by hearing Birchos Hashachar from other mispallelim, and he’d make sure to complete their brachos and merit many amens early in the day. He had no doubt that the merit of amen would advocate for him, and that the day was not far off when his mazel would once again shine. But he did not fathom that this time, he would merit to see a yeshuah in the blink of an eye.
Already on his way back from the Kosel, his phone rang. On the line was a vaguely familiar voice – it was a childhood friend who he hadn’t spoken to in years. After exchanging greetings, the friend surprised him with an unexpected offer: As the owner of a successful chain of stores, he was offering Reb Chaim to open a branch in his city. Reb Chaim chuckled sadly. “I don’t have even a penny to invest,” he admitted candidly. But his friend responded firmly: “Don’t worry. I’ll lend you the money you need to open the branch and I’ll provide all the merchandise. You’ll pay me back after you sell and start to turn a profit.”
Reb Chaim set out on his new endeavor with bitachon and emunah. He worked tirelessly, invested all his energy, and within a short time, the store became a success story. People streamed to shop there, and Hashem’s brachah was evident in his work. The revenues swelled and his debts shrank. But it was not only the story that thrived – Reb Chaim’s other enterprise – his “amen business” was also growing.
Each morning, without exception, he rose to go to shul to answer amen after the Birchos Hashachar of the mispallelim. Nothing stood in his way. He adhered to his commitment with tenacity and dedication. And so, these two enterprises thrived side by side, in perfect harmony. And Reb Chaim knew without a doubt – one brought the other.
“I thank you with all my heart for raising the awareness of the subject of answering amen,” Reb Chaim wrote in his letter, and concludes, “I saw it firsthand – I merited to see how the mitzvah of answering amen opens the gates of salvation.”
When this letter came to the Nasi of Bney Emunim, Rav Yaakov Dov Marmurstein, he noticed that there is another connection between the two remazim: Between Chapter 9 in Tehillim, where the first remez appears, and Chapter 109, where the second remez is, there are exactly 100 chapters, corresponding to the quota of 100 brachos established by Dovid Hamelech that we need to recite each day.
