It is well known that reciting Parshas HaMann is a segula for parnossah. Perhaps what is less well known is that reciting Birchas Hamazon with kavonah is also a very powerful segula for parnossah.
A Jewish survivor of the Holocaust related how he was saved from the clutches of the Nazis during World War II:
When I was a young boy of 12, Rabbi Meir Shapira of Lublin came to our Talmud Torah and tested us in our knowledge of Gemara. The custom in those years was that after a great rabbi examined the young children, he would give a gift to all the students. But Rabbi Meir Shapira had not brought any presents.
So, when he finished examining us, he said to us: "I will give you as a gift a wonderful piece of advice and virtue, with which you will be able to live your entire life in peace and tranquility." Rabbi Meir quoted the awesome words of the Sefer HaChinuch: “I have received a tradition from my teachers, that all who are careful in the blessing of food (Birchas Hamazon) that his food will be given to him with honor all his life.” Rabbi Meir further related that this idea is also found in the Bach: “Whomever is careful to recite Birchas Hamazon with kavonah is spared from terrible decrees.” When I heard the pure words of Rabbi Shapira, I took it upon myself to recite the Birchas Hamazon with proper intent and with the utmost self-sacrifice, said the old Jew.
A few years later, the cursed Nazi villains arrived, conquered the land of Europe, and led the Jews to the camps, and I was among them. As usual, the men were sent to work, and the women and children separated to be sent to the crematoriums to die in the sanctification of Hashem's name.
I was a young bochur, but I tried to stand as tall as I could to look older. I kept whispering with my lips: “My Father in Heaven, I have fulfilled the words of the Bach and blessed Birchas Hamazon with full kavonah. You also fulfill the promise that I will be spared and these cursed devils should have no control over me."
When my turn came, I was sent to the right side – to work and not to death. We were then put into another line to determine what work we were fit for. I knew that I couldn't withstand any type of hard labor, so I cried again before the Ribbono Shel Olam and begged him that by conscientiously observing Birchas Hamazon, He would save me once again.
Suddenly he heard a whisper. He tilted his head toward the voice and saw that the whisper came from the Jew standing next to him. “Listen,” said the man. “When your turn comes, declare that you are a cook and an expert in cooking and baking, and then I will say the same, and that I want you to be my assistant. It seems to me that this will make it easier for us to survive in the camp.”
Shimon liked the idea. He did the advice of the Jew, and both were happy to find out that their request had been approved and they were sent to work in the camp kitchen. Working in the kitchen was relatively easy, and the closeness to food made it easier for them to endure the agony of hunger, which was the fate of the camp prisoners.
One day a Nazi officer entered the kitchen. He cast a furious look at young Shimon. “Come here, Yid,” he called to him. He gave him a small hammer, took him outside, and ordered, “You have three hours to dig a deep ditch here. If you succeed, you can go back to your work, or else it will be your end.”
The hammer was so small it was incapable of even shattering a small stone, much less dig a hole. Shimon knew that he had no chance of digging a pit with only the small hammer, in the absence of suitable tools. He again turned to the Ribbono Shel Olam, “Tatte in Himmel, it says in Your Torah that my food will be prepared for me with bounty. Please save me!”
As he stood there davening, a truck stopped to bring supplies to the kitchen. The soldiers who were sitting in the truck decided to abuse the Jewish young man and began to pelt him with apples and vegetables that were in the truck. Shimon was not hurt, and when the soldiers left, fruit and vegetables were scattered all around him. Suddenly a group of Polish prisoners passed by. They, too, were suffering from starvation from the Germans. When they saw the fruit and vegetables, they asked Shimon to allow them to have some to revive themselves. At that moment an idea came into Simon's mind. “Let's make a deal,” he told the prisoners. “If you can dig a deep hole here, take as many fruits and vegetables as you want.” The prisoners responded to the challenge with joy. They were equipped with digging tools, and within minutes, all of them together had managed to dig a deep enough hole. They took their wages and continued on their way.
After three hours the Nazi officer returned to examine the work of the young Jew. Much to his astonishment he saw the deep pit ready as he demanded. “I knew your G-d was protecting you, but I did not know how much,” muttered the wicked German, and sent Simon back to the kitchen. (Rabbi Bentzion Shafier, “The Shmuz”)
