This lesson is illustrated by the following amazing story:
A chasid of the Kotzker Rebbe zy”a once came to him and said, “Rebbe, you know that I used to be very wealthy. I had every luxury money can buy and I lacked for nothing.
“One of the maids in my house was an older, single girl who saved a considerable amount of money by working in my house for several years. One year, she asked me to buy her a lottery ticket with the money she had saved so that when she found a husband to marry, she might win the lottery and become rich and be able to support her household. I did as she asked, and she gave the ticket to her father for safekeeping and asked me to write down the ticket number.
“Years and years passed, and she still hadn’t found her match. Meanwhile, I too went through some hard times. My wife died and my business began to decline until I lost all my wealth. All my sons and daughters married and left my home, and I was left poor and alone. And today, when I checked the list of lottery winners, I saw that my maid’s ticket was a winner. She won the grand prize of 100,000 rubles.
“It immediately occurred to me to marry her, and thus I could return to my former position. I sent a letter to ask her to marry me, and, of course, I did not tell her about the large sum that she had won. She immediately agreed to marry me, and the marriage took place. We were both very happy. She was overjoyed because she had long since given up hope of finding a chosson, and I was happy because I knew that now I could return to my previous status of wealth and honor.
“After a few weeks, I told her that she had won a very large sum in the lottery, but when she heard this, she lowered her eyes and said sadly that her father sold the ticket a few years ago because of the great poverty in his home!”
The chasid concluded, “Her words shocked me. My world turned dark and I was overcome with grief. Rebbe, what should I do now? I thought that by getting married to her I could improve my situation, and now, not only did I not receive this, but I have added debts from establishing a new home. In addition to all the previous problems I had, I am now married to a simple woman who was a servant in my house, which is a shame and a disgrace for me. I want to divorce her.”
The Rebbe replied, “You should know that this was all Hashgacha Pratis. Hashem caused all of this to happen because He decreed that you and this woman should get married. If you hadn’t lost your wealth, you never would have agreed to marry a simple woman like her, So He made you lose all your money. Therefore, you must fulfill His will by remaining married to her, and He will give you back your lost wealth and status.”
