Or he can choose to draw on the feeling called bitachon. He takes his heart, and he throws it onto the Ribbono shel Olam—thus drawing chiyus from Him. He’s alive! He’s very much aware of his problems, but he remembers what it means that the Ribbono shel Olam is capable of everything! “He can help me through the regular course of nature; it doesn’t require miracles like סוף. ים קריעת He can help me in ways that I could never have fathomed. The problem will be resolved, because the Ribbono shel Olam is a ומטיב. טוב He will do good for me, even if I am unworthy of it.”
Choosing to Draw Chiyus from the True Source
When a person chooses this path and fills his heart and mind with thoughts and feelings of bitachon, he has chosen a way of life. He has given sustenance and life to his heart—because he has given his heart away to the Ribbono shel Olam, and in turn it receives all the nourishment that it needs.
The feeling of bitachon always gives chiyus to the nefesh, and, unfortunately, it may come to us by trusting in an entity other than Hashem, chas v’shalom. The problem with this is that our chiyus is then derived from an improper source.
Sometimes, it seems to a person that it’s easier to place his trust in something other than the Ribbono shel Olam and derive chiyus to his heart that way, because the gratification is immediate. We receive pleasure simply by talking to another person, and he reassures you that he will take care of everything through his connections and his money. This person walks away from the conversation strengthened and encouraged—because he has drawn chiyus. But it’s chiyus from the wrong source, and it cannot last long. It will ultimately bring him destruction and loss, as the Chovos HaLevavos teaches us in the introduction to Sha’ar HaBitachon.
Stopping the Vehicle
When we put the wrong fuel into a car, the vehicle will soon come to a halt—because it is drawing chiyus from the wrong place. If you put diesel into an ordinary car, it will stop working after a few minutes, and you will need to clean out every vestige of the wrong fuel.
This is what the Chovos HaLevavos is teaching us: People put in diesel... they draw chiyus from the wrong places (i.e., relying on something other than the true Source of sustenance), and they begin driving. But after a short while, they get stuck, because they cannot live on this. A Yid will derive his chiyus from the true Source, which is pure emunah and bitachon in the Ribbono shel Olam.
