This lesson is rooted in Likutei Mohoran I, 17, where Rebbe Nachman speaks about the special splendor Hashem receives from every Jew. Reb Nosson adds that because of this unique nachas that we can always give to Hashem, there is never a reason to despair—no matter what.
This teaching is the foundation of our lives. We should work on internalizing the specific pleasure Hashem has from each of us so that the moment we have a negative thought that tries to knock us down, we can immediately find strength from thinking about how happy Hashem is with us. Whenever we feel unsuccessful, empty, confused, or depressed, our reflex should be to run to pick up a Likutei Mohoran and remind ourselves of this lesson. We should review it time and again until we engrave on our hearts that the King of all kings—Whose greatness is completely beyond our comprehension—has incredible pleasure from us and He’s very proud of us, like a father is proud of his only son.
If a person believes in this with simple emunah, he will immediately get back up after every time he falls and he will reject all his feelings of worthlessness. He will think to himself, “Since I give Hashem such special gratification just by being a Jew, there is never a moment in my life that isn’t important.” Ashreinu mah tov chelkeinu—we are so fortunate and we have such a good portion just for the fact that we fulfill the Torah in the most basic way. It is impossible to grasp how much enjoyment this gives Hashem!
We need to constantly fight to hold on to this concept. How can we let ourselves be tricked by the feelings in our hearts that try to make us forget the very foundation of our emunah: Hashem is constantly proud of us. (If we look carefully at this lesson, we see that it is an extension of Lesson 2. There, Rebbe Nachman explains that the further a person falls, the more pleasure Hashem takes in every movement he makes to come closer to Him.)
