The following story depicts the power of a heartfelt prayer uttered with temimus. It is related in Sefer Sipurei Tzadikim (Parshas Bechukosai) in the name of the Maharash of Lubavitch zy”a, who heard it from his father, the Tzemach Tzedek zy”a.
In a village near Yerushalaim, there lived an unlearned man. He was so ignorant that he didn’t even know the meaning of the words of the tefillos or what prayers to say and when. Once a week, he would come to Yerushalaim to sell the fruits and vegetables he grew in his field. While he was there, he would go to one of the Rabbanim, who would write down for him on a piece of paper which tefillos to say that week and when.
One time, he came to Yerushalaim during the month of Cheshvon. He told the Rov that he wouldn’t be coming for a few weeks because it was the rainy season and the roads would be too muddy for travel. He asked him to write down the tefillos for the upcoming few weeks.
Two weeks later, he needed to go to Yerushalaim for a specific reason, and he made the effort to get there. When he arrived, he saw that all the stores were closed. He saw a Jew walking by wrapped in his talis and asked him, “Did I make a mistake? Is it Shabbos today?”
The man answered that it was not Shabbos. “So why are all the stores closed,” the villager asked. The man told him, “It is a public fast day.”
The villager was shocked that the Rov hadn’t written on his paper that any fast days were coming up. He was very upset that he had eaten that day and he hadn’t said the special tefillos for a taanis tzibur. He found the Rov in shul and ran over to him while yelling, “Why did you do this to me?”
The Rov looked at him and asked, “What do you mean, my son?” The villager said, “Why didn’t you write that today would be a taanis? Because of your mistake, I transgressed and ate and I didn’t say the right prayers!”
The Rov told him, “I didn’t make a mistake. This isn’t a standard taanis. Rather, we are fasting because there is a drought and we haven’t received any rain.” The villager looked stunned and asked, “Why do you need to declare a fast day for that?”
The Rov thought the simple man hadn’t understood him, so he asked, “What do you think we should do when we need rain?” “I’ll tell you what I do when it doesn’t rain,” the villager said. “I go out to my field, look up to Hashem and say: ‘Father! I need rain.’ And it always starts raining right away.”
When the Rov heard these words said with such temimus, he said, “Can you please do this for us?” The villager walked out of the shul and tearfully proclaimed, “Tatte! Please send rain for Your children in the holy city!” Immediately, rain began to fall.
The Maharash concluded this story by saying, “A tefillah uttered with temimus by a simple Jew is almost as powerful as the prayer of the early tzadikim.” He would also say, “A tamim is never refused by Hashem because he doesn’t understand any complexities. He just asks for what he needs and is provided with it.”
