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purpose is to choose correctly and pass these tests. That is the It came about that Rabbi Yaakov Yosef came to spend a Sabbath
entire meaning of our lives in this world. in Mezritsh, the home of the Maggid, and he wanted to hear a
teaching from the Maggid. On Friday night, he sent his meshamesh
You must be aware that God’s individual providence oversees (his personal assistant) to the house of the Maggid to get a sense
every individual to assure that he will have free will. At every of what the Maggid was like. The meshamesh returned, his face
moment and in every detail of a person’s life, he is placed in the shining, and he reported, “The Maggid is saying words of Torah,
precise conditions that will enable him to have free will. Everything and he is surrounded by a flaming fire. You yourself must go!”
that he has lived through until that moment, his exact state of Rabbi Yaacov Yosef put on his jacket, took his stick and went to
health (down to a slight scratch), his children, their every sob and the Maggid’s house. But when he reached the house, the Maggid
every smile, the situation of everyone around him, every rebuke fell silent. Disappointed, Rabbi Yaakov Yosef returned to his inn.
that he receives and all of the encouragement that he is given,
every difficulty and lack in his life, his economic situation to the The next morning, Rabbi Yaakov Yosef again sent his meshamesh
last cent—everything is under precise individual providence in to see if it would be fitting to come hear the Maggid speak. When
accordance with what his Creator knows to be the exact conditions the meshamesh returned, he told his rabbi, “What can I tell you?
that will make it possible for him to exercise free will at every The Maggid is saying words of Torah and it is like the giving of
moment. the Torah at Mt. Sinai!” Rabbi Yaakov Yosef took his staff and,
accompanied by his meshamesh, went to the Maggid’s house. But
For instance, the amount of money you have is exactly what you again, when he reached the house, the Maggid fell silent.
need to enable you to have free will. If you were to possess one
dollar more or less, that would compromise your free will. The same At the time of the third meal—seudah shlishit—Rabbi Yaakov
applies to every detail in your life. Therefore, you must be aware Yosef decided that this time he would not risk missing the words
that everything that you lack, all of your difficulties and problems, of the Maggid. He did not send his meshamesh but came early to
and all of the tests that you undergo are exactly calibrated to give the Maggid’s tisch. When the time came to say words of Torah,
you free will in accordance with your rectification, your mission the Maggid turned to Rabbi Yaakov Yosef and said, “May the
and your purpose. honorable rabbi of Polnoye honor us with words of Torah.”

“I Have Chosen to Take Refuge in the House of my Rabbi Yaakov Yosef demurred, but after many pleas from the
God” Maggid, he said, “I came here to hear Torah from your honor. I
myself do not know how to deliver words of Torah. I only know
this: that a Jew must have a powerful will!”
Let us continue and discover additional depths in the topic of
free will. The Maggid replied, “If you know about the topic of the
will, then I have no words of Torah to tell you….”
As a result of choosing good freely, not only will a person receive
reward and complete delight in the world-to-come, but even while When a person grasps the trait of will, there is no Torah that
he is in this world, he will attain true delight and the pleasure anyone can teach him, because his will leads him and directs him
of closeness to the Creator. Every time a person overcomes his to his place, to his calling, and to his exact function. Rabbi Natan
evil inclination, he feels pleasure and delight. With the passage of of Breslov teaches:
time and with work, he begins to feel the true delight of closeness
to the Creator and of performing His will—specifically, out of the Come and see what I found written in the Midrash