Home › Forums › Inspiration / Mussar › Stories of Hashgacha Pratis
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December 6, 2010 7:04 pm at 7:04 pm #593338Shticky GuyParticipant
Someone I know went into labor early and had a baby girl at about 6am Shabbos morning. There wasnt time to discuss a name for the baby (which they hadnt finalized)so she told her husband to choose something to do with Purim which was coming up soon.
Her husband had his Aliya and called his daughter “Avigail”. We asked him who she was named after and he said it’s just a name he likes from the Megilla.
My wife said “just a minute, there’s no Avigail in the Megilla”.
“Yes there is” he said, “its the mother of Esther – Esther bas Avigail”.
It was then that we ‘dropped the clanger’. We told him that not only was it not Esther bas Avigail but in fact Esther bas Avichail, but more than that, who was Avichail? The possuk says Esther bas Avichail DOD MORDECHAI, the UNCLE of mordechai! So its a man!
So this guy had just called his daughter Avigail after esther’s father!!!
Chazal say that all names are Bashert. It was Bashert that he call his daughter Avigail, and this is how shamayim arranged that he did it!!!
December 6, 2010 7:23 pm at 7:23 pm #716267SacrilegeMemberMaybe when their daughter asks who she is named after they should say Avigail as in one of the 7 Nevios, so she doesnt find out her father is well… a dope.
December 6, 2010 7:30 pm at 7:30 pm #716268eclipseMemberWell,if she’s very aggressive,we’ll know why.
December 6, 2010 8:44 pm at 8:44 pm #716269kgh5771ParticipantMaybe he really meant the name “Avihayil” (with a H”eh not a Chet). There are two women with that name mentioned in Divrei Hayamim (D”HY I 2:29 and D”HY II 11:18). The second one is identified as a granddaughter of Yishai (daughter of David’s brother Eliav).
December 6, 2010 8:55 pm at 8:55 pm #716270WIYMemberI have a Hashgacha Pratis story, Im alive!!!! I was able to type these words. My fingers work Baruch Hashem. My neurons are firing properly and sending the right messages to the various parts of my brain involved in communicating and typing out a coherent thought. Yes my friends, we have Hashgacha Pratis EVERY SECOND OF OUR EXISTENCE!!!
December 6, 2010 9:21 pm at 9:21 pm #716271eclipseMemberHard to top that one!
December 7, 2010 8:12 am at 8:12 am #716272kapustaParticipantSomeone told me a story of a family where a certain name was very popular, (I forgot what the exact name was but something like Devorah Leah). Everyone was called by the full name, Devorah Leah, but for “some” reason, one person decided to go with Devoiry instead of Devorah Leah for their daughter. It was interesting when they realized her chassans mother was named Leah.
December 7, 2010 8:17 am at 8:17 am #716273kapustaParticipantSomeone told me a story of a family where a certain name was very popular, (I forgot what the exact name was but something like Devorah Leah). Everyone was called by the full name, Devorah Leah, but for “some” reason, one person decided to go with Devoiry instead of Devorah Leah for their daughter. It was interesting when they realized her chassans mother was named Leah.
December 7, 2010 11:29 am at 11:29 am #716274Ken ZaynMember#2 Sacrilege
Its a bit harsh to call the father names like that after he must have been up all night in hospital thru labor and the birth of his child, baby only born at 6.00am, he couldnt have left hospital for a while after that, and then having to walk from the hospital to shul which could have taken an hour or 2, most probably got to shul late and didnt have a second to check the name properly!
#1 Shticky Guy
Its a great story! Thank you. Any more…?
December 7, 2010 2:03 pm at 2:03 pm #716275SacrilegeMemberKen Zayn
And all those factors mean what?
That for his entire life, lets say 25 years, he hasnt been paying attention to Megillah when it was being read.
December 7, 2010 4:26 pm at 4:26 pm #716276WIYMemberSacrilege
Wow when did you join the holier than thou club? He may have missed a few things in the Megillah but there are plenty of people that don’t have the Megillah down pat, there are certainly bigger problems out there with regards to mitzvah observance and Halacha adherence would you like to discuss that loaded topic…?
December 7, 2010 5:02 pm at 5:02 pm #716277SacrilegeMemberWIY
No. I was just answering Ken Zayn. I mean come on WIY. Thats a pretty pathetic excuse, him being tired. Even I, who rarely go to Shul can basically layn the first 3 Perakim of Megillas Esther by heart. I mean isnt that the mitzvah? You have to hear every word?!
I really dont think this is holier than thou but, you tell me since you are the king 😉
December 7, 2010 7:24 pm at 7:24 pm #716278Trying to be helpfulMemberwould you like to discuss that loaded topic…?
& compete with you?
December 7, 2010 9:06 pm at 9:06 pm #716279WIYMemberSacrilege
It is possible to listen to Megillah for many years and still not know it by heart too well. There are people who dont have great memories remember the first time you hear it its after fasting all day and the second time is in the morning when the person could be hungover or just really tired from the night before. He definitely hasnt done anything wrong by not knowing the precise name of Esthers father/Mordechais uncle…not everyone is as smart as you of course. When you are smarter though, the price to pay is that more is expected of you as well…
If Im a king then you better be careful, have some respect for royalty 🙂
December 7, 2010 9:12 pm at 9:12 pm #716280SacrilegeMemberWIY (aka His Majesty)
If thats the case, he wasnt yotzei the mitzvah of Megillah, plain and simple, nothing to do w being smart (of which I never claimed to be).
December 7, 2010 9:23 pm at 9:23 pm #716281WIYMemberSacrilege
His Majesty, ahh thats more like it lol! It doesnt say anywhere that you have to listen “intently” you have to listen. You remember the names of Achashveiroshes advisors? How many were there? What was the name of the fourth one? Come on! You hear it “every” year! How can you not know that?!
:-p
December 7, 2010 10:05 pm at 10:05 pm #716282SacrilegeMemberWIY
There were 7 and the fourth was Bigsa, if I’m not mistaken.
Besides, I would double check if I were naming my child.
December 8, 2010 1:05 am at 1:05 am #716283Shticky GuyParticipantHi guys and thanks for joining my thread.
Could we please put the boxing gloves away now and get back to the topic of hashgacha pratis stories. There must be great inspirational stories out there, some new and some previously published, that the many members of ywn coffee room can share here with us all. Come on! I look forward…
December 9, 2010 3:47 am at 3:47 am #716284metrodriverMemberShticky guy; (OP); You took the words right out of my keyboard, in your latest post. I was beginning to wonder if people are going to post their stories of Hashgacha Pratis or it will deteriorate into a boxing match by people showing off their ego. So here goes my story of Hashgacha Pratis or, “Giluy Eliyahu”. On a Friday afternoon we were on the way to Monsey (from Brooklyn) to join in a family simcha. Soon after starting on the Palisades Parkway my car had a flat tire. I pulled over on the shoulder and started jacking up the car. But I had tremendous difficulty with loosening the lugs. I started wondering if we’ll make it in time for Shabbos, with an Hour and Twenty Minutes remaining. I was Mispallel to Hashem for help. Soon, a car pulled over. A gentleman comes out, all dressed for Shabbos. He got to work on the tire with such ease and speed. He didn’t even let me take out the spare. Within five Minutes, the job was done. When I asked him for his name (after thanking him) he gave me a very uncommon last name and he said he lives in Haverstraw. ???? ?? ??? ????. Naturally, we arrived ?”? at our destination with plenty of time to spare. Ever since, I’ve been looking in directories of the entire area. I didn’t find anyone by that name. So I concluded, it must have been Eliyahu Hanavi. In Zchus of Shabbos.
December 9, 2010 5:24 pm at 5:24 pm #716285SacrilegeMembermetrodriver
Maybe hes unlisted?
December 9, 2010 6:06 pm at 6:06 pm #716286metrodriverMemberSacrilege; I thought of that. But in addition, I asked around from people who live in the general area. No one ever heard or knew such a person. Now, I’m trying to be realistic. But the way he appeared suddenly, the speed and ease that he performed the work and the calming words he said to me. This was a “Person” fully dressed in fine shirt and tie willing to do such “Dirty” work like changing a tire was a surprise altogether.
December 9, 2010 6:26 pm at 6:26 pm #716287eclipseMemberFirst of all the guy in the megila story may have been a baal t’shuva and NOT HEARD THE MEGILA THAT MANY TIMES AT ALL.Or might have not known it well for a zillion other legit reason.
Even Moshe Rabeinu forgot a halacha TEMPORARILY because Hashem wanted him to…
And Hashgacha Pratis…I was freezing cold yesterday and needed a car service to get to a second downtown appointment…with a document that had to be notarized.
I saw a sign that said NOTARY PUBLIC,went in,and the woman asked me where I needed to GO!It was ,of all places,an upscale livery/car service with a notary public on the premises!
December 9, 2010 7:05 pm at 7:05 pm #716288wants to be a WIYMemberMetrodriver
There is a saying in Yddish ? ????????? ????? ???? ?? ??????? ?????? ? ?????????
A stupidity even when all turns out well remains a stupidity
If you just got off the GWB 1 1/2 hours before the zman when did you leave?
Twenty odd years ago we left BP at 3:00 on a Friday when the Zman was 7:00. We ended up in a super jam on the West Side Highway. At 5:00 we were at the Intrepid so I turned around & headed back home. We arrived home with plenty of time to get our corner grocer to let us in through the back door and fill up a cart with chala Kedem gefilte fish Meal Mart cold cuts etc. etc. It was so close to Shabbos that Mr. S. did not come down to check us out.
According to the Debreciner Rav ??”? if you do not allow yourself at least twice the normal travelling time you are a ?…?? ???
Figuring travelling time from the GWB to Monsey at 30 min. You arrived at your host 1 hour before Zman at best. You call that plenty of time?
Maybe this ??? ???? was so embarrassed at being caught on the PIP so close to ??? he did not want to be identified so he deviated from the ??? & fabricated a name & told you he lives in Haverstraw. How many Yiden who wear ???? ???
live in Haverstraw?
December 9, 2010 7:42 pm at 7:42 pm #716289🍫Syag LchochmaParticipantWhy is ‘everyone’ so nasty?
December 9, 2010 8:17 pm at 8:17 pm #716290popa_bar_abbaParticipantI hate hashgacha pratis stories.
It makes it seem as if there is only hashgacha when G-d makes things work out miraculously.
We should be telling stories about people who were fired from their jobs for no reason and it hurt them.
About people who died in plane crashes.
About people who missed shabbos.
That shows hashgacha. Hashem wanted them to not have it and they didn’t get it.
December 9, 2010 8:18 pm at 8:18 pm #716291popa_bar_abbaParticipantI also hate hashgacha pratis stories, because they often show nothing.
Consider: Every plane has some people who miss the flight, and some planes crash.
Every day some people are late to work, and 9/11 was no different.
December 9, 2010 8:20 pm at 8:20 pm #716292eclipseMemberI’m not.
December 9, 2010 9:56 pm at 9:56 pm #716293🍫Syag LchochmaParticipantThat’s why I said ‘everyone’ instead of everyone.
December 9, 2010 11:01 pm at 11:01 pm #716294Sister BearMemberI was walking with my friend somewhere, for some reason I just looked left saw no cars coming and then right and I started walking into the street, when I don’t know what I suddenly stopped. I was literally less than two feet away from a car.
PBA – yeah so sometimes it’s not so clear that its Hashem, so that’s what we have to try and work on, seeing how the bad is sometimes good. But sometimes Hashem shows us signs that are more noticeable that He’s there and taking care of our every need.
December 9, 2010 11:36 pm at 11:36 pm #716295popa_bar_abbaParticipantsister:
What I am saying is that we are denying hashgacha by only telling the miraculous good stories, as if Hashem is only involved in “good” miracles. Or only in miracles.
December 10, 2010 12:09 am at 12:09 am #716296charlie brownMemberpopa,
I agree with sister bear. when we repeat a story where the hashgacha was very obvious, it’s not to imply that Hashem only runs the world when the ppl in the story live happily ever after but rather to remind ourselves of the fact that Hashem is running the world, period. That way hopefully we can remember this lesson even in instances where the hashgacha is not so clear.
December 10, 2010 1:44 am at 1:44 am #716297ulisisMemberI agree with Popa.
I once read this somewhere:
“People are always a little confused about this, as they are in the case of miracles. When someone is saved from certain death by a strange concatenation of circumstances, they say that’s a miracle. But of course if someone is killed by a freak chain of events — the oil spilled just there, the safety fence broken just there — that must also be a miracle. Just because it’s not nice doesn’t mean it’s not miraculous.”
December 10, 2010 4:04 am at 4:04 am #716298metrodriverMemberSS;(Shloimy’s Shver); p.s. (I write the postscript in the beginning. Then, it’s really a Pre-script or, pre-fix.) Am I glad you’re Shloimy’s Shver, And not mine, thank you.; You DO have a very skewed look at events and people. You only select the negative. Instead of looking at the ideal side of someone trying to help a fellow Jew who is stranded close to Shabbos, you knock that person for helping and being there at the right time. Then, you give yourself away as being extremely prejudiced. You have a certain image of someone being dressed in ???? ???. Therefore, he can’t possibly live in Haverstraw. No. There are probably not too many Yidden living in that town who wear a Shtreimel and Bekishe. But he was dressed in a silk shirt and necktie. He is still a Teyere Yid. I doubt if you would pull off the highway on Erev Shabbos (or any other day) to help a fellow Jew. Without seeing a picture of you I can (probably) draw an accurate image of you and your manner of speech.
December 10, 2010 4:12 am at 4:12 am #716299metrodriverMemberPBA (Poppa-Bar-Abba); Yes. There is Hashgacha Pratis even in negative events. In fact. the Gemara says that a person is obligated to praise Hashem for the negative events in life just as he does for the positive ones. One must be a “Baal-Madrega” to accomplish that. But, to celebrate (and thank Hashem) when things DO work out and recognize the hand of Hashem is a basic obligation. Especially, when there is a touch of the mysterious about it.
December 10, 2010 4:57 am at 4:57 am #716300Sister BearMemberPBA: I think Rav Paysach Krohn says a story or something about this that he was staying by Rav Shlomo Shwadron because his father was sick and he said, “I have bitachon that my father will get better.” And Rav Shwadron got angry and said, “bitachon isn’t saying that everthing is gonna work out, but realizing that everything that happens is from Hashem and is for the best.”
I guess that’s what your saying. I can understand that but I don’t think that just because people don’t recognize that EVERYTHING is from Hashem they shouldn’t recognize and see the apparent good is from Hashem.
December 10, 2010 5:37 am at 5:37 am #716301popa_bar_abbaParticipantSister:
My principal point is that it is silly to only look for Hashem in the good miracles. Telling only those stories as “proof” of Hashem’s hashgacha really makes fools out of us.
December 10, 2010 2:29 pm at 2:29 pm #716302WIYMemberPopa
We don’t say it as “proof” we say it because human nature is to be selfish unappreciative and to be egotistical. I spoke to a certain Rebbeh yesterday he told me that to develop real Bitachon takes a lifetime of work and one has to learn the Chovos Halevavos daily. Its so easy to take things for granted. We must make an effort to see Hashem in our everyday lives. Its easy to see Hashem when bad things happen. All bad things are blamed on G-d its the good things that we all take credit for or say “coincidence” “luck” or they happened by “chance” therefore we tell Hashgacha Pratis stories to be mechazeik our Emunah and Betachon and to try and really open our eyes to see that everything good comes from Hashem and that everything is good because everything comes from Hashem.
December 10, 2010 3:07 pm at 3:07 pm #716303popa_bar_abbaParticipantOk fine. Be inspired.
But aren’t we silly?
December 10, 2010 3:26 pm at 3:26 pm #716304YW Moderator-80Memberis this one better popa?
Avrom Hirsch Goldbogen (mike todd) rejected all Yiddishkeit, married a famous non-Jewish actress and fell out of an airplane. he was given a long time to think about things on the way down
December 10, 2010 3:30 pm at 3:30 pm #716305popa_bar_abbaParticipantMaybe he was really a tzaddik, and we don’t really understand the challenges he faced. He fell out of the airplane to be mekaper for his few aveiros so he could go straight to gan eden.
December 10, 2010 3:35 pm at 3:35 pm #716306YW Moderator-80Membercould be
anyway it’s not true
thats how i once heard the story but i just checked into it
he didnt fall
his plane crashed
December 10, 2010 3:55 pm at 3:55 pm #716307metrodriverMemberPBA Popa-Bar-abba; You seem to notice the good after the bad has happened; Todd was, (after all the “Maasim Tovim” he committed during his life) suddenly a “Tzaddik”, while you can’t accept a story that ended well at face value. Truthfully, a person has to accept everything that comes from Hashem, whether the “Good” is visible at first glance or hidden. The point (of my retelling this episode) is, that some people think stories of Hashgacha Pratis are only in the story books and happened hundreds of years ago. But, in fact they are happening to everyone on a daily basis. We just have to open our eyes. (And our minds.)
December 12, 2010 3:15 am at 3:15 am #716308wants to be a WIYMemberBut he was dressed in a silk shirt and necktie. He is still a Teyere Yid. That is exactly the kind of Bigdei Shabbos that I as was referring to. Well it seems that my demographics are wrong. I doubt if you would pull off the highway on Erev Shabbos (or any other day) to help a fellow Jew Well maybe not to help change a tire, since I am not very skilled in that area, but I have gone out of my way many many times to help a Yid. I can boast all I want since no one knows who I am so there is no problem of ???? ) Without seeing a picture of you I can (probably) draw an accurate image of you and your manner of speech. If you imagined me with a Shtreimel you are wrong
December 12, 2010 5:10 am at 5:10 am #716309metrodriverMemberSS; (Shloimy’s Shver); No. I wouldn’t say that you wear a Shtreimel on Sunday or Monday (except to a wedding of a member of the family or your Rebbe.) But on Shabbos you DO wear one. But that (alone) doesn’t make you prejudiced. BTW. I “Googled” and looked up in the on-line directory the name of the person (or Malach) who helped me at that time, and the result came back that “There is no one by that name in New York State”.
December 12, 2010 2:53 pm at 2:53 pm #716310wants to be a WIYMemberMD I don’t own a shtreimel nor do I wear one ????”? or other wise . There may have been a Shtreimel on my a head at some points in my life, put there some fool who thought that a shver dancing with the Chasan should wear a shtreimel.
May I know what made you think I was prejudiced because I doubted that there is a significant number of Shabbos observers living in Haverstraw? BTW according to Google there is only one synagogue in Haverstraw. Care to find out their affiliation?
December 12, 2010 4:40 pm at 4:40 pm #716311metrodriverMemberSS; (Shloimy’s Shver); Thank you for enlightening me, and it’s such a relief to know that you’re not prejudiced. But my first impression was that you’re knocking his being dressed for Shabbos in a silk shirt and tie. Anyway. There are many mysterious/mystical elements to this story. Not least among them is the fact that he gave a non-existing –but genuine sounding– name. This is one of the identifying traits of Eliyahu Hanavi.
December 12, 2010 5:02 pm at 5:02 pm #716313wants to be a WIYMemberMD ???? Now that you are convinced that I am sane and rational please go back and read my original post. All I was trying to say that being on the PIP 1 1/2 hours before Shabbos is not really appropriate for someone who claims to be included in ???? ?? ???? ???? ?????
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