In a certain city lived an expert goldsmith who was unmatched when it came to setting gems. Ministers, barons and nobles from all across the land would send him precious stones and pearls that he would set in place with the greatest precision and skill. He was very successful and became very wealthy.

One day, the man broke his hand. He was no longer able to con­tinue as a goldsmith and therefore set out to collect charity

“It would not befit you to do such a thing,” remarked those clos­est to him. “Should a skilled worker such as yourself, whose expertise was sought after day and night by all the barons in the land — now go and collect charity?”

“But what else should I do?” lamented the man. “My hand is broken, and I can no longer practice the trade that I formerly ex­celled in.”

“What does that mean, ‘you can no longer practice’?” asked his friends in amazement. “Go to a doctor and he will heal you your hand will be as good as new!”

A person is obligated to spend the days of his life engaged in the study of the Holy books and the perfor­mance of acts of kindness, and he must never let himself weaken in this area. There are times, however, when his heart offers him bad advice and lures him after meaningless endeavors. He must not listen this destructive council; rather, he must pray for mercy from the One Who is the Healer of the brokenhearted (see Psalms 147:3) imploring Hashem (G-d), “Create a pure heart for me, 0 G-d, and a steadfast spirit renew within me”(Psalm 51:12)

Prayer is possible in all times. We learn that “Out of the depths have I called upon you oh L-rd” (Psalms 130:1) Even when the distractions of the world attempts to interfere with a person’s prayer, they must strengthen themselves refuse to allow their mind to he diverted from prayer.

This can be compared to a young boy who was standing in the marketplace, holding a basket of apples that he was trying to sell.

He was suddenly approached by an individual who began to snatch the apples from the basket. The boy screamed with all his might, “Help! Help!”

A wise man passed by and said to the boy, “Why are you scream­ing? Instead of simply screaming, you should also grab as many apples as you can, before this man succeeds in snatching all of the apples before you manage to grab any…”

Sometimes an individual stands in prayer and the forces of evil tries with all of his might to distract him in order that he should not be able to pray with concentration. He may already be halfway through his prayers and not have concentrated on a single word.

It is worthwhile for a person to try and snatch a little bit for himself and pray the remainder of his prayers with great concentration. For if he does not do so, he will be left with nothing for himself.

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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