In The Blink of an Eye
ישועת ה' כהרף עין, the salvation of Hashem comes in the blink on an eye. A person can hope and pray for something for so long but see no results. All of a sudden, when there seems nothing left to do and all hope is lost, the salvation comes. Everything the person had been hoping for materializes. This is ישועת ה' כהרף עין.
Sometimes salvation comes as a result of our efforts and sometimes it comes from a completely different source. The cause doesn't matter, because either way it's from Hashem. It's important for us to always remember, that although our efforts are necessary, they are not what bring us the results. Hashem told us to try and do everything we can to be successful. Once we've done our role, we've created a pipeline for Hashem to send His blessing.
If somebody tried in vain for months to sell a certain property and then one day, somebody out of the blue calls him and makes a great offer, he should not feel that his effort for the last few months were wasted. His hishtadlut created the pipeline, and Hashem sent the results.
We must never give up on our goals, especially when trying to do the will of Hashem. People trying for a long time to get married or have children could begin to feel "What's the point? I'm not seeing any results anyway. My efforts are futile." Nevertheless, Hashem wants them to continue hoping to Him. The salvation could come from a completely unexpected source, but it's only after we have made our efforts and continued to pray.
Someone recently showed me two articles that demonstrate this point. The first one told the story of a woman who once visited her aunt in the hospital. As she was walked down the hallway, an elderly gentleman stopped her and asked if she was religious. She responded yes. He then inquired if she knew of any middle aged men for his 38 year old daughter. The man said his daughter, Yael, became religious and was having a difficult time getting married. The woman replied that she just happened to have joined a network of shadchanim and would be glad to help.
She contacted the man's daughter and put her name on a list. Very shortly afterwards, someone in the network suggested Moshe, a 42 year old single. The match was set up, and Baruch Hashem, they are now happily married. One could imagine all the heartache Yael had experienced, all the tefilot she had prayed, all of the connections she had tried to make until the age of 38. All of a sudden, from a completely unexpected source, the ישועת השםcame בהרף עין.
The other article was about a couple named Avi and Rachel from Israel, who were married for many years with no children. After years of unsuccessful treatments in Israel, the couple decided, based on medical advice, to seek treatment in the United States. Even though they were unhappy with their daily routine in New York, they wanted children so badly that they were willing to stick it out. One day Avi was called back to Israel suddenly to tend to a family emergency. He went by himself and was going to return as soon as possible. As he was boarding the return flight, the clerk looked at his passport and shook his head. "You can't enter the US", he said and pointed to a large black stamp on the passport that Avi had never seen before.
Without a choice, he told his wife to return to Israel where they settled back into their old lives. A few months later, they discovered that Rachel was expecting. They weren't even undergoing any treatments at the time. Baruch Hashem, eight months later Rachel gave birth to identical twins. They had put in years of hishtadlut and tefilot, but in the end, Hashem brought the yeshua in the blink of an eye, right back where they started. Their effort were necessary, nothing was wasted. They opened the pipeline.
Hashem wants us to always keep trying and keep praying to Him. B'ezrat Hashem everyone who needs a yeshua will see the ישועת השם כהרף עין.
