Episode 77 - Are We Too Busy To Notice Miracles

You can live through something extraordinary and still have to pack lunches, pay bills, and get the kids to bed. That tension sits at the centre of our conversation: we believe the month of Nisan and the lead-up to Passover are built for redemption, yet the “open miracles” can be easy to miss when life feels loud, rushed, and expensive. We talk about Torah themes like Parashat Zachor, Amalek, and the repeating rhythm of Jewish history, then ask the uncomfortable question: are the distractions around us keeping us from seeing what Hashem is doing in real time?

We also get practical about Passover preparation, because spiritual growth should not come with burnout. We share a simple approach to Passover cleaning that keeps the focus where food actually is, so you do not drain your home of joy before the Seder even begins. Passover is about telling the story of freedom, connecting with your Creator, and building family memory, and that requires energy, patience, and presence.

From there, we shift into finances, recession pressure, and the anxiety so many people carry after COVID. We unpack a core Jewish teaching on money: it all belongs to the Creator, and it is given as a test of values. The episode dives deep into tzedakah, why giving charity matters most when it feels hardest, and a powerful Talmud story about Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai that shows how voluntary giving can replace a painful loss and turn it into merit. If you care about Jewish faith, Passover meaning, and real-world guidance for financial stress, this one will stay with you. Subscribe, share with a friend who needs encouragement, and leave a review with the line that hit you most.

Transcript

Nisan Redemption And Open Miracles

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Welcome to the Trust Factor Podcast, the only podcast that guarantees your success when you implement its divine age old teachings. Well, we made it, everybody. It's Friday. Baruch Hashem, thank God we made it. It's another beautiful week that we've cranked out, and we're getting closer to the holiday of Passover. It's in about 10 days or so, April 1st. And so I don't think it's a coincidence that it's April 1st, because I think it's going to be a big eye-opener for the entire world. It says that in the month of Nisan, which is the one that we're in, that's when we were redeemed from Egypt. And it says because of that, the Jewish nation is going to be redeemed again in the future in the month of Nisan. And God willing, it's going to be this Nisan, the one that we're in right now through the holiday of Passover, we're going to see absolute miracles. We are going to see exactly what Hashem promised us. I think I know it's going to be in this month. There's no coincidence that just a few short weeks ago, on the day when we read in the Torah portion, Parashat Zakhur, which tells us that we have an obligation to remove the memory of this nation, this wicked, nasty nation of Amalek, we have an obligation to remove them from the world. What happened? Not that week, not that month, but on that very same day. The leader of Amalek, the number one terrorist on planet Earth, the one who said, not like Hitler Yamakshamo, that I want to destroy the Jewish nation no matter how long it takes, and not like Haman, the wicked one, who said, I want to destroy the entire nation on the same day. This one was ready to create a nuclear bomb so that he can rid the world of the Jewish nation in one minute. That's what he kept saying. Those are his words. And on the day of Parashat Zahor, the Torah portion where we said that we have to rid the world of the memory of Amalek, that monster had a bomb, an Israeli bomb, dropped on his head. The same way he wanted to drop a bomb on our heads and destroy us, that very same bomb took him out. The same way that Haman in the story of Purim put up a tree to be able to hang Mordechaion, and at the end he was hung on it, so too Khomeini was killed by the very bomb that he thought he was going to drop on us. You know, when we're in it, my friends, when we're living through this, it's very difficult to see the miracles, the open miracles. And even when you see them, they aren't nearly as impactful. In 50 years from now, we're going to be sitting in a different reality. But generally speaking, in 50 years from now, our descendants are going to be reading about these miracles, or a hundred years from now. And they're going to be reading about these wars and what happened on these days, and their minds are going to be blown because for them it's going to be theory. For them, it's going to be something that they did not go through. It's something that they're going to be on the outside reading about, looking in, and they're going to have their minds blown. Us, you and I, we're living through it. And so we have to go to work the next day. And we got to put our kids to bed. And we got to prepare dinner. And we got to deal with finances. And we got to do all these things that are a distraction from what's happening right under your noses. They're a complete distraction to take you away from acknowledging the open miracles that are happening in your lives. And the same way I gave you that one example just now about Khomeini on the day that he died and how he died, and the connection back to Hitler and the connection back to Haman, there are so many of these miracles happening, and they've been happening nonstop for the last few years as we go in to the countdown to 6,000, because we know that this world was designed for 6,000 years. That's it. For every day of creation, God created the world in six days, and on the seventh he rested. Every one of those days represents a thousand years of our existence. And right now we're at 5786. Think about that. We're at 214 years away from countdown. Now, add to that the fact that when we were in Egypt for the original redemption, we were supposed to be slaves for 400 years. But he redeemed us early. He gave us a discount. That discount was 210 years. That's when he took us out after 210, which means we got a 190-year discount. That 190 year discount, if you apply to the 214 that we're sitting with right now, that only leaves us with 24 years. 24 years on 6,000, my friends, is a rounding error. It is such a tiny number that we're all probably going to be living through it, my friends. So realize we're living in very, very fundamentally different times. And that's why the world is as it is. That's why things are upside down. That's why things aren't making sense. That's why things are hard to be able to really understand and sit well with you, because they are so radically different than anything that any other society has had to deal with. That's why I keep saying we're living through very, very challenging times that is unique to our generation. So, God willing, this Passover is going to be a game changer. Now, let's shift gears. Let's talk. Oh, but before we go there, again, I want to reiterate just because Passover is coming up, don't be nervous. Remember, when you clean, when you get ready for the holiday, whether it's your house, whether it's your car, whether it's your office, focus on the areas where the food is likely to be. Don't focus on areas where nobody's been in two years. Don't focus on areas where you know that no human being can get in there to enjoy a meal. Focus on areas of the house where people will go, and it's common for them to enjoy a food or a snack in that area and focus on that area. And even there, if you're talking about the bedroom, okay, so people eat their food in the bedroom. Don't take the mattress apart. Don't take out all the feathers like they used to in the old days and then put all the feathers back in. Think with reason and logic, my friends, because if you're going to do this to yourself, if you're going to torture yourself and your family leading up to the holiday, then when the holiday actually presents itself, you are going to be wiped and you're not going to be in the position to enjoy the holiday, which is the biggest shame. This holiday was created in order for you to connect back with your creator and your family to be able to give over the story of Passover and the Exodus and the freedom of the Jewish nation to your children. And if you don't have the energy because by nine o'clock your eyes are closing because you're wiped, then you've done yourself and your family a very big disservice. The conversation now shifts. It shifts into a discussion around finances, which is obviously connected to the state trooper, but far beyond that. And we're living in a time right now, commensurate with everything else that I just told you about the difficulties and the challenges, where people are struggling financially. There is a global recession going on right now that they're really not talking about when they should be. The point is, everybody knows that businesses have failed since COVID. A lot of things have happened. Countries have spent money that they don't have. They're now trying to recollect it. They're so desperate. And then what do they do with the money? They go and they give$2 billion to Ukraine. Different conversation, my friends. But the point is that they're struggling. These countries that once had nothing but money are now trying to figure out where they're going to get money from and how they're going to survive. So this conversation is very, very much apropos. The intelligent individual understands that all of creation belongs to the creator, including the money. The money is a tool that he distributes to individuals on a case by case basis to see what are you going to do with it? Are you going to do the right thing with it or not? And if you do the right thing with it, two things happen. Number one, you gain more of it. But number two, you atone with it. You make up for the transgressions that you've done in this world. And it even says, sdakatzilmi mavit. The act of giving charity can save an individual from certain death. It's that important. And God gives it out to you to see what are you going to do with it. Is it all going to your belly? Is it all going into your bank account? Are you going to hoard it as much as possible? Are you going to try and use it as a symbol of status to show people, look at me, look at how wonderful and accomplished I am? Is that what you're going to use it for? Are you going to use it to subjugate people? Are you going to use it to make people do the things that you want them to do? Or are you going to do the opposite? Are you going to run around trying to help people, looking to see who needs assistance, who's drowning in this world, who just lost their job, who can't make ends meet? Who's the one that can't afford a proper Passover Seder? Are you that person? Or are you the guy that keeps looking for the opportunity to just keep making more money, to just continue building your bank account? Which one are you, my friends? Because that's a very telling story for the creator. The next time he decides how much to give you, he watches to see, are you using your money wisely to do good things and to build the world? And if you are, he'll make sure that you suffer no loss from giving charity and from doing the good things. The money that you happily give for worthy causes saves you from losing equivalent sums on medical expenses, on breakdowns, on pain and tribulation. The time that you invest in helping others saves you time from standing in lines and so forth. If it was decreed that a person should lose a sum of money, but he gave the exact sum of money, like the example I gave you with the state trooper, that you commit to giving that money to charity, the damaging decree will be rescinded. The individual willfully surrendered the funds. Therefore, he's a double winner. He's spared of the damaging loss that he was about to lose, and he gains the merit of his charitable deed. He double dips, which the creator gives him as a reward for his efforts. Do you understand? It's again a double dipping. That's how Hashem, in his love and his mercy, created this world. That you win not just one time, but twice as much every time. There's a story, and we'll finish with this in the Tammud of Rabbi Johan ben Zakai, has a dream, has a dream that his nephew is about to lose 700 dinars, which was a sizable amount of money at the time. And so for a period of time he ran after his nephew, trying to get his nephew to make donations to charitable causes. And he succeeded. He succeeded to get out of his nephew 683 dinars in charitable donations. But on the eve of Rosh Hashanah, where we know there is an accounting, the Roman tax collector appears at this guy's door, the nephew's door, and demands a sum of money. How much? 17 dinars in back taxes. The nephew and his family are terrified because they think that this tax collector is not done with them and now they're on the radar and they're going to keep coming back for more. So they go to their uncle, and the uncle says, Don't worry. The 17 dinars that you just paid them is it. That's it. You're not liable for any more. So the nephew says, How do you know? Are you uh you have a connection with the tax authorities? Are you a prophet? And the uncle says, No, I'm not a prophet, and I'm not connected to the tax authorities, but I'm connected to the supreme ruler, Hashem. And at the beginning of the year, he showed me in a dream that you stood to lose 700 dinars. And I almost succeeded at extracting from you the full amount for charity. But since you still owed the 17 dinars, the tax collector served as the messenger to complete your predestined loss. If you hadn't previously donated the 683 in charity, then you would have lost the entire 700 to who? To a lousy tax collector who's going to give that money to the Ukraine to continue fighting a war and slaughtering innocent people and to other cruel messengers, receiving only grief in return. But since you now have the merit of charity, you'll see blessings and success in everything that you do. You understand? He gave the money to charity through his uncle. And because of that, not only did he not have to give it to a corrupt government, but he benefited from the charity, the end result of that charity and the people that he helped. So this nephew turns to his uncle and he says, You've been collecting from me all year on behalf of this charity. Why didn't you just tell me in the beginning that I owed 700 and I would have given it to you with pleasure, the entire sum? So the uncle says to him, I wanted you to give the charity with no ulterior motive, and not just to save yourself from a heavenly decree. So this nephew, had he come and given the entire 700 dinars because he was saving his skin, then yeah, at the same time he would have benefited. There's no question. He would have not owed more, and he still would have benefited from it. But the uncle did him a favor. There's din and there's lifnim mishuratadin. There's justice and then there's going beyond the letter of the law. The justice would have been, you have to pay back 700 dinars. So the nephew would have said, Here's the check, thank you very much, and moved on with his life. But instead, because the uncle planned it out properly, he gave this nephew of his even more merit to say, you're giving it out of your own free will. You understand? It's unbelievable. The difference is incalculable. Yes, you've given the same amount. Yes, the end result is the same in theory, but in practice, it's very different. When Hashem sees that you're giving it from your heart with love because somebody's asked for it, then the reward is that much greater. When you're giving it to save your own skin, okay, still perfectly legit, no problem. You're safe. You don't have to give the 700 to the tax man, and you still get the merit of the charity. But how much more merit is this nephew going to get? Because he gave it with his heart, not to save his skin. Very, very big difference. Let that be a lesson to all of us, my friends. If you're having a hard time, if you're struggling, no, number one, you're not alone. That's number one. Number two, don't let it affect your charity. In fact, remember that it's your charity, it's specifically your acts of charity that speak volumes that Hashem is watching closely to see. What are you going to do? Who are you worried about? Is it just you or are you seeing the bigger picture? If we see the bigger picture, my friends, the same way that we interact with others, he will interact with us. Have an amazing Shabbat, my friends, and we'll chat again on Sunday. Thank you for spending time with us on the Trust Factor Podcast. If you've heard something today that moved you, save this episode and share it with someone who might need to hear it. Be sure to subscribe so you don't miss upcoming conversations that challenge, empower, and uplift. And if you're on social media, connect with us. Leave your thoughts, drop a quote that resonated with you. Hashtag the TrustFactor Podcast. Until next time, keep growing in your trust and keep living with purpose. I'm Jesse Revivo, and this has been the Trust Factor Podcast. Thanks for listening.