[Avodah] Knocking on Heaven's Door

[Micha Berger]

On Wed, Oct 26, 2011 at 09:21:01AM -0400, cantorwolberg at cox.net wrote:
: So how do you explain a true non believer (or a less frum believer) who has a major
: operation and never utters a prayer, never davens, who has a doctor with the same
: mindset and the surgery is a major success? ...

Who said tefillah correlates with success? Tefillah isn't whining
to G-d util He gives you what you want. Tefillah is turning to the
Almighty because it's natural to cry to one's Tateh when in pain or in
need. Just as you would call your mother when going through a crisis
even in situations where you know she can't help. Actually sometimes
getting help is secondary and tangential. The point is the relationship.

Now sometimes, it turns out that the problem was primarily in order
to get you to turn to Hashem in need, and once one does so, the person
became the kind of person who doesn't need the yisurim in question. But
very often not -- the change in the person caused by expressing and
thus reinforcing one's feelings toward G-d is insufficient reason for
the medical problem to be unnecessary.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha