The Cancelled Meeting | Rabbi Nachum Binder

I want to share a story that I once heard from Maran Rosh HaYeshiva, R’ Elya Ber Wachtfogel shlit”a. In the mid-90s, there was a Bochur who, as he was getting older, Shidduchim wasn’t going, started experiencing tremendous Nisyonos in Shemiras Einayim. Walking down the street, anywhere he went, was a tremendous difficulty for him, and he gave in to the Yetzer Hara time and time again. Until he reached a point where he felt he was totally lost. A friend of his tried to encourage him to go talk to the Lakewood Mashgiach, R’ Nosson Wachtfogel z”l, and maybe get some Chizuk. He didn't really think anything would happen, but begrudgingly he agreed. After telling over the story, saying over the situation to the Mashgiach, the Mashgiach told him: I want to talk to you, but I need ten days. I need that you should be Mekabel on yourself that for the next ten days, you will not look where you're not supposed to look, you will not do what you're not supposed to do. Ten clean days and then come back to me and we can talk. Day one went by, day two, day three, and the Nisyonos were getting very hard. But a word is a word, and he kept on going. As day six, day seven, day eight came and he lost all his Cheshek, all his flavor in trying to do this, and he was about to give up. Nothing's going to happen anyway. But he kept on saying to himself: It's only another two days. Let me try. Day ten came and he was counting down the hours to be totally free and be able to go back to looking where he wants and doing what he wants. Day ten in the afternoon, he walked into Landau Shul in Flatbush to daven Mincha. And the Mincha started like every other Mincha started, but all of a sudden, in the middle of Shemoneh Esrei, he experienced a feeling that he never experienced before. He experienced a tremendous closeness to the Ribono shel Olam. He felt he was being enveloped with some type of aura of Kedusha, and he broke down in tears, crying and pleading to the Ribono shel Olam, to help him, to bring him closer. And he truly felt for that Shemoneh Esrei a tremendous קרבת אלוקים, closeness to Hashem. The Shemoneh Esrei lasted him an hour and a half, and as the bochur himself said: When I finished that Shemoneh Esrei, I didn't have to go back to the Mashgiach. I was in a much better place. ,מוריי ורבותיי we all have our challenges, we all have our Nisyonos. But let us make some type of Kabbalah, that we will not give in to the Yetzer Hara, whether it's ten days, ten weeks, ten hours, or however long each person knows that they can do, and a little bit more. And if we do what we're supposed to do, then the Mesillas Yesharim promises us, We will all be able to experience that קרבת אלוקים לי טוב.