My dear brother,
When you are surrounded by darkness and sadness, by challenges and the yetzer hara, being pulled into raging waters, believe with all your strength and with absolute faith that there is no reality, from the smallest thing to the greatest, that is not fully infused with the presences of Hashem. From the heavens above to the earth below and everything within them, from a fleeting thought to the deepest idea, from the brightest good to darkness that is more bitter than death — every single place is filled with the reality of Hashem who gives life and existence to all things at all times.
Strengthen yourself against the narrow place that is constricting you, with the strength of your emunah and with a broken heart, cry out to Hashem with a bitterness over anything you’ve done wrong, and say “My dear sweet merciful father, You are full of compassion, please do not abandon me and push me away from experiencing your light.”
Attach yourself to the Jewish people, so that even a Jew who seems to be on the lowest of the low of spiritual levels should be in your eyes like Moshe Rabbeinu. Cherish every spiritual level you reach, and do not belittle even an achievement that you see as small, such as davening and learning as a ‘lip service.’
This article was found in Nekuda Tova Issue 78.