Reb Tzadok teaches that even though it seems like Moshe Rabbeinu’s many tefillos were not answered, he actually received something through his deep yearning that was an even higher level than he would have if he had entered Eretz Yisroel. Through yearning, a person can reach even higher than through doing, because there is no limit to how much one can yearn.
This is why we read Va’eschanan on Shabbos Nachamu. A Yid can sometimes feel discouraged because it seems that all of his tefillos for the Geulah have not been answered. Va’eschanan teaches us that every hishtokekus brings a person a personal geulah. Our tefillos are always answered, and every moment of yearning fills the heart with simcha, even before we have been zocheh to the complete Geulah. (Pri Tzadok Va’eschanan 13)
(See cover article for more about this idea)
This article was found in Nekuda Tova Issue 91.