Across the Dniester
The Baal Shem Tov once told his grandson that he had crossed the Dniester without any Divine Name, only with great faith.
A story ofRebbe Yisroel ben Eliezer (the Baal Shem Tov)רבי ישראל בן אליעזר (הבעל שם טוב)Profile ›
Rav Moshe Chaim Ephraim of Sudilkov, the Baal Shem Tov's grandson and the author of Degel Machaneh Ephraim, passed on something he heard from his grandfather. Once, the Besht needed to cross the Dniester River.
Chassidim knew him as a master of the holy Names, and one might assume that he crossed by means of them. But he said the opposite. This time he used no Name at all. He simply laid his gartel on the water and crossed over it.
How was it possible? He explained that it was through great emunah, faith. There was no technique and no lofty meditation, only a complete trust that Hashem would carry him over.
Rav Moshe Chaim Ephraim brings the account while explaining the words of Yaakov Avinu, "for with my staff I crossed this Jordan" (Bereishis 32:11). He notes that the Hebrew word for "my staff," bemakli, has the numerical value of Yaakov, whose defining trait is truth and faith. It was through that great faith, he says, that Yaakov crossed the Jordan.
Source: Degel Machaneh Ephraim (Rebbe Moshe Chaim Ephraim of Sudilkov), Parshas Vayishlach, on Bereishis 32:11 (second explanation).
Think of one thing you are facing this week that seems to require a perfect plan, the right words or the right connection. Do what is reasonably yours to do, and then pause and say a sincere sentence of trust: Hashem, I am doing my part, and I am relying on You to carry me over. Notice how much lighter it feels when your effort is paired with real trust, and let that trust guide your next small step.