What If the Blessing You’re Praying For Is Already Right in Front of You?

“I understand what you don't have. But tell me, what do you have?!”

Think about that question for a moment.

We spend so much time thinking about what’s missing. The opportunities we haven't received. The prayers that haven't been answered. The things we desperately want but still don't have.

But what about everything we do have?

There is a powerful teaching: Blessing rests upon something that already exists.

Look around your life. Look around your home. What is already there?

Even the simplest things matter. Bread on the table. Salt. The little things we barely notice anymore.

And then say it out loud:

“I HAVE!”

I am not lacking. 

Because the words we speak matter. Our mouths have tremendous power. The blessings of this world are connected to our speech.

Words shape the way we experience reality.

And sometimes, the difference between despair and hope begins with what we choose to say.

The Well That Was There All Along

There is a moment in the Torah that is so moving, so powerful, that once you understand it, you may never look at your own struggles the same way again.

Hagar is in the wilderness with her son, Yishmael.

They have run out of water.

Her child is suffering. She is helpless. She cannot bear to watch what she believes will happen to him.

She moves away and begins to cry.

She cries and cries and cries.

She is completely broken.

And then something extraordinary happens.

An angel calls to her from heaven:

“Do not be afraid, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is. Arise, lift up the boy and hold him firmly with your hand, for I will make him into a great nation.”

And then comes the verse that changes everything:

“And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water.” (Bereshit 21:19)

Wait a minute.

Read those words again.

God opened her eyes, and she saw a well.

It doesn't say that God created a well.

It doesn't say that a well suddenly appeared.

It says that God opened her eyes.

Do you understand what that means?

The well had been there all along!

The water she so desperately needed was already nearby.

The answer to her prayers was right there.

But she couldn't see it.

Why?

Because she was drowning in despair.

She was so broken, so overwhelmed by what seemed hopeless, that she couldn't recognize the salvation standing right in front of her.

And isn't that what sometimes happens to us?

We cry, “Hashem, where is my answer? Where is my salvation? Where is the opportunity I've been waiting for?”

We look everywhere.

We worry. We struggle. We imagine that what we need is somewhere far away, completely beyond our reach.

And all the while, perhaps the well is right there.

Perhaps there is something in our lives that we simply haven't been able to see.

The Price We Pay for Despair

There is a heartbreaking price to despair.

When a person becomes consumed by hopelessness, their vision narrows.

They stop seeing possibilities.

They stop recognizing opportunities.

They stop noticing the goodness that still exists around them.

And sometimes, they cannot even recognize how close their salvation might be.

Are we all blind?

But we have eyes! We can see!

Yes, we can see the physical world. We can see the walls of our homes, the people around us, the challenges standing in our way.

But can we see the possibilities?

Can we see the blessings?

Can we see what Hashem has already placed before us?

Sometimes we look directly at the answer and don't recognize it.

And then, one day, something changes.

A conversation. A moment of clarity. A few words of encouragement.

Suddenly, we see what was there all along.

The circumstances haven't necessarily changed.

Our eyes have opened.

And that changes everything.

What You Need May Be Closer Than You Think

There is something deeply comforting about Hagar's story.

She didn't have to travel across the wilderness to find her salvation.

She didn't have to create water out of nothing.

She needed her eyes to be opened to what was already there.

Think about your own life.

That opportunity you're waiting for.

That breakthrough you've been praying for.

That success you desperately want.

What if the first step toward it is already within reach?

What if there is a possibility you've overlooked because you've been so focused on what isn't working?

What if there's something you already have that could become the beginning of your answer?

We cannot always know where or when our salvation will come. But we can ask Hashem to help us recognize the possibilities He places before us.

Because sometimes, the greatest miracle isn't that something new appears.

It's that we finally recognize what was already there.

Every Mitzvah Opens Our Eyes a Little More

But how do we open our eyes?

How do we begin to see what we've been missing?

The Sefat Emet teaches that just as sins conceal the illumination of the soul, mitzvot bring that light back.

As the verse says:

“The commandment of Hashem is pure, enlightening the eyes.” (Tehillim 19:9)

Enlightening the eyes.

What beautiful words.

A mitzvah doesn't merely change what we do. It changes something within us.

It brings light into the soul.

And with that light, we begin to see differently.

A little more gratitude.

A little more clarity.

A little more faith.

Another mitzvah, another ray of light.

Another mitzvah, and perhaps something that once seemed impossible begins to look different.

You want to recognize the goodness hidden in your life?

You want to see the opportunities Hashem has placed before you?

Bring more light into your soul.

Every mitzvah can open your eyes a little more.

Be Your Own Angel

Let's return to Hagar.

What happened just before her eyes were opened?

An angel spoke to her.

An angel encouraged her.

An angel reminded her that Hashem had heard her son's cries.

That she was not abandoned.

That there was still a future.

That her story was not over.

Those words lifted her out of her despair.

And then she saw the well.

Sometimes a person doesn't need someone to solve every problem.

Sometimes they need someone to remind them that hope still exists.

Someone to say:

“Don't give up.”

“Hashem hasn't forgotten you.”

“Your story isn't over.”

“There is still so much ahead of you.”

And sometimes, that someone needs to be you.

Be your own malach. Be your own angel.

Speak words of encouragement to yourself.

Lift yourself when you're feeling discouraged.

Remind yourself of everything Hashem has already given you.

And when your heart whispers, “I have nothing,” answer it.

“No. I have so much.”

I have life.

I have another day.

I have the ability to pray.

I have the opportunity to perform another mitzvah.

I have reasons to hope.

I HAVE!

And perhaps, as you begin to recognize what you already have, you will discover possibilities you never noticed before.

Because the well may already be there.

The water may be closer than you imagine.

This article is based on teachings of Rebbetzin Chagit Shira.