The Path We Take

There is a reference in the Torah, in the Prophets, and in Scripture to the following dictum. “The path that a person chooses to take, he is led in that path from Heaven.”

The Torah source is learned from Bilaam. He was told emphatically by Hashem not to go with Balak to curse the Jewish people. His persistence allowed him to go, but it did not mean that this decision would be beneficial to Bilaam.

This is such an important life message. Our free will allows us to make the decision as to which direction we will take. But this decision does not guarantee a positive result.

For example, someone might become obsessed with the pursuit of wealth. In Heaven, this may not be thought of as such a good idea. Nevertheless, this person continues with this pursuit without seeing the potential pitfalls of having great wealth. He may even be granted the wealth he seeks, but because his motivation was not pure, he will not have peace of mind from his wealth. He will find that he has attracted insincere friends who want to use him. Or he may get bombarded with endless requests for funds, that he is not able to meet.

The lesson is that we must take great care in thinking things through, and even consult a trusted friend or rabbi, before making a decision that we might later regret.

Bilaam made a bad choice and paid with his life. We must be careful and wise so that our persistence doesn’t get us into trouble.