“How are you, Mister Kutchers?” “Baruch Hashem, thank you!” “How‘s the new limo, Mister Kutchers?” “Baruch Hashem, thank you!” “Did you get your daughter into the class you wanted?” “Baruch Hashem, the principal accepted our request!” Harry Kutchers was known for being many things: a successful businessman, the president of the shul and two local tzedakah organizations, the host of the most delicious kiddushes, and a very generous philanthropist. However, most of all, Harry was known as “Mister BH,” after his constant use of the phrase “Baruch Hashem.” Yes, even his Range Rover had a “Baruch Hashem” license plate.

How did Harry Kutchers turn into Mister BH? Was he bitten by a radioactive rabbi? Not exactly. If you asked Harry, he’d tell you: Hashem’s brachot were just too impossible to ignore. From the time Harry was born, everything seemed to have gone his way. He was the one millionth baby born at the hospital, earning him free X-rays for life. When he was three, his parents entered him in a strongest baby competition, and he won, earning a prize of one thousand dollars. The contest was only for children two years old and younger but (“baruch Hashem!”) Hashem sent them judges who didn’t realize! His parents used the prize money to purchase high-quality disguises. They used those disguises to rob a few banks and (“baruch Hashem!”) Hashem did not let the police catch them! Harry’s life was full of such obvious “help” from Hashem that he could not help but thank Hashem for everything all the time.

Harry was now 55 years old and the owner of an oil company worth $500 million. How was his company so successful, you ask? Baruch Hashem, the Kutchers Oil Group was the recipient of so many gifts from the Ribbono Shel Olam. Hashem’s help started with the first piece of land that KOG purchased, a privately owned field of more than five thousand acres. The property owner, Oliver Woods, knew that his land sat above millions of dollars worth of oil, but he wasn’t sure about selling it. This property had been in the family for years and was covered in beautiful Redwood trees. The Woods family had a small but successful lumber business, but had avoided overdoing it. They took care of the forest, not cutting down too many trees at once. This kept the business from growing, but it also ensured homes for the local wildlife, and gave the Woods family a good balance between work and free time.

Unfortunately, a fire had recently ripped through the family forest, destroying almost all of the trees. The Woods family had insurance on the forest, and was expecting to use the money to rebuild the forest and restart the business without too much difficulty. But the insurance company made a few mistakes and now Oliver wasn’t sure if he’d ever see that money. Harry, hearing this news (“baruch Hashem!”), swooped in and offered to purchase the land for half of its value. Mr. Woods, knowing he may never get the money to rebuild the business, reluctantly agreed. “Obviously, Hashem destroyed this land and confused the insurance company so that I could buy this land!” thought Harry. He was completely convinced of Hashem’s plan when he heard that the insurance company found the Woods family’s paperwork 30 minutes after the sale for the field went through. (“Sorry, Oliver, but God obviously had other plans.”)

Bill Jonathan was on the opposite end of the success spectrum from Harry Kutchers. After graduating with honors from University of Michigan law school in the previous spring, Bill was not experiencing much in the way of luck. His first job ended in less than a month, when the entire law firm decided to move from Detroit to Switzerland (not a place where Bill was interested in living). Bill was given a large payment and used it to rent an apartment in New York City, where he could live while looking for a job. At his first interview, Bill received some disturbing news: His license to practice law was being suspended. Apparently, there was a different Bill Jonathan who had done a few illegal things, but the American Bar Association mixed the two of them up. Unfortunately, the other man’s name was not really Bill Jonathan (he was using false information), so the real Bill was the only one left with strikes against him.

At the same time, Harry Kutchers, who actually owned the building in which Bill lived, was looking to knock the building down and build a statue of himself davening to Hashem. But he could only do this if everyone living there agreed to move. Bill was one of the last remaining tenants who didn’t want to move. Harry, hearing about Bill’s problem, had a solution. He would use his connections at the American Bar Association to help Bill, if Bill agreed to move out. (“Baruch Hashem for putting this idea in my mind!”) When Bill asked why Harry couldn’t just help without forcing him out of the apartment, Harry just shrugged and said, “Who am I to interfere with Hashem’s plans?”

Well, that was it for Bill; he made up his mind on the spot that he would never move. Never mind that Harry would likely use his connections to make it impossible for Bill to practice law again; nobody pushes Bill Jonathan around! So, the days went on and Bill split his time between trying to get his law license back, and working a part-time job to pay the bills (no pun intended). However, after a few unsuccessful months, Bill was exhausted and ready to give up. Ironically, he also decided his failure was Hashem’s plan. “Obviously,” thought Bill, “Hashem is telling me that I should quit and move out. I will call Harry on Monday morning and let him know.”

Fortunately for Bill, that week was Parshat Vayechi. As Bill sat on his couch on Shabbat afternoon reading through the parsha, he was struck by a phrase used by Yosef. After Yaakov dies, Yosef’s brothers fear that Yosef will take revenge for them selling him. But Yosef tells them not to worry; “am I in place of Hashem?” Yosef meant that Hashem obviously wanted him in Egypt so he had no hard feelings toward his brothers; it was Hashem’s plan. Bill immediately recalled that this sentence was used by Yaakov when Rachel complained about not having children. “Am I in place of Hashem?” Yaakov responded angrily. He meant that if Hashem didn’t want Rachel to have children, what was Yaakov supposed to do? Bill immediately realized that both Yosef and Yaakov were wrong. Yaakov should have davened for Rachel, and Yosef should have thought about whether Hashem wanted Bnei Yisrael in Egypt. That things had worked out financially doesn’t mean it was automatically the right thing; maybe it was time for them to head home. But instead, Yaakov’s family stayed in Mitzrayim, eventually leading to years of pain and suffering.

At that moment, Bill decided to take charge. “I will not let Harry Kutchers push me around! Things aren’t working out, but that doesn’t mean Hashem wants me to give up! And what does he know! His success doesn’t automatically mean Hashem approves of his behavior!” Immediately after Shabat ended, Bill spent some time davening to Hashem for success, and went straight to researching new careers. He eventually found a well-paying job that allowed him to stay in the building. As for Harry, he finally realized that building a statue of himself was not exactly allowed according to the Torah. He and Bill had a nice conversation about deciding what Hashem wants, after which Harry decided to change his ways. He helped Bill get his law license back, sold the field back to Mr. Woods (at a fair price), and never used Hashem as an excuse to do the wrong thing ever again.

Baruch Hashem for giving us the ability to make the right choices!