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The work Shomer Emunim writes that the best advice that can be given to a person facing any sort of problem is to realize that we are helpless without Hashem. Regardless of how smart we are or what kind of strategies we can devise, the Shomer Emunim writes, we know nothing and are incapable of helping ourselves. David Ha’melech describes himself in Tehillim as כגמל עלי אמו – like an infant nursing from his mother. Rav Shimshon Pincus explained that when a child wakes up in the middle of the night and complains of thirst, his mother will simply tell him to get a drink. But when an infant wakes up crying in the middle of the night, the mother immediately jumps out of bed and rushes to nurse the baby. She realizes that the infant cannot help himself and is entirely dependent on her, and so she goes to help him. Similarly, when we need help, and we recognize that we are like an infant, helpless and entirely dependent on the Almighty, Hashem feels more responsible, as it were, and rushes to help us like a mother helping her infant. And thus the Torah warns in Parashat Mishpatim that if we oppress widows or orphans, and they cry out to Hashem in distress, He will hear their cries and defend them. Of course, Hashem hears the cries and prayers of all people. But, as the work Ki Atah Imadi explains (based on Rabbenu Bahya’s commentary to this verse), widows and orphans feel helpless. They have no one on whom to rely, no husband or father to care for them, and thus they pray with a keen awareness of their absolute dependence on the Almighty. And thus the Torah describes the widow or orphan’s prayer with the phrase צעק יצעק אלי . They pray אלי , directly to Hashem, recognizing their helplessness and how desperately they need G-d’s help. And thus Hashem feels a greater responsibility toward them, so-to-speak, and guarantees to come to their defense against their oppressors. Each and every one of us can have this same feeling, at all times, by recognizing how great and powerful Hashem is, and how small and helpless we all are in comparison to Him. A woman wrote me a letter describing how her family was facing a grave financial situation. They owed large sums of money, and the pressure was causing a great deal of stress to everyone in the family. Several months ago, they started listening to classes on emunah , and were especially affected by one particular class. That class spoke about how the raven, a cruel bird, does not feed its young, and so Hashem, in His boundless compassion, cares for the young ravens. The more we feel dependent on Hashem, they learned in this class, the more help we will receive. This insight gave them encouragement, and they internalized the message of feeling dependent on G-d’s mercy. They spoke about this concept with their children at the Shabbat table, and during the next week they received a letter from the IRS informing them that they were owed a large refund from five years ago. The refund was enough to cover all the family’s debt. We need to strengthen our belief that we are כגמל עלי אמו , entirely helpless and dependent on G-d’s grace. A man told me the other day that he recently received a call from the buyer for a company with which he had been doing nearly half his business. The buyer explained that he had gotten into a conflict with his the company and had to resign. The man felt very anxious. He had a close, longstanding relationship with this buyer, and his livelihood depended upon the business he did with that company. For the next couple of days, he was unable to function due to his anxiety. His partner insisted that there was no reason to worry. “Stop worrying,” he said. “The buyer is not in charge of our parnasah ; it is Hashem.” “I know,” the man replied, “but I still can’t stop worrying.” He decided to lock himself in his office and listen to emunah classes so he could get the encouragement he needed. He sat there for a full hour, from 4pm until 5pm, until he felt more relaxed. He then went to pray Minhah , recognizing that Hashem is the only one with any say, and that he is helpless without Hashem. When he returned to his desk, he saw an email from the new buyer of the company, saying that he was looking forward to continue doing business with him as in the past. That was it – the problem was solved. The key to success is knowing that Hashem is the only one who could help us, and that we and all other people are helpless without Him.