You Can Fix It!

You Can Fix It!

Hold On! A Matter Of Faith
Meshivat Nefesh #38
Rebbe Nachman taught:

“If you believe that you can destroy, believe that you can repair.”

I’ve always been struck by the emphasis on the word “believe.” As if it’s a matter of belief, when you’ve destroyed something? If I broke something valuable, do I need to believe in it for it to be true? Then why does Rebbe Nachman use the word “believe?”

I think that Rebbe Nachman is pointing out the key to repair. Spiritual damage is real, but if you don’t believe that there’s such a thing, you’re never going to fix it.

The world is filled with people who act in spiritually destructive ways, but because they don’t believe that their acts have a real negative impact, they feel no push to change and clean up the damage.

Rebbe Nachman tells us, “If you’re already at a point where you believe that the sins that you do are sinful—that they are destructive—then why not make positive use of your capacity for faith…and believe in your power to repair the damage?”
Dear God,
Please help me to always make use of my
capacity for belief
in a way that brings me closer to You.
Belief in the power of my errors
won’t necessarily lead me to correct them.
Belief in the power of teshuvah will.
(Based on Likutey Moharan II:112)