There are times when a person finds himself in a situation that seems almost impossible to overcome. The odds are against him, and even the experts don't see a way out. But we must always remember, Hashem is never limited by odds. He knows exactly what we need, who we need, and where we need to be. And many times, even before we realize there's a problem, Hashem has already put everything in place for the yeshuah. A man recently shared an amazing story about his wife. It began with what seemed like an ordinary cold, but as the days passed, her condition continued to worsen. One Shabbat, while her husband was in shul, he suddenly had a strong feeling that he needed to go home and check on her. When he got home, he saw her sitting on the couch struggling to breathe. He immediately realized she needed the emergency room. Not knowing which hospital to go to, they decided on Cornell Hospital in Manhattan. Only later would they realize how much hashgachah was involved in that decision. At the hospital, the doctors initially diagnosed her with viral myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle. They began treating her, but her condition kept deteriorating. At one point, a particular doctor entered the room and noticed something unusual. Her heart rhythms were changing every 30 seconds. This doctor said, "I'm worried this might be giant cell myocarditis," an extremely rare and dangerous condition that can very quickly destroy the heart muscle. The other doctors were skeptical. She didn't have the typical symptoms, so they suggested waiting until the next day to perform a biopsy. But this doctor was adamant. She said, "If we wait until tomorrow and then wait for the results, if she does have giant cell myocarditis, she won't be here to see them." She insisted that they begin treating for it immediately. The treatment was very aggressive and involved putting her on ECMO, a machine that temporarily supports the work of the heart and lungs. Her husband was terrified and didn't know which doctors to listen to. At that critical moment, they called an organization called Lev Medical for advice. The man explained the situation to someone there, who immediately told him, "Whatever that doctor says to do, do it. She's world-renowned for diagnosing these conditions." Lev Medical was there to help them throughout the entire ordeal. They followed the doctor's recommendation, and when the biopsy results eventually came back, nobody could believe it. She did have giant cell myocarditis. Nobody could believe that this doctor had recognized such a rare condition so quickly. If she hadn't walked into the room at that moment and insisted on immediate treatment, his wife most likely would not have survived. Hashem sent what the husband called an angel at exactly the right moment. But it was far from over. Her heart was badly damaged, and the doctors told her husband she would need a heart transplant. Then another serious complication developed. Fluid began accumulating in her lungs, and her condition deteriorated so badly that she couldn't even be put on the transplant list. Without a new heart she couldn't survive, but in her current condition she couldn't qualify for one. Thousands of people in her community were praying for her. Groups were saying Tehillim around the clock. People were accepting upon themselves commitments to improve in their shemirat halashon and other areas of avodat Hashem. An outpouring of tefillah and achdut surrounded this family. At the hospital, the situation became so desperate that about 40 doctors from four different Manhattan hospitals joined a conference call to see whether anything could be done to save her life. Eventually, they called her husband and said there was one option left: a very risky emergency operation. It was all or nothing. Baruch Hashem, the operation was a success. They stabilized her enough to get her onto the heart transplant list. She was still in critical condition, depending on machines to keep her alive, but now there was hope. About a week later, seemingly out of nowhere, a heart became available that was a match. And then they discovered something else amazing. One of the world's leading heart transplant surgeons was right there at Cornell Hospital—the hospital they had chosen without knowing anything about its expertise. First, Hashem had guided them to the doctor who recognized her rare condition, and now the surgeon she needed was already there waiting for her. The transplant lasted about ten hours. During those hours, her husband and many rabbis gathered in the hospital waiting room and poured out their hearts to Hashem in tefillah. He described the tefillah as being so powerful that it felt like the walls were shaking from their cries. Finally, the news came back: Baruch Hashem, the transplant was a success. Shortly afterward, a nurse approached the husband and told him they would no longer be allowing the large numbers of visitors who had been coming to the hospital. Until then, dozens of people had been visiting regularly. The husband replied, "But those visitors are the reason she's here today. All of their prayers, all that unity—that's what saved her life." The nurse then told him something he didn't know. She said, "The reason we allowed all those visitors was because your wife was on our end-of-life list. Nobody believed she was going to survive. But now we took her off. She's going to live, and we have to protect her from infections." The husband replied, "I understand. But I meant what I said. It was all of those visitors and all of their prayers that helped take her off that list." The nurse answered, "I believe you, because nobody here believed she was going to live." What a display of hashgachah peratit. How many things had to happen for this woman to survive against all odds? Her husband felt the urge to leave shul. They chose the right hospital. The one doctor who could recognize her rare condition walked in to walk into the room at precisely the right moment and noticed those unusual heart rhythms. The emergency surgery succeeded. A compatible heart became available. And the surgeon with the expertise she needed was already there. Every step was another piece of hashgachah. At the time, all the family could see were frightening developments. But Hashem was guiding them the entire time. We never know how a yeshuah will come about. Sometimes the situation looks so bleak that even the greatest experts have given up hope. But Hashem never has any limitations. He can always send the right shaliach, create the right opportunity, and bring about a yeshuah that nobody could have anticipated. Our job is to pray from the bottom of our hearts, make the hishtadlut, and remember that everything is always only in Hashem's hands. Even when we can't see a path forward, Hashem may already be preparing the next step.
