In this week's parsha we begin to read about the first seven of the ten plagues which Hashem brought upon Pharoah and the Egyptians. There is a famous question as to why the Jewish People were redeemed after being in Egypt for 210 years, when there was a Divine Decree that they would be there for 400 years. One of the answers that is given is that the Egyptians persecuted and tortured the Jewish People harsher than they should have and this therefore sped up the redemption. The extra suffering that the Jews suffered at the hands of the Egyptians was counted and made up for those years. We read though that when the Jewish People began to suffer more they cried out even more to Hashem. 

Many times we are faced with some difficulty or test, and we feel like the situation is getting worse and more severe. We should realize though that it may very well be that the reason the situation is getting worse is only to hasten our own redemption.

There is a parable related by R'Elimelech Biderman to illustrate this idea. When a poor person comes and ask for money if the giver asks the poor man if he has $5, then the poor man understands that giver will give him $10. If the giver asks the poor man if he has $50 then the poor man understands that he will be getting $100. Before we are given a gift from Hashem sometimes He asks us for "change" although it isn't easy to give the change we should realize if we are asked for more change then it means there is a bigger gift waiting for us.

Heath