Shabbos Reveals Inner Will
במדרש הלשון אדם מישראל שיש לו מנורה של פרקים כו'
In the Midrash, the expression: a person from Bnei Yisrael who has a menorah composed of jointed sections, etc.
The Sfas Emes opens by citing a Midrash that compares a Jew to a menorah built of separate, jointed pieces that can be assembled together.
כי בריאת האדם הי' לחבר ולקשר כ"ד לשורשו
For the creation of man was meant to join and bind everything to its root.
Man was created in order to gather and connect all the disparate parts of creation back to their source in Hashem.
שכל העולם יש לו חיבור ושייכות להקדושה
For the entire world has a connection and a relationship to kedushah.
Every element of the world has within it the capacity to be bound to kedushah and brought close to its root.
וזה המנורה של פרקים נר ה' נשמת האדם
And this is the menorah of jointed sections: "The candle of Hashem is the soul of man" (Mishlei 20:27).
The image of a menorah made of jointed sections corresponds to the neshamah, which is called "the candle of Hashem" and unites the many parts of a person into one light.
ובשבת מתגלה הארה הפנימיות בכל דבר וא"צ רק הרצון לקבל ההארה
And on Shabbos the inner illumination within every thing becomes revealed, and one needs only the will to receive that illumination.
On Shabbos the hidden inner light of every created thing shines forth on its own, so that all a person must supply is the desire and willingness to receive it.
וז"ש ז"ל המענג שבת נותנין לו משאלות לבו ואמר אא"ז ז"ל לראות עכ"פ להיות משאלות הלב לטוב ולשמים
And this is what Chazal said: "Whoever delights in Shabbos is granted the requests of his heart" (Shabbos 118b); and my grandfather, of blessed memory, said that one should at least see to it that the requests of his heart be for the good and for the sake of Heaven.
Chazal teach that one who takes delight in Shabbos receives the requests of his heart, and the Chiddushei HaRim added that a person should make sure his heart's requests are directed only toward good and toward Heaven.
ואפשר לומר שגם זה הפי' שנותנין לכל אדם מישראל רצון ומשאלות לב לטובה
And it is possible to say that this too is the explanation: that to every person from Bnei Yisrael there is given a will and the requests of the heart toward the good.
On this basis the Sfas Emes suggests that the gift of Shabbos itself is that every Jew is granted a will and inner yearnings that lean toward the good.
אמת גם ע"ז שייך משאלות לב לבקש רצון אמת:
In truth, even regarding this the requests of the heart apply: to seek the true will.
He concludes that even this granted yearning still leaves room for the requests of the heart, namely to ask that one's will be aligned with Hashem's true will.
Summary: The Sfas Emes draws on a Midrash that likens a Jew to a menorah assembled from separate jointed sections, explaining that man was created to gather and bind all the parts of creation back to their root in Hashem, since the entire world bears a relationship to kedushah. This menorah of joined pieces is the neshamah, "the candle of Hashem," which unifies a person's many parts into one light. On Shabbos the inner illumination concealed in every thing is revealed on its own, so that a person needs only the will to receive it, which is why Chazal teach that one who delights in Shabbos is granted the requests of his heart. The Chiddushei HaRim cautioned that one must ensure those requests are for the good and for the sake of Heaven, and the Sfas Emes adds that the very gift of Shabbos is that each Jew is granted a will inclined toward the good. Yet even then, the deepest request of the heart remains to seek that one's own will be in harmony with the true will of Hashem.