Noble Lessons

When you sit down to make Dua, when you ask Allah for something... Don't ask Him for something mediocre, or even something that would just be "pretty cool" - ask Him for the absolute best. He's Al-Kabeer - nothing is too big for Him. No problem is too big for Him to resolve. No desire is too big for Him to fulfill. According to a Hadith Qudsi, Allah SWT says: "O My servants, if the first of you and the last of you, and the humans of you and the jinn of you, were all to stand together in one place and ask of Me, and I were to give everyone what he requested, then that would not decrease what I Possess, except what is decreased of the ocean when a needle is dipped into it."

I don’t always get what I love. “He is the one who has set free the two kinds of water, one sweet and palatable, and the other salty and bitter. And He has made between them a barrier and a forbidding partition.” (25:53) I struggle to understand why there are sometimes barriers between me and my wishes. I come close to those barriers, running my hands over them and trying to see if there’s a gap somewhere—a secret way to get across. The path forward may seem so clear. I can almost taste that salty sea air and feel its waves rhythmically moving my heart. Maybe that’s where I want to be. But when Allah (swt) decides there is a barrier between me and something I want, that barrier will never dissolve. I am not a scientist so I don’t know what exactly would happen if the salty seas mixed in with the rivers and lakes of fresh water. But I assume many living things would die, and many creatures on this earth would suffer. Maybe if I leapt over that barrier and got what I wanted, I would also suffer. Maybe He is protecting me from something so painful that it would destroy my heart, my faith. Such is the Mercy of the All-Knowing. He brings me what will empower me to be better—whether that is a difficulty or a blessing. And He prevents me from what will be truly harmful. I must turn around and look at everything I have, and He will increase me for my gratitude. But if I turn towards the barrier, obsessively angry over what I can’t reach, then I lose both this world and the next. “And whoever is grateful, he is only grateful for the benefit of his own self.” (31:12) - By Asmaa Hussain

Many years ago, Ibrahim (AS) made a choice. He loved His son but He loved Allah more. The commandment came to sacrifice His son. But it wasn't His son that was slaughtered. It was His attachment. It was His attachment to anything that could compete with His love for Allah. And the beauty of such a sacrifice is this: Once you let go of your attachment, what you love is given back to you - now in a purer, better form. So let us ask ourselves in this beautiful days of sacrifice, which attachments do we need to slaughter? Eid Al-Adha Mubarak!

10 Inspirational Verses of the Quran About Hope 1. “My mercy encompasses all things” (Quran 7:156) 2. “And when My servants ask you, [O Muhammad], concerning Me – indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me. So let them respond to Me [by obedience] and believe in Me that they may be [rightly] guided.” (Quran 2:186) 3. “After a difficulty, Allah will soon grant relief.” (Quran 65:7) 4. “Say, ‘O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allah . Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful’” (Quran 39:53) 5. “And whosoever fears Allah…He will make a way for him to get out (from every difficulty). And He will provide him from (sources) he never could imagine. (Quran 65:2-3) 6. “Allah is with you and will never deprive you of your (good) deeds.” (Quran 47:35) 7. “Do not lose heart nor fall into despair! You shall triumph if you are believers. (Quran 3:139) 8. “O you who have believed, seek help through patience and prayer. Indeed, Allah is with the patient.” (Quran 2:153) 9. "If Allah knows [any] good in your hearts, He will give you [something] better than what was taken from you, and He will forgive you; and Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.” (Quran 8:70) 10. “If Allah should aid you, no one can overcome you; but if He should forsake you, who is there that can aid you after Him? And upon Allah let the believers rely.” (Quran 3:160)

My hope and trust is in Allah alone. As He allows my skin to naturally heal itself with clotting blood, He also allows my heart to heal a seamless healing. It’s no matter that there will always be a scar there. The scar teaches me to never forget how He has healed me. As He brings the night and day into being, as He causes the sun and moon to continuously exchange places every day, He will also cause my life to run its course exactly as it was meant. I will never lose anything I was meant to hold. I will never hold anything I was meant to lose. As He causes the earth to die, to be starved, to be deprived of meaningful life, and then brings it back to lushness and beauty simply by saying “Be”—so, too, will He cause my body to die and disintegrate in the soil, then raise me up and cause me never to die again. In Gardens of Bliss, by His Mercy. When I place my hope exclusively in people, chances are they will betray that hope. But when I place my hope in Allah, I know that He will never betray His Promise. He will return to me what I have lost, or better. He will heal the heart that has been struck open by the people. And so I say: I am satisfied with Allah as my Lord, Islam as my faith, and Muhammad (saw) as my prophet. Only when this verbal statement of satisfaction truly enters my heart, will I be able to heal. It is only absolute hope and trust in Allah, The Eternal Refuge, that causes the pain to ease.

There come desperate times in life when one loses all the hope and there remains no purpose or no meaning to associate with life. At such situations of devastation people might think that His Lord has abandoned Him and left them to face such difficulties and problems alone. This is the time when a Muslim requires inspiration the most. When facing such situations a Muslim must remember the following verse of Quran for inspiration and motivation. Allah says: “Your Lord has not taken leave of you, (O Muhammad), nor has He detested (you).” (93:3) No matter how bad the situation is, a Muslim must always remember that Allah is the Lord and the Lord always wishes the best for its subjects. Thus, a Muslim must remain patient in hard situations and the help of Allah will definitely come to the rescue of a Muslim.

Every person’s main worry is Rizq (Sustenance) This overwhelming worry can lead to tension and high stress levels. When we take our gaze off of Allah, we start to feel like the burden of our sustenance is completely on our shoulders. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said, "If you place your trust completely in Allah, as it ought to be, then surely you will be provided sustenance in the manner that birds are provided sustenance. They leave in the morning with their belly empty and return in the evening with their belly full." (Tirmidhi 2344) We need to take a lesson from the birds and learn to trust in Allah. We should make reasonable efforts to provide for ourselves, but we should always remember that our ultimate provision comes from Allah. This will bring much relief and peace to our lives. I place my complete reliance and trust in Ar-Razzaq, the All-Provider. It is not my diplomas, degrees, or my signatures on contracts or business deals that guarantee my provision. It is only through His loving mercy that He provides for me, His sinful servant, even without asking.

Ya Allah, forgive my sins and shortcomings and grant me the strength to repent and seek Your forgiveness. Give me patience during times of difficulty and help me to remain steadfast in my faith. Grant me the strength to overcome my fears and challenges and help me to trust in Your plan for me. Ameen.

There will come a day when the road you’re walking will abruptly split into two. Each one will call out to you in no uncertain terms, saying, “Walk towards me.” One road is built out of fear. One out of hope. No GPS in existence is going to tell you which road to take. The road called Fear will grab at you. It will play and replay every possible thing that will go wrong if you don’t listen. It will write you letters and sonnets about the hurts that lie in the path of the other road. It will remind you of every past heartbreak. “I’m the safer path,” it will scream. “Don’t be naïve. Hope will only lead to disappointment.” You will almost believe it. But before you take that first step into Fear, you will glance over at the road called Hope. It is quieter. It does not terrify or taunt. It does not need to write you a letter explaining why it’s the better choice. It does not need essays and dissertations and Ted Talks. “It’s okay to try again,” it will whisper. “Your Lord’s Light dispels all darkness, no matter how great.” And your heart will be pulled, soothed, opened. Yes, there will most certainly come a day when you are asked to choose a new path. And at the precipice of this choice, I pray you will hear that whisper and remember: Hope in Allah is never a mistake. Take the first step. Lean in. - Assma Hussein