Paradise Is For Believers

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
Assalaamu alaykum

Dear Friends

I pray that you are well.

It is not our job to judge whether a person is going to Paradise or Hell because the fate of someone is not in our hands but in Allah's, and Allah's alone. So we should hold our tongues and be concerned about ours because we don't know our ending. The wheel is still spinning.

Allah gave us a very good example for us in our lifetime. We have heard the story of Saddam Hussein, the former President of Iraq. He killed so many people even some of his own family members. You would think the worst that will happen to him in the Day of Judgment. The people of Iraq selected the first day of Eid al-Adha to execute him and while Muslims around the world were slaughtering animals for sacrifice, his people executed him for his atrocities. But what were the last words that came out of his mouth? As reported, in clear voice he uttered the shahada, saying "There is no God but Allah and I testify that Muhammad is the Messenger of God. There is no God but Allah and I testify that Muhammad." This is what we know about his ending in this life. Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un (To Allah we belong and to Him is the return). By sating that in this life, he reserved a place in Paradise because the Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said that whoever has la illaha illallah (there is no God except Allah) at his last words, he will be in Paradise. Yes, he did what he did and Allah might punish him for what he did, and Allah might forgive him as well. In the end he will be in Paradise, by Allah's mercy.

We don't have that certainty that we will be in Paradise. Yes, many of us are religious, we are trying to practice Islam. We are praying, learning the Sacred Knowledge, doing good deeds and we don't kill people but how sure are we that we will end a believer? How sure are we that we will utter la illaha illallah before our souls leave our bodies? There is no guaranty that we will. But we are doing our best in order to please Allah, and we have a hope that Allah will be pleased with us and guide our hearts and our tongues to say la illaha illallah on our deathbeds. We keep asking Allah that we hold our deen, follow the Qur'an and the sunnah and die a believer.

May Allah make us His obedient slaves, protect us from disbelief, and make us die as believers at the highest of iman and enter us into the highest Paradise with the Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace. Ameen. Please don't forget us in your night prayers. Jazakallahu khairan.

And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam