Closeness To The Almighty

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

Dear Friends

I pray that you are well.

The Prophet (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam) said,

When Allah loves a slave, calls out Angel Jibril (alayhissalaam) and says: ‘I love so-and-so; so love him.’ Then Jibril loves him. After that he (Jibril) announces to the inhabitants of heavens that Allah loves so-and-so; so love him; and the inhabitants of the heavens (the angels) also love him and then make people on earth love him.

[Bukhari and Muslim]

Our life should be about winning Allah’s love. Our aims, endeavors and prayers should be solely directed toward winning Allah’s approval. This effort, intended toward winning the love and approval of Allah Almighty bestows, by Allah’s leave, great spiritual strength on believers, that unbelievers can never possess.

Allah has told us how to gain His Love.

On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, (radhiAllahu anhu), who said that the Messenger of Allah, (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam), said: Allah (mighty and sublime be He) said:

'Whosoever shows enmity to someone devoted to Me, I shall be at war with him. My servant draws not near to Me with anything more loved by Me than the religious duties I have enjoined upon him, and My servant continues to draw near to Me with supererogatory works so that I shall love him. When I love him I am his hearing with which he hears, his seeing with which he sees, his hand with which he strikes and his foot with which he walks. Were he to ask [something] of Me, I would surely give it to him, and were he to ask Me for refuge, I would surely grant him it. I do not hesitate about anything as much as I hesitate about [seizing] the soul of My faithful servant: he hates death and I hate hurting him.'

[Bukhari]

Being productive is very important as a Muslim. A righteous deed is like a pearl necklace – when it breaks, all the pearls follow one another quickly. But we cannot expect everything to magically fall into place by doing a righteous deed. We need to struggle a great deal to achieve great things.

The Messengers praised for their exemplary lives in the Qur’an, and the believers who accompanied them faced very difficult situations that superficially appeared to be very "tough events." However, these highly virtuous believers behaved with complete security and submission in the face of everything that befell them and acted in the knowledge that it was Almighty Allah Who created everything that happened, for which reason, everything was in fact all for the best.

As revealed in the verse, "...Say : "Sufficient for me is Allah; in Him those who trust (i.e. believers) must put their trust." [Qur'an Az-Zumar 39:38), believers, who are certain that Allah Almighty will never leave them without help or inflict a heavier burden on them than they can bear, and who hope for paradise as a reward for their troubles, have always submitted to Allah under all circumstances. By Allah’s leave, this has made them strong in the face of all events.

Nearness to Allah, the All Powerful, Lord of Majesty and Generosity, Lord of Glory and Honor, is the highest achievement of all. However, it doesn't happen overnight; it takes time. We have to have patience—patience in doing righteous deeds, patience in avoiding prohibitions and patience in difficulties.

If you want to know your worth with Allah, then see what you are doing with your life. Are you pleasing Allah or disappointing Him?

You are disappointing Him if you don't follow His guidance and therefore you have wasted the life that He has given you and will incur His anger.

Seek closeness to Allah. Those who are close to Allah remember Him a great deal, know that Allah, their only friend, creates everything that happens, unhesitatingly spurn all of shaytan's empty promises, by Allah’s leave, and pay no heed to the transitory attractions of this world. These superior attributes of believers also endow them with spiritual strength.

To get close to Allah requires a few things from us: Strong intention to get closer to Allah, patience, consistency in worship and good works, stay away from His prohibitions, and avoid doing nothing/idleness. Be prepared to leave friends and companions who keep you away from your worship.

اللهم إني أسألك حبك، وحب من يحبك، والعمل الذي يبلغني حبك، اللهم اجعل حبك أحب إلى من نفسي، وأهلي، ومن الماء البارد

Allahumma inni as'aluka hubbaka, wa hubba man yuhibbuka, wal-'amalalladhi yuballighuni hubbaka. Allahumm-aj'al hubbaka ahabba ilayya min nafsi, wa ahli, wa minal-ma'il-baridi

O Allah! I ask You for Your Love, the love of those who love You, and deeds which will cause me to attain Your Love. O Allah! Make Your Love dearer to me than myself, my family and the cold water. [At- Tirmidhi]

Ameen.

Please don’t forget us in your night prayers. Jazakallahu khairan.

And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam