Sowing The Seeds

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

Dear Friends

I pray that you are well.

We need to sow the seeds of Islam and the first place we need to do that is in the hearts of our children. Life is short, and the wind is blowing against us. If we don't make a conscious effort to do this, we can be wiped out. Look at Muslim Spain--it is now a history. Read the many stories in the Qur'an about nations that were destroyed--they are for us to reflect on ourselves.

As a single mother, I know how hard it is to raise children to be good and strong Muslims. Never a day is without any challenge. But we must do what we must and be patient. Nothing precious comes without a big price tag. It is easy to give in, to leave them in front of a TV or computer. They are quiet, they don't argue, and they don't give us trouble--so we think. But that is not where Allah wants them to be, and anywhere that Allah doesn't want us to be is not good for us. If we persist to be where Allah doesn't want us to be, the troubles will surface sooner or later. Allah chose us to be their parents and entrusted them to us. So we must do our job, and do it well. This is being a thankful servant. We always go back to Him and ask Him to help us do our job well. He is the only One who can guide and help us.

When you find no where to turn to for the moment, remember what Lukman said to his son:

"O my son! Establish regular prayer, enjoin what is just, and forbid what is wrong: and bear with patient constancy whatever befalls you; for this is firmness (of purpose) in (the conduct of) affairs. "And swell not your cheek (for pride) at men nor walk in insolence through the earth; for Allah loves not any arrogant boaster. "And be moderate in your pace, and lower your voice; for the harshest of sounds without doubt is the braying of the ass." Qur'an Lukman 31:17-19

Apply this advice to ourselves first as the best teacher is a good example.

We just left the month of Ramadhan where we had trained our children to wake up before Fajr to eat the pre-dawn meal. Then we prayed Fajr with them. For some, you stayed up with them after Fajr and read the Qur'an, and for many others, you took them to the masjid for iftar, prayed Maghrib, 'Isha and taraweeh. Don't lose this momentum. Keep waking them up before Fajr and do a couple rak'ah of prayer, then Fajr, then read a few pages of Qur'an with them. Try to do Maghrib and 'Isha at the masjid. In between these prayers, they can do their homework and/or read/learn Qur'an. Ramadhan should not come and go without them reaping the benefits of it the whole year. It was their training ground. What is life without Allah in your hearts and you want to sow this in your precious children's hearts while you still have the say so in their lives. Each moment you let your children watch shows on TV or computer, you are taking them away from the pre-disposition which Allah created them with.

Remember, Shaytan to us is our clear enemy and so we should treat him like an enemy. He is always there lurking to snatch our Faith away and for sure TV and internet have more soldiers of Shaytan than anywhere else waiting to get your entire family into his domain. So protect your precious ones by giving them Islam.

"Allah cursed him.And he [Shaytan] said: "I will take an appointed portion of your slaves; Verily, I will mislead them, and surely, I will arouse in them false desires; and certainly, I will order them to slit the ears of cattle, and indeed I will order them to change the nature created by Allah." And whoever takes Shaytan as a Wali (protector or helper) instead of Allah, has surely suffered a manifest loss." Qur'an An-Nisa 4:118-119

May Allah help us raise our children well and guide them. Ameen. Please don't forget us in your night prayers. Jazakallahu khairan.

And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam

Seize the moment

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

Assalaamu alaykum

I pray that you are well.

One day you have something and the next day that something is gone. You made all these plans and in the end it didn't happen. Don't wonder. Don't despair. Allah, the One who is responsible over everything, He is able to do what He wants. He can change everything and anything. He organizes and reorganizes. We are but helpless without Him, al-Karim.

"God turns about the day and the night; surely in that is a lesson for those who have eyes." [Qur'an 24:44]

All we need to do is seize the moment in worship of Him and obedience to Him.

"I swear by the time! Surely Man is in the way of loss, save those who believe, and do righteous deeds, and counsel each other truth, and counsel each other patience." [Qur'an, Al-'Asr 103:1-3]

Take advantage of the five before five.

The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said to a man while he was advising him:

"Take advantage of five matters before five other matters: your youth, before you become old; and your health, before you fall sick; and your richness, before you become poor; and your free time before you become busy; and your life, before your death."

You should exercise the energy that you have for the sake of Allah by procuring knowledge of Allah, obtaining halal sustenance, and worshiping Allah through acts that you might not be able to do later on in life.

We all fall sick at one time or another. If we did not fall sick, we would not be humans. Some sicknesses can be more severe that the other, and for certain people even more severe. We won't know how long we will have full possession of our faculties before we fall sick. Therefore, take advantage of it before that time comes.

The majority of mankind do not appreciate these two blessings--good health and free time. We don't want to be among those!

Do not forget to invest for your next life, the real eternal life, so you can pick the fruits when you need it the most. The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Verily, the money that you spend in charity is your money, and the money that you leave behind is the money of your inheritors." Do you love your own money more or the money of your inheritors?

How much free time do we have and what do we waste it on? Think about it. Spending time wisely does not necessarily mean doing purely religious deeds. Islam is a complete way of life. Many acts can be rewarded if you change your intention and do them for the sake of Allah. But everyone of us should recite the Qur'an everyday, even if it is only for five or ten minutes. Surely, you can find 5 or 10 minutes everyday to build this relationship with the Qur'an. Everyone of us should pray some extra prayers as well, a few sunnahs. One of the greatest act of worship is to seek beneficial knowledge. Do whatever you can to increase your knowledge of Islam--have a daily routine. These are some of the most important religious deeds to fill your time. Don't start with the distractors--TV and the like--the greatest waste of time are these things. There is more to life than them! Read a book instead.

You are only allowed one life on this earth and you will not be able to come back and change that life. For every good you do you will be rewarded, and for every evil you do you will be punished. Inna lillahi wainna ilayhi raji'un. When you are in your grave, the only thing that will follow you that can help you is your Iman and good deeds. So seize the moment in doing righteous deeds and not let a moment pass you by without remembrance of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala

May Allah guide is to excellence and give us tawfiq. Ameen.

Please do not forget us in your night prayers. Jazakallahu khairan.

Allahumma salli 'ala Muhammad wa 'ala aalihi wa sahbihi wassallam.

And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam