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

The precious gift of Iman--don't let it taken away

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
السلام عليكم


I pray that you are well.

While I was sitting by a fence outside a shop waiting for my car to be smog tested (a requirement in California every 2 years before a vehicle's registration can be renewed), a man walked up to me and asked me what I was reading. I said, Qur'an. He asked me where I was from. I said, "Malaysia." He said he was from Algeria. Then I asked him if he is a Muslim. He said he is an atheist but came from a Muslim family. I asked him what happened to him. He said he saw a lot of bad things that Muslims have done to people and he got turned off with religion. I said don't judge the acts of some to all Muslims and don't believe everything you hear. I said may Allah guide you and I thought he would go away. But he proceeded to ask me what I thought of the oppression of women in Islam. I asked him what made him think that the women in Islam are being oppressed. He gave me examples like women in Saudi Arabia cannot drive, the women under Taliban, etc, etc. I said I am a woman and I never felt being oppressed. I don't really care about not able to drive--I rather someone drive for me. I told him I have been in Saudi Arabia and other middle eastern countries and I did not see anything really to complain about any more than women can complain about in America. On the contrary, if I were to feel oppressed, I would feel it here in America. I gave him an example of me having to have my smog test (while I am sick) and having to wait for more than an hour for it, in the cold, and trying to ward off pit bull and chihuahua coming to me. Women don't have to do or experience this in Muslim countries. I gave him also an example of him having to work 16 hours a day under the car in the cold for the sake of freedom of speech. I asked him if this is what happiness mean to him--freedom of speech! I asked him to think about it and I asked to be excused.

It turned out that he memorized the Qu'ran and have read various Islamic texts. I sat back thanking Allah for the precious gift of Iman.

فَمَن يُرِ‌دِ ٱللَّهُ أَن يَهْدِيَهُۥ يَشْرَ‌حْ صَدْرَ‌هُۥ لِلْإِسْلَـٰمِ ۖ وَمَن يُرِ‌دْ أَن يُضِلَّهُۥ يَجْعَلْ صَدْرَ‌هُۥ ضَيِّقًا حَرَ‌جًا كَأَنَّمَا يَصَّعَّدُ فِى ٱلسَّمَآءِ ۚ كَذَ‌ٰلِكَ يَجْعَلُ ٱللَّهُ ٱلرِّ‌جْسَ عَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ ﴿١٢٥

So whoever Allah wants to guide - He expands his breast to [contain] Islam; and whoever He wants to misguide - He makes his breast tight and constricted as though he were climbing into the sky. Thus does Allah place defilement upon those who do not believe. (125)

[Qur'an, Al-An'am 6:125]

الٓمٓ ﴿١﴾ ذَ‌ٰلِكَ ٱلْكِتَـٰبُ لَا رَ‌يْبَ ۛ فِيهِ ۛ هُدًى لِّلْمُتَّقِينَ ﴿٢﴾ ٱلَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِٱلْغَيْبِ وَيُقِيمُونَ ٱلصَّلَو‌ٰةَ وَمِمَّا رَ‌زَقْنَـٰهُمْ يُنفِقُونَ ﴿٣﴾ وَٱلَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ وَمَآ أُنزِلَ مِن قَبْلِكَ وَبِٱلْءَاخِرَ‌ةِ هُمْ يُوقِنُونَ ﴿٤﴾ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ عَلَىٰ هُدًى مِّن رَّ‌بِّهِمْ ۖ وَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ ﴿٥

Alif, Lam, Meem. (1) This is the Book about which there is no doubt, a guidance for those conscious of Allah - (2) Who believe in the unseen, establish prayer, and spend out of what We have provided for them, (3) And who believe in what has been revealed to you, [O Muhammad], and what was revealed before you, and of the Hereafter they are certain [in faith]. (4) Those are upon [right] guidance from their Lord, and it is those who are the successful. (5)

[Qur'an, Al-Baqarah 2:1-5]

May Allah protect our Iman and not let us die except as Muslims, in complete submission to Him. Ameen.

And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam

Special connection with Allah always

BismillahirRahmanirRahim
Assalaamu alaykum

I pray that you are well.

Fast keeps special connection with Allah. The specialty of fasting is forbearance and sacrifice, as it is an action of the mind and secret from public eye, but all other actions fall within human eyes. Nobody sees fast except Allah as it is a secret action with sincere patience.

The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: Fast is half of patience and patience is half of truth. The patient will be given rewards without measure. Paradise has got a gate named Rayyan. None except a fasting person will enter Paradise by that gate.

The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said to Aisha, Allah be pleased with her, Knock at the door of Paradise. She asked, How? The Prophet said, With hunger, specially when fast controls the devil, shuts his path and makes narrow its passage.

The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: "The treasures of the world were presented to me. I rejected them and said: I shall remain hungry for one day and take food on another. When I shall take food, I shall praise You and when I shall remain hungry, I shall seek humility from You." He also said, "The best fast is that of my brother Daud. He fasted for one day and broke it on the following day."

Men and women who have surrendered, believing men and believing women, obedient men and obedient women, truthful men and truthful women, enduring men and enduring women, humble men and humble women, men and women who give in charity, men who fast and women who fast, men and women who guard their private parts, men and women who remember God oft -- for them God has prepared forgiveness and a mighty wage. Qur'an Al-Ahzaab 33:35

Allah knows best.

May Allah bless your day. Ameen.