Praise be to Allah.
We ask Allah to make ourselves steadfast in adhering to the truth, and to make our hopes come true, and to make us one of those who turn to Him and who know the truth, defend it and adhere to Islam.
There are great hopes that can be achieved through faith, as it was narrated that Sufyaan al-Thawri:
"Faith is not wishes or pretence, rather it is what settles in the heart and is proven by actions.”
So we will discuss the matter of faith and how important it is in becoming a devoted slave, pleasing and honouring one’s parents and achieving the victory of Paradise.
The sincere believer has a heart like a burning coal, hence it was narrated by al-Haakim in his Mustadrak and al-Tabaraani in his Mu’jam with a saheeh isnaad that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said,
“Faith wears out in your heart as clothes wear out, so ask Allah to renew the faith in your hearts.”
The believer’s hearts may sometimes feel overwhelmed by clouds of sin. This was portrayed to us by the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) when he said:
“There is no heart that does not have clouds like the clouds that cover the moon. When the cloud covers it, it is dark, and when the cloud moves away it shines.”
So the believer has to come back to faith. If one comes back to faith and do as it requires, then he may achieve what he desires insha'Allah.
If a person seeks to know how he stands before Allah and where he stands in relation to His commands and His prohibitions, one has to be aware of himself and see what he is preoccupied with. If he is busy with deen and is concerned with saving people from Shaytan's traps, striving to attain Paradise, helping the weak and needy, honouring his parents, then he may insha'Allah rejoice to the fact that he is close to his Master, for Allah does not help anyone to do good except those whom He loves.
- Do you want to be one among those loved and befriended by Allah?
- Do you desire to enter Paradise ?
- Do you want to control your nafs?
- Do you want to keep yourself away from Shaytan's temptations & whispers?
- Do you desire to love the ummah as your own brothers and sisters?
Insha'Allah, a response for these questions, as discussed below:
1 – You have to revive the faith in your heart:
Faith is the key that will insha'allah bring the Muslim everything he seeks in this world and in the Hereafter. Faith is the gate to all goodness and shuts the door to all evils. The means of reviving and strengthening faith in one’s heart are many and varied, including doing a lot of acts of worship and righteous deeds.
2 – You must turn to your Lord sincerely:
As it says in the report:
“If My slave turns to me inwardly and outwardly, I will turn the hearts of My slaves to him with love and mercy.”
Allah has made worship the ultimate aim and loftiest purpose of man:
3 – You should always set your sights on the highest degrees:“And I (Allah) created not the jinn and mankind except that they should worship Me (Alone)”
[Al'Quran: al-Dhaariyaat 51:56]
Make your goal in life to earn the pleasure of Allah, and strive to attain the gift of Paradise, or to attain the highest Firdaws. You should strive as hard as you can to achieve these lofty aims.
4 – You should follow the examples:
Love and admiration for historical Muslim figures such as the Prophets(peace be upon them), Sahaba, Tabi’un, Tabi'al-Tabi'in, the pious Leaders and Saints could open doors for evergreen examples of those loved, tested and rewarded by Allah subhanawatala.
5 – You should make the most of every minute:
Every moment and every heartbeat to use it in such a way as to increase your faith, show gratitude and be thankful. Allah subhanawatala reminds us,
6 – You should try to keep company with righteous people:“By (the token of) time (through ages),
Verily man is in loss,
Except such as have faith, and do righteous deeds and (join together) in the mutual teaching of Truth, and of Patience and Constancy.”
[Al'Quran: al-Asr 103:1-3]
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “A man will follow the religion of his close friend, so let each one of you look at whom he befriends.” Narrated by Abu Dawood and al-Tirmidhi with a hasan isnaad. Good friends are one of the best means of helping you to obey Allah and to avoid sin and error.
7 – Doing a lot of righteous deeds:
This is a practical way of expressing your faith, and it brings you the much desired inner-peace in this world and insha'Allah would benefit the Hereafter.
8 – Praying qiyaam al-layl:
Making du’aa’ in the time just before dawn. The feets of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to swell because of his desire to be a thankful slave, even though Allah had forgiven his previous and future sins.
9 – Persisting in reading a portion of Qur’aan daily:
Adding to it Daily-Dhikr that may insha'Allah help you to think and ponder the meaning of the grorious message of the Qur’an.
10 – Striving to spread the word and make da’wah for the sake of Allah:
If you want to reach the status of devoted slave for which you long, then be as Allah commanded His Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him):
Being a devoted slave of Allah means declaring one’s devotion and belonging to the Lord, which can only be achieved by applying this aayah, so that we are for Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, in all our affairs.“Say (O Muhammad): Verily, my Salaah (prayer), my sacrifice, my living, and my dying are for Allah, the Lord of the ‘Aalameen (mankind, jinn and all that exists)”
[Al'Quran: al-An’aam 6:162]
Being a devoted abd(slave) of Allah can be insha'Allah achieved in this manner; it can therefore be achieved by worshiping Allah in the fullest sense of the word, which means making our life, death, intentions and actions, for Him alone. So we only speak that which is pleasing to Allah; we only do that which is pleasing to Allah; we focus our intention in these words and deeds only on Allah. Worship therefore, should not be reduced to merely raising and lowering our heads at certain times, or giving a few pennies every once in a while, or fasting a few days each year, or moving our lips to say a few words and dhikrs - Worship should become being aware of Allah subhanawatala in every breath.
Hence the deeds that lead to this status – of being a devoted slave – are innumerable and may take many shapes in all aspects of our lives and the places where we live. This is by the bounty of Allah towards us and towards all people.
Just look, in every place where you find yourself and every moment that comes to you, for that which will please Him, and what you think He wants to see you doing, and do it. Then you will be a devoted slave.
Finally, we ask and pray Allah to accept righteous deeds from us and from you, forgive our mistakes, and to gather us and you in His mercy with the Prophets, Siddeeqs, Martyrs, Pious and Righteous, and those who are the best of companions.
Source: [islamgreatreligion.wordpress.com] Published: 02, November, 2010 Link: Click here
0 comments:
Post a Comment