Movers and shakers

I am not the product of my circumstances, I am a product of my decisions.

These are the words of Dr. Stephen Covey, an American educator, an author, a businessman, an influential public speaker, listed by the Time Magazine as being one of the 25 most influential Americans.

And he's the author of one of the best selling nonfiction books in history called The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.

And he crowns this list of habits that are needed if you wish to leave a legacy behind you and be influential, and leave a lasting impression he crowns this list of habits with pro activity.

And take it as a rule Dear Brothers and Sisters, it is impossible that there should be an a value of some sort, which Islam has not promoted. And Islam has given this value of productivity and abundant share of sponsoring and encouragement How does it do that? At times, the Quran urges us to remember the people before us who lived by this value of productivity.

Allah Almighty tells us that the Prophet of Allah Musa I think he's salatu salam, he said, Why Gil to La kirribilli Tada I have rushed to you, my Lord so that you may be pleased Look, he has rushed to his Lord. This is a description of proactivity this is something Allah admires how else at times the Quran describes the prize that has been prepared for the people of proactivity Allah Almighty said, or Sati Ileana Filati mera become wa Jannetty in Abu Hassan Allah to one or a deadly Mata teen. He said raise to the forgiveness from your Lord and raised to a garden as wide as the heavens and the earth that has been prepared for the righteous Allahu Akbar. How else does the Quran promote

this beautiful value of proactivity and initiative taking? At times it informs us that in Allah's eyes, the proactive people and the inactive ones they're not equal. Allah said is that we may come and commune COVID In fact, Hayward cartella, hula Iike other Mudaraba jetten Minella the inner circle will mean value or Cthulhu. He tells us that those who

fought in the path of Allah and they gave him charity, before the conquering of Mecca they are greater in the eyes of Allah Almighty than those who did that afterwards when Islam was still weak and he was still planting the initial seeds of Islam to fight or to give charity during that time is greater in the eyes of Allah than those who do so after the conquest of Mecca. At times the Quran describes the the nearness to Allah subhanaw taala which the people of productivity they will enjoy on the Day of Judgment. You've read the eye of Allah Almighty said was Serbia Kona Serbia call Allah equal Mocha grabone Fijian tin name and the foremost Allah set the front runners right. The foremost

will be the foremost those are the ones who wouldn't be brought near in gardens of pleasure Allahu Akbar. Are you kidding me brothers and sisters? Are you seeing how the Quran emphasizes this value of productivity so much?

And it wasn't just the Quran by the way our messenger sallallahu alayhi wa sallam Prophet Muhammad did not fall short at all in encouraging the Muslims to live by this value of productivity and initiative taking he would say in the famous dua Allahumma barik, Murthy, feeble Korea. Oh Allah bless the early morning hours for my people.

And he would say sallallahu alayhi wa sallam in a profound Hadith bad you will Annalisa rush and do good deeds before you are overcome with one of seven things. Contempt of the Aruna Illa fakra and Marcia Irwin and Maria Miranda and move cedar o Hara man MUFA NIDA mountain wood he's with the gyro Fisher Ruger even Yun Tada we set out to facade to add her Amma Allah

rush, he said and do good deeds, other words, be proactive before you are overtaken by one of seven afflictions. He said.

Are you waiting for poverty, which will make you unmindful? Are you waiting for prosperity richness that will corrupt you? Are you waiting for a disease which will weaken you? Are you waiting for old age that may disable you? Are you waiting for sudden death? Which will surprise you? Or are you waiting for that jail the Antichrist who is the worst of what is to come? Or are you waiting for the hour, the day of judgment and the Hour will be most grievous and most bitter?

Allahu Akbar.

With this said we're now ready to ask the question what are the categories of people when it comes to productivity?

In reality,

people's approach to productivity varies immensely from person to person, we're not all the same when it comes to this value of productivity as George Bernard Shaw, he would say that the world has three kinds of people. There are those who make things happen. And there are those who watch what happens. And there are those who wonder what just happened Subhanallah

let us take a look at these categories. And as you hear this brothers and sisters, ask yourself, which of the three do I fit in, you have a category of people who are the least proactive of the three, they will always find an excuse for their inactivity.

At times, they will say things like, you know, unlike so and so I don't have any special talents that stand out. Sometimes they will say, you know, it's my my financial situation stressing me out.

Other times, they will say something like, other people will do it. For such a people, regardless of how ideal their circumstances are, they will always identify a hurdle to excuse themselves from from the life of productivity and initiative take.

But wait, there is a second category of people when it comes to productivity. They are a level better than than the category before them, but they can still do better.

How come? See these people, they genuinely love the concept of doing good deeds, right? They really want to leave a lasting impression before they pass away in preparation for the hereafter.

But nevertheless, it remains secondary, tertiary to their life priorities. So yeah, I mean, they may set aside some time for it to lead a productive life of vision building and Islamic project creation. But that's only if and when time permits. Right, if the if they find a moment here and there, you don't get me wrong, they won't fall short in taking Islamic initiatives. But if that moment does not show up in of itself, it won't bother them an awful lot. Nor will they necessarily force their schedule to fit it in.

On top of this, this second category of people, they thrive on words of encouragement and praise. But should such encouragement quiet and a little bit or even if they experienced challenges along the way, their light of productivity is very quick to them.

So that leaves us with the third category of Muslims. When it comes to productivity, what do we know about them, they are a people who do not wait for the ideal people or the ideal circumstances to arrive.

According to them, the greater the challenge, the greater the opportunities to prove themselves before Allah subhanaw taala they know that the ideal circumstance of time and money they don't arrive so they do something about it. They don't give the planning of their hereafter their spare time, their spare money. But even when they're busy at work, or they're spending time with family, or tending to the necessities of life, like we all do, it's still on their mind. By day by night. How do I plan for the religion? What's my legacy? Furthermore, they they don't wait for an invitation invitation to do good. They impose themselves on the scene of hereafter preparation and

Islamic project building. They're also not reactionaries. They don't they don't thrive on the cheering of people. Whether these Muslims are praised or blamed, whether they are supported or they're forsaken, whether they are themselves healthy or ill. They have understood that the ideal circumstance and spare time never actually arrives. So what did they do? The engineer the circumstances needed to get them to gender Allahu Akbar.

So they are highly motivated. They are initiative takers, they source their strength not from people. they source their strength from Allah Allah, Allah Generico from Doha, perpetual prostration during the night, good companionship, who support on another stories of the revivalist they keep revisiting from the Quran. And the only thing that bothers them is that they don't have a longer life to fulfill the never ending demands of their proactive mindset. Subhan Allah, may Allah make us amongst this category, Allahu Amin. Now theory aside,

allow me to share with you a case study of an individual who raised the bar of proactivity so high that he only comes second place to a prophet.

He is a man called Abdullah he may not have known

better known as Abu Bakr in the CDF may Allah be pleased with

our wonder of

A human being whose voice was quieter than other people's, and whose deeds were a lot more discreet than others, yet somehow, he would be ahead of the race every single time.

As early as the Meccan phase, this was apobec his quality, this was his lifestyle. This was his mindset, staggering. Staggering. proactivity consider this. When it came to embracing Islam. He didn't wait for anyone to set a precedent for him to see how it pans out before I jumped on the bandwagon. No, he, he took a proactive role. And he became the very first male adult to embrace Islam, without the slightest bit of hesitation. When it came to the immigration, he took a proactive role. And he was the very first to request the companionship of the Prophet Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam for that journey from Mecca to Medina. And he was granted just that.

When it came into the entry into the cave, during the immigration, he took a proactive role. And he insisted to be the very first person to set foot inside of the cave to ensure that it is safe for the prophets of Allah Allah who is Salem's entry.

When it came to our inviting others to Islam, he took a proactive role. He hit the streets just a day into his own reversion into Islam. What did he learn by that time? Not much, but he brought back to the Prophet Muhammad Salah sent him the next day, no less than five of the 10 men who would lead to be promised paradise who were ready to embrace Islam, he came back with automatic no offense, as you may have known a worm, Abdullah commanded mouth palha even though obey the law, and sadly no ABI Waqqas focus on this last one sad nobody woke us. What do you know about him? He's the uncle of the Prophet Muhammad.

I mean, Abu Bakr could have easily just said, I'll overlook him, because after all, he is the family member of a prophet. So I mean, who am I to advise you the Prophet knows better how to speak to his family, right? No, that didn't happen. Because this is not the mindset of a proactive Muslim.

When it came to benefiting other people, Abu Bakr took a proactive role look in every department of life. You know, the Hadith or the messenger sallallahu alayhi wa sallam asked his companions on one morning, who is fasting today. Abu Bakr said, I am a messenger of Allah.

He said, whom among you has followed a funeral procession today, Abu Bakr have said, I have a messenger of Allah. Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam asked a third question Who Has anyone fed a poor person today?

Abu Bakr said, I have a messenger of Allah.

He said, has anyone visited an ill person this morning? I will work it he said, I have a messenger of Allah and so here the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said magic to him and their family in their collagen.

Whenever these characteristics combined in any one person, he will enter into Jana. Commenting on this hadith,

I'll call them out. He said that it means the whole agenda Billa Maha Sabha tiene voila muda zylkene. Allah kabhi Hill, Amma Al. He said in other words, what this narration means that such a person who does these characteristics will enter paradise without any prior accountability for evil deeds, no suffering of the Day of Judgment, and no interrogation before Allah backdoor entrance into agenda. In fact, this is what is amazing. There are some narrations of this incident that you just heard, which indicate that this dialogue between the Prophet SAW said I'm gonna go back here, it took place shortly after the fajr prayer just after dawn. In other words, by dawn he had done all of

those four things. When did he find time for that? This is baraka blessing in the life of a person. And this is the reward for the productive people. This is their for brothers and sisters what productivity looks like.

So when you hear for example, advice, you are the first to run without advice. When it's time for the Doha prayer, you're the first to bow and prostrate.

When you come to no other person who has gone astray you you don't wait for his family to complain to you. You immediately explore the various ways of guiding him guiding him. You've already started doing that.

When you come to don't have a crisis of some sort, you don't wait to be appealed to you are one step ahead. You are already imposing your presence on it. When you hear a talk like this, you are the very first Muslim man or woman to consult your friends, your teachers, your relative saying Help me devise a project of productivity. What next? What am I going to do when I close this video? This is what productivity looks like brothers and sisters now

I'm sure

you will agree with me when I say that productivity is a universally admired trait a trait, even if we are blessed to live by it. Minimally, we admire those who do

and we wish to be like them. So we ask, if it is collectively admired? Why is it that some of us still fail to live a productive lifestyle?

Yeah, it's true at times when we blame the genetics, we blame the circumstances, we may say, I'm ignorant, I lack knowledge. I lacked courage, bad upbringing or a mix of them all.

But let's be honest, at times, it's due to a reason that's far simpler than all of that

belittlement of oneself.

So, this is a person who genuinely desires to be an initiative taker and to live proactively with purpose, vision and energy and motivation. But he is shackled with the whisperings of who am I to do so? Like, what value could I could the person like me possibly add? And so what I wish to do now is offer a few examples, which insha Allah will pull the rug from beneath every such excuse. And you will notice brothers and sisters, that these examples of productivity that you're going to hear they don't belong to Prophet, and they don't necessarily belong to saints. So how can you belittle yourself? Example number one, I will hate him. Have you heard of him? Abdullah the son of the great

Imam Muhammad he would say come to Kashmir on asthma our LED Akula Rahim Allahu Allah you some of Allah, Allah and Emily Haytham. He said, I used to frequently hear my dad Imam Muhammad singing. May Allah have mercy on Al Hasan

May Allah pardon and forgive a woman

who is I will hate him.

Who is this great man who left this impression on the great Imam Muhammad in the handle, a man made him to handle See, Imam and my brothers and sisters suffered immensely in prison because he was defending the causes of truth. And he would be lashed for doing so. Remember about himself he said that I don't fear prison. I'm not afraid of being executed. He if he feared the whip the fitna of a cell to the whip. And on one day when he was being summoned for his session of lashing, he felt someone tugging at his clothes from behind. So he looked back

at him and said to him, Do you know who I am?

Mmm. I said, No, I don't. The man said to him, and I will tell you something.

Unless So Tara Bactroban Videocon immediate mania and Neolife to Somalia to Ashura Alpha cell with the hurry.

He said my name is Bucha hate him. That free spirit, the famous thief. He said to date, it's on record that I have received 18,000 lashes on my back. And I've showed patience towards those lashes in obedience to the devil and in the cause of worldly gain. So oh Imam, you show patience as you are in the obedience of Allah, and in the cause of the religion of Islam.

Subhan Allah. Despite his sins and his crimes, the thief he didn't deprive himself from acting proactively.

As a result, his words would have a tangible effect in strengthening Imam Muhammad.

And he qualified himself for dua from the email which we envy him for.

And the books of history have internalized the words of email of Ebola hate him, because of the single moment of proactivity that he courageously took. So on what basis do you believe to yourself?

The second example I wanted to share with you is the example of a man called No, I'm able to Massoud ici,

who is not I am

well, in year five after the hijra, the Jewish community assembled an alliance for the purpose of doing away with the Muslim presence. Once and for all. In Medina.

The Alliance was formed about Sofia and his army of pagans the arrived at the northwest of Medina and the tribe of gotta find mercenaries they arrived to the north east of Medina with an army of around 10,000 men. This number by the way, 10,000 fighters the Arabs had never seen it before in their lives. It was a harrowing moment of fear. The situation was really dire. The Jewish communities was managing the event. The pagans of Mecca, were participating.

The ruthless mercenaries have gotta find

they had arrived. The siege around Medina was complete. And the hypocrites within Medina are spreading also

also propaganda and the Muslims were according to the Quran, Bella cotton Kulu will Hannah Judah throats had their hearts had reached their throats, they were terrified. And in the midst of all of this, something amazing would happen that would begin to change the course of events.

A new Muslim would act proactively.

This is our hero. No, I am able to Massoud SGI. He left the lines of the pagans crossed over into Medina embraced Islam. And immediately he said to the Prophet Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam moremy be measured. They are rasool Allah He messenger of Allah instruct me to do as you wish.

And so the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said to him in NAMA, enter phenol Raja noir head for has been an integral part for Indian harbor Kuda.

He said, Look, you are just one man.

And so if you are able to create disunity in the lines of the Alliance, then do so because war by its nature is deception.

And so without delay, he started to devise an ingenious plan. And he successfully managed to sow the seeds of discord and unity in their lines, which would end up playing a key role in breaking apart their entire coalition, causing them too much away from Medina. Why? Because of a single moment of productivity at the hands of a person who was Islamically speaking only a few hours old, brand new Muslim.

So I asked you, the brother, the sister, what basis do you believe to yourself? How can you use that as an excuse to not act proactively the third of those examples I wanted to share with you belongs to an aunt.

This example of productivity doesn't belong to a human being. It's in tribute in tribute to an ant which lived during the time of profits with a man and he's salatu salam, Allah Almighty, He said describing the the kingdom of Suleiman Allah said well Hoshi or Ali Sula, uma and Juno do homie Nalgene noodle is tidy for home use our own.

Allah said that the soldiers of Sulaiman were assembled for him soldiers from the jinn, and men and birds all gathered for him. And there you are marching in rows. Can you imagine this type of Kingdom Dear Brothers and Sisters, this was not normal prophethood

a man who had by Allah's permission, control of the winds, the subservience of the jinn, understanding of the language of the animals,

and a Prophet whose kingdom was quite simply unheard of in the entire human experience. This is who Suleiman was on one of those days as he marched on with his assembly and and to realize that they were coming and so it feared that they would be crushed. And so it took a proactive role. Allah Almighty said the hotel either at our Isla de namely, when they finally arrived at the value of the scarlet nebula an ant said you had no clue Oh, ants would Hello Messiah Kenya can enter your homes lie actually met in the console A Man Who Would you know, do who were homeless or own less you may be crushed by Sulaiman and his people or his soldiers without them realizing, now think about it.

This and could easily have taken to a corner to save itself. Nobody decided to do more profit Sulaiman, therefore would hear the words of this ant. And as a result, the entire community of ants would be saved. Why? Because of the proactive role that was played by just one of those ants.

A story which you and I would have never noticed, by the way, we would have never known that this story ever happened, had the Quran not documented it for us to recite.

But this is the nature of productivity. You see, yeah, the story will be captured by the Quran, even if the star of the show was an ant. Productivity is dear to Allah. So how can you build it in yourself?

The fourth and final example I wanted to share with you is that of a Hoopoe bud.

On one day Prophet saw a man noticed an absentee from his gathering, the Hood Hood, or an English The hoopoe bad? Allah Almighty, He said, Formica Yarrabah ad for call it I had to be violent to hit Obi Wan took me said that in the nether II Cain. Allah said the Hoover didn't stay for long. It wasn't absent for long and then it arrived and it said to shoot a man. I have knowledge about something that you don't have knowledge about. And I have come to you from Saba, Shiva, Yemen, with certain news. Oh, bird What did you see it

Niva tomorrow I tell them likoma ot atomia coalition in Guadalajara optionality. Wadjet to her work Omaha has to do in addition seamill Duni la he was at Yun Allahu shaytaan. Who Allah Allah whom for whom it is severely for hula, they do. The bird it said I found a woman who was ruling them.

And she was given something from all things and she has a huge throne. I saw the bird the bird said, I saw her and her people prostrating to the Sun instead of Allah.

And she thought they had made their deeds pleasing to them, and he had turned them away from his way and so they are not guided. The bird is complaining that this community was prostrating to other than Allah Jalla Jalla Agha, upon hearing this prophet today man would immediately take steps to guide them to s&m steps, which would eventually result in the guidance of this queen, and her entire Sun worshiping community, all because of what

all of which stemmed from the proactive role which a single bird played.

So there you have it, examples of proactivity that inspired Imams to stay steadfast, that drove away enemies and broken alliances from Medina

that saved entire communities from destruction, and saved other communities, from the Hellfire at the hands of what and who are the hands of a thief, the hands of a new Muslim, the hands of an end, the hands of a bat.

So with this, we can really conclude that those who, despite hearing all of that, still insist that they've got nothing to offer. They have no reason to be proactive. That person might in fact be accusing Allah Almighty of not giving them the necessary resources needed to attain the highest highest grades in paradise. And this is nothing short of Zusanli Billa bad expectations of Allah is this your expectation of Allah.

Brothers and sisters

proactivity has always been and will always be the fuel of the Dawa and reformation and revival and change.

It is that vehicle that delivered Islam to powder and Rome and Africa and the rest of the world it was proactivity our history as Muslims describes a people of phenomenal productivity, which included the old and the young, the fit the handicapped, the male, the female, the scholar, the uneducated, Allah Almighty alone, knows of just how many people were heading for a nosedive into hell, if it wasn't for certain proactive people who pulled them out.

And only Allah knows how many talents and skills would never have been discovered.

If it wasn't for certain proactive people who uncovered them in these people and then channeled these skills for the cause of Islam.

And only Allah Almighty knows how many communities who were oppressed, subjugated

who would never have been liberated. Had it not been for certain proactive people like yourselves, who decided to carry this burden for the sake of Allah subhanho wa taala.

Indeed, as Dr. Steven Covey, he said that we were not the product of our circumstances.

We are the product of our decisions and with Paradise as a price. Our decision must be to live a life of motivation and vision setting and on limited productivity. I hope you will start preparing your brothers and sisters