Quranic Reflections #17 Eyes on the Prize

So I have the loss last summer so allow like sacrilege, Milan Selena, have you known Amina Mohamed PsycINFO Widener study Lahoma studying already kind of have you been one of them homicidal infidelity, along with Selena, have you been on Amina Mohamed Salah La Jolla cinema Kula Makarov avec la la coulomb of often indicative la filiale work already hamdulillah to illuminations Quranic reflections from the Halloween Day 17. And today in shall the Imam recited from two particular Sutras of the Quran, the first of which is sort of arrived and the second one is solid Ibrahim sort of arrived, speaks about the strength of Allah subhanaw taala and his capability and his ability and

that giving a strength to the Prophet Muhammad sallallahu alayhi salam or when you have the strength of Allah subhanaw taala to rely on and sort of Ibrahim speaks about

giving the Prophet Muhammad I sent him a sense of comfort over of course understanding the path that he's going to tread is the same path as his own grandfather, Abraham it said so I wanted to reflect on a number of is from both of these sources since it was recited. I sorta right is of course surah number 13 assortative Rahim is surah number 14 and reflecting on some of those things, so Allah Subhana Allah says it shows the right eye as number 22 to 24 Allah Subhana Allah says after saying that William Salah Jim will levena Salgado with the law what you love be more formal salata What the * all me man was gonna whom one for whom it was gonna steal one who I learned here to wire the

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Salam will not a female saw about autumn fenyr in Morocco that was planted as a source of light in our number 22. And they are those who endure patiently seeking their Lord's pleasure, established prayer donate from what We have provided for them secretly and openly and respond to evil with good, it is they who will have the ultimate abode the guardians of eternity, they will enter along with the righteous among their parents, their spouses, their descendants, and the angels will enter upon them from every gate, saying, Peace be upon you for your perseverance, How excellent is the ultimate about so sort of what are these, these ayat speak about staying the course. In essence,

continue on what the path is for that is going to eventually be worth it. And what is it that eventually almost trying to guide the believers in terms of staying the course. They are those who endure patiently enduring patiently for what reason seeking Allah soprano tenants pleasure, and they do the following establish the prayer, and they donate from what Allah has given them. And essentially, I want you to focus on the importance of those two things, which is prayer, it should be like an ultimate outlet. It should never be something we give up no matter how we may feel that we are distant from Allah because one of the things that I see regularly is i a lot of people start

to question their faith. And they think that they're not good enough. And this is a form of the tricks of Shavon. Making people feel like they don't have they don't have their required righteousness to pray. They have the required righteousness to go to the masjid. In fact, some people made the following comments, they thought that you know what, my sins are too much for me to go to the masjid. They thought or I wasn't ready to do so because of XY and Z lifestyle decision that I was making. You know, that kind of mentality. Aslan is from Shavon to make us think that we need to have certain conditions for the Mercy of Allah, or certain conditions that are lost Panther

will accept us and that's not true. Those things are from shame, those are not real. Those are things that are self deprecating ideology and thoughts and a lot harder that says that should be a red line, you should never ever think that your

faith is somehow conditional for Allah to forgive you. But rather, the moment that you feel that you want to pray and you come close to Allah subhanaw taala that actually is a mercy from Allah, that he wants to forgive you and he wants, good for you. So hence, you there's no conditional, you don't need to reach a certain stage for you to approach Allah and to pray. So establishing the prayers that absolutely red line, that everyone should just remain firm, no matter what the situation is. Just stay on your prayer. And if you've missed it, make it up. And you know, keep going moving forward, continue to pray, you know, start

To pray, whatever the situation may be, and then sacrificing by giving. So giving is actually a very big component in our faith in the sense of giving what Allah has given to us, because it's a form of, in fact, reliance on Alon, it's a form of sacrifice as well. So hence it even in the early Meccan period, as you see, these ads still are in the Meccan period. It is a very powerful reflection to continuously give, for the sake of Allah secretly and openly meaning it's not something that's only a performative open thing that where people essentially want some kind of clout or to be praised by others, but it's also done secretly, and they respond with evil. They

respond to evil with good. So essentially, one of the signs of faith, which is very powerful to me is that it changes the sense of normative response that we may have to others. You ever thought about that? How do you respond to someone that does that as an evil to you by doing something that is good?

It's very difficult, it's not easy. And hence why faith is supposed to change that normative response. And that essence, I want you all to just kind of think about how Allah subhanaw taala has impacted us where we essentially changed a behavior that we would normally have done, but we do it for Allah, just because he doesn't like a certain certain thing. And that essence shows us what the impact of faith is, when you normatively would have responded, you really have a short fuse or you have a short temper, and you attack somebody for for the way they responded or spoke to you. But then you change that behavior, because that's not how Allah wants you to react. And that shows you

the sign of like, the true level of faith, when it's impacting you what it's changing your behavior.

Powerful, and the essence of it is those who respond to evil with good, and that's a it's a very, it's not an easy thing to do. It's something that requires a long time to kind of develop, and a lot of time that says law, economics. But they're the ones who have the ultimate vote. It's one of the it's one of the names of paradise, the ultimate about like the final destination the best place to be. And what's kind of the guardians of eternity, that agenda to adenine. It's one of the names of the paradise Ginetta. Adenine is the guardians of eternity, which they will enter along with the righteous from an Alaska gives us this ultimate beautiful

promise that you will be in those gardens with your parents, and your spouse's and your descendants and your family. And that's among the greatest blessings one of the prophets of Allah, they said, A man has mentioned that among the greatest blessings is that we will be with our families. And you might say, well, aren't we in different levels of paradise somebody did better than us than or we may have done better than them. Unless Panatela says that I'll How can I be him very at home, that Allah says that we will join me wherever has the highest level of paradise, Allah will make their family joined them

to so that they can be together. And even our basketball, the law and when he used to hear this, this is he used to cry. He used to say Subhan Allah, how merciful Allah is that when you're in paradise, Allah will actually make your family join you in that final, beautiful place where you can spend eternity together, because now you won't be alone. And then those who made it of course those who are in paradise and those who aren't Allah gives us an opportunity to actually go and search for them, and to intercede for them that we have, as long as they were people of Eman and faith. So we ask Allah, Allah to guide us and to guide our families to Islam into faith, the anatomy, and then

last time it says here, and the angels will will will come then and be their basically their companions, and from every gate of paradise, call out and say, Peace be upon you, for the mouse above them for what you used to have for what you persevered and had patience with. I mean look, it takes patience, right to fasula and takes patients to pray it takes patience to wear the hijab it takes patience to have appeared and to wear clothes and to be and do an act and say and and react the way Allah subhanaw taala loves for no other reason not because it's ethnicities Islamic culture, not because your parents are, are are forcing you not because it's because it's the traditional

thing to do, or because the overall practice of Muslims

it's because you want Allah sponsor to do you please with you. So the idea is that how amazing is it that the angels will be calling us to say you earned this because of the fact that you persevered. The fact that you have patience? For me I'm an awkward down and how amazing is this beautiful place that you you established and you stayed and you reach because of the amount of patience that you had the amount of perseverance that you had, I mean, that will be the ultimate

kind of sign that it's worth it. So I wanted to reflect on those from salt. Right and unfortunately Raheem I wanted to reflect on something which is equally beautiful and as powerful as well. And the beginning of this sort of volume so the volume like I said, it's about giving the prophets I send my perseverance and staying on the path by giving him the example of Ibrahim Ali Sara. There's a beautiful portion of the beginning of this is the beginning of the sword I want to I want to just read out to you all and it will reflect on it shortly. I'll just find that it says in the beginning of salty wine, and if

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you can feel your water early. Married. Let's try that it says if you have not, this is a Book which We have revealed to you oh Prophet, so that you may lead people out of darkness and into light Allah Samantha says, darkness plural light is one. The Path of Allah is one and darkness and different paths leading away from Allah has many, by the will of their Lord to the path of the Almighty, the praiseworthy Allah to Whom belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth and woe to those who reject Faith because of a severe torment. And the last time he then says something beautiful, he actually tells us the strategy of those who wish to take us away from the path of

Allah. Allah in the Quran teaches us how the path of disbelief will lead mankind astray. And listen to this, what are the three strategies of those who wish to take people away from the path of God, number one, Allah Venus, the head bone higher to dunya. And they will make this life preferred, and try to make them favor this world over the hereafter.

Such a powerful thing, they will make them love this world more than anything, what think about all those people that are trying to build their agenda on Earth, they tried to build their paradise on earth. That's actually a statement for vacations, right paradise on earth come visit paradise on earth can visit Maldives, Hawaii, Malta and Costa Rica, all of these places. They call it paradise on earth, because it's literally that image in the person's mind that everything that they want from their desires, is here. In essence, that is also a form of

satanic advertising right in the fence. And it says that the notion to create the image of this world being your end all pleasure, is in fact a mechanism used to make you feel that you're going to be missing out if you don't indulge and engage and and fall into the enticements of the world by removing your want for what's in the hereafter which is later and preferring this life what were the next I live events that had wounded hire to do that and I feel such a powerful image those who make

one favor and prefer the life of this world over the hereafter number one strategy of how disbelief in fact, guides Muslims away from faith and then number two, if they can do they say Okinawa don't follow this way don't prefer the life of this world way. So don't answer the law. The second thing is, you know what, if you don't prefer this life, at least just don't do this Islam thing? Yeah. So don't answer me that means they try to hinder people from the way of Allah. They try to hinder people away from the way of Allah and saying, Look, follow any other way. Follow any other lifestyle. Just don't do this Islam thing Islam. Why are you making your life so hard? Go do

something else with your life. You also don't answer we did not do anything be anyone pretend you're anything except to be Muslim. Don't be Muslim. Just don't do this Islam thing. Okay, that's the second strategy. And if they can't do that, if they can't make you prefer the life of this world over the hereafter, and they can't make you not fall away other than Islam, the number three the last part that says why you have a hole

okay, then what are they going to do? Make you follow in Islam that's crooked.

Literally, that's what it says. It will they will strive to make it appear crooked This is not the way or they will try to make you follow in Islam that's not the correct Islam follow this kind of Islam following Islam that's based on my interpretation of my understanding in my you know, way because that's the true way of is let's be moderate Muslims never heard that term, moderate Muslims as if Islam itself is not in moderate. So the notion here is like, be moderate Muslim, but don't like is that following Islam moderately or what is it exactly. So these kinds of things have come up and the idea that people

tried to take people away from the path of Allah, Allah, this is like a football that embody, they are the ones who have gone far astray. So imagine these two kinds of components of, of faith that we just looked at sort of the rod which teaches us about perseverance and staying on the path. And then the notion of how you can be swerved from it, and sort of deploy him so that you understand how to essentially be wary of those kinds of strategies that are used as a sort of Rahim eye as 123, immediately the beginning of sort of deploy him. So this is among the ways we can understand to stay the course, it's a path. And the last part that it says that if you do, then the end result of what

we have patience for will ultimately be worth it. And that's something you just have to kind of, always remind yourself with, is like, listen, the end result and the benefit and the blessings. And also,

look, where we as human beings are triggered to stay the course or to essentially

continue with something or to build habits based on two things. Number one, we try to remember the rewards. Or number two, we remember the consequences. So if you remember, the reward for this is what I'm gonna get a paycheck if I stay at my job.

Right, or if I get if I work, overtime, I'm gonna get this much. So the reward is actually driving you.

And for some people, it's the consequences. Like, listen, if I don't do this, I can't pay my bills. So in essence, either rewards is going to drive you or consequences is going to drive you so the paycheck that you're gonna get, you're gonna get rewarded, or that because if you don't go to work, you're not gonna get paid. So which of those things is going to be driving us? Allah teaches us in the Quran, that that mentality that human nature is also with faith, what is driving you are being driven by the love of Allah and the reward that you're gonna receive and the blessings in your life and the fact that you're going to see so many things clearly, and you're going to feel much more

happier, there's going to be contentment in your heart, and there's going to be this overwhelming level of just drama taken away from you and toxic people taken away from you. And all of these things, are you going to be driven by the consequences of saying, hey, you know what, if you don't do this, there's going to be constriction in your heart, there's going to be lack of clarity, there's going to be this overwhelming self deprecation in and this belief in your heart, that you're not good enough, you're going to be constantly seeking the appreciation and praise of others, there's going to be a cloud chasing that's going on, there's going to be continuous drama around

people that only care about the superficial things in life and not be surrounded about those people that care about just being righteous to each other and not caring about what you look like and how you say things and you know, second guessing you and having assumptions about you and but you're gonna surround yourself with the righteous, so which is a last part that gives us the path. So it's beautiful to kind of like remember, what is it that the Quran calls to and what the Quran calls to and that level of just uplifting character and uplifting spirituality makes the Quran such a powerful personal development as well as spiritual and Ria and theological.

You know, unsurpassed power that we must continuously draw from in order to become better human beings and better, to become better Muslims and to become those who Allah subhanaw taala says that the angels will even praise us when we enter paradise and set and they will say to us, Salam Alikum be Masato finalmouse with the ultimate Mela, makers of those Peace be upon you for how you persevered and how you stuck to it. And you stayed the course and you stayed on the path. How excellent is this beautiful, ultimate abode? That we're all celebrating Charlotte by going into paradise mellowest Panther grabbed us that and grant us the compassion the Prophet Muhammad

sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. This is eliminations colonic reflections every night from the Halloween and we look forward to seeing you all tomorrow. Shala for night 18 is Pamela how quickly Ramadan is going to take advantage of it. If you haven't had a great start. Haven't had a great middle. There's still time. There's still time. Plenty of time in sha Allah may Allah Subhana Allah grant this blessings in our time and except for what's left when I want to have the little army or soul or something radical have you in order, you know, Hamid while he was so happy, which means that I want