Ibraheem Menk – Change Your Life With Good Thought
AI: Summary ©
AI: Transcript ©
Change is a word that we often hear
from people.
And many of us are seeking to change
if not all of us.
We constantly tell people that change is something
that we should do.
And they say that the only constant in
life is change.
But the question is, how do you change?
How do you bring about change?
And there are many ways.
Oftentimes we talk about tawbah.
Returning back to Allah, Rabbul Izzati wal Jalal.
Turning to Him, seeking from Him, making dua
to Him.
All of this we speak about.
But one of the ways which we oftentimes
find ourselves not paying attention to is the
fact that we should think good.
Think positively.
And even when circumstance and situation is bad,
a person is encouraged to think positively.
You see, Ayub alaihi salatu wassalam had lost
his limbs in some narrations.
They mentioned that he had a disease known
as gangrene.
And he lost his limbs.
He lost his family.
And he lost his wife as well.
Allahu Akbar.
Some narrations say that the only person who
stayed with him is his wife.
And he refused to ask Allah Rabbul Izzati
wal Jalal to lift this condition from him.
Why?
He was ashamed to go to Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala.
After Allah had given him so many years
of prosperity, he was ashamed to go and
raise his hands to Allah and complain to
Allah Rabbul Izzati wal Jalal.
Even though there is nothing wrong with that.
In fact, it is rewarding to turn to
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.
But this was a higher state of thinking
where he thought, with what faith do I
go to Allah Rabbul Izzati wal Jalal?
What type of a person does this?
It is a person whose mind is in
the right place, positively thinking.
Thinking good of Allah Rabbul Izzati wal Jalal.
So Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala tells us
finally, when Ayyub alayhi salatu wassalam called out
to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala وَأَيُّوبَ إِذْ
نَادَى رَبَّهُ أَنِّي مَسَّنِي الضُّرُّ وَأَنتَ أَرْحَمُ الرَّاحِمِينَ
And when Ayyub called out to his Lord,
that hardship has touched me, it has afflicted
me.
And you are the most merciful of those
who are merciful.
Allahu Akbar.
Look at the wording of Allah Rabbul Izzat,
of Ayyub alayhi salatu wassalam.
What does he say?
And when Ayyub called out to his Lord,
hardship, difficulty has touched me.
It's just touched me, O Allah.
وَأَنْتَ أَرْحَمُ الرَّاحِمِينَ And you are the most
merciful of those who are merciful.
The man's limbs are falling apart.
Allahu Akbar.
And what does he say?
Difficulty touched me.
Implying that this is just something small, O
Allah.
You've touched me with this.
You've given me this little bit of difficulty
in my life.
And you are the most merciful of those
who are merciful, even in his difficulty.
He's remembering and bearing in mind that Allah
Rabbul Izzati wal Jalal is the most merciful
of those who are merciful.
You see, it is easy for us to
remember how merciful Allah subhanahu wa'ta'ala is
when things are easy, when the bank account
is full, when the house is amazing, when
the car is the latest, and there's no
issues in my health, and there's no issues
in my family.
It's easy for us to remember that Allah
is the most merciful of those who are
merciful.
But in difficulty, in hardship, a person who
is not close enough to Allah Rabbul Izzati
wal Jalal begins to wonder where Allah is.
Why Allah has tested him with this?
Why Allah has afflicted him with this hardship?
So in your hardship, if you find yourself
thinking good of Allah Rabbul Izzati wal Jalal,
that is a sign of your belief in
Allah subhanahu wa'ta'ala.
Because O Allah, I know you've tested me
with this, but all along I had a
good life.
I had so many good years.
I thank you for those good years.
If you are grateful, then I will increase
you, increase you in blessing, increase you in
wealth, increase you in bounty, and if you
are ungrateful, indeed my punishment is severe.
This is the mindset of a believer, and
this is the point of change.
This is where it all starts, in the
heart, the heart and the mind of a
believer.
When you begin to change your thought process
and say, I know Allah has got me.
I know Allah will change my circumstance.
I know Allah who gave me yesterday deprived
me today will give me tomorrow again, and
I know that this is a reason for
my entry into Jannah.
If only I thank and seek forgiveness from
Allah Allah subhanahu wa'ta'ala tells us something,
and this is a lesson for us.
This is a lesson for us.
The next time we find ourselves wondering why
we are being afflicted, why we are going
through trouble and difficulty, we need to remind
ourselves of this ayah.
مَا يَفْعَلُ اللَّهُ بِعَذَابِكُمْ إِن شَكَرْتُمْ وَآمَنْتُمْ What
will Allah do?
What will Allah achieve by punishing you if
you are grateful and you believe?
What will Allah achieve by punishing you if
you are grateful and you believe?
What does this mean?
Allah gains nothing from you being afflicted, from
you being in trial and tribulation.
That is an opportunity for you, O servant
of Allah, to gain closeness to Him for
your benefit, for your goodness, for your akhira,
for your everlasting bliss.
So even in that is a rahma of
Allah Rabbul Izzati wal Jalal.
Even in your trial and tribulation and difficulty
is a rahma of Allah subhanahu wa ta
'ala and this is why we see that
Ayub a.s. says وَأَنتَ أَرْحَمُ الرَّاحِمِينَ And
you are the most merciful of those who
are merciful.
What does Allah Rabbul Izzati wal Jalal do?
فَاسْتَجَبْنَا لَهُ فَكَشَفْنَا مَا بِهِ مِنْ ضُرٍ So
we responded him and we removed that trial,
we removed that hardship, we lifted it.
وَآتَيْنَاهُ أَهْلَهُ وَمِثْلَهُمْ مَعَهُ And we gave him
his family and the like of them as
well, meaning double.
We gave him more than he had before.
You see, that idea, that belief that Allah
will come through for me is so rewarding
that Allah will give you more than you
had before.
But you need to believe when you are
going through the difficulty.
You need to have that conviction and yaqeen
that Allah will come through for me.
And no matter what I lose, no matter
what I lose, I know that this is
just the dunya.
This is just the dunya.
As long as I have my faith, I
have my most prized possession with me.
I have my most prized possession with me.
Why?
Because if I lose my faith, there is
no replacement of that.
There is no goodness that can come after
that.
The only thing that I can't lose is
my faith.
And this is why the dua of Rasulullah
ﷺ was not, Allahumma laa tusibni.
Oh Allah, don't test me.
He didn't make that dua.
You know why?
He knew he was guaranteed trial and test
and tribulation.
But do you know what his dua was?
Oh Allah, don't place our trial and tribulation
in our deen.
Don't let me ever question you, oh Allah.
Don't let me ever doubt you, oh Allah.
Because if I do that and if I
lose my faith, then there is no replacement
of that.
There is no goodness after that.
So we really need to bear in mind
the fact that Allah Rabbul Izzati wal Jalal
is, was and will always remain the most
merciful of those who are merciful regardless of
what is happening around us.
My family member died.
My limb got cut off.
I had to go to the hospital.
I was diagnosed with cancer.
I had all sorts of problems.
Perhaps you went to, you woke up one
day and you heard that your entire business
was taken and seized by the authorities.
You know why you're okay?
You know why you're okay?
Because you're a believer in Allah Rabbul Izzati
wal Jalal.
Because you know that Allah remains and Allah
is there for you and this is just
a trial and that you are from Allah
to Allah and ultimately you will stand before
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.
So it's okay.
It doesn't matter what I've lost of this
dunya.
I don't lose my mind when I lose
this dunya because I'm not so attached to
it.
It doesn't matter if it goes.
And you look at the story of Yusuf
a.s. He goes.
He's lost.
He's thrown into the well.
His father loses him.
And then his father loses another son as
well.
And at this juncture, even though his very
own brothers, Yusuf a.s. brothers have deceived
him and they come back to their father
and even though they are being honest in
their speech and they say that, you know
what?
He stole.
According to them, they thought that the other
brother of Yusuf a.s. known as Binyamin
had stolen.
So they told their father Your son has
stolen.
The father did not believe them.
And he just said to them, Allah knows
what you are describing.
A beautiful patience.
Allah will bring them all to me again.
Allah will bring them back all to me
again.
And then the very same sons that came
to him with stories, the very same sons
that deceived him, he tells them O
my dear sons, go and search.
Look for Yusuf.
Look for Yusuf and his brother.
And don't lose hope in the mercy of
Allah.
Here is Yaqub a.s. after having lost
two sons.
And he is dealing with the very culprits
themselves.
And he is telling them, go, don't lose
hope in the mercy of Allah.
Where was his heart?
Where was his heart?
Simply, the answer simply put is it was
with Allah.
The next time you are being afflicted and
the next time you are going through trial
and tribulation and problem, ask yourself one question
in that trial.
Where is my heart?
What am I thinking about Allah?
That's what matters.
And that is what will get you through.
May Allah change our perspective.
May Allah empower us to be more positively
thinking.