Mufti Menk – We are all in an age of STRUGGLE –

			We're living in an age of struggle. Every one of us is struggling with either one thing or a few
things.
		

			Don't ever let your struggles distance you from Allah. If your struggle brought you closer to Allah,
it's a blessing. If your struggle distanced you from Allah, it is actually perhaps a sign of the
displeasure of Allah and could be a means of punishment. Whenever you're struggling, tell yourself
this is Allah telling me to come closer to him. So how long am I going to struggle for for as long
as Allah knows that he wants you in that position? Because if your struggle brought you closer to
Allah, and Allah loves the way you worship Him while you are in a struggle, it's a bonus for Allah
to keep you in that struggle until the day you die.
		

			I hope you understood what I just said. Because if Allah had to take you out of the struggle, and
that resulted in you sliding back to your old self, then that would be a big loss. Imagine when I
had a problem, I was close to Allah, when I when I my problem was over, I was distanced from Allah.
Why would Allah ever take the problem away, if he loves you, He gives you the problem and keeps it
there with you for as long as He wills. And if you die in a condition where you kept praying for a
solution. And the solution didn't come. In actual fact, there was a solution. What was it? You kept
praying? That was the main bonus. It wasn't about solving the problem. I needed something. And I
		

			needed it badly. And I kept praying and I kept asking Allah and Allah knows he's not gonna give it
to you, but he loves the way you keep praying. So you actually succeeded and you achieved more than
you wanted. Because ultimately you died praying, you died with hope you died with Allah and you
didn't die the other way. But had you gotten what you asked for? You might just have not been
calling out to Allah with those warm tears anymore. You might, you might not have continued praying
the way you were with such sincerity. So Allah says, You know what, I love you the way you are right
now. You're going to come back to me very, very soon. I want you to die praying in sujood calling
		

			out to me weeping, crying to me close to me. And that's the best death you could ever have had. So
I'm going to keep you this way here. And you're busy saying, Oh Allah, you punishing me? Allah says,
No, I'm having mercy on you consider what I've just said. Because many of us are struggling and the
struggles are real. We will insha Allah be helped by Allah, may Allah alleviate all our struggles,
the way we want them to be alleviated. Whatever your struggles are, but if something is delaying,
that shouldn't disconnect you from Allah. If something is delaying, don't allow it to make you
become despondent, rather, dive close, dive deeper, become closer and closer to Allah and in this
		

			way, if Allah is pleased with you, trust me there's nothing more you want. If I die when Allah is
pleased with me, it's a good death. But if any one of us dies when Allah is displeased with us, we
will only blame ourselves May Allah Almighty grant us goodness