Navaid Aziz – Moving Forward As A Community Part I

			Bismillah R Rahman r Rahim in Alhamdulillah Hina
		

			istockphoto Villa Himanshu Dorian fusina woman sejati Amina Maria de la dama de la, la de la la la
la la la la la sharika Juan de Mohammed Abu Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa ala alihi wa sahbihi wa
seldom at the Sleeman kathira Amma dad, my dear brothers and sisters salaam aleikum wa rahmatullah
wa barakato.
		

			So, I had the opportunity to go to Bermuda this past week, and I just got back on Tuesday. And I
want to share an experience with you that I experienced while I was there, and that was swimming in
the Atlantic Ocean. You know, when you go swimming, over here, you're generally in a pool, there's
no waves, there's no currents, you don't have to worry about any animals, you know, everything's
good to go. So when I first got to the Atlantic Ocean, I'm thinking about how am I going to approach
this, the first thing that caught me off guard was how freezing cold the water,
		

			there was no, you know, climate control, nothing like that at all. So I'm slowly taking steps
inside, then the second thing I start to notice is that there's actual holes inside the ground. So
the water is like crystal clear blue, but there's like holes inside the sand. And slowly, you
realize that there are animals right underneath you. So you will see like a snake swimming around.
And there was this animal called the Portuguese man of war, that's the actual name of the animal.
And it's like a jellyfish that, you know, it stings you, it just holds onto your, your, your limb,
and it doesn't let go until it dies. That's the only way to let go. So all these things are going
		

			through my mind. But at that time, I'm focused that, you know, this is something that's on my to do
list, and I need to get it done no matter what I have to get it done. So finally, you know, I come
back the second day, now, I'm more prepared, I'm prepared for the for the weather prepared for the
cold temperature prepared for the animals. And I'm like Bismillah, let's go in. And as soon as I go
inside, I'm talking maybe about maybe 15 feet away from the shore, 20 feet away from the shore, you
see, like 10 foot waves, and I just try standing there, my feet are planted inside the sand. And no
matter what I did, I couldn't fight off the wave. And as as big of a guy as I am, I just couldn't do
		

			it, every time a wave would come, I would get pushed back, I would get moved back. And then I would
have to fight my way back, you know, to get back to that position and where it was. And it was at
that time that I had, you know, some of the deepest reflections at that time. You know, from the
reflections I had at that time, was the way we tried to play with the color of Allah subhanaw taala.
And what I mean by that is that when it comes to the color of Allah subhanho wa Taala, we take this
very lackadaisical approach, that color will come in and will change our lives for the better. But
something that I learned at that time, was that the color of Allah subhanho wa Taala is something
		

			that you have to maneuver around and something that you have to control, you cannot let it control
you through the actions that you take, that will become your father, that will become your destiny.
And that's what I learned that as soon as the wave was coming, rather than standing there trying to
plant my feet and get beaten up by that wave. If you just duck your hand and you swim underneath the
wave, you can just go completely past it, and you'll go completely unaffected. And that's what led
me to my second reflection was changing your belief systems, meaning that each and every one of us
has a belief system, which is our core, you know, through which we stand firm and our tidal waves.
		

			So when the color of a lot comes, when some calamity happens, when something bad happens, what is it
that will ground you What keeps you from what keeps you solid, then that's something that made you
know, I reflected upon that that time, that the color of Allah subhanho wa Taala is something that
you need a strategy for that if you're not prepared for it, it can be completely overwhelming, and
actually brought me back to what our halaqa will be about tonight. And that was, you know, going
forward as a community, where are we trying to go? What are we trying to do? And there's that famous
saying that a chain is as strong as its weakest link a chain is as strong as its weakest link. And
		

			that is what I want to assess here tonight within the Atallah you know, how strong of an individual
are you? You know, when it comes to the community? Are you holding the community back? Or actually
or will you actually be able to be productive and help the community move forward with the lights
Allah. Now that having been said, I want to give an introduction in terms of how this is going to
work, it's not going to be a typical halaqa they're not going to be too many is not going to be too
many ahadith there's going to be a lot of experiences that I experienced. So let's start off with
the very first one that handle it.
		

			I graduated from the Islamic University of Medina in July 2008. And then I finally came back in
December 2008. And for that six months while I was stuck in Medina, what was actually happening was,
that's when like the first phase of gas war started to happen. So each day the fluctuation of gas
price is making it more difficult for me to leave how so I have 4000 kilograms of books that I need
to ship back, and they're not going to ship my books back until I pay them. So each week I'm
working, saving up money to ship my books back, but the gas prices going keep going higher and
higher. And I keep getting stuck in Medina. Now you can imagine, you know what's wrong with getting
		

			stuck in Medina, but more behind the story. My daughter has been born now for about six months. And
I haven't seen her yet. So she was born in April. And here we are in December, I still haven't seen
my daughter, you know, physically. And Savannah, that was a very troubling time for me. So when
should I come back to North America.
		

			It's December 3, it's December 3 2008. And I think you know what, I'm going to come and change
Canada, this is going to become become my, you know, hello for Empire, I'm going to be a new Khalifa
of Canada, lo and behold, nothing like that ever happened. So I come into Canada. And you know, I
started going to the different massage and start speaking to the different imams. And some of them
were very threatened that, you know, I was a native born, graduated from Medina. And they started
banning me from giving quotables and halaqaat inside the massage it. So that was like the first
deterrent I faced. Then the second one was that, you know, since I graduated from Medina, it wasn't
		

			an issue for the people for the seven years I was there. But as soon as I come back, I get labeled
as Wahhabi, this hardcore Salafi guy that's gonna, you know, destroy the community. So then you have
the other half of the massage that are preventing me from doing any activities. So I can't work in
any of the massage it can give any halaqaat can give any quotables. And that's seven years that I
spent studying, it seems that it's going nowhere. Then I look at my relationship with my parents, my
parents see me to sitting at home all day, you know, reading or you know, spending time with the
with my wife and kids and not doing anything and they're like, what are you doing with your life. So
		

			they're getting upset at me. They're like, you need to get more productive and productive. And I'm
trying to tell them that look, I'm trying my best, but I just can't do anything. And then eventually
this starts affecting my relationship with my wife and my daughter that you know, I have to provide
for them. I need to have some sort of income. But no matter where I went, you know, I couldn't find
any form of job. I couldn't work in any Masjid. And then I'm stuck there. And slowly but surely, all
of these things, they started to have a negative impact on my Deen. And I remember, it was maybe
around three or four weeks after coming back that I missed my first fudger salah and Subhanallah
		

			that was such a painful moment. Because in Medina, you're used to hearing the event from my house, I
could hear the rashidun debris from my house. I heard the agenda machinery every single day. And
then here you are, you're waking up to some you know crummy alarm clock that's going to be beep,
beep, beep, or some sort of siren that's driving you crazy. That's how you're waking up. And then
one night I don't know what happened. I might have turned it off. I didn't turn it on. I don't
remember. But I just remember waking up. And I feel disgusting. Honestly, despicable. I'm like what
has happened to my life, that here I am even missing my Salah. And that was like a turning point in
		

			my life. That that was like rock bottom, that you know, I missed this salon now. And I'm like, I
need to do something about this. Now time eventually goes on, I'm trying different things. I'm
thinking about going back to school, you know, trying a master's program that is like a complete
story on its own. And one thing after another, nothing is really going my way until in March 2009.
This is about four months later, I come across this course, which is you know, neuro linguistic
programming, understanding the language of the mind. And this for me was like the biggest change of
events. This was the biggest change of events for me. And this is what I want to share with you.
		

			Because I'm sure each of you have your own predicaments you have your own problems. So I want to
share with you what was the turning point in my life. So what I need right now is I need to make
sure everyone has those three sheets of paper. So the brothers that just came in if we can get them
the three sheets of paper within the hits Allah
		

			so let's get them those three sheets of paper.
		

			And while we're waiting for that to be done,
		

			do we have anyone that truly believes they're a good driver over here that they believe Honestly
speaking, I am a very good driver. anyone believe that?
		

			This is humbling, usually guys much. They're very outspoken about the driving skills. No good
drivers here. Interesting fella. We'll see how this goes with lights Allah. We will see how this
goes.
		

			That you feel you're a good driver that you just feel like you're a good driver. I'm really amazed
that no one thinks that they're a good driver here.
		

			You had an accident,
		

			you're still safe, you're still safe Alhamdulillah
		

			hamdulillah
		

			Did you have your license yet,
		

			or they can send out the law. So now you have these three sheets of paper with you. And this is how
we're going to divide up the three sheets of paper with the Knights Allah. This is how we're going
to divide up the three sheets of paper. On the first sheet of paper, I want you to make
		

			I guess, seven rows make seven rows. Okay, make seven rows going down. So yeah, even the so divide
your page into seven rows,
		

			seven rows, so it's going down. Now with your with your pen, you don't need to actually fold it just
make lines with your pen divided into seven.
		

			Okay.
		

			So now, in each row, you're going to be placing a title in each row, you're going to be placing a
title. So the title for row number one is Dean. The title for rule number one is Dean. So just put
that title inside of that role.
		

			The title for Rule number two is family. title for Rule number two is family.
		

			title for row number three is finances.
		

			title for row number three is finances.
		

			title for row number four, telephone number four is career title for rule number four is career.
		

			title for rule number five is health.
		

			title for rule number five is health.
		

			title for role number six is social life. title for rule number six is social life.
		

			And title for rule number seven
		

			is what we will call emotions. Telephone Number seven is what we will call emotions.
		

			Okay, so now, what I want you to do with each column with the lights Allah and this is a very
private and intimate exercise. So if you're someone that's really shy and you know, you don't want
other people knowing your business, I would suggest you spread out in the masjid. Like Mashallah, we
have a lot of space. If because this is you know, this exercise will only work best if you're truly
honest with yourself, if you're truly honest with yourself. So if you want to hide stuff from
people, now's the time to move away, so no one can see your paper.
		

			Okay, so now what I would like you to do within lights, Allah, what I would like you to do with
Nikita, is I want you to imagine that for each role, I am asking you a question. And that question
is, how are you in this category? How are you in this category? And then your response is, I am 10
out of 10. I am 10 out of 10. So what I want you to write is just one sentence in each row about
what your 10 out of 10 looks like in each category. So for example, the first one is Dean, for your
dean to be 10 out of 10. What would it take? Would you have to be waking up for pmln? Would you have
to be giving you know, $100 of charity each month? Would you have to be you know sponsoring an
		

			orphan memorizing the Quran, what does it take? Then you go on to your finances? What does it mean
for your finances to be 10 out of 10? for one person, it means that you know, I have $100,000 saved
up in my bank account for another person, it means that I can just pay off my expenses. Right? So
that's what I was what I want to do as an exercise right now. So for each role, I want you to write
down what is your 10 out of 10 look like in one sentence? What is your 10 out of 10 look like in one
sentence? Does everyone understand? Anyone not clear? And you will not understand? Go ahead? What's
your question?
		

			Here we go. Okay, so you have seven categories in front of you, right? And we want to assess what
your perfection in this category looks like. So for you to be 10 out of 10 in your deen, what would
that look like? What would you have to be doing for your deen to be 10 out of 10 your finances What
would you have to be doing for your finances to be 10 out of 10 your family? What would you have to
be doing to be a 10 out of 10 to be you know, in that field. So you want to express yourself what it
looks like to be a 10 out of 10 in each of these fields, and you shouldn't take more than five
minutes.
		

			Okay, so all the guys in the front does everyone in the front didn't know anyone not finished yet.
		

			not finished, except our brothers in the back. Our brothers that came in late, how many of you are
still working? Raise your hands.
		

			You're still working. Okay, so you have like another two minutes. And after move on to the next
section in Sharla I'll tell you a story about Bermuda.
		

			You know, one of the really humbling things about Bermuda is that there's only three massages and
the whole, you know, 40 kilometer radius that they have. And these three massages, they're created
for 700 people like that is the Muslim population. And the Imams of these massages. SubhanAllah
Allah, they seem as if they're from the time of the Sahaba. And I'll explain this, why See, this?
One of the Imams has been Imam of the masjid for 25 years. And he doesn't know more than about 15
sutras from the Quran from Jerusalem. And he's been worse serving the community as the man without
taking any money. He lives inside the machine beads inside the machine cooks inside of this message,
		

			his family lives inside of the machines. And it was just a surreal experience. And SubhanAllah. You
know, I looked at all three communities and this email in particular, he had the love and devotion
of his community that, you know, he told his community Tonight, we're going to like, you know, all
going to jump into the ocean, his whole community would have followed him. And this is like a very
valuable lesson for me that a lot of the times as leaders, not only Imams, we expect our communities
to, you know, sacrifice themselves for us that just because we're in the leadership authority, but
if you're looking at the example of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, he was just as willing
		

			to sacrifice himself for his community. And as a result, his community was willing to sacrifice
themselves for him. And this is like a big lesson for me that in order for any of us, no matter
whatever role you have in life, that whatever you expect from the people is what you have to give
back to the people as well in terms of commitment. And if you're not willing to give them 100% of
your commitment, you can't expect 100% of commitment from them, because that's just not the way life
works. A second thing that I realized in Bermuda is Subhanallah how spoiled we are living in Canada.
		

			I had a really freaky incident coming back, that I was really thankful to Allah subhanaw taala you
know, usually when they come back into Canada, they have, you know, like a buffet with my, with my
luggage, that they will scrutinize each and everything, open up all my clothes, go through my travel
kit go through all of my papers, and they scrutinize it beginning to end. And it was the will of
Allah subhanaw taala. This was one of the few times that they're like, you know what, let this guy
go through. And I was so grateful to Allah subhanaw taala because when I came home, I opened up my
suitcase, I nearly gave my wife a heart attack. We had cockroaches this big come out of my bag. And
		

			it was like survival, like you don't notice it while you're there. But there were cockroaches
everywhere. And I thought I killed all of them that I was staying with. But I found literally
without exaggeration of cockroach this big. I tried to kill it with a with a tissue paper. And then
when I smashed it, it was so like it had such a strong shell that it cut through the tissue paper.
Like that's how bad it was. That was like another lesson is fine, how spoiled we are living in the
West.
		

			And then I think all the guys in the back are done now. Is everyone in the back done. Okay,
excellent. So we move on to part two of this exercise. part two of this exercise, let's stick with
page number one still stick with page number one, what I would like you to do is I want you to be
completely honest with yourself and write what are you out of 10 right now, in that category, be
completely honest with yourself just for the number that I am, you know, six out of 10 I am three
out of 10 in this category, compared to the goal that you would like to have. So for each category,
I would like you to write down what you are currently in that category, what you are currently in
		

			that category.
		

			Time and finish, we're going to move on to page number three. Now, I want you to get to page number
three of your blank piece of paper, get out page number three.
		

			And on page number three, what I would like you to do is to create a pie chart divided into seven
sections divided into seven sections.
		

			Okay, create a pie chart and divided into seven sections
		

			in Wyoming to the best of your ability, just create seven sections, it doesn't have to be equal, but
just create seven sections. And then just put the first letter of each section towards the ending.
So like the first one is going to be Dean. So towards the edge, just put the letter D and that's
going to represent your dean. And then you have F for like finances and other F for family and put
it towards the outside edges.
		

			And then what I would like you to do for one of the sections is to do this that fill a fill it out
in terms of making points from one to 10 from bottom to top. So you start off from the middle point
that is going to be your zero and then you move up all the way up until 10 and 10
		

			Is the outer line support mark one and then two and then three and then four. Because you're going
to be making a chart out of this, you're going to be making a chart out of this. So just do that for
one of them. So that when you fill it out, you have an idea of what a three out of 10 looks like in
that field or a five out of 10. It looks like in that field, okay?
		

			You fill out numbers onto your pie chart, and this is what ends up looking like this is what it ends
up looking like. Now to put this into perspective, what does this mean? At no time, Rahim Allah, He
describes the guys over here. Yeah, I just need you to quiet down for one minute. Everyone claimed
him a lot. He describes the life of this world as a journey to Allah subhana wa Tada. That's what
the life of this world is. It is a journey to Allah subhanho wa Taala. And what this pie chart
represents is the vehicle that you're taking on that journey the vehicle that you're taking on that
journey. So this circle is your wheel right there. You can imagine if it's not perfectly round, how
		

			bumpy your journey to Allah subhanho wa Taala actually is going to be how bumpy your journey to
actually told us I know Asana actually is going to be so what I want you to do right now is to fill
out your chart and see what your life or your journey towards no data looks like. So just fill out
that chart right now in Sharla
		

			Are you done?
		

			Can I see what your wheel looks like?
		

			This look at the wheel let's see how it looks.
		

			You already you had an accident already here car trust
		

			this was asking who thinks they're a good driver? This tells you how good of a driver you are.
		

			You finish the car wheel
		

			muscle at least you have a semi we'll come to that as good
		

			as yours I don't know even what that is.
		

			That's like a hexagon
		

			that's good. Mashallah, who else is done? If you're done, just hold up your wheel.
		

			A part of your wheel is missing. A lot of your wheel is missing your wheel. I don't know how you're
going to travel with that.
		

			I think you only have like one part of your wheel.
		

			Mashallah.
		

			Mashallah, that's a pretty balanced way on home. That's not bad type. So you guys should be
finishing this up, you understand where this is going. So now remember, the basis of our talk or
discussion for the next couple of weeks is moving forward as a community. And I started off this
discussion today by saying that a community is only as strong as its weakest link. So each and every
member of this community right now, they need to make sure that their personal lives are in order,
before they can make any form of positive change inside the greater community. And this is what I
want to focus on the first 200 cars tonight sanaka and next week's Hanukkah is the seven categories
		

			that in your life, you want to make sure that you're balanced, you're in order so that you can give
back to the community and that you can serve Allah subhanho wa Taala the way you're meant to serve
Allah subhana wa Tada. Now, what I want you to do with the last sheet of paper, and this is
something you can do when you get home beaten lightoller that is if you can just take the one third,
the third sheet of paper out, is that that's supposed to have seven rows in it already with the
Title Headings on it. What I would like you to do when you go home, is just write down two things
that you can do in terms of action points that will help you achieve your goal. So for example,
		

			someone's religious goal was, I want to memorize the Quran. Okay, did anyone have that as a goal for
their religious 14? How many people had caught memorization of Quran? Excellent. So for you guys,
here's like one of your action points, your action points is, you know, make sure I sign up for next
semester, halfway done. So you come and speak to Brother Friday, and you get signed up for the Koran
program. Step number two is that you find a memorization buddy that I need to find someone to
memorize the Quran with. So I'm going to you know, send out an email to the community saying, Look,
I'm looking for someone to memorize the Quran with who wants to be my Koran partner. So those are
		

			tangible action points that you can take that will help you achieve your goal. And for each of the
seven categories, you want to find tangible action points that you can take, because as you'll
notice that Allah subhanaw taala he always pairs a man and animal together that demand in theory is
of no relevance whatsoever up and until it is acted upon. Similarly, over here, you have your terror
of 10, what it would look like and what you can have the potential to achieve. Now the question is,
what are you going to do to achieve it? What are you going to do to make sure you have a perfect and
complete circle in your journey to Allah subhanho wa Taala. So you want to write down two action
		

			points that you can take and then write those out and be the lights out and you start taking action.
So that's something for you to work on when you go home. Now for our discussion, I want to start off
with understanding our relationship with Allah subhanho wa Taala. What I want to do is start off by
addressing our relationship with Allah subhanho wa Taala and this will be the crux of our Deen and
then with the lights Allah will discuss the other six components of our lives.
		

			Next week salako next Friday Night Lights on. With that having been said, understanding our
relationship with Allah subhana wa tada the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam was once
in the marketplace. And there was a woman that had lost her child. And this woman, she ran from side
to side from corner to corner, and each time she would pass by a child, she would pick up and would
embrace that child. And then she would let it go. And you can imagine that this woman she has tears
pouring out of her eyes, flooding out of her eyes, because she has lost her child. And then
eventually, after having gone through the whole marketplace, lo and behold, she finds her child. She
		

			picks up her child, and she embraces it. The Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and his
companions, they witnessed this great extravaganza, if you want to call it that. And he asked them a
very important question. He asked them, Do you think this woman would ever throw her child into the
fire? And you can imagine that this woman who had tears of anguish, tears of pain, tears of sorrow
coming down her eyes, has now converted those tears of sorrow, anguish and pain, and to tears of
happiness, you know, and joy? That is what they had just witnessed. And the Messenger of Allah
sallallahu alayhi wa sallam asked them, Do you think that this woman would ever throw their child
		

			her child into the fire? The Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam is toward unanimously,
Kenya jasola she would never do that. It's not possible that every woman never mother loves her
child to such a great degree. And then the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam went on to
define what our relationship with Allah subhanho wa Taala is, he wanted to say, Allahu Allah hameau
ba ba de men have the Hebrew word that they have, that Allah subhanaw taala is more merciful, more
compassionate, more loving, more caring towards his slaves, than this woman is towards her child.
And then this develops our perspective in life now, that everything that happens in our life coming
		

			from Allah subhanho wa Taala. It is based upon the mercy, compassion and love of Allah subhanho wa
Taala. And this is what you need to figure out in your life, that time certain events may have
happened in your life that you blame yourself for, perhaps it was a sin that you committed, perhaps
it was a grave error that you made. And in your mind, you keep feeling this regret that why did I do
this? Why did I make this mistake? And this is what actually prevents you from moving forward as an
individual. But little Do you realize this regret that you feel it's based upon the fallacy. And
that fallacy is that had I taken the other path, I would have been happier, had I done the other
		

			decision or made the other decision, I would have been happier. But you do not know that for sure.
You perhaps could have ended up dying, something tragic could have happened, you could be in the
worst of state had you made that decision. You do not know that. Now, one of the psychological
tactics that you learn in terms of being optimistic in life, is that you have to come to believe
with certainty that the decision that you made was in your best interest, the decision that you made
was in your best interests. Now how do you develop such a philosophy number one, through your Eman
And Allah subhanho wa Taala learning the names and attributes of Allah, they teach you this, that
		

			our Lord that is our rough man in our Rahim Allah, Al Karim, Allah, Nan and over foreigner, he would
never abandon his slave, he will never allow something purely negative to happen to his slave. Then
the second thing is your personal perspective, that you need to develop a philosophy in life. And
that philosophy in life is that I will only become a failure in life. If I choose not to learn from
my mistakes, I will only become a failure in life if I choose not to learn from my mistakes. And
when you develop this philosophy, everything that ends up happening to you is some sort of victory
either a great one or a small one. Because at the very least, you ended up benefiting from the event
		

			that happened in your life and you can warn others and you can take heed yourself that you do not
fall into the same mistake. Now that having been said, How do we further analyze the trials and
tribulations that Allah subhanho wa Taala sends us the first thing you have to understand is that
you have to learn to expect trials in life, that Allah subhanho wa Taala he tells us in the Koran
time and time again, that you will be tested and you will be tried a Hasib unnatural Nutella
konnyaku, Amanda wahome life to know that does mankind thing they will be left to say we believe and
not be tried, meaning that each stage of your life, each moment of your life is a trial. And this is
		

			where another paradigm shift needs to take place. And that is a trial does not always mean that
you're feeling some sort of pain, but rather the greatest trials in life are the ones that you don't
feel any pain at all. And those are the trials of prosperity. So each moment of your life is either
a moment of patience, where it goes against your desire or it is a moment
		

			of gratitude, where you are given what you have desired. So it is either a moment of patience, or a
moment of gratitude, a moment of adversity or a moment of prosperity. And this is the second
paradigm shift that needs to take place. So in your life when it comes to love, just because there's
nothing greatly going wrong, it doesn't mean you're not being tried. It just means you're being
tried in a different fashion. So while someone else is in like, you know, another part of the world,
they're facing like a communal struggle in a place like you know, for the scene where brothers and
sisters are struggling, that is a moment of pain, that is their pain. That is, you know, Allah,
		

			calling them back, turn back to Allah, and Allah will take care of your fears. But in a place that
Calgary, our struggle is completely different. Allah has given us big houses, he's given us good
jobs, he's given us lots of money, a government that cares for its people, and all those things are
there. So there's no pain to remind you have Allah subhanho wa Taala. But rather, your remembrance
of Allah subhanho wa Taala is something that has to be self initiated, something that you have to do
yourself, because there's nothing there to remind you of it. So that's the first thing you need to
learn to expect these trials. Number two, is that in moments that deal with pain, in moments that
		

			deal with pain, or the punishment from Allah subhanho wa Taala, or are they hidden price and reward
from Allah subhanho wa Taala. And this is something that needs to be thought about. Because if it's
purely a punishment from Allah subhanho wa Taala, then that means that Allah is out to destroy you.
And that means that you would have died and your life would no longer continue, and you wouldn't
have an opportunity to repent, because that is what the love and punishment of Allah subhanho wa
Taala is that it destroys nations and destroys people. Whereas on the other hand, it is a reminder
from Allah subhanho wa Taala, for you to turn back to Allah subhanaw taala. So I want you to take an
		

			example. So imagine your time in elementary school, think about your time in elementary school, that
when you were in elementary school, what was the favorite part of the day of every child, it was
going out for recess going out for lunch break, so that you will go out in recess, you go out and
lunch break, and all of a sudden, we start chasing this small ball, you're playing soccer, you're
playing basketball, you're playing in the dirt in the sand. And eventually the time goes by very,
very quickly. And then eventually a bell goes off and reminds you that you have to go back into
class. Now I want you to think about what does the child feel at that time, when that is happening?
		

			What type of emotion is that child feeling? Most children they feel upset, they feel angry? They're
like, Why do I have to go back into class, you know, I'm having fun right now. But then when that
bell rings, it's a sound to go back to class. And they get reminded, hey, you're here in school for
a greater purpose. It's okay to have fun. It's okay to play sports, but it's for a limited amount of
time. Similarly, the trials that unless I know what Donna sends us serve the exact same purpose,
that when a person strays from the remembrance of Allah, the trial is Allah ziebell reminding you
that it's time to turn back to Allah subhana wa Tada, it's time to remember Allah, that you're on
		

			this dunya for a greater purpose and a greater motive. And that is to worship Allah and to be a
servant of Allah subhanho wa Taala. The third perspective that you need to change when it comes to
trials that have paid with it is understanding and realizing that even while the trial is going on,
you are benefiting from it without even realizing it. How so? Just to give you one Hadith, Savannah,
this is such a powerful Hadith, that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, he
mentioned the case of an individual that perhaps could be any one of us over here, that we have our
struggles with life, we commit the sins that we commit, and that we know in reality, how many sins
		

			we actually have, while no one else knows the reality of it. So we show up on the Day of Judgment,
and Allah has presented our good deeds in front of us. And now you're waiting for your bad deeds to
come forward. You're waiting for the things that you're committed that Allah will present them to
you. But then you're waiting and you're waiting and you're waiting, and eventually nothing is
brought forth. And you're confused. You're dumbfounded flabbergasted. Where did my sins go? So you
ask Allah subhanho wa Taala Oh Allah, I committed this sin and I committed that sin on this day I
did this and on that day I did that, but none of it is being presented to me. Why is this the case?
		

			And then Allah subhana wa Taala tells you that for each trial and each tribulation that you went
through in life, Allah subhana wa tada forgive you for your sins. So here you are on the Day of
Judgment, without any sins altogether, because Allah subhanho wa Taala forgive you for your sins,
through the trials and tribulations that you went through. And this is why the Messenger of Allah
sallallahu alayhi wa sallam tells us that the son of Adam is not even pricked by a thorn, except
that Allah subhanho wa Taala is purifying some of his sins. The fourth perspective when it comes to
trials and tribulations, is that these painful trials and tribulations are a reminder
		

			the true nature of this world. Then when you think about this life, this dunya presents itself in a
very devious and cunning way, that it makes it seem as if everything is so luxurious, and that if
you just get this new car, you will be happy. If you get this new iPod and iPad and iPhone, you will
be happy. If you get this new house, you will be happy, and you keep chasing it time and time again.
But lo and behold, you are still not happy. That is the deception of this dunya that this dunya
makes you think you can attain happiness in it. But when these trials and tribulations strike,
they're a reminder for you of the true nature of this world, that the true nature of this world is
		

			that you will never attain happiness in it. And in fact, it is only there for struggle and toil, as
Allah subhanaw taala tells us what are the Holocaust and insanity COVID that he was created, mankind
was created to be in a state of toil, just work and work and work and not attain that happiness, and
do those trials and tribulations Allah finally hits it home, that you were created for a greater
home, you are created for gender, you are created for paradise, and that is your final abode. And
that is what you are being prepared for with these trials and tribulations, if you would only take
the time to reflect the fifth and last perspective and understanding our relationship with Allah
		

			subhanho wa Taala is understanding the fact that the help of Allah subhanho wa Taala is always just
around the corner. You know, if you look into the Koran, we have the story of unison Lisa, our
beloved Prophet, and we tell this story to our young children, as if it is a fairy tale as if it is
a fable. But in reality, this is a real story that took place. And there is a very valuable lesson
in this story that you understand a salon he is swallowed whole by a whale. What are the chances of
that happening? That even if you did get swallowed by a whale, what are the chances of you would be
swallowed completely whole? It's very unlikely that that would happen? And what are the chances you
		

			would stay alive? Now I want you to imagine what happens at this time he swallowed by a whale, the
whale doesn't stay on the surface of the water. He goes down into the depths of the ocean, and
absolute darkness. There's nothing else there. No one can hear him. No one can help him. except
Allah subhanho wa Taala I knew this Islam, he understands this fact. And this is a reminder for all
of us. That each and every one of us at one time or another we will be in a dark spot. We will be in
a dark place where no one knows our struggle. No one knows our pain. No one knows our darkness
except for Allah subhanho wa Taala and the new the Salvation Army teaches us a very valuable lesson.
		

			That valuable lesson is communicating and conversing with with Allah subhanho wa Taala Allah tells
us for nada Lolo Mati and La ilaha illa Allah subhana wa volumen that, Oh Allah, there's no one
worthy of worship except for you. I have been of those who wronged and oppressed themselves. So we
recognize the greatness of Allah and he recognizes his own weakness. And this was his communication
with Allah. And similarly when you are in your dark place, that is the time you submit to Allah
subhana wa tada submit in your weakness to the one that has no weakness, Allah subhana wa Tada. And
you call out to Allah just like you the Salah he Salam did, and then look at the response that Allah
		

			Subhana Allah gives you this. Allah subhanho wa Taala goes on to say what can daddy can Ajay now
hoomin and calm and this we saved Eunice la Salaam, that which was causing him sorrow that which was
causing him distressed, and then we saved him. But you'll notice that when it comes to Allah
subhanho wa Taala Allah subhanho wa Taala always gives you more than you ask for, particularly with
the prophets that Allah subhanaw taala he continues on this verse to say we're cadaveric and Ajay
now hominin ROM what can daddy can? Meaning that just like we saved Eunice Ellison from history and
from his grief, we shall save all of the believers as well, if they were to have the exact same
		

			reaction if they were to have the exact same reaction. So this In summary, my dear brothers and
sisters, is how to understand our relationship with Allah subhana wa Tada. Then in fact, everything
that comes from Allah subhanho wa Taala Our way is in our best interests. If you look at if you look
at it through this lens, a lens of positivity, a lens of understanding Allah's mercy and compassion
and love. And with the lights Allah next week, next Friday, we'll be discussing from the very
beginning, how to improve our Deen our finances, our social lives, and all the other components that
we spoke about. And that will be next week's halaqa. Now moving forward after that, after you have
		

			an individual you have a family unit after that, so you have brothers that are and sisters that are
looking to get married. So the third halaqa will be about you know what to look for the spouse, what
does marriage mean in Islam? What are ways to facilitate marriage
		

			You know, you may be hitting 2728 29 years old brother or sister, you can't seem to get married,
what solutions do you have to facilitate that marriage? Then we move on to the fourth halaqa. The
fourth Hannukah is going to be about now that you're married, your honeymoon phase is over and you
realize you've married a monster. How do you cope with that monster, though? You know, how do you
prevent from always being at each other's throats? That's what the fourth halaqa is. The fifth
halaqa is going to be about raising your children between the eighth and the sixth and last Telekom.
This series will be if you need to part if you need to split up that unit that we have just created.
		

			How do you do it in the best of ways? And what are the Sharia regulations for divorce and you know,
nullifying a marriage contract that will be the last halaqa. So that in some way is going to be our
Friday night halaqa for next six weeks with a knight Allah. And then Sheikh Hasina will be taking
over from the beginning of January. And I believe he'll be doing something related to Islamic
finance at that time. So I just want to give you guys a glimpse, in terms of what we will be
discussing, so you have an idea what each and Friday night will be like. Now, what I need from all
of you is that as you guys realize, our time is very limited. We start at seven o'clock. Anisha is
		

			eight o'clock. So with your questions, we need to be done by eight o'clock, because at 830 we have
the Youth Center, where we start playing basketball and other recreational activities. So we have to
have everything done by eight o'clock. So what I need from all of you is that I need you guys to
show up at 655. Don't even aim for seven o'clock because usually end up coming in at 705 but aim for
655 so at least you're here by seven o'clock and we can start on time. Just like you saw the
activity today. I'm not going to repeat the activity next week. So bring your activities with you
the papers that you filled out next week. This week, bring your activities with you and within
		

			lights Allah will continue to focus on it for another week. And Allah subhanho wa Taala knows best
what's of Aloha, most of them roboticle in the Vienna Muhammad wa ala alihi wa sahbihi wa sallam
Santa Coloma de casa de la let us know felucca to the lake.