Yasmin Mogahed – Countless

			Our human a shaytani r rajim Bismillah R Rahman r Rahim wa Salatu was Salam ala rasulillah Allah
Allah he was at the edge mine Arab Israeli surgery where Siddeley, Amerigo Hello Dr. Melissa Annie
of Gokhale.
		

			I am going to talk today about a very, very important topic and a topic that is very personal to
myself. And I hope it's a topic that will be relevant for everyone. But before I begin the topic, I
want to give some context.
		

			Allah subhanaw taala tells us ensuited, Ibrahim, a very, very important and relevant and life
changing verse. But before I talk about that verse later on in sort of Ebrahim, I want to give some
context for the verse, sort of Ibrahim itself, when it was revealed, was revealed in a specific
context. And the context of the revelation of sort of Ebrahim, along with some other verses, or
other other group of verses, was during a time when the Prophet sallallahu wasallam. And the
companions were going through some of the hardest trials of their lives. This was towards the last
portion of the meccan period. And this was a time when they were going through that very, very
		

			turbulent time they were being tried very, very severely at this time. And during this time, Allah
subhanaw taala revealed that these verses, Allah tells the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, at
the beginning of this chapter, he tells him, the reason why the Quran was revealed. And he says this
reason and it's it's the essential reason why Allah subhanaw taala sent messengers, he says that it
was revealed and the reason why he sends messengers is to take people out of darkness into light.
And this was the mission of the Prophet sallallahu wasallam. And those were with him. But then he
later on goes and he says there was someone else who had that mission to, he tells us about another
		

			person who had that mission, and that was Musa alayhis salaam. And so later on Allah subhanaw taala,
now brings up the story of Musa alayhis salaam, and he's telling the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa
sallam and those who are with him, because this is the thing about the stories in the end. The
stories in the Quran are not just stories, we don't just tell our children these stories to help
them go to sleep. These are not bedtime stories, but these are powerful, timeless lessons. So here,
Allah subhanaw taala is telling the Prophet actually comforting the prophet and those who are with
the Prophet sallallahu wasallam by bringing up the story of Musa alayhis salaam, why because musala
		

			his Salaam and Benny Israel, we're going through trials that were trials that we can't even wrap our
minds around. These, these were these were a group of slaves that lived under the worst tyrant to
walk the earth, we think Trump is bad, right?
		

			This was the worst tyrants walk the earth. And he had a policy where he killed babies. This was a
policy, it wasn't just one or two, this was his actual policy. This is what these people were
dealing with. That is the trial that they were going through.
		

			And so Allah subhanaw taala is comforting the prophets, I send them by bringing up a story of
someone who went through a great trial. Now, this brings us to the next point, what is it that
Mussolini's Salaam now says to his people, because what is happening in these areas? What's
happening is Allah is telling us what musala Sallam said to his people while they were going through
trial, and not just like, kind of like, you know, a little bit of trial, but a massive trial that
was so massive that Allah subhanaw taala called it massive. He said, he tried them hard. It was a
very, very difficult trial. And Allah is telling us what mu Silas Sallam said, to help bring his
		

			people from the darkness to light. Now when we talk about darkness and light, darkness and light can
mean misguidance and light has guidance, right? But darkness and light can also talk about
difficulty and ease. So he's actually telling us how Musa alayhis salaam was able to help comfort
his people. What does Mussolini's Selim say at this point? Now you'd think that when a person is
going through trial, what do you say to them typically, you typically say Be patient, right? You
typically say have sub. But what's very interesting is that in these verses musala Salim is not
telling us people to have patience. He's not telling his people about sub. He's saying something
		

			completely different. In fact, he is saying something we wouldn't expect.
		

			Where is the advantage?
		

			bakoma in Chicago, toma de la calm.
		

			Now this is very powerful Allah subhanaw taala is saying, what why Allah insha? Allah subhanaw taala
now is announcing something this is really big. And what is it that Allah is announcing? while I'm
in Chicago? as either naccho? That if you are, if you show gratitude, I will increase you.
		

			Why is this so mind blowing because the Prophet Musa here is a solemn, isn't talking to a people who
are being tried and telling them to be patient, he is telling the people who are being shaken in a
way, we can't even imagine that these are people he's speaking to whose children have been murdered,
whose babies have been killed. And he's talking about gratitude.
		

			That's revolutionary. He is saying something we wouldn't expect. But there is a principle in this
that every single one of us can benefit from, why is he telling them about gratitude? First of all,
look at the area for a second, what if the center of bukem left in Chicago? Now, in Chicago, when
you look at the the grammatical. If you look at this set this this area grammatically, you'll find
that what it's talking about is it's talking about a previous it's past tense of gratitude. And it's
talking about even if you were just thankful, once a lesson that is not asking for us to be perfect,
you know, perfect.
		

			Just always thankful. But he's actually saying that even if you once in the past showed gratitude
and thankfulness, then we will surely now the second part is letting, letting is as he said, that he
will increase you but the but the emphasis here is very powerful. He is saying surely, surely we
will increase you if you just show a little bit of gratitude. Now, why is this so powerful? Because
what is happening here is a lot of times when we go through trial,
		

			it's very difficult not to focus on what we don't have. See, as human beings, we're kind of it's,
it's, we're conditioned to focus on what's missing, we're conditioned to focus on problems, you
know, there was this meme.
		

			And then like, at the top, it has a picture of this kid who's looking at a slice of cake. And he's
just beaming, he's so happy. And then there's another kid underneath who's looking at an entire cake
that's missing that one slice. And he's really sad. And the reason why he's really sad is because
he's looking at the piece that's missing. He's not looking at what he has, he's looking at what he
does not have. And because of that, even though he has more than the kid on the top, he's actually
sad.
		

			See, there's this principle about life, that the more you focus on something, the bigger it looks in
your eyes. And whatever you focus on will grow. If you focus on what you don't have, it will look
bigger and bigger in your eyes until it consumes you until you don't see anything outside of it. But
there's this very powerful phenomenon that when you focus on what, whatever you focus on will grow.
So if you focus on what you have, it will also grow.
		

			And, you know, Subhanallah there's, there's this, there's this principle that Allah teaches us that
a lot of us don't realize, you know, when you hear the A, in namale, or through your throat, a lot
of times we hear this verse and we think, okay, after the hardship will come ease as if life is
about all bad and all good, right? We think that life is like, Okay, I'm going through a hardship
right now, many of you are being tried in a very, very severe hardship right now, as you're sitting
here. And a lot of times, we're thinking, you know, when this passes, then I will have ease. Once
this is over, right? Once a law takes me out of this situation, and once he relieves me from this
		

			trial, then I will have ease. But that's not actually what Allah says, Allah says in a matter of
three, Yusra meaning that with the, with the one trial, Allah gives you many eases, and it's
actually at the same time, honestly, this concept totally changed my life.
		

			Because I was like, the type of person
		

			who
		

			is kind of like, the kid on the top, no, the kid of the bottom, um, where you focus, you know, it's
just it's natural. You know, you don't have one thing, you have 5 million things, but you don't have
one thing and you're looking at that one thing that you don't have and the other thing
		

			The tendency that I have, which a lot of us have
		

			is that we believe it's like when you're in a specific moment and you and there's something
upsetting you, or there's something that's hurting you, or there's some sort of pain that you're
dealing with. You focus on it so much until it's all you see, and you cannot see outside of it. But
what's very powerful here is that Allah is saying that at every single moment, no matter how hard
your trial is, right now, these people's babies were killed. Right? How can I know what you know,
the trial that they were dealing with doesn't compare to our trials, and yet, they are being spoken
to about gratitude? Why are they being spoken to about gratitude, because at every single moment, no
		

			matter how much you're being tried a lot at the same time has given you many eases in that model, or
three years from now there is another very powerful principle. And that is this, the Prophet
sallallahu wasallam tells us our job only unreal moment, this is a very like, whoa. This is, by the
way, if we understand this principle, it will absolutely change our lives. And that is this, that
the matter of a believer is strange Umrah who could know where all of his matters, or her matters
are good. So Whoa, what does that mean? It means that even within the trial that you're dealing with
right now, there is good in it for the believer. And along with the good in it for the believer,
		

			there is ease and there isn't just one ease, there is ease upon ease upon ease. Allah never ever
gives you the hardship without giving you numerous eases.
		

			And a lot of times what happens is, we don't see things properly, I'm going to give you an example.
		

			One time I was sitting in an airplane,
		

			as I sometimes do, and I have to sit on the window. So you know, you look out the window, and you
start like reflecting right? So I'm reflecting about this phenomenon that I observed in life, which
is that a lot of times you see people that when something really good happens in their life, you
know, like something that you'd consider a really awesome life event, they're getting married, they
have a child, you know, just something really positive, that at the same time as that really
positive thing. a tragedy happens in their family, or something really difficult happens. And for a
moment, I was sitting and reflecting about I wonder why that is? I wonder why is it that happens and
		

			a lot of times they come to us like someone's getting married. And and I've seen this many times,
like someone's getting married. And at the same time they have like a parent who passes away or, or
is in the hospital, you know what I'm talking about, right? So these things tend to I felt like they
they tended to sort of come in and sort of spoil the good thing.
		

			But then I realized I was looking at it wrong. Right? I'm sitting here thinking, Okay, why does this
bad thing have to happen to spoil the good thing. But let's turn it around. Why don't we see it this
way, there was something very difficult written for that person. And it was going to happen at that
time. And out of a loss mercy, he gave them that ease to make it easier for that person. You see the
different way to see it. So this person's father was going to die. And actually I know someone who
this happened. Her father died while she was on her honeymoon.
		

			She came home to to his funeral, literally. So you think about that. And you think this person Allah
subhanaw taala had written that her father was going to die at that time. And and out of his mercy,
he gave her her husband just before that to help her deal with that trial. And so Allah subhanaw
taala isn't spoiling our good things. Allah is helping us in our trials. And this is a completely
different way to look at things. This is to focus on what you have, and to realize in Allah's mercy,
yes, a lot gives you difficulty. Yes, a lot gives us cold weather a lot, gives us storms, a lot
gives us hunger, but a lot also gives us shelter and a lot also gives us food. He gives us the
		

			ability to cope with those trials. He'll give you a really hard trial, but he'll give you those
people who will help you in that trial. He will give you the aid in that trial, and that's out of
Allah's mercy. And Allah subhanaw taala says that if you focus on that which you have, he will
increase you were in Chicago tonight as he did not come stop focusing on on what you don't have.
Stop focusing on what's difficult and focus on all that Allah subhanaw taala has given you to help
you in whatever is difficult. Yes, Allah gives us
		

			trials. But Allah never ever leaves us in our trials a lot doesn't just give us trials, he gives us
trials in a package with ease and not one ease but many many eases weather in Chicago Toma as he
then necco in Los Rios, where they come together. And so a line is Mercy is saying that if you are
grateful, even just a little bit grateful, like that's the grammar of the A, A even just a little
bit grateful, I will increase you. Now here, you find that it's like general, it doesn't say I'll
increase you in such and such. He doesn't say I'll increase you in wealth, or I'll increase you in,
you know, in children or whatever. But he says, I will increase you and then he doesn't say anything
		

			after it's general. Why does Allah do that, because he's left it open, he has not limited it. He
will increase you in many things and in it throughout your life in different aspects, and it's
unlimited, the increase.
		

			Now I'm going to tell you guys something.
		

			First, I'm going to say this.
		

			Every single discipline that talks about the human condition that talks about psychology, that talks
about anything that has to do with personal development, or self help, everyone has agreed to this.
		

			One of the most powerful treatments for depression is gratitude, the practice of gratitude that they
have actually found in studies, that if a person keeps something as simple as a gratitude journal,
that it becomes so effective in treating even depression.
		

			And something else that they found, every single person they felt they have this theory that people
have like a baseline happiness, and that things will happen in their lives, that you know, good
things will happen, they'll kind of peak but eventually go back to their baseline. And really bad
things will happen, it will go down but eventually go back to their baseline. And so they studied
Okay, well how do we increase the baseline everyone wants to be happy, like, you know, for like
extended periods of time stable happiness, or we'll call it well being.
		

			And what they found is it's very, very, very difficult to increase your baseline happiness, that
most people just kind of have that baseline throughout their life. Except they found that there are
two things that can increase your baseline happiness, one is giving to others, it is service, it is
helping other people.
		

			And two, it's the practice of gratitude. And so it is very, very appropriate that musala his salon,
when he is speaking to people who are being tried and shaken and and going through the greatest pain
of their life. He is talking to them about gratitude. He is giving them away out he is telling them
focus on the light, and the darkness will get less and focus on the light and the light will get
bigger. This is what he's teaching us. Now I want to end with kind of like a personal story. Some of
you have heard me tell this story. But I want to I want to tell you something that many of you have
not heard.
		

			Some of you know that I have a friend.
		

			Okay, I have a couple friends.
		

			I have a friend
		

			named Paya who has
		

			a few children, for children. Very, very special children. And what she told me when I met her was
the hurt a little bit about her story. Now the thing about her story that that just absolutely
shakes me is a lot of times when we go through trials, it's it's sort of like, you see a person you
know who's like really suffering. And a lot of times it's like, yeah, like hamdulillah but you know,
they're hungry. That is and that's that's beautiful that a person's struggling, you know, to be
grateful. But what is so powerful about this woman is I see this woman who is she is like, you see
her and she's she's smiling. And and what I found out about her life is that her children, she had a
		

			daughter, and around the time her daughter was I think around three years old, she stops talking the
the teachers tell her
		

			you know your daughter isn't speaking we don't know what happened just suddenly stopped and she took
she takes her to the doctor, and the doctor does tests on her and she tells her that your daughter
has a rare genetic disorder some of you may have heard of called MPs. Now the thing about MPs MPs
attacks this just this one particular part of the nervous system, which makes the child
		

			eventually lose all their faculties until they die.
		

			This is what this mother is being told your child has this really rare genetic disorder, which which
means Although you are looking now at a perfectly normal child, but over the years, you will watch
her deteriorate, and she will lose all her faculties she will lose her ability to do anything for
herself.
		

			Her ability to speak her ability to walk her ability to eat,
		

			to do anything, and you're and then don't expect her to live, you know, into her teens. Can you
imagine someone is being told this about their child.
		

			Now when she had a second child, and when this child was was young,
		

			she took that child to also be tested. And the doctor said, Your second child also has MPs.
		

			And then she had a third daughter. And she was told that her third daughter also had MPs. So now she
has three children with this genetic disorder where they will lose all their faculties.
		

			And then she has a fourth child with severe autism. I'm not making this up.
		

			Now, why am I telling you this story? I'm not telling you the story to talk about people's trials,
actually. Because people have trials. And I have learned this in the people that I meet throughout
the world, people have trials.
		

			But the reason I'm telling you this story is because there's something very, very powerful that I
learned from her. And every single one of us can learn from her.
		

			One day, this was like hurt her children were in their teens at this point. By the time I met her
and I visited her. And this woman, like literally she doesn't sleep. She is up 24 seven caring for
her children. She doesn't leave the house. I am not I'm not kidding. Caring for her children.
Because they're in wheelchairs, they're on oxygen, they can't do anything for themselves.
		

			And one day, she says to me, I'm drowning in gratitude.
		

			No joke, though, that was always a direct quote.
		

			How in the world can a woman in this situation say she's drowning in gratitude, there is something
that she is doing. There is something very powerful that she has learned to allow her to not only be
able to get through her life's challenges, but to be able to actually be grateful within those
storms. She is using something called gratitude.
		

			And Subhanallah you know, recently on Facebook, I saw something, you know this, you know, this
phrase, when you're given lemons make lemonade. She's like a walking talking example of that. Do you
know what the fit you know what the post was? I swear it made me cry. She had a picture of her
child, her daughter in the wheelchair. And her and her husband were like at the hospital. And she
wrote
		

			she wrote something about they made it a date and they even got Dunkin Donuts coffee.
		

			And I'm thinking, I don't even know what to say to that. Like, they're taking a child in a
wheelchair at the hospital this and I'm serious. And she's saying that's what they did. They made it
into a date and they got Dunkin Donuts coffee, she's, she's happy about Dunkin Donuts, coffee.
		

			Ah, this is real.
		

			You know, I'm telling you stories about Musashi salon. But this is real. These are real people.
These are real people. And this is how they cope. And this is not only how they cope, but this is
how they thrive. Gratitude is very powerful. Allah subhanaw taala will never give you more than you
can handle. And Allah will always he'll give you when he gives you the hunger he also gives you the
food he will give you the shelter to be able to handle your trials. Focus on the gifts of Allah
subhanaw taala because yes, a lot tried you but Allah also gave you the help. Allah sent people to
help you. When you were lost, he sent people to save you. Focus on that and be grateful and that
		

			will increase you and you know what it'll do. It'll make your life filled with light because when
you focus on the light, it increases when you focus on what you have. It increases weather in
Chicago Tom as he then nakoma Kulikova was stopped for a lolly welcome. innovaphone Rahim subhanak
Elohim samdech eyeshadow La ilaha illa Anta stokfella tubo Lake wa Salam alaykum warahmatullahi
wabarakatuh