Yasmin Mogahed – Warning – Trump Era And Avoiding The Biggest Trap

			I warn you and I warned myself from something that's very, very easy to do right now, it's a subtle
point, but it is extremely dangerous. And that is focusing on the problem itself.
		

			See, one of the most powerful stories to me is the story of Musa alayhis salaam in front of the red
seat. I feel like within this story, there is like it's like a narrative that explains our whole
condition. And the reactions that we have when we are faced with challenges. And you and Allah
subhanaw taala shows us in this story, he he compares and contrasts the reactions of different
people to the same external event or the same external obstacle. For Lama todo el germani, Carlos
Hubba Moosa in Alamo. dracoon, when these when Musa alayhis salam is now trying to escape Pharaoh,
there's a pharaoh following behind with his army. And now him and his people are facing there in
		

			front of the Red Sea. And there's an army behind them. And this is a superpower army, and they're a
group of slaves. And now they're put in this very, very difficult situation. Do we find ourselves in
a difficult situation just now? Yeah, kinda. We have only a couple more days right?
		

			We are in a very difficult situation. And when the two of us as when the two groups sign each other,
		

			the people of Musa Carlos Hubba Moosa in Allah mudra code, the people of mu Silas Salaam said we
will indeed be overtaken.
		

			That's exactly exactly how many of us felt after the last election, we indeed will be over in Alamo
dracoon. And that's a very natural reaction to being stuck in front of the Red Sea with a superpower
army behind you. It's a natural reaction that we had. But I want to tell you something amazing. And
that is the reaction of Masada, his solemn in that same exact situation. He's looking at the same
situation. But his will see it on his his heart is looking at and focused on something else. Color
color, he said no, by no means the word color, as you know, is a very emphatic no way absolutely not
color color in my era beside him. Indeed, my Lord is with me. And He will guide me through this. The
		

			reason why I love this story so much, is because this story isn't just a story. It's awesome. It's
something we tell our kids, but it isn't a bedtime story. It is a sign and a lot actually continues
to say in a few Valley killer area that indeed in this is a sign. But most people don't get it most
people don't understand it is You and I are never going to be in front of a large body of water with
an army behind us. But we are going to be put in situations where we feel trapped. And we are going
to be put in situations where we don't see a way out. And we and we feel that way. Just now. We feel
that way politically, we feel that way socially, to a large degree. But what's so powerful here is
		

			how how was Mussolini's Sallam able to respond in that way? How was he able to say no, we will not
be overtaken? No, I'm not going to be shaken where I'm not even. I'm not even worried that we're
going to be overtaken. Why was he able to do that? And the answer is because his focus was not on
the problem. His focus was not on the the Red Sea, and his focus was not on the army. His focus
wasn't on Trump.
		

			His focus was on a law. His focus was that No, no. In Europe, he say it in my Lord is with me. And
if ally is with you, you don't have to worry. He will guide me through allies teaching us a timeless
lesson, we're going to be put in situations where we feel trapped. that's a that's a, that's a
promise, we're gonna be put in situations that look impossible. And what also strikes me about his
story is that he didn't know how he was going to get out of that situation. It's not like people
were going around splitting sees this wasn't like a regular occurrence. And yet he did not worry,
even though he didn't know how, see for us. It's easy for us to say, Oh, it's no problem, because I
		

			got a plan ABCD we know exactly how it's going to happen. But when you don't have any idea how it's
gonna happen, and you still put your trust in a law that is so awkward, he he knew allies with me,
and He will guide me through now. Now y'all are gonna say but what about doing our part? I know I'm
at Mass. What about doing our part?
		

			And the reality is what's so beautiful about this story is that although although, obviously Allah
subhanaw taala was gonna save him. Allah still asked me
		

			Silas lamb to take action, he's asked him to do something, he asked him to take a staff and strike
the sea. And so he was still asked to take action. We are still asked to take action, to what call
an action are not separate, they have to go together. After what are called as the prophet SAW,
Selim says that you have to tie your camel and at the same time your trust is in Allah don't think
that they're separate. So often I hear this translated as, tie your camel and then put your trust in
Allah.
		

			It's not that's not what it says. It says aphylla waterwatch. When the man was told by the prophets,
I seldom tie your camel and put your trust in Allah, the two are simultaneous, we don't work and
then depend on our work and depend on our deeds for results. No, we work and we depend on Allah for
results. And that's a very, very important point.
		

			One of the things that happens a lot, and this is a pitfall that a lot of us activists fall into is
that we put our trust in our own activism, we put our trust in our own activism. And so what happens
is when we don't see the exact results that we wanted, we lose hope in Allah dracoon we have that
attitude of we're going to be overtaken. But you see, if you put your trust in Allah subhanaw taala,
regardless of what you're seeing, you know that he's got your back. And that's what happened with
musala his salon, he was told to strike the C so he's taking an action. But this is an important
point. If I asked you right now y'all are in I'm Where am I now? Chicago? Yeah. If I tell you to go
		

			take a large staff or a large stick and hit, you know, like Michigan, it's not gonna split.
		

			Why? It is not his action which caused the results. Why did he strike the C because it was Allah Who
told him to, it was part of his worship, every single thing that we are doing of our activism should
be part of our worship. But we should never believe that our opening that our salvation, that we're
going to be saved because of our actions, because of our activism. We don't get saved because of our
activism activism, we get saved by Allah. And this is a very, very important point of our tohei. To
understand, it's only Allah who saves us it's only a law who provides the opening, he is alfetta He
is alfetta. I'm not al Fatah, you're not upset that we're not as organizations alfetta we don't
		

			change our circumstances. A lot changes our circumstances. But here's a very important point about
the formula for change. In the law, you hydro Malbec, Coleman had a vital map and force him. Yes, a
law is the one who changes our circumstances. But a law also says that indeed a law does not change
the condition or the circumstances of a people until they change what's inside themselves. There is
a job that we have to do. There is a striking of the see that we have to do. But we have to at the
same time, never despair, we have to at the same time have the attitude of Kela in Nairobi say I do.
Indeed My Lord is with me, and He will guide me through this is extremely essential. And I will tell
		

			you this, if you are focused too much on the problem, you will have the reaction of Benny
Australian. Because if all we talk about
		

			is the problem, if all we think about is the problem, if all we post about is the problem. If all we
discuss is the problem, then what happens is and this is a psychological reality, whatever you focus
on, grows, whatever you focus on grows. This is why Allah subhanaw taala told us to focus on the
kids that the more that we focus on the remembrance of Allah, the bigger the importance of Allah
Spano, tala is in our lives. But if we're focused on everything that's going wrong, if we're, if our
focus is on everyone who's saying this about us, and they're going to do this to us, and then this,
and that's it. And that's my focal point, I promise you, we will fall into despair. And the reason
		

			for that is that the problem will actually grow because it becomes our focal point. And this is a
dangerous thing that we fall into. Our focal point needs to be in NumPy or bc ideen. This is a very
different focal point, the focal point of musala SLM, indeed, my Lord is with me, and He will guide
me through yes, I do my part. But while I'm doing my part, my heart is looking at Allah. My heart
isn't looking at the problem. My heart isn't focused on what Trump is saying or what Trump isn't
saying or what he's gonna do or what he's not gonna do. Yes, I do my part because it's part of my
worship, but Allah subhanaw taala is my focus and when
		

			Analyze your focus, then you don't, you don't fall into despair because you know that Allah has got
you.
		

			This is extremely important.