Being Mindful Of Our Blessings
Date:
Channel: Zaid Shakir
File Size: 11.08MB
Episode Notes
Imam Zaid Shakir explains how when Allah says in the Qur’an, “Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves.” (Sarah Ra‘d 13:11) a huge component of this is in appreciation of one’s blessings.
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and how do you learn that he has learned he has a one COVID-19 anterior Lola and they are no more Alhamdulillah Allah Abdi him keytab over lambda jianzhu Raja Elijah and hamdu Lillahi Rabbil alameen All praises to see you heard the first reciting. And amongst what was decided no more than 1,000,014 that alone will not change the condition of a people until they change that person themselves.
What is their order? without all the lovely comments? Who am Hello, Maura della and apologize evil for people normally can be hosted?
One
when, and they have no protector besides Him. So Allah subhanho wa Taala is telling us that, to a large extent, not totally, because his will and decree are always operative in his creation.
So I should say to a certain extent,
what we
experience
depends to a certain extent on how we respond to a large degree.
A lot of these closes blessings upon us.
Do we receive them with gratitude?
Or do we take them for granted? Or even worse? Do we reject them?
How will we see the blessing goes a long ways in determining if those blessings will endure. So one of the the basic meaning in the law where your baby will melt your colon and how to pay you or hurt you or your family, and
that alone will not change the good that is placed of people in
until they change the state of their heart until they become an ungrateful for the blessings that Allah bestowed upon them. And most of our desire is to test the people. Before they seem to be difficulties or hardships. No one can repost that.
And so here, the challenge is to continue to be thankful for the blessing, the first to kind of be thankful for the blessings that existed 20 ln abundance, because it's easy to take them for granted. There's so much and it's just coming in. So good we have It's so good. And the good is coming from all directions that we just take it for granted is always fun to be like this.
And then we take them for granted. And then we complain about little things.
The water cut off for 20 minutes, and we're calling the water company what's going on here. This isn't the Third World who's supposed to have water in the town, we turn on the tap and we forget the blessing of clean water that we enjoy
every minute of every day of our lives, except for that 20 minutes
when the storm flooding the system Atlanta flush the system out so they shut it down for 20 minutes. And we're calling up and complaining and how could this happen? This is America, we're not supposed to see brown coming out of our faucet even for 20 minutes. What's going on here. And so we can easily move from taking the blessings for granted to forgetting the blessing and into the realm of contemplate. And then the opposite can happen. without all
that were receiving blessings in the context of difficulty. I've always still been less.
And so we will we remain faithful in times of abundance and not take the blessings of law of the law for granted. Will will remain faithful in times of hardship and difficulty and not forget about the blessings that existed in the context of
those difficulties are one of the greatest blessings of tribulation is it allow it provides us an opportunity to affirm our belief in Allah.
Because it's easy to believe when things are going good.
But
there's a struggle, there's hardship, there's deprivation, when we still believe and we still face a lot, we still think a lot,
then this is an affirmation of our faith.
just as easy. We have a lot of people, unfortunately, Muslims, and the general population in our country, they're getting divorced as fast as they're getting married.
It's like water being poured, poured into a bucket with a hole in the bottom.
So you pour the water in and it's going out the bottom, the marriages have poured into the bucket and the divorces are coming out the bottom.
Right, so
it's very
easy to take your blessings are granted.
One of those lessons is marriage. Look how easy it is to get married for people who want to get married.
Sisters, this is not so easy. As easy as you think.
was easy for a guy. Right? Yes, save up some money, get a job. Go to school 2122 23 if you want to get married,
if you want to, you should want to know why you wouldn't want to.
I took the plunge when I was about 21 2021 years old. Anyway.
Look, if you're in Egypt, you have to drive a taxi until you're 45 years old, saving up your Porsche.
Then you have to buy the three keys, the key to the apartment, the key to the car, the key to the business.
And to get the three keys you have to work half of your life.
And then when you finally think you've made it, the girl's family says well
her sister just got married to a guy who was in America and he's a doctor and he paid a salary of $100,000. So on top of the three keys we want $100,000 in your life
is unfair. Sometimes
it can be challenging and difficult. You don't have that hardship here.
But people neglect the blessings. Forget about the blessing. overlook the blessings. And then a law says that the initial kartal as he then the
blessing that will increase them so go back to the verse in the La La you're like you met review Melia Coleman Hatha Yoga, you may be unforeseen health. We are like allow for the blessing. This is how we how we work to perpetuate the blessing.
We give thanks. Thanks for
the comments you give thanks for my blessings. I will increase those lessons when they come
in at their leadership. And if you reject those blessings, you should know that my punishment is severe. So the first thing
is giving thanks for the blessings. Thank you, Allah subhana wa tada for the blessing. Even in times when we feel we're being deprived, looking for the ways we're being we're being blessed.
You know, I don't have
a Porsche or Maserati. But I have a car.
I don't have to walk.
Right? I have a car. I humbly learn. I don't have to walk. So I've been blessed.
I've been blessed. I don't have a car. I have a bicycle, and I have the hell to ride the bicycle. I've been blessed.
hamdulillah
I don't have a car or bicycle. But I live a 10 minute 10 minute walk from my job. I've been blessed. I don't need a car. I don't need a bicycle. The job is 10 minutes away. The store is five minutes away. So if you think about it, I have job to provide
In the money of an apartment and providing a shelter of a store, it provides me with a full of a backyard, I can even grow my own food. If I'm ambitious. I've been blessed. I don't need a bicycle, I don't need a car. I've been blessed.
You wise, doesn't look at a movie star like a movie star. So you just you just lamenting the fact that my wife doesn't look like a movie star, you will bless.
Because your wife is 10 times better than the movie star once you take off the makeup, and take on the camera enhancements, and take away all of these other things.
You
and plus Selma is a believer in this thing that you
Google i o on television is in some kind of say Titanic cope, and sold or sold to the devil to even get on the big screen.
You've been blessed, we've been blessed. Always look for the blessings, even in times of deprivation, even when you think you don't have what you want.
You've been blessed. And you just accept what you don't have as a blessing. Because your acceptance of the rose against torture nuts is pushing you towards and all of the scholars who study these matters in terms of spiritual refinement and moving with speed and haste in your journey to Allah subhana wa Tada, there's a rule they have Mahalo to huwag I
have opposing what your nuts is pushing you towards is the essence of your future.
So if you were given all these things, you got your Maserati and you got your movie star and you got your business at that and the other. As those invading your nuts become so ungrateful and so overly straight and so,
so impatient and greedy, that they will lead you straight to destruction straight to hell.
So if you're not yet he has the finger balling on crazy crazy for you been blessed, appreciating the blessing, secondly, understanding of tribulation or the nature of the world.
tribulations and trials of the nature of the world so taking, taking them in stride and still praising the Lord understands the nature of the world, even though pie less the standard he has in his head. He says, Let's have some little
boy
he has a dog in the hell that
is helpful in level two was to have
what is what not to have those in mind the occurrence of things literally cat a cat on the face of the clear water. So trial and tribulation. So the stream is pure cat RSV, and take us taking money on the bottom. You've all done it when you were kids. And then it gives you money. That's the cutoff. He says lead a summary we'll go and add a document to that he had his dog don't find the occurrence of things that money under the water.
Trials tribulations tests strange that suddenly don't find them strange. Matt dude, if he had his daughter as long as you're in this world, we have bowed
for in the head that that is helpful. I was so happy because this world has only manifested something that that is deserve it. Based on the Scripture, this is the dunya
is this dunya is a bowl of trouser a bowl of trials and tribulations.
The tubular one of them were to come on our family and where to come and fujichrome
Yabu Welcome to
this the nature of the world
and therefore it is necessary when necessary. Will when you will not have
necessary based on this description. This is how the world is described. This is the nature of the world don't find it strange. So, taking tribulations in sky not like, this is an anomaly.
You know, I
I was tested in this way I got sick.
disease and illness is part of the human condition.
You think that modern medicine is going to eliminate disease.
It's part of the human condition. People are always going to get sick people have always gotten sick.
You have my little precious baby die. babies have been dying since babies were brought into the world.
My favorite I'm gonna say my father.
After my father left my mother
he filled in he raised me he passed away. All uncles have been dying since told uncles have come into the world. That's the nature of the world.
is sad. It pains us we're humans, we our hearts were affected. But we shouldn't be surprised that testosterone
will corn I don't know. That's the nature of the world. That's the nature of all people, they die.
Some you come to this every year and you see these little babies and now they're bigger than you. That's the nature of children. They grow on you surprise.
from Detroit,
and Detroit. It's
no surprise. Well, you only been combinational for the last 10 years. And you first met him. He was five that means 20. Now that means he's a full grown adult. And he grew up in the era of
growth hormones and all of our foods so he should be two feet taller than you. That's the nature of things. Don't be surprised by so don't be surprised just taken in stride and keep praising or praise along the good times praise along the bad times. And just think a lot that he gives you the tongue to praise him.
And this is something we praise we pray for. Right? And the Prophet taught us a little line oh seven, we're talking about sugar. That's when we started with the initial part of the initial compromise. He then
said okay halden Shakira, Allah give me a thankful heart. When you learn and back you're on and on and the remembering tongue and the first difference
just in good times and bad times, be thankful in your heart and be mindful with your tongue. And then thirdly and finally mission these three things
don't
allow
what you receive from the people or just means that a lot of time is created. Don't allow those to lead you to believe the negativity and the bad and the even torment from the people is a sign of a law this punishment is a punishment from a lot so a lot of Tyler you mentioned in locker n woman and lessening your
failure to learn he gyla fitness and nastika I bet
gyla
the most of people there are loads of men and less than men unless men, Yoku and then the left we believe in a lot.
And they were there. They experienced some some difficulty they lay the difficulty they received from the people as if it were the punishment of a lot
it's just a test it's just a test and many times that test is good from a boss
is good from a loss
because it's going to build character in offices we mentioned at the outset is sign up firm our faith
is going to increase our faith
is going to
warn or harm from us.
You know a lot of lot of young athletes in here I was a young athlete myself not one time not screwing my shoulder and
walk straight. But you know I'm gonna make you you know, get to the league and and then
Bam,
broken ankle, pasty shoulder,
shattered dreams.
It was hard.
But then I look back a few years after SL Hamdulillah, this is the best thing that ever happened to me because it got me out of that fantasy world. And they deal with realities. And when you deal with realities, while is the first thing that's going to become abundantly overwhelmingly clear.
That's ultimate reality. So when you come out of a fantasy world,
the first reality that's going to slap you in the face is La, la, la, la. And unfortunately, some people, they live in that fantasy world until they get into their grave. And then what
becomes abundantly clear, and they're great, and no more and have more time to
do so distracted from reality.
piling up the good things of the world and the fantasy land that the world can represent.
And then visit the grave and say,
they're from Houston
and call home
to their parents, or their children. If they are they're older and they're gone, children are still there, using
we have a problem.
But know the difference between that problem and problem that the Apollo whatever had
you you can get all the scientists on Earth, the brightest minds on Earth,
they will fix the Apollo and get it back to Earth. But whatever problems you have in the grave, All the king's horses and all the king's men,
on Humpty back together again, they're not going to be able to solve that problem. So behooves us to try to get in touch with reality right now.
And once we get in touch, in the good times, and the bad times, to praise a lot, thank Allah, and those blessings will undo. Those blessings will endure. And one way the blessings will do is when they're taken away, still Praise the Lord.
And so the blessing of the blessing as well as his praise is showcasing his faithfulness. So we still pray. And physical blessing is gone. We're still blessed, and a blessing indoors and Chicago.
And so
we'll leave you with maybe a poem and
your your your next. And this is also referred to the heart of the nuns. The ruling is some synonymous in different stages and stages. Your heart is still when your heart is still saying and hamdulillah and so the blessings endure, and they're not taken away. Now give us trophy that's all of you. And Allah bless the conference, Melbourne bless your attendance may be a source of great good and great benefit. And may Allah tala bless us to come together in ways that are mutually beneficial and mutually reinforcing a sin Almighty warahmatullahi wabarakatuh