Allah: The Perfect Helper In All Our Difficulties

Placing Our Trust in Allah in Every Situation

If in life we face any difficulty or any challenge, and we don't know what to do in that situation, then one of the first things that a person often does is he tries to find someone, call someone that he knows that can help him out. If it's a legal situation, the very first thing you try to do is maybe find a lawyer, and the primary reason for that is because the person recognizes that, I don't know how to deal with this situation. I don't know what's happening. I don't know the legal jargon. I need help. So then the person goes to a lawyer, recognizing that this individual who knows the legal jargon, he knows exactly what's happening, and he can help me through it.

It's not very often that a person is going to be defending his own case in the court, especially considering if it's something very significant. In fact, even in small matters sometimes in our life, we find that if we don't know how to do something, we immediately do what? We call someone. Something stops working in the house. Allah forbid, in this cold winter, the heater stops working. So unless a person himself knows how the heater works and what not, he's not going to touch it. What's he going to do? He's going to call an HVAC company. Hey look, my heater is not working. And then too, he's going to try to make sure he calls around and says, do you know somebody who's trustworthy, who's not going to rip me off, who's going to be able to help me?

Something happens to one's car. You can't fix it yourself. The first thing you're going to do is try to find a mechanic or somebody who you already know. You've had experience, time and again, that this person I've taken my car to, this person is a good guy, this person is an individual who I can trust, he knows what he's doing, and he charges me a decent rate. So anytime in life, when we don't know the situation that we're in, or the condition that we're in, or something goes wrong, the very first thing that comes into a person's mind is, let me try to find someone who can help me out in this situation.

Three Qualities We Seek in Those Who Help Us

Generally, though we don't really think about it, but if you really truly ponder over it, there are three things that we are actually looking for.

Number one is, does the person know how to help? Does he have ilm? Does he have knowledge? In whatever situation that I'm in, is he knowledgeable about it? That's the first thing you're looking for.

Number two is, it's not just knowledge — does he have the power to do something? Does he have the ability to do something? A person can have all the information about cars, but he has no tools, he has no shop, there's nothing he can do for you. So he can tell you, yeah, maybe do this, do that, but he cannot physically help you. Why? Because he lacks the resources to help you. He doesn't have the ability to help you, even though he may have all the information and knowledge. So the second thing you look for is, well, okay, if he has knowledge, does he have the ability?

And the third thing you look for within him is, does that person have some type of sympathy, compassion for me? Because if he has some sort of compassion for me, then he will not cheat me. He will not look at his own agenda. He will not look at his own advantage. He will actually put me first. He will say, you know what, this brother — he's going through an issue — you know what, instead of charging him such an exorbitant amount, let me just charge him a little bit, and let's get the job done.

So generally, these are your three things. We don't really think about it. We don't actively sit down and think about it. But naturally, whenever we're in any situation, you'll find that these are the things that are at least in the back of your mind — found in the person who you're asking for help.

Allah Possesses All Three Qualities Perfectly

However, there are certain things in life that no one can help you with. No human being can really help you with going through them. And even those things, those situations that other people can help you with, there's a limit to how much they can help. And the believer — his focus and his trust is only and purely put on Allah. Because if we're talking about knowledge, there's no one that has more ilm than Allah. There's no one that has more qudra, more ability, more strength and power than Allah. And there's no one who has more love and compassion and mercy, especially to the believer, than Allah.

"Allah is the ally of those who believe."

So whenever we're in a situation, the first person who we should actually be thinking about and resorting to is Allah. The first being — in any situation, in any given. That's part of life. There are days where, الحمد لله, things are going very well, everything is according to plan, as you would say. And there are times where things just don't go the way we expect them to. Things happen. A person goes through emotional difficulty, physical difficulty, financial difficulties, difficulties related to one's family, related to one's parents, related to one's kids, related to one's spouse, related to the home that you're living in, the car that you're driving — all kinds of difficulties.

The believer — the first being that he thinks about in any situation is Allah. Because it is only Allah that has kamil ilm, that has kamil qudra, and whose rahma, whose love and mercy for His servants, is kamil.

The Wisdom Behind Every Difficulty

This also tells us and teaches us the idea that whenever we are in a situation, there is some wisdom of Allah behind that — though we may not be able to fully recognize and understand that situation at that moment. At the moment that we're in, the situation that we're in, sometimes we try to think, how could this happen? No — but tawakkul in Allah. Tawakkul in Allah means that I recognize that there is some wisdom in this situation right now that I'm in. I may not be able to fully comprehend what that is right now, but I trust in Allah to know that there is some benefit.

And often where we forget is that we are in this life for a very short time. And so what plan that Allah has for a believer is not just limited to this world — it is in fact beyond this world. So your benefit and your advantage is not looked at just from a dunyawi perspective. It also takes into account, Allah also takes into account for the believer, his akhirah — the ukhrawi perspective. What is ultimately going to be beneficial for him?

There are times that individuals are very concerned about a situation that they're in. I remember one elderly individual — she called me one time, going through a lot of family difficulty. A lot of difficulty related to her kids and related to some other issues. And in the process she said, you know, since these issues started, every night I've been waking up for tahajjud. Every night I've been waking up for tahajjud, making du'a to Allah. And every so often I give charity. And every Monday and Thursday I started fasting now.

So I simply tried to console her to the best of my ability. But later on I was thinking — I said, سبحان الله, Allah put that person in that situation, and although it's difficult — there's no doubt. Sometimes the difficulty that a person is in, another person may underestimate it. But ask the person who is in that difficulty — he or she knows the difficulty that they're in.

And sometimes, just take this example — young kids going through school. When their exam comes, that exam is very difficult for them. Now you as a grown-up, you'll be thinking, is this an exam? What are you talking about? But you forget when you were in that time, when you had to take the exam. You forget, because you've passed through that stage of life. So for you, because you've passed through it, it's not that big of a deal. That young man, that young woman who is now about to get married — maybe they're panicking, they don't know. You who's already married, you may tell them, don't worry about it, it's fine. But you forget that perhaps when you were in that stage, what you were going through. You have kids — someone who already has kids says, no, no, it's okay, kids get big somehow. Don't worry about it. But ask the parent who's in it. You forget when you were in that situation.

So likewise, each individual is going through some type of difficulty at some point in their life. And it's proportionate to their ability to handle it. And Allah knows best what the wisdom behind that situation is. And whether it's at an individual level — we go through individual issues — it could be at a familial level, it could be at a community level, it could be at a global level. We as Muslims will go through difficulties. But at each difficulty that a person goes through, remember the past difficulty that you went through. Did Allah not save you? Did Allah not remove you from it? Did Allah not make that situation easy for you?

We Must Not Forget Allah's Blessings

Any difficulty that came in the past — the issue with you and I as human beings is we forget. We forget.

"And when adversity touches man, he calls upon Us, whether lying on his side or sitting or standing. But when We remove his adversity from him, he passes on as if he had never called upon Us to remove an adversity that had touched him."

When some difficulty comes to him — morning and evening, in whatever state he's in, whether he's standing, whether he's sitting, whether he's laying down — he's always constantly remembering: Ya Allah, Ya Allah, Ya Allah. Please remove me from this difficulty. Ya Allah, please make it easy for me. When We remove that state of difficulty from him, he goes by as if nothing ever happened to him.

So we need to change that perspective. We need to recognize that whatever situation we are in — and in fact I'll add this — even the state of ni'mah is a test from Allah. The test of ni'mah, of being in a good condition, is whether we do shukr to Allah or not. I've said on a number of occasions — we living in this country, with the type of facilities that we have available, we are perhaps a small percentage of people in the world who are able to experience these types of ni'mahs. There are other people who don't have this.

It's so cold outside, but الحمد لله, we're in a heated space right now. We now have remote starters to our cars — it's too difficult to even go out to start the car, just press the button and the car will start for you and heat itself. We have so much ni'mah from head to toe — we are in the ni'mah of Allah. How much shukr of Allah do we do?

Preparing for the Blessed Month of Ramadan

Now with the month of Ramadan approaching — and I'll finish with this — many of us have the type of perspective: oh, again Ramadan is coming. We don't realize that for a believer, Allah made it an opportunity for us to get close to Him. When a ni'mah like that comes, the person should prepare for it beforehand.

You see, like today is Valentine's Day. From one month before, you see how these stores make the preparations? People are thinking ahead of time — I'm going to get my beloved this, I'm going to get my beloved that. There are all kinds of ads. You drive by: what are you getting your beloved, what are you getting your sweetheart today? What are you going to buy? We'll give you a discount — get chocolates, get... You are preparing for it beforehand because of the amount of value that you put into it.

I swear by Allah, this month of Ramadan that's coming — there's so much benefit in it for the believer. If we don't start preparing for it now, we may end up wasting that time when it actually comes. So we have to change our perspective. Number one — that month is very blessed. That month is very beneficial. May Allah allow us to reach it. And may Allah allow us to take maximum benefit from it.

One way we can start benefiting is to start increasing our a'mal. If you start doing a lot of things on day one, it's going to be very difficult — we burn ourselves out. If day one of Ramadan you start doing everything at once, it's going to be very tough. Rather, if we start increasing our a'mal from now, then by the time Ramadan comes, we become accustomed, we become used to a schedule. That's one way we can prepare.

Closing: Put Your Trust in Allah

May Allah grant us tawfiq. And again — remember, whatever situation that we're in, whatever halat we are in, whether it's at an individual level, whether it's related to our family, community, or even at the global level — we always place our trust in Allah. Whatever is within our means, we continue to do. That's what's demanded from us. That's what is expected from us. But we trust in Allah that whatever the situation is, Allah knows best. And the wisdom of Allah — maybe we don't understand — but Allah knows.

"And put your trust in the Ever-Living who does not die, and exalt His praise."

Have tawakkul in Allah — the One who will never die, the One who is Ever-Living.

Announcements

Please pass the donation box from left to right.

We have a sisters series exclusively for sisters of all ages on February 16th and 23rd, إن شاء الله, from 1:30 to 3:15 pm.

Our Ramadan Strategic Approach with Mawlana Yusuf Ghaus has been rescheduled. The new date is Saturday, February 22nd after Isha.

We have a Convert Luncheon — Fasting 101 with Qari Suleyman Mahmood on Saturday, February 15th, from 11:30 am to 2:00 pm.

We have a guest scholar visiting — Qari Muharram Aftab Alam from Darul Uloom Deoband. His program will be Friday, February 21st after Isha.

Weekly Programs: Team Fajr — Iqamah at 6:00 am. Tuesday Tafsir continues. Weekly Seerah program on Thursdays after Isha. Weekly on-site sisters' Urdu Tafsir every Thursday 1:30–3:30 pm.

Date boxes are available now for Ramadan — being sold at the food stall.

Helping Hand is in urgent need of clothing donations to support refugees around the world. Please bring new or gently used clothes this Saturday, February 15th from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. Drop-off location: Helping Hand, 479 West Fullerton Avenue, Elmhurst.

Care Action, dedicated to Muslim civic engagement and political empowerment, encourages you to learn more about candidates in the Lombard and Glendale Heights region. They are available to meet you in the foyer outside, إن شاء الله.

Du'a Requests

Brother Rajab Marina suffered a stroke and is in the ICU. May Allah grant him shifa'a kamilah.

Sister Azra Hussain Khan is suffering from cancer. May Allah grant her shifa'a kamilah.

For any Muslim and all the Muslims around the world — may Allah alleviate them of whatever difficulties and illnesses they are facing. Whoever is ill, may Allah grant them shifa'a kamilah, 'adilah, da'imah. Whoever has passed away, may Allah grant them maghfirah and Jannatul Firdaus.

جَزَاكُمُ اللَّهُ خَيْرًا