Patience in the Midst of Trials - Shaykh Mustafa Abu Rayyan

Khutbah al-Hajah — Opening

All praise is due to Allah. We praise Him, seek His help, and seek His forgiveness. And we seek refuge in Allah from the evil of our souls and from the evil of our deeds.

Whomsoever Allah guides, none can misguide him, and whosoever He sends astray, none can guide him. And I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, alone, no partner for Him. And I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and His Messenger, the purest of His creation, and His close friend.

Allah sent him to all people as a bearer of glad tidings and a warner. He conveyed the message, fulfilled the trust, and advised the Ummah. And he left us on the white path — its night is like its day. None deviates from it except one who is destroyed. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and upon his family and his companions, and whoever is guided by his guidance, follows his Sunnah, and calls to his call until the Day of Judgment.

O you who have believed, fear Allah as He should be feared, and do not die except as Muslims.

O you who have believed, fear your Lord, Who created you from one soul, and He created from it a wife, and spread among them many men and women. And fear Allah, through Whom you ask one another, and the wombs. Verily, Allah is ever Watchful over you.

O you who have believed, fear Allah, and say the right words. He will correct your deeds, and forgive your sins. And whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger has won a great triumph.

This Life Is a Test

My beloved brothers and sisters, I start by praising Allah. For indeed Allah is worthy and deserving of our constant praise and gratitude. And I send blessings and salutations upon our beloved Prophet Muhammad. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.

Allah says in the Qur'an: "Remind, for indeed reminders are beneficial to the believers." There are many things that we often have to remind ourselves of. And among the things that we should be reminded of often — and perhaps we were, because of the incident that happened in Syria and Turkey — it is a cause for reflection, to remind ourselves and understand that this life that we live is a test from Allah.

And often many Muslims struggle making sense of suffering. Understanding: why is it my child that is in the hospital? Why is it that I am suffering with all these debts? Or why is it that I am struggling with this or that? And it is important that as Muslims — because Allah blessed us with the answers — Allah has told us that this will happen. That He will put us through trials and tribulations. And that it is bound to happen.

Whether that is your relationship, your health, your investments, your family, a natural disaster, a personal issue, a communal issue — it doesn't matter what it is. Life will not always be full of roses. Things will not always go your way. And to think or to assume that that is how it should be, is something that is unbecoming of the believer.

Now what I want to highlight, number one, is: understand the situation we are in in this world. Allah tells us the reason He created life and death — it is to test us.

To test which one among you will do the best of actions. In other words: how will you respond when Allah tests you? How will you respond? What will you say? And what will you do?

So understand, my beloved brothers and sisters, that each one of us is going through something, or knows someone that is going through something. Each one of us is either suffering with a health issue, or knows someone, or is related to someone that is in the hospital, or is struggling with a chronic illness. Each one of us is going through something, and that is part and parcel of living. This is the deal that we have.

It is not upon us to choose whether we are going to live a good life or a bad life, rich or poor. We don't get to choose that — those are the circumstances. We can try and do something about it, but Allah gives you certain circumstances in this world — the cards you are dealt. But how you respond? That's all upon you. How you respond is all upon you.

If Allah has blessed you with a good job, with a good family, has given you more than others — then that's your test. Same way the one who is homeless — that's his test, or her test. So focus more on: how am I responding to these tests? Am I failing or am I passing? Am I patient enough when Allah tests me with something? Or am I not patient? Do I say the right things or do I not? How do I feel when Allah tests me?

The Verse of Patience — Glad Tidings for the Patient

And do we understand or appreciate that all of these tests that we are talking about — Allah says in the Qur'an:

Allah mentions that He will test us — and He swears — He will test us with some fear, or poverty, or loss of life, or loss of wealth, or a number of things. Then Allah says: congratulate those who have patience. Congratulate. Although you are going through hardship, Allah is saying — congratulate the sabireen.

Learn and practice patience, my brothers and sisters. Learn and practice patience as it relates to whatever happens to you in your life. And this is something that isn't easy.

Patience at the First Blow — The Story of the Prophet and the Grieving Woman

When the Prophet ﷺ came across a woman who was standing over a grave, having lost a loved one — she was crying and she was upset. The Prophet ﷺ consoled her and told her to have patience. And she said: "You do not understand what I am going through."

A sentiment that many of us appreciate. A lot of times people say this: you don't know what I am going through. Maybe I don't know what you're going through, and maybe you don't know what I am going through. But you and I and everyone else is meant to exercise sabr and patience.

The Prophet ﷺ went away, and this woman didn't recognize him. Later on she came to him and said: "Ya Rasulullah, I did not know it was you. I will have patience now." And the Prophet ﷺ told her:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 1283; Sahih Muslim, Book 11, Hadith 2179)

Patience is at the first blow — at the beginning of the issue, not afterwards when you have healed a little bit. This is not easy. But we are told to practice it anyway. This is why there is so much reward in it.

So my brothers and sisters, those among you that are going through hardship — may Allah ease your hardship. Those among you that are facing difficulty — may Allah remove every difficulty. But while you are facing these difficulties, whatever they may be — and each one of us here has their own personal trials and tests — understand that you must exercise sabr. That's the first step.

What Does Exercising Sabr Actually Mean?

And when we say exercise sabr, what do we mean by that? It means, first and foremost, that you do not get upset at your Creator. And you might be wondering — many people will never say this. A few might — may Allah forgive us — but some will feel it. They will feel upset at the qadr of Allah. A feeling of: why me? It's not fair. Your job, when you're having patience, step number one — get rid of all of that. And you say to Allah: O Allah, reward me. O Allah, remove this difficulty for me. And then expect Allah to reward you for your patience.

It doesn't mean that you don't feel hurt. A lot of people think that patience means you don't feel any pain, sorrow, or sadness. Think about this example. Among the most difficult trials a person can go through in this world is losing a child. You tell someone: would you rather lose both your arms and both your legs, or lose your child? — they would prefer to be dismembered rather than lose their own child. It is an extremely painful thing.

It happened to our beloved Prophet ﷺ so many times. All of his children passed away before him, except for Fatimah. And when he was holding his son Ibrahim, the Prophet ﷺ cried, and he felt pain, and he was hurt. That has nothing to do with sabr. But then he said a statement that teaches you what sabr really is:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 1303)

Indeed the eyes shed tears, and the heart feels sadness, but we do not say except that which pleases Allah. This is the first point — you control what you say, and you appreciate the qadr of Allah for what it is. It is the same One Who brought you into existence and given you the many fortunes you have, that is now testing you with some misfortune.

And the ayah that we mentioned earlier — where Allah talks about testing you, and testing me, and testing all of us — Allah says: "We will test you with some fear, and some poverty, and some hunger." Meaning, no one's life from A to Z is entirely horrible and difficult. And this is also something we must recognize.

And just like you are being tested with hardships, you are being tested with the ease that you have — the home that you have, the warmth that you have, the family that you have, the laughter and the things in life that you are enjoying. Allah is watching you. Have you been grateful for the things Allah has given you? The breakfast you had this morning, the ease by which you are traveling, the masjid that is nearby your house, all of the good things in your life, the promotion that you got — whatever it is — Allah is watching you. Do you express gratitude?

And not only should you express gratitude, you should remember those moments in times of difficulty as well. Because no matter how dark the night is, it is still filled with stars. And no matter how difficult your life is, it is still filled with some ease.

May Allah forgive us, and forgive our shortcomings, and make us those that in times of hardship are patient, and in times of ease are grateful.

Second Part of the Khutbah

Alhamdulillah, and peace be upon the Messenger of Allah.

Allah Tests Those He Loves

My beloved brothers and sisters, Allah tests those whom He loves. So those that are going through hardship — it is often a sign that Allah loves that person. The Prophet ﷺ said in a hadith that whenever Allah loves someone, Allah will put him through trials. Why is that? Why would Allah express His love to us in this manner?

Because the one that is going through difficulties — and when we say difficulties, it is an umbrella term for all of life's difficulties: physical, mental, health, wealth, relationships — it doesn't matter. The Prophet ﷺ said:

(Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 2398)

A believer will be tested, and tested, and tested, until he ends up walking this earth with not one sin upon him. Imagine that person if they pass away — they have no sin. So in other words, some of the hardships that we endure are a rahmah from Allah. This is one example of the wisdoms behind going through hardships.

Hardships Are an Expiation — Visit the Sick

This is why when we visit the sick — and my brothers, visiting the sick is something that we don't do enough of — when someone tells you "I've been sick," what do we say to them?

It is a purification of your sins. So when you are going through hardship, remember this.

You Are in Great Company

Two — you are in great company when you are going through hardships, because Allah would test His Prophets the most.

(Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 2398; Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 4023)

The most severely tested of people are the Prophets, then those most similar to them, then those most similar to them. So whatever you are going through, there were great Prophets who went through it. If you think you have family problems, read the story of Yusuf. If you think you have health problems, read the story of Ayyub. If you think you are struggling, look at the seerah of our beloved Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. These are the hardships that they went through.

And there is a beautiful statement of the Prophet ﷺ where he said that Allah looks at one's religiosity, one's deen:

(Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 2398)

If it has some strength and resilience in it, then Allah tests that person. And if it has some softness in it, Allah will test that person according to their ability. In other words:

Allah does not burden a soul more than it can bear. So if Allah is putting you through something, remember — Allah is cleansing you from sin. If Allah is putting you through some hardship, remember — this is a sign that Allah loves you. Express patience and gratitude as it relates to all of these things that are happening.

Allow Hardship to Bring You Back to Allah

Also — allow it to be an opportunity for you to come back to Allah. Allow it to be an opportunity for you to repent from your sins. Allow this to be the reason why you come back to Allah.

There was a young man that approached me — it was last night actually in this masjid — and he mentioned that he was going through some hardship. And as a result, he was quite upset. But he also said: "I started praying more." And I said to him: if Allah put you through this particular difficulty for you to get closer to Allah, isn't this something to be happy about? Sometimes Allah will put you through a difficult time to bring you back.

May Allah make us among those that repent often and come back to Him. To my sisters and my brothers that are struggling — Allah is the Most Merciful. And you are not struggling because Allah hates you or is angry with you. But rather, Allah is testing you — like He told us He would. Allah says in the Qur'an:

Do the people think that they will be left to say "We believe," and they will not be tested? You will be tested by Allah. And in that test there is a rahmah. In that test there is an opportunity for patience. And if you have patience, Allah congratulated you.

Give glad tidings to those who have patience. And understand that they belong to Allah, and everything belongs to Allah, and to Allah we shall return.

Du'a — Closing Supplication

May Allah ease our difficulties. May Allah heal the sick among us, and forgive those that have passed away. May Allah alleviate all of our difficulties, our debts and hardships. May Allah bring our hearts together. Those that are suffering in their relationships — may Allah bring them together and give them greater bonds. I ask Allah to mend our homes if they have been broken, and to forgive our sins, and to make us of those that often repent to Allah and seek His forgiveness. May Allah heal the sick among us, and make us of those that often return to Allah and seek His forgiveness. Ameen.