Lessons from the Life of a Runaway

Lessons from the Life of a Runaway

I bear witness that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger.

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 created from it a wife, and gave birth to many men and women. And fear Allah, to whom you ask for mercy and forgiveness. Verily, Allah watches over you.

O you who have believed, fear Allah and say the right words. Your deeds will be corrected, and your sins will be forgiven.

The Story of Musa and His Du'a of Brokenness

Individually, you're sitting somewhere, or standing somewhere, knowing that, subhanAllah, you just lost even direction of where you're going. You're so exhausted, you're so tired, you're so scared. That was the moment when you just turned back to Allah and made that sincere du'a, and then, subhanAllah, miracles will start opening up and coming down.

Musa (alayhi salam) did that. He said to Allah:

"My Lord, indeed I am, for whatever good You would send down to me, in need."

A simple du'a, in a moment of brokenness, when he's showing his poverty to Allah, and Allah opened the gates of khair to him.

Just to give the context to the story — if you remember, Musa (alayhi salam) had an encounter with one of the Egyptians. He pushed him, he killed him, and then subhanAllah, the second time when he was arguing with another person, rumors were spreading that he did it. Musa (alayhi salam) was protected, of course, because he grew up in the house of the Pharaoh. But that protection was now removed. So when he realized — someone came to him and said, "Look, the people are going after you. They're going to kill you. You better leave." And he did.

He escaped immediately, carrying absolutely nothing with him. In a direction that he didn't even know where he was going. He kept going east, going all the way until he arrived at a destination that he didn't even know what it was.

He sat there in Madian, and as he was sitting there, he saw around an oasis — some shepherds were bringing their sheep to drink from the water. He saw two girls holding back their animals, waiting for the men to give them space so they could go without having to crowd themselves with them. Musa (alayhi salam) saw that with his chivalry.

He came to them and said, "What's wrong with you?" They replied: "We're not going to go there with the men. We're going to wait until they're done, and the reason why we're out here is because our father is too old to do this. So we're doing it for him."

So Musa (alayhi salam) volunteered. He took the animals for them, gave them water, and returned them to the girls, and the girls went back home. He went back again to that tree. Under the shade of that tree, in that moment, he made that du'a:

"My Lord, I'm in need. Whatever good that You send down to me, I'm in need of it."

So Allah sent him that response. His du'a was answered immediately. One of the girls came to him walking — she was shy to approach him — and she said, "My father would like to invite you and reward you for your help and your assistance." So he came, and he had a conversation with her father — where are you from, what happened to you — and he told him his story. The man told him, "Don't worry about it. You're safe over here. You're far away from the Pharaoh. You're good here."

And then he offered him something. As a matter of fact, the girl herself said, "Dad, why don't you hire him? He seems to be an honest man, a trustworthy person."

Look at the qualities she noticed from a man she had just met moments before. How these good qualities appear on a person without even speaking. How many of us can claim this? Wherever you go, people look at you and say, "He's trustworthy. This person is trustworthy." How many of us can say that that inner peace reflects in their actions?

So she said, "Why don't you hire him?" And the father said, "That's a good idea." He said, "Look, I'm going to give you an option. You can serve me here for eight years, or ten. I hire you for ten — eight years minimum. In return, you marry one of my daughters. You become my son-in-law right away." And Musa took that deal. He said, "Whatever service I give, that's our deal." The father replied, "That's our deal."

And subhanAllah, in an instant, Musa (alayhi salam) — who was running alone, scared, hungry, no plan, no vision — all of this was covered, subhanAllah, instantly, in a moment like this. Suddenly now he has a house. He has a family. He now has job security for ten years. Whatever you can think of. In an instant — simply because of that moment, when he made that du'a: "My Lord, whatever that You send down to me of good, I'm in need of it."

Lessons from Musa's Du'a

Brothers and sisters, what do we learn from Musa (alayhi salam)? Here is how our du'a can truly be accepted. And in a moment that the ummah needs really sincere du'a that we raise to Allah to alleviate the suffering of our brothers and sisters around the world — to help us go out of the situation we're stuck in, and to ensure that alhamdulillah, Islam is protected and our community is protected as well. Our du'a is well needed — in addition to the effort we make so that our du'a is accepted.

Lesson One: Showing Your Need and Poverty to Allah Is the Key to Divine Gifts

Your dependence on Allah — showing your need and your poverty to Allah — is the key to divine gifts. Not arrogance.

When you make your du'a, when was the last time you sat down exclusively to make your du'a from your heart? And you made it in a moment that you felt your heart is connected — not just as lip service or just as part of the rituals of a specific ibadah. When was the time that you made a very special du'a — one that you truly believed came from your heart, and you felt it connected with Allah?

Musa (alayhi salam), in a moment like that, was alone. He showed his poverty to Allah in that moment: "My Lord, I'm in need of You. Whatever You can send me of good, I'll take it. I'll accept that, my Lord." So showing your dependence, your poverty to Allah, is indeed the key to divine gifts. What kind of gifts? Just wait and see how Allah will do this. You surrender yourself to Allah, and Allah will take it from there.

Lesson Two: Do Good Even in Your Most Difficult Moments

We've seen from Musa (alayhi salam) that he was grateful, and he was still doing good even in the most difficult moment — not just with words. Look: when he was sitting under that tree and he saw these girls going through what they were going through, why on earth would he volunteer to help them? He was already concerned with his own issues. He was worried about himself. But even in a moment like this, doing good can help. SubhanAllah.

So when you're in a weak moment, when you feel vulnerable, when you're feeling need — don't say, "Well, I can't help you. I have nothing to give." Why not? Here is Musa (alayhi salam) in a moment that no one expects him to help, because he himself already needs help. But he just volunteered. Even in a moment like this, he went out and he volunteered his effort and helped them out.

Musa (alayhi salam) was a tough man. He was strong. He was solid. And in that moment, the only thing he could do was use his physical power to help these girls and make their life easier. And with that, Allah rewarded him immediately and instantly. He showed his gratitude for the ni'mah of strength and power and the ability to go through the crowd without being harassed — he showed that ni'mah by helping others who were vulnerable and weak. And Allah responded with the help that came to him.

Brothers and sisters, even when you're in need, even when you're weak, you can still do something good. You can still help. And after you make that du'a, inshallah, Allah will respond to you.

Lesson Three: Show Humility and Politeness When Asking Allah

When we make du'a to Allah, we should show our humbleness, our humility, our modesty to Allah in the way we ask Him. See, Musa (alayhi salam) knew that Allah can give him everything in detail. He could have said, "My Lord, can I have some food? Can I have some shelter?" He could have said all of these things. But instead, knowing that he was speaking with the most generous — al-Razzaq, al-Khabir, al-Lateef, the most subtle, all-aware of everything — he knew all of this.

So when he spoke his need with full politeness to Allah: "My Lord, whatever good You send me, I'll be happy with it" — he was saying this because he knows that Allah knows about him. He was absolutely certain in his heart: "Allah knows my situation. So when I speak to Allah, I know He is aware of my circumstances. So I'll make my du'a knowing that Allah is the most generous, and He will provide."

That was the adab of the anbiya when they asked Allah. They asked Allah with full certainty that Allah knows their need.

Lesson Four: Ask Allah in the General Sense, Not Only for Specifics

Whenever we make du'a, like Musa (alayhi salam), Musa made that du'a in a very general way — knowing, once again, that Allah will bring that khair down to us. He used the word مِنْ خَيْرٍ — inclusive. Min khair — "whatever good, ya Allah." And he was asking for the good things.

I know it is halal, permissible, to ask for particular needs. That's okay. You can ask Allah to help you pass this exam. You can ask Allah to help you find this job, or give you this much money, or make this deal work out. You can ask all of this. But don't forget to also ask Allah in the general sense.

When the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) told us to make du'a, the best du'a you can make is:

"Our Lord, give us good in this world and good in the Hereafter, and protect us from the punishment of the Fire." — A very general du'a, but one that encompasses everything that is khair and good in this life.

Lesson Five: Never Let Weakness Break Your Certainty in Allah's Mercy

When Musa (alayhi salam) made that du'a, remember — he made it in a moment he felt he was broken. He was running away. He was scared. He was alone. A foreign land. A foreign language. Absolutely nobody there recognized him and he recognized nobody. Such a very difficult moment for a human being. We are social beings — we look for safety in every move that we make. And every move he was making over there could endanger his life. But he still made that du'a with full certainty.

What does that mean? When you're broken, when you're weak in that moment — that should not break your certainty in Allah's rahma and mercy. That weakness happens to all human beings. We sometimes have doubts — that's okay. But no matter how weak you get in your life, never ever let that weakness go into the certainty in Allah's mercy. Never ever lose sight of the mercy of Allah.

So in the most difficult moment, he made that du'a. And he knew that when he was making that du'a, Allah would accept it and Allah would answer. He had no doubt that Allah would answer his call. So when you make that du'a — yes, in a horrible moment — you still have the absolute certainty that Allah is the most merciful and He will respond to you.

Lesson Six: When Allah Closes a Door in Wisdom, He Opens Another in Mercy

And finally, Musa (alayhi salam) was an example for us all to remember that if Allah, by His divine will and wisdom, decided to close a door — He will open another one out of rahma and mercy. If Allah chose to close that door in front of you because He knows what is best — out of His divine wisdom — make sure to look around, because Allah has definitely opened another door out of mercy.

That is the example we learn from Musa (alayhi salam). When that girl came to him and said, "Look, my father wants to speak to you. Would you like to come?" — he could have said, "No, no, thank you very much. I have something else to take care of." But he knew that that door had come from Allah. He didn't show any arrogance. Remember, he grew up in the house of the Pharaoh, so everything was available to him. And now this bedouin girl comes to say, "Hey, my father wants to talk to you." But he knew that was a door Allah had opened for him. He immediately went through it. And he found that mercy from Allah.

So my dear brothers and sisters, if you see doors are closing, look for the one that Allah just opened for you.

Second Part of the Khutbah

Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds. Peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon his family and companions.

My dear brothers and sisters, that same principle that was embedded in this ayah — our Messenger, Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), was the best example for us when he embodied it. When the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) would make du'a in general, you could see how much he would show his need and his poverty to Allah, even though Allah had granted him forgiveness.

So when he was seen making du'a for rain, he would raise his hand all the way up — even though he knew that Allah would answer his call — but he was showing his humility and humbleness to Allah. On the battle of Badr, in that decisive moment, he made his du'a and raised his hands all the way up until his cloak fell off his shoulders. Abu Bakr as-Siddiq came from behind Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) saying, "Ya Rasulullah, take it easy on yourself. Allah will answer your call. Allah will give you what He promised."

He was so certain, but still he would raise his hands (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) making that du'a — as if he feared the du'a would not be answered — and yet he was absolutely certain that Allah would respond to his call.

The Du'a to Memorize and Make a Daily Habit

So my dear brothers and sisters, remember this du'a in your day and your night. Make this a habit for yourself. Memorize it:

This is from Surah al-Qasas (28:24). Remember this ayah:

"My Lord, indeed I am, for whatever good You would send down to me, in need."

Just make that a habit every single day. When you start your day, inshallah, you make that du'a. And when you end your day, you also make that du'a. And you will see how the wonders and the divine gifts of Allah will come your way.