Ways to earn Tawfeeq (Approval) from Allah

Ways to Earn Tawfeeq (Approval) from Allah

I seek refuge with Allah from the accursed Satan.

The First Quality: Humility

That's the first quality — to be humble. Allah said to Musa, "Ya Musa, do you know why I chose you to be Kalimullah?" He said, "I don't know." Because you are always humble. I found always the humbleness in your heart.

The Second Quality: Find Ways to Benefit Others

To earn Allah's tawfeeq, find ways to benefit others. The Rasulullah was asked:

"Who are the most beloved people to Allah?" He said, "The ones who give the most benefit to others." And he was asked, "What is the most beloved deed to Allah?" — "To make somebody else happy."

(Al-Mu'jam al-Awsat by al-Tabarani; also referenced in similar wording in related hadith collections)

To make your wife happy, your parents happy, your community happy. And how do you know that? When you die, everybody's going to miss you. "Oh man, he was always there." So don't die and everybody's happy that you're gone, saying "alhamdulillah, how long was he here?" — because there was no benefit to others.

There was an Egyptian doctor who had saved money to go to Hajj. Alhamdulillah, that year he had the money. But a lady came to him still in the hospital and said, "Doctor, mabrook, congratulations — I heard you're going to Hajj." He said, "Yes, alhamdulillah." She said, "But when you return, maybe you will not see me anymore." He said, "Why? Don't you like the hospital? Your son still needs one more year of treatment." She said, "No, because my husband got laid off. He can't pay."

He said, "Just wait here, I'm going to ask the boss." The boss said, "No, this is business." Now this doctor had two choices — to go to Hajj or to help this lady. Alhamdulillah, he chose to help the lady. He went to the cashier, gave the money, and told her it was from the hospital.

Imagine — for years you are waiting to go to Hajj, and now you have to cancel. But after three days, the boss called him. He said, "I need your help." He said, "What?" "The owner of the hospital is going for Hajj, and his private doctor couldn't come because his wife is going to deliver a baby." SubhanAllah — a package! He went to Hajj — not just any Hajj, it was VIP Hajj. SubhanAllah.

"Allah will help anyone who helps others." (Sahih Muslim, Book 35, Hadith 6518)

It's very easy.

The Third Quality: Bir al-Walidayn — Being Kind to Your Parents

Number three to earn Allah's tawfeeq is what is called in Arabic bir al-walidayn — being kind to your parents. Allah always combines two things:

"Worship Allah and be kind to your parents." If you want to know whether Allah is pleased with you or not, just look at your parents. If they are pleased with you, then may Allah be pleased with you. And the Prophet said:

"The pleasure of Allah is in the pleasure of the parents." (Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 1899)

I would like to share with you a true story. I came from Washington — I used to be an imam in Olympia. There was an American who became Muslim. His name was Smith. He told me, "Imam, my mom is sick." I said, "Why don't you visit her?" He said, "She's not Muslim." He thought that when you become Muslim, that's it — no more relationship with non-Muslims. I said, "No." Then I opened the Quran:

"Even if your parents are not Muslim, you have to be kind to them." So he flew from Seattle to Chicago — his mom was in Chicago. He called ahead: "Mom, I'm coming."

Now, many Americans who become Muslim wear a kufi. So when his mother opened the door, she said, "Are you Smith?" He said, "No, my name now is Muhammad Abdullah." Many of them become proud of their Muslim name. But some Muslims go the other direction — Bilal becomes "Bill," Fatima becomes "Fifi." His mother got angry. She had been brainwashed by the media. She said, "Why are you following this terrorist religion, this violent religion?"

Abdullah told me, "You know, I couldn't say anything about Islam to my mom — but I wanted to show her Islam." So he stayed for two weeks. He didn't talk about Islam. What did he do? He cleaned the house, cooked for her. When it was time to pray, he said, "Mom, can I pray?" So he prayed.

After two weeks, she called him: "Smith, come here." She said, "You know, when you were young, your dad used to bring you to church. But the church didn't change your life. And by the way, you have brothers here in Chicago — and nobody visits me. Nobody. But you came." He said, "Mom, this is Islam." And then he read to her the ayah I just recited.

He said, "Mom, after Allah asked me to worship Him, He told me to be kind to you. If I please my God but don't please you, I won't go to heaven." His mother said, "Smith, what do I have to do if I want to be like you?" He said, "Mom, are you sure? You said it was a terrorist religion." She said, "No — it changed your life."

Alhamdulillah, she took her shahadah. That night, he called me — "Imam!" I said, "What?" He said, "My mom." I thought she had passed away. But no — "She's Muslim!" So alhamdulillah, he continued to stay with her for two months. When he came back, he was crying. I said, "Why are you crying?" He said, "My mom passed away." But alhamdulillah — now you can make du'a for her.

So those are the ways to earn Allah's tawfeeq — to be humble, to try to benefit others, and to be kind to your parents. If you still have your parents, take the opportunity. Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr, when his mother passed away, he cried a lot. They asked, "Why are you crying so much?" He said, "Because the gate of Jannah is now closed."

Your salah, your fasting — they are not a guaranteed ticket to Jannah. But being kind to your parents is. Call them every day. They just want to see you, to hear your voice. Don't ask du'a from any imam or shaykh — ask du'a from your parents. Their du'a is guaranteed for you.

And if they have passed away, don't forget them. Every day when you pray, before your salam — after إِنَّكَ حَمِيدٌ مَجِيدٌ — make du'a for them. They are waiting for your du'a in their graves. When you give sadaqah, make the intention for your parents. Make them happy in the grave. If you haven't made Hajj for them, make Hajj on their behalf.

The Fourth Quality: Never Underestimate the Power of Du'a

The last way to earn Allah's help is to never belittle the power of du'a. Ask Allah. Before you get married, before you do anything, make du'a to Allah.

There was a young man in Medina. After he graduated, it was difficult to find a job. For three months he didn't find anything. Then he met a shaykh. "Shaykh, do you have any connections? Because in that country, if you have connections, everything is easy." The shaykh said, "Yes." "Who?" "Allah." He said, "Yes, shaykh, I know Allah — you're not happy if I just say Allah? If I said 'the Amir,' you'd be happy?" He said, "Look — tomorrow, before you go looking for a job, pray and make du'a. Ask Allah: 'O Allah, if my rizq is in the heavens, bring it down. If it is in the earth, bring it up. If it is difficult, make it easy.'"

Alhamdulillah, he did. He drove and he saw a building — the Ministry of Awqaf. He went in and submitted his resume. The man said, "Where have you been? I've been looking for you!" SubhanAllah. Call upon Allah.

Another story — when I was in Egypt studying at al-Azhar. There were some neighbors, and their baby was crying all night because the baby had a very high temperature. The husband was not there — he was in another country. She had no money to buy medicine. You know what she did? She just prayed to Allah, put a cool cloth on the baby's forehead, and kept praying. At midnight, someone knocked on the door. She opened it — it was a doctor. "Where's the baby?" "Over there." He examined the baby, gave an injection. Alhamdulillah, the baby's fever came down.

Then he gave the bill. She said, "I don't have money." He said, "What? You call me at night and you don't have money?" She said, "I didn't call you." He said, "This address?" She said, "Yes — but the person you're looking for is over there, number 9. This is number 10." SubhanAllah.

And the last story happened in my country, Indonesia. In Indonesia, if you register to go to Hajj now, you will go after 30 years. Imagine a lady, 75 years old, who had been waiting all this time. But she missed her flight — there was traffic in Jakarta and the gate was closed. Her daughter said, "Mom, inshallah we'll find another flight tomorrow, but it's difficult during Hajj time." So the mother said, "Let me pray." She made du'a to Allah — "For so long I have been waiting. I want to visit You. I know I will not make it next year."

After 15 minutes, the gate opened again and they evacuated all the passengers. The Indonesian pilot had felt something was wrong with the engines, so he had to evacuate everyone. When the technicians came and checked — there was nothing wrong. When the pilot heard the story about the lady, he cried. He said, "Allah asked me to come back to answer her prayer."

May Allah give us tawfeeq, inshallah.

Du'a (Supplication)

O servants of Allah, indeed Allah commands justice and ihsan (excellence), and giving to relatives, and He forbids fahsha (immorality), munkar (wrongdoing), and baghy (oppression). He admonishes you so that you may take heed. Remember Allah and He will remember you, and establish the prayer.