بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّ حِيْمِ
There is a something in life we need to understand; Allah says in His Holy Words;
‘and verily the Hereafter will be better for thee than the present’. (93:4)
The akirah is usually translated to mean the hereafter. This is a fact, however in this ayat and in others akirah can also mean the end of your life in this world. Why? Everyone will understand that while you’re growing and developing you will face challenges and difficulties, and it will not be easy. What is important for us to understand at this is stage is that Allah identifies in the Qur’an when the difficulties and trials come we should not ‘give up’ and get frustrated but instead know that there is in fact a purpose and reason for it. Allah says;
‘after a difficulty, Allah will soon grant relief.’ (65:7)
And He has emphasises this. We can conclude that in the earlier stages of your life you will face difficulties but if you put your faith and trust in Allah He will make it easy for you and take care of you. This is possibly one reason why Allah has given us the life story of Prophet Joseph (as). Look at all the trials and hardships he underwent, through no fault of his. These were trials that Allah exposed him to. And look at how beautiful the latter part of his life was after he bore the tribulations and demonstrated true submission to his Lord.
Allah says
‘and surely, we shall try you’. (47:31)
You will face trials and hardships’ and Prophet Muhammad (saw) is even reported to have said that when Allah loves you He tries you. Every believer must understand that in the earlier stages of your life it could be challenging and difficult. This is Allah’s way. He even subjected Prophet to trials both in the personal and public life, and he is the Beloved of Allah . And if Allah can try His Beloved what about us?
We want to please our Lord and earn His blessings and favours so when we are tried we must never give up but reside our faith and trust in Him.
Allah says in Surah Muhammad
‘O ye who believe! If ye will aid (the cause of) Allah, He will aid you, and plant your feet firmly’. (47:7)
Some people believe that as soon as you ask Allah for something, such as help, it should be given immediately. Always remember that Allah knows best. He is all Wise. We only see in the short term and Allah sees everything. Only Allah truly knows.
The true believers are taught to say “I put my affairs in Allah ”. Let Allah take care. He wants us to show Him that we are worthy of His love and blessings.
Take for example the creation of gold. In order to acquire this precious metal it has to undergo a series of process where it is heated and beaten in order to achieve the desired shape and quality. If you want to present yourself as a beautiful ornament to your Lord prepare for the “heating and beaten”. And rest assure that Satan will be the one to test your patience and perseverance.
Allah gave Prophet (saw) the consolation in Surah Dhuhaa;
'Thy Guardian-Lord hath not forsaken thee, nor is He displeased. And Verily the Hereafter will be better for thee than the present. And soon will Thy Guardian-Lord give thee (that wherewith) thou shalt be well-pleased. Did He not find thee an orphan and give thee shelter (and care)? And He found thee wandering, and He gave thee guidance. And He found thee in need, and made thee independent'. (93:3-8)
All the trails he went through as such a young boy and when he began his mission it got worse. His job was to deliver the message regardless of the environment, and Allah took care of him and we too must take solace in that Allah will never abandon us.
When the trials and tribulations come always remember that your Lord will never let you down. And He has taught us to supplicate to Him (through dua). Humbly beg Him. Seek repentance, forgiveness and whatever you want from Him. He will never turn down your dua. Only Allah knows when something is best for you, so He may choose to delay your request or simple wait to give you something much better.
Beg your Lord to make the trials easy. Put your faith in Him and He will take care of your affairs. A lot of us have faith in Him but we go to Him last. We try to exhaust all possible means first and when they appear to have fail then we go to Allah . Go to Him first and He will never let you down. That is guaranteed. One hope is that the future will be better than the past. Whether it is the latter part of our life in this world or the hereafter, He will take care of us.
May Allah make the trials and tribulations that He has decreed for us easy and bearable. May He guide us to behave in the same exemplary manner that our leader, Prophet Muhammad (saw), showed when he was faced with hardships during his mission. And may Allah enable us to rise with the righteous servants on the Promised Day, insha Allah.
I like this article. It is, however, disheartening that when we make our prayers we have to keep in mind that they may not be answered until we die and go to Heaven. When you are faced with difficulty, and wish for a certain outcome, it is the essence of martyrhood to be able to say to yourself: Allah will grant my wish after my death. I am 40 years old;my dreams may not be accomplished, and while I do not question Allah's choice for me, I am having a hard time accepting that things will remain "as is" in my life until after I have died. That truly is a long time to wait! Does patience/sabr really require us to be martyrs?
ReplyDeleteAssalaamu alaikum
ReplyDeleteAllah says in the Holy Qur'an that He is the One Who answers prayers. He also says: 'I answer the prayer of the suppliant when he calls on Me'. So that there is no necessity for one to wait to have a prayer answered after death. What we need to know is that Allah says also in the Qur'an that, 'It is possible that you like a thing that may not be good for you and it is possible that you detest a thing that may be good for you', it is only Allah Who knows everything. When we make our prayer we should feel assured that it will be answered. It is only such things that may not be good for us in this life that will be given in the next. Other than that we are to keep in mind that our Lord is listening to us and will answer our supplications. It is only the time that it may take before He answers it. But He will definitely give to us what is best for us at the appropriate time. When we say that the end will be better than the present, this refers to the great amount of beautiful that Allah has prepared for all the believers. There will be comfort, etc. in an environment of peace and tranquility; something which may be difficult to experience in the present life.
Allah knows best.
I understand that. However, at age 40, I would like to get married and have a baby. Surely, that is a good thing? How can the desire to be a mother and a wife be something that is not good for me? Also, women cannot have babies indefinitely. At age 40, my time to have children, and to have a husband, is running out. How is it possible to maintain my hope that Allah SWT will answer my prayers, when I know tht realistically, He cannot answer them when I am 45, 50 or older?
ReplyDeleteAssalaamu alaikum,
ReplyDeleteOne of the best etiquette in making a dua is to ask Allah to bless and bestow on me all that is good for you in this life and in the next. If I feel that something is good for me, you have the right to beg your Lord to bestow it. For example, if a person has the desire to get married and have a child, it is the duty of that person to beg Allah to fulfill that desire. It will be left to the Lord to answer the prayer, when He so please. Take for example, Abraham begged the Lord for years to be given a son, and when he became old then Allah granted his prayer. The same was the case with Zachariah. Islam teaches us to pray to our Lord for whatever we want, and let Him answer our prayer as He wills.