A Time for Reflection

SAHIH INTERNATIONAL

And rely upon Allah ; and sufficient is Allah as Disposer of affairs.

This morning as I reflect upon the teaching of the Qur’an I was brought to this verse. Al-Ahzab 33:3 “And rely upon Allah; and sufficient is Allah as Disposer of affairs.” This stood out to me immediately because sometimes we get so stuck in what we are dealing with at this exact moment and we forget that Allah is the disposer of our affairs. For myself I often get stuck in a negative loop of all the hard things going on in my life. Like I am swimming in the ocean and I am so tired. This hit me hard when I read it, because when we are in the midst of the storm it is so hard to see where this storm is taking us. 

I often make dua in English, because arabic hasn’t been the easiest for me to learn. I am going to make an effort to learn this ayah. It can become my dua as I am struggling. To repeat it over and over again as a reminder that Allah is with me and he is the one organizing my affairs.    

Wa tawakkal ‘alal laah; wa kafaa billaahi Wakeelaa

I have been having a hard time letting go of what I believe my life should be. From childhood we are taught to dream up what time we want. I am not advocating that we don’t teach our children how to dream. For myself I have come to the realization that I need to be more flexible with my dream and how I view my life should turn out. I have been having the hardest time letting go of what I have expected my life to be. I feel it is impossible to embrace my reality of how my life has turned out so far. I was reminded that this life is temporary, and we should really be more concerned about our next destination and not so worried about the matters of dunya (temporal world and its earthly concerns). 

This life and its tests are temporary, but in the end when we die we will be in a permanent location. So often our calamities feel so enormous that it is hard to see past them. When we remember that this test is so short and only temporary it makes it easier to endure the difficulties. Many of you have been reminded of this recently with the pandemic upon us. The matters that we concern ourselves with on a daily basis have been stripped from many of us overnight. All of our next steps are uncertain. It makes it so much easier to reflect on our current status between us and Allah.  Is it worth the small amount of pleasure gained from the moment of doing something wrong. If I look at the entire perspective often I cannot justify the harm I am about to put myself through for a few minutes of glee. This life has always been uncertain for all of us, many have been hit with this reality in the face of this pandemic. 

Remember that our life on Earth is short, do not waste the precious time you have. Take as many moments as you can to do good for others. Small consistent acts of good can only be beneficial to our souls. I encourage you to take each moment at a time, and know that whatever is meant to be will never ever miss you. Until next time assalamu alaikum (peace be upon you).