Why do I feel uncomfortable??

and have recently started gambling again, i just want to have nice things and live comfortable in life however I just seem to be always suffering never have anything nice etc.

Brother, gambling is a harmful activity for your material and spiritual life. There is no good in it. Nice things in life should be earned with hard work. Only then do you appreciate and feel its value.

Even if you won millions through gambling there would be no blessing in that money and would cause you more harm than good.

Thank you brothers, I just need to stay on the right path and focus on doing good. I need to be great full for what Allah has given me because there are so many people in this world with nothing. As you said tho I need to find Allah with my heart and get closer to him, after all he is the almighty and only he can help me to have a peaceful but happy life

You are not going to learn to pray overnight. Even if you did learn the prayer overnight you would likely misremember part of it in the morning. Take it in small parts; write yourself notecards that you can read while doing the prayer so you remember the steps and the words, pray along to videos in your home, and by all means, go to the masjid and pray along with others. There is NO HARM in simply "doing what they do" as you learn. Learning the prayer properly and in full takes some people weeks, even months if they are not the type to remember things well. There is no shame in this, and there is great reward from Allah in simply doing your best, even if it is incorrect from ignorance.

Going to the masjid with your friend will also help keep you from such things as gambling, insha'Allah. This feeling of always suffering is a test from Him. You will learn a lot about suffering from the Qur'an, the hadith, and the story of our Prophet (pbuh) as you grow in your Islam. Take the time to learn these things and you will feel much better about yourself insha'Allah and understand much more about Allah's love for you.

Thanks guys I know gambling is wrong and I shouldn't be doing its, it's goes against every part of what Islam stands for, it's just hard considering I'm a new Muslim, it's about taking myself out of my old ways. I need to stay on the right path, at the minute all I can think about is having nice stuff and girls. I need to change the way my mind is set

Salam.

Just remember that a life without Allah in it is not a nice life. Regressing is just temporary fun and no real happiness. Come back to Allah, your soul is searching for Him and you will have that true contentment in life.

(In the Name of God, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful)

(Peace be upon you)

Hi. Hope you're doing well, brother Daniel. Welcome to IB! Thank you for joining us and entrusting us with your concern and asking us for help.

I know gambling is hard, but your willpower has to be stronger. I'd say your first priority should be learning salat (prayer) as prayer is supposed to keep us from fahsha (evil, mischief, indecency, injustice) as described in the Quran.

Also, it is natural to like or want nice stuff, because we all like nice things; however, what we need to do is prevent attachment to worldly stuff - so that we are able to praise Allah in every situation with "Alhamdhullilah ala kulli hal" ("praise is to Allah in every situation") - if or when nauzbillah (God-forbid) we should experience a lack in that stuff.

As far as desire for girls is concerned, that is understandable; and your desire for the opposite sex is a gift that Allah has put in you so that you are able to have a companion and partner in life. That said, as you know, that desire and gift is given to us not to harm ourselves or other people in breaking our or their hearts in premarital relationships but to be able to find comfort and peace in a marriage with a destined partner. If you find your desires strong, you should consider marrying a woman of good Islamic character at your earliest when you're able so as to be able to partake of physical intimacy in a halal (permissible) way. In the meantime, fasting is a strongly recommended alternative if you find in yourself your desires too strong to handle with exercising only self-restraint.

And if you want to change your mindset, I'd recommend you to hang around with good Muslim brothers to inspire you so that in their company you find yourself desiring to better your iman (faith) and wanting to become the best version of yourself. Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “A good friend and a bad friend are like a perfume-seller and a blacksmith: The perfume-seller might give you some perfume as a gift, or you might buy some from him, or at least you might smell its fragrance. As for the blacksmith, he might singe your clothes, and at the very least you will breathe in the fumes of the furnace.” This importance of good company is inestimable in Islam; and therefore, I recommend that you go again to the mosque and see if you can make some great friends there or if there's an Islamic cultural center near you wherein you can attend Islamic events and meet people.

Hey, being a new Muslim means having a new lease on life as all your past sins have been forgiven and you're like a baby; so, this is your opportunity, your time to write your future in the way that you'll honestly look back at your life and past in old age and say, "I have lived a happy and fulfilling life. I don't have any regrets." Take baby steps - you'll get there! Take care.

And please, please, please don't be shy to ask here for any help or reach out whenever you want here because we're all brothers and sisters struggling differently in life and I'm sure we are each other's best bet for support and encouragement to staying firm on the Straight Path.

Barkallahu feek (may Allah bless you).

Wishing you peace, happiness, and goodness,

(And peace be upon you)

format_quote Originally Posted by daniel_dee94

Thanks guys I know gambling is wrong and I shouldn't be doing its, it's goes against every part of what Islam stands for, it's just hard considering I'm a new Muslim, it's about taking myself out of my old ways. I need to stay on the right path, at the minute all I can think about is having nice stuff and girls. I need to change the way my mind is set

Thanks brother, i will try to do my best to follow the right path and as my friend said maybe finding a woman that is a Muslim can help me live a more Islamic life. Is there any way you could help me with the prayer, I know to pray 5 times a day but I want to learn how to and also would like to know what times I should be praying at?? Learning the Quaran in Arabic is also important to. Any tips or YouTube videos will be helpful brothers

(In the Name of God, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful)

(Peace be upon you)

@daniel_dee94

Well, learning some Arabic surahs (chapters) from the Quran is easy if you learn with repetition. To that end, I'd recommend you to learn Surah Fatiha (Chapter Opening) and Surah Ikhlas (Chapter Purity) first because Surah Fatiha is an essential part of each prayer and Surah Ikhlas is just a very short surah (chapter) that will be easy for you to be able to repeat in each prayer as the second surah.

There are 5 fard (necessary) prayers: Fajr, Zuhr, Asr, Maghrib, and Isha, and I'm linking you to YouTube videos to show how to pray properly.

Well, put in your zip code and you'll find what times are prayer times for you; the time for Fajr prayer lasts till sunrise. And each of the other prayer lasts till the time of the next prayer.

To pray, however, you have to be do wudu (ablution) step by step as shown in the YouTube video.

Just take baby steps to learn and InshaAllah (God-willing) it will be easy and definitely ask Allah to make everything of Islam and everything that concerns you easy for you in duas (supplications) which you can make any time to Allah anywhere anyplace. Don't try to overwhelm yourself and just try your best at your own pace.

If you have any questions or concerns, you're always welcome to have them addressed here or in the mosque by any of your brothers.

Barkallahu feek (may Allah bless you).

Wishing you peace, happiness, and goodness,

(And peace be upon you)

format_quote Originally Posted by daniel_dee94

Thanks brother, i will try to do my best to follow the right path and as my friend said maybe finding a woman that is a Muslim can help me live a more Islamic life. Is there any way you could help me with the prayer, I know to pray 5 times a day but I want to learn how to and also would like to know what times I should be praying at?? Learning the Quaran in Arabic is also important to. Any tips or YouTube videos will be helpful brothers

Even if you won millions through gambling there would be no blessing in that money and would cause you more harm than good.

format_quote Originally Posted by daniel_dee94

Thank you brothers, I just need to stay on the right path and focus on doing good. I need to be great full for what Allah has given me because there are so many people in this world with nothing. As you said tho I need to find Allah with my heart and get closer to him, after all he is the almighty and only he can help me to have a peaceful but happy life

One thing to think about is we all have our struggles but prayer and submitting to Allah will help us move past our worldly wants. I understand the uncomfortable feeling of being new and not wanting to feel out of place but take it from me going to the masjid to pray is the best way to learn. No brother will look down on you. Especially because many are willing to help you. If it wasn't for the masjid I would still be lost. Find a sheik or the imam at your masjid to speak with to help you and teach you .