Do you worship on the border?

[جوري]

(Al-Hajj:11) And there is, too, among men many a one who worships God on the border-line [of faith]:8 thus, if good befalls him, he is satisfied with Him; but if a trial assails him, he turns away utterly,9 losing [thereby both] this world and the life to come: [and] this, indeed, is a loss beyond compare!10

_____________________

This thread is inspired by so many of the bizarre things I have encountered on this forum, albeit the majority are inspired by christians/atheists/ and skeptics..

I want to post this as a reminder to the Muslims.. life isn't paradise, it isn't all fun and games, don't mistake God's kindness and benevolence to denote that you should neglect your duties toward your religion, your fellow man and especially toward the hereafter..

don't be concerned by those who have gone astray:

(al-maida: 105) O you who have attained to faith! It is [but] for your own selves that you are responsible: those who go astray can do you no harm if you [yourselves] are on the right path. Unto God you all must return: and then He will make you [truly] understand all that you were doing [in life].


so keep to the straight path, and know that you'll be tested and you'll be subjected to that which shall shake you to the core and you'll be hurt by the non-believers in multitudes of ways:

(3:186) Ye shall certainly be tried and tested in your possessions and in your personal selves; and ye shall certainly hear much that will grieve you, from those who received the Book before you and from those who worship many gods. But if ye persevere patiently, and guard against evil, then that will be a determining factor in all affairs.

and have glad tidings of believers:

No hurt can come to you from those who are in error if you follow the right guidance." (al-Maidah, 105)

"A group of my nation will always remain truimphant on the right path and continue to be truimphant (against their opponents). He who deserts them shall not be able to do them any harm. They will remain in this position until Allaah's Command (the day of Judgement) is executed". (Muslim)

Do not despair! Do not be sad! Do not worry about those people who are the strangers to the truth. As long as you are certain that you are truly following the footsteps of the Prophet (saw) and his Companions, know that you are on the Straight Path. Those around you who have strayed are strangers to the truth and have no glad tidings to look forward to. You, on the other hand, have the glad tidings of the Prophet (saw):


"Tuba [the tree in Paradise] is for the Strangers"















the last excerpts are taken from:


http://www.whymuhammad.com/En/contents.aspx?aid=6560

[syilla]

Man is fickle when Ease comes to Him after Difficulty

Source: Tafsir Ibn Kathir

(49. Man does not get tired of asking for good; but if an evil touches him, then he gives up all hope and is lost in despair.) (50. And truly, if We give him a taste of mercy from Us, after some adversity has touched him, he is sure to say: "This is due to my (merit); I think not that the Hour will be established. But if I am brought back to my Lord, surely there will be for me the best with Him. "Then, We verily will show to the disbelievers what they have done, and We shall make them taste a severe torment.) (51. And when We show favor to man, he turns away and becomes arrogant; but when evil touches him, then he has recourse to long supplications. )

Allah tells us that man never gets bored of asking his Lord for good things, such as wealth, physical health, etc., but if evil touches him -- i.e., trials and difficulties or poverty --

(then he gives up all hope and is lost in despair.), i.e., he thinks that he will never experience anything good again.

(And truly, if We give him a taste of mercy from Us, after some adversity has touched him, he is sure to say: "This is due to my (merit)...'' ) means, if something good happens to him or some provision comes to him after a period of difficulty, he says, `this is because of me, because I deserve this from my Lord.'

(I think not that the Hour will be established. ) means, he does not believe that the Hour will come. So when he is given some blessing, he becomes careless, arrogant and ungrateful, as Allah says:

(Nay! Verily, man does transgress. Because he considers himself self-sufficient. ) (96:6)

(But if I am brought back to my Lord, surely there will be for me the best with Him.) means, `if there is a Hereafter after all, then my Lord will be generous and kind to me just as He was in this world.' So he expects Allah to do him favors in spite of his bad deeds and lack of certain faith. Allah says:

(Then, We verily will show to the disbelievers what they have done, and We shall make them taste a severe torment.) Thus Allah threatens punishment and vengeance to those whose conduct and belief is like that.

(And when We show favor to man, he turns away and becomes arrogant means, he turns away from doing acts of obedience and is too proud to obey the commands of Allah. This is like the Ayah:

(But ﴿Fir`awn﴾ turned away along with his hosts) (51:39).

(but when evil touches him,) means, difficulties,

(then he has recourse to long supplications. ) means, he asks at length for one thing. Long supplications are those which are long on words and short on meaning. The opposite is concise speech which is brief but full of meaning. And Allah says:

(And when harm touches man, he invokes Us, lying on his side, or sitting or standing. But when We have removed his harm from him, he passes on as if he had never invoked Us for a harm that touched him!) (10:12)

Abdulrahman.org

As for those who strive hard in Us (Our Cause), We will surely guide them to Our Paths (i.e. Allahs Religion - Islamic Monotheism). And verily, Allah is with the Muhsinoon (good doers)."

Surah Ankaboot Ayah 69

[YusufNoor]

:sl

it is much easier to remember Allah in times of difficulty and it is MUCH harder when you are TOO comfy and everything is going oh so smoothly!

knowwhatimean?

[جوري]

:sl

it is much easier to remember Allah in times of difficulty and it is MUCH harder when you are TOO comfy and everything is going oh so smoothly!

knowwhatimean?

I do indeed akhi, luckily for me I never had things go smoothly

hope all is well with you insha'Allah

[CosmicPathos]

:sl

it is much easier to remember Allah in times of difficulty and it is MUCH harder when you are TOO comfy and everything is going oh so smoothly!

knowwhatimean?

Thats true but these people have gone through difficulty and they started blaming Allah in that difficulty. Over a long period of time they came to the realization that Allah (swt) does not exist. Not that after that realization their difficulties and depressions were removed, they continue to drown into the spiral of nihilism, despair, sorrow, depression, asocialism etc. Its a self-destructive process. If they truly begin pondering on a godless life, life becomes meaningless. They know it. But they also try to escape this by saying "life is meaningless and the only meaning to it is that which you give to it." So even though life's meaningless becomes manifest to them in the absence of God, they try to spin it up to give it a meaning from their whims and desires ....

I am talking about the mulhidoon.

[syilla]

The best is to choose the most moderate and practical way in Islam that suits oneself. And remember consistencies are the things that matter most.



It was narrated on the authority of Abi Tha'labah Al-Khushani Jurthum bin Nashir, radiyallahu 'anhu, that the Messenger of Allah, sallallahu 'alayhi wasallam, said:

"Verily Allah the Almighty has prescribed the obligatory deeds, so do not neglect them; He has set certain limits, so do not go beyond them; He has forbidden certain things, so do not indulge in them; and He has said nothing about certain things, as an act of mercy to you, not out of forgetfulness, so do not go enquiring into these."

[Related by Al-Daraqutni and others - Al-Nawawi said this is a hasan (fine) hadith]

Consistency

Abu Huraira narrated from the Prophet (SAW) that once, a man was travelling in the wilderness. He heard a voice in the clouds ordering an angel of a cloud to rain on a particular farm. So the man followed the cloud and saw that it did indeed rain on a rocky mountain plain. All the water gathered into a stream and poured into the farm. The man saw the owner working on that farm and asked his name. It was the same name he had heard specified to the cloud! The man then narrated what he had seen and heard, and inquired from the owner what was so special about him that would explain all of this. The owner answered that he split his harvest into three equal parts: the first, he gave as sadaqa (public service in the name of Allah (SWT) ), the second, he kept as sustenance for his family, and the third, he replanted.

- Muslim

There are three main lessons to be learned from this hadith. The most important is the consistency of doing good deeds. This farmer was giving one-third of his harvest as sadaqa (voluntary charity.) That is why Allah (SWT) was sending rain especially for him. The deeds most loved by Allah (SWT) are those that are done regularly with good intentions and in His name, even though they may be few.

The second is the value of moderation. The farmer did not keep the rest of his harvest for food or replanting, he divided it evenly. It’s important not to waste the provisions we have, and not to indulge in excess of what we do have.

The third lesson is the value of sadaqa itself. This farmer was getting rain as his reward for providing assistance to the needy. Allah (SWT) was providing for his charitable works. Money is therefore not entirely a gift or reward, but a trial for righteousness. We must remember to give part of our earnings to those who are not as fortunate as we.

http://muslimgirl.net/2009/12/consistency/

[جوري]

great posts masha'Allah..
I started this thread really to discuss, the balance of life, the trials of life and what it all means to the true believer..
If you want anything in life you truly have to work hard at it, and reaching God's paradise is no different!

[tango92]

i always get really worried whenever things are going well, cause i fear Allah will give me all my reward in this life. Deen can be so complex sometimes.