Have you Taken a Long, Hard Look in the Mirror Lately ??
Dec 23, 2009
by Asma bint Shameem
Have you taken a long, hard look in the mirror, lately ??
Have you ever thought WHY all this is happening to the Muslims all over the world ??
Have you ever thought WHY we are being disgraced, humiliated, beaten and killed ?
Everyone is pointing fingers at the Muslims…
Islam is being given a bad name…Muslims are being accused.
Yeah, sure, it is very easy to blame the terrorists, the war in Iraq/Afghanistan or simply them for all our woes and worries.
But IS IT SO EASY to look in the mirror and point the finger at ourselves ?
Look at us and our pathetic….pathetic state.
We have totally abandoned our Salaah…or we delay it… or we rush through it.
We are too miserly to even think about Zakaat….so forget about optional charity.
We prefer to go for a vacation than to go for Hajj or Umrah.
We drink alcohol….we deal in ribaa….we steal….we cheat.
We eat HARAAM, earn HARAAM and sell HARAAM.
We love to dress the latest, revealing fashions, yet we are ashamed to put on the Hijaab.
We are quick to spend on ourselves in luxuries but dont even think about the orphans and the needy.
We waste our entire lives watching movies and television, and then complain that we dont have enough time to read, educate ourselves and become better Muslims.
We are too addicted to music and video games to find time to listen to or memorize the Quraan.
We are too busy in fun and games to fulfill our responsibilities as true slaves of Allah.
In other words, WE HAVE JUST SIMPLT FORGOTTEN ALLAAH!
And after all this, we have the audacity to wonder why Islam is being misrepresented?
And why Muslims are humiliated ??
And yet, we wonder why Allah's Victory has not yet arrived???
Does life go on as usual for the rest of us Muslims ??
Or are we to take a lesson from all these happenings ?
Dont we see that in it are signs for people to understand and reflect ?
“Surely, in that there are signs for those who contemplate.” (Surah 15: 75)
It is not enough that we, Muslims, speak out and condemn these acts of violence and terrorism and dissociate ourselves from such evil people…
There is another step that we have to go to, in order to restore the honor of Islam, to re-establish the mark of distinction a Muslim deserves to enjoy.
We need to come back to Allaah!
We need to remember that the cause of all good in this world and the Hereafter is the obedience to Allaah and the cause of all evil is His disobedience.
We need to repent!
Whenever a calamity afflicts a community, the first step to take is to have a sincere repentance.
The repentance of every individual brings greater good and reduces calamities on the Muslims. Allaah says,
“And all of you beg Allaah to forgive you, O believers, that you may be successful.” (Surah An-Noor:31)
Victory or defeat, honor or disgrace, reverence or contempt, and successes or setbacks are not decided by money, resources, numbers or skills.
Rather, they are decided by the balance of obedience and disobedience of Allah. The more we obey Allah, both individually and collectively, the more we hasten the Victory of Islam.
The more we disobey Allah, the more we delay the Victory of this great religion of ours.
When Umar bin Al-Khattab dispatched his army to the Battle of Al-Qadisiyyah, he advised:
“Fear your sins more than you fear the enemy as your sins are more dangerous to you than your enemy.”
One Muslims sins can affect the whole Ummah.
Every sin we commit delays the arrival of Allahs Victory.
Every Salaah we delay allows another Quran to be burned by the non-muslims.
Every Hijaab-less, immorally dressed Muslimah is another cause of disgrace to the Ummah.
Every penny of ribaa we deal in…every drop of alcohol we sell….brings dishonor and humility to our Deen.
Every haraam we commit…every sin we indulge in…every law of Allaah we break…we bring on the Wrath of our Lord, Almighty….we place an obstacle in the path of Allahs Help and Assistance.
Every sin we commit is one more reason why Allah should not grant us relief, safety and victory. Rather, it is one more reason for shame, disgrace and dishonor.
Remember, one sin can make the difference between victory and defeat.
“But whoever helps Allah shall be helped by Him. Allah is the Strong, the Almighty.” (Surah 22: 40)
Allah has made a Promise to the Believers:
“Surely, We shall help Our Messengers and the believers both in this world and on the Day when the witnesses rise.” (Surah 40: 51)
And He also says:
“So do not weaken and do not grieve, for you will indeed be superior if you are truly believers.”
He promises us relief, support, supremacy and victory, but based on the condition that we are TRUE believers. But,…..are we truly believers ?
If we are suffering humiliation and disgrace today then it is definitely not because Allahs Promise is false.
It is because of our own doings….what our own hands have earned.
“Corruption has appeared on land and sea with what the hands of the people earned. Therefore, they taste some of what they did in order that they return.“ (Surah 30: 41)
O Muslims, at times like these, we need to repent….we need to be patient….we need to be united…we need to truly come back to Allaah.
“Is it not time that the hearts of the believers be humbled to the Remembrance of Allah and the truth which He has sent down?” (Surah 57: 16)
So……
“Turn to your Lord and surrender yourselves to Him before the punishment overtakes you, for then you will not be helped.” (Surah 39: 54)
Have you taken a long, hard look in the mirror, lately ??
Have you ever thought WHY all this is happening to the Muslims all over the world ??
Have you ever thought WHY we are being disgraced, humiliated, beaten and killed ?
Everyone is pointing fingers at the Muslims…
Islam is being given a bad name…Muslims are being accused.
Yeah, sure, it is very easy to blame the terrorists, the war in Iraq/Afghanistan or simply them for all our woes and worries.
But IS IT SO EASY to look in the mirror and point the finger at ourselves ?
Look at us and our pathetic….pathetic state.
We have totally abandoned our Salaah…or we delay it… or we rush through it.
We are too miserly to even think about Zakaat….so forget about optional charity.
We prefer to go for a vacation than to go for Hajj or Umrah.
We drink alcohol….we deal in ribaa….we steal….we cheat.
We eat HARAAM, earn HARAAM and sell HARAAM.
We love to dress the latest, revealing fashions, yet we are ashamed to put on the Hijaab.
We are quick to spend on ourselves in luxuries but dont even think about the orphans and the needy.
We waste our entire lives watching movies and television, and then complain that we dont have enough time to read, educate ourselves and become better Muslims.
We are too addicted to music and video games to find time to listen to or memorize the Quraan.
We are too busy in fun and games to fulfill our responsibilities as true slaves of Allah.
In other words, WE HAVE JUST SIMPLT FORGOTTEN ALLAAH!
And after all this, we have the audacity to wonder why Islam is being misrepresented?
And why Muslims are humiliated ??
And yet, we wonder why Allah's Victory has not yet arrived???
Does life go on as usual for the rest of us Muslims ??
Or are we to take a lesson from all these happenings ?
Dont we see that in it are signs for people to understand and reflect ?
“Surely, in that there are signs for those who contemplate.” (Surah 15: 75)
It is not enough that we, Muslims, speak out and condemn these acts of violence and terrorism and dissociate ourselves from such evil people…
There is another step that we have to go to, in order to restore the honor of Islam, to re-establish the mark of distinction a Muslim deserves to enjoy.
We need to come back to Allaah!
We need to remember that the cause of all good in this world and the Hereafter is the obedience to Allaah and the cause of all evil is His disobedience.
We need to repent!
Whenever a calamity afflicts a community, the first step to take is to have a sincere repentance.
The repentance of every individual brings greater good and reduces calamities on the Muslims. Allaah says,
“And all of you beg Allaah to forgive you, O believers, that you may be successful.” (Surah An-Noor:31)
Victory or defeat, honor or disgrace, reverence or contempt, and successes or setbacks are not decided by money, resources, numbers or skills.
Rather, they are decided by the balance of obedience and disobedience of Allah. The more we obey Allah, both individually and collectively, the more we hasten the Victory of Islam.
The more we disobey Allah, the more we delay the Victory of this great religion of ours.
When Umar bin Al-Khattab dispatched his army to the Battle of Al-Qadisiyyah, he advised:
“Fear your sins more than you fear the enemy as your sins are more dangerous to you than your enemy.”
One Muslims sins can affect the whole Ummah.
Every sin we commit delays the arrival of Allahs Victory.
Every Salaah we delay allows another Quran to be burned by the non-muslims.
Every Hijaab-less, immorally dressed Muslimah is another cause of disgrace to the Ummah.
Every penny of ribaa we deal in…every drop of alcohol we sell….brings dishonor and humility to our Deen.
Every haraam we commit…every sin we indulge in…every law of Allaah we break…we bring on the Wrath of our Lord, Almighty….we place an obstacle in the path of Allahs Help and Assistance.
Every sin we commit is one more reason why Allah should not grant us relief, safety and victory. Rather, it is one more reason for shame, disgrace and dishonor.
Remember, one sin can make the difference between victory and defeat.
“But whoever helps Allah shall be helped by Him. Allah is the Strong, the Almighty.” (Surah 22: 40)
Allah has made a Promise to the Believers:
“Surely, We shall help Our Messengers and the believers both in this world and on the Day when the witnesses rise.” (Surah 40: 51)
And He also says:
“So do not weaken and do not grieve, for you will indeed be superior if you are truly believers.”
He promises us relief, support, supremacy and victory, but based on the condition that we are TRUE believers. But,…..are we truly believers ?
If we are suffering humiliation and disgrace today then it is definitely not because Allahs Promise is false.
It is because of our own doings….what our own hands have earned.
“Corruption has appeared on land and sea with what the hands of the people earned. Therefore, they taste some of what they did in order that they return.“ (Surah 30: 41)
O Muslims, at times like these, we need to repent….we need to be patient….we need to be united…we need to truly come back to Allaah.
“Is it not time that the hearts of the believers be humbled to the Remembrance of Allah and the truth which He has sent down?” (Surah 57: 16)
So……
“Turn to your Lord and surrender yourselves to Him before the punishment overtakes you, for then you will not be helped.” (Surah 39: 54)
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