Asking for Guidance

Dear brothers, good guidance is the greatest gift that we can receive from Allah SWT. It is something that we cannot do without. To be guided by Allah SWT to worship him and to follow the path of our beloved Prophet SAWS is the ultimate goal of every Muslim.

Our lives would be absolutely devoid of any meaning unless we acknowledge Allah SWT and worship Him as He alone deserves to be worshipped.

As Muslims we need to be aware of the underlying fact of existence in this life and that is that we can do without other so-called essentials of life. We can do without wealth and without good health and without other things. Although life would be quite hard and quite challenging without these things, as long as we have the right guidance, we would still be victorious in front of Allah SWT.

As Muslims, we are so very lucky because we don’t even have to hunt and search for the right guidance. As Muslims, we have through the Glorious Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet SAWS, all the guidance we need to be successful.

However, by being Muslim it does not guarantee one to be guided. In fact, our behaviour can work against us from being guided. One example of poor behaviour that of injustice to others, is highlighted in the Quran as a barrier to guidance.

Allah SWT says in Sura Al-Anam:

They who believe and do not mix their belief with injustice – those will have security, and they are rightly guided.

Dear brothers, we need to be aware of our own weaknesses becoming a barrier to the greatest gift of Allah SWT. Injustice is mentioned and so is disobedience to Allah SWT.

We cannot expect guidance if we are not following in the ways taught to us by Allah SWT and by our Prophet SAWS.

Allah SWT says in Sura As-Saf:

And [mention, O Muhammed], when Moses said to his people, “O my people, who do you harm me while you certainly know that I am the messenger of Allah to you?” And when they deviated, Allah caused their hearts to deviate. And Allah does not guide the defiantly disobedient people.

Dear brothers, this ayat mentions the defiantly disobedient and we need to ensure that we do not fall into this category in our words and our behaviour.

We need to constantly seek guidance from our Lord. Our beloved Prophet taught us this practice through his actions and his supplications. It is narrated in hadith that if he woke up for night prayers and at the start of the prayer he would say:

Oh Lord of Jibreel and Mikael and Israfel, creator of the Heavens and Earth, knowledge of the Unseen, you decide between your slaves regarding their differences. Guide me to any doubts of the truth with your permission, you guide whoever you wish to the correct path.

Dear brothers, this is an important Hadith to ponder upon. If the greatest of all creation SAWS was praying for guidance then who are we to omit such a supplication from our prayers?

That being said, this khutba concludes with 3 tips that can be implemented to increase ones chances of being rightly guided:

  1. Sincerity in actions. This relates to the khutba given a few weeks ago on intention. If we are to achieve guidance from our Lord then we need to have the right intention. And this is dependent upon the sincerity with which we worship to our Lord and the sincerity with which we ask for guidance from our Lord.
  2. Increase remembrance and worship of Allah SWT. This is an obvious point but the hadith highlights how important our supplication is for receiving guidance. On top of the supplication given here, the one of Istikhara is a very potent one that we should all aim to learn and utilize.
  3. And lastly, humble yourself. Arrogance about our lives, our possessions, our talents etc. can be a barrier to receiving guidance. We need to be careful that we don’t think that we deserve more than others – even if we appear more steadfast in our worship than them. We need to always be mindful of the fact that everything is through the divine will of Allah SWT and so be grateful for all that we do have.

Dear brothers, we are living in times where misguidance and misinformation is the key weapon of those against the path of Islam. Therefore we need all the help and guidance we can get from Allah SWT to carry us through these times and back to Him in victory. Let us add this request from Him in our supplications so that we are of the rightly guided on the Day of Judgement.

May Allah SWT enable us to carry out actions that warrant his guidance. May Allah SWT deliver us guidance towards His path and may Allah SWT reward us for the effort of receiving his guidance.

Walhamdullilahi RabilAlameen.

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Love for Allah

Allah (SWT) says in sura Al Maidah ayat 54

 

O you who have believed, whoever of you should revert from his religion – Allah will bring forth [in place of them] a people He will love and who will love Him [who are] humble toward the believers, powerful against the disbelievers; they strive in the cause of Allah and do not fear the blame of a critic. That is the favor of Allah ; He bestows it upon whom He wills. And Allah is all-Encompassing and Knowing.

 

It is probably impossible to find a human being who does not love. Most people love their families, spouses and friends. Others love status and money. You can tell a person’s love for something or someone by what they do and how they act.

And we love all of these things despite their temporary nature, despite the fact that they disappoint us sometimes. It is almost an intrinsic part of a human being. And we all love for similar reasons—we love people for the perceived good qualities that we see in a person or the way they treat us. We love things because of the way those things make us feel.

In sura Al Fusilat aya 17

 

And as for Thamud, We guided them, but they preferred blindness over guidance, so the thunderbolt of humiliating punishment seized them for what they used to earn.

 

The Glorious Quran clearly demonstrates the danger of pursuing the love of this Dunya, of this life.

 

So what does it mean when we say we should we love Allah SWT?

 

How can we not? If we put together all the reasons why we love other people or things, and then apply it to Allah (swt), we should see that truly it is Him that deserves our love. And because human beings are naturally inclined to love, it is only the love of Allah (swt) that can satisfy this need.

 

Try to count everything good in your life, and everything that seemed bad but turned out to be good. All that is from Allah (swt).

 

The fact that you are Muslim. The fact that, as the Prophet ﷺtold us, everything that happens in the life of a Muslim is good, and this is only for the believers.

 

If you are given blessings, then it is an opportunity to be thankful, and if you are tested, it is for you to be patient and to be rewarded for that patience. Nothing a believer does goes to waste inshallah.

 

 

So how does one make one’s heart love Allah SWT? One’s heart begins to feel the love for Allah SWT through:

 

Reading the Quran with reflection

Performance of more voluntary prayers

The remembrance of Allah SWT through Zikr

Choose what Allah SWT prefers over what you prefer

 

There is a Hadith which demonstrates how the best of Creation performed such a requirement and is an example for us all once more:

 

‘A’isha reported: One night I missed Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) from the bed, and when I sought him my hand touched the soles of his feet while he was in the state of prostration; they (feet) were raised and he was saying:” O Allah, I seek refuge in Your pleasure from Your anger, and in Your forgiveness from Your punishment, and I seek refuge in You from You. I can’t do justice to praise You. Only You can praise Yourself as you deserve”

 

We should all aim to strive to match this level of devotion and love for Allah SWT. True happiness and contentment from this life can only come when our hearts feel this love for Allah SWT.

 

One last reminder is a dua that was recited by the Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him):

 

“Oh Allah I ask you for your love, and love of those who love you, and love of any action that will make me close to loving you”

 

We ask Allah swt to be from the people who love him and he loves us. We ask Allah to help us to remember him. We ask Allah to help us to thank him. and we ask Allah to help us to worship him.

 

We ask for his forgiveness, his mercy on ourselves and our family and ummah.

 

Ameen. Alhamdullilahi rabill alamin

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