Are you being ungrateful or you are pleased with Allah’s Decree?

Al-Rida bil Qada 
Being happy with Divine Decree

By Xenia

This is a reminder for you and for me.

Anyone can choose to be ungrateful. Some of us look at others and we wish we had their looks, their height, their wealth, the number of children they have or don’t have, theireducation, their talents, their…, their… and this can cause negativity and ungratefulness for the “blessings” we have supposedly missed out on.

We can become so ungrateful that we spend our lives by  missing out and failing to enjoy the blessings we have been granted with.

You must have come across people who are just not happy with their lot, no matter what.

Young girls who are miserable because there is a delay in them finding a suitable ” suitor”, agonizing when they hear about their friends getting married.

Harassed mums who enviously look at childless women and wish for a tidier house, time to themselves, uninterrupted nights , exotic holidays…

We wish, we aim, we get, we loose and the cycle continues through all our life without us having any feelings  of contentment or happiness.

The financially challenged wishing for affluence.

The wealthy wishing for less stressful lives and more time.

The list is endless.

The cycle of ingratitude continues throughout some people’s lives.

There is Divine Wisdom and a great reward for those who are happy with Allah’s Decree.

‘A’isha reported: I heard Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: There is nothing (in the form of trouble) that comes to a believer even if it is the pricking of a thorn that there is decreed for him by Allah good or his sins are obliterated. Sahih Muslim  (Book #032, Hadith #6241)

Allah (swt) Says in the Holy Qur’an:

“…Allâh is pleased with them and they  (pleased)with Him. That is the greatsuccess (Paradise). (Al-Ma’idah 5:119)

But how can we achieve this ?

“Do not look to those above you. Look to those below you, as it will more likely remind you of Allah’s favors bestowed on you.” (Al-Bukhari and Muslim)

Here I would like to mention the serious matter of being displeased not only with theDecree of Allah (swt) but also with any aspect of  the Islamic faith.

There is a clear warning in the following ayaat:

Allah says:

But no, by your Lord, they can have no Faith, until they make you (O Muhammad SAW) judge in all disputes between them, and find in themselves no resistance against your decisions, and accept (them) with full submission. (An-Nisa 4:65)

No Faith= Disbeliever

Lets all  work hard towards being of those who are pleased with what Allah (swt) has decreed for us.

Imagine how happy and at peace you will be when your last best friend rings you to let you know she is getting married or the most expensive sports car is parked at your neighbour’s drive and you are truly and from the bottom of your heart happy for them.

May Allah (swt) Forgive us for our shortcomings and may we  be of the grateful ones.

Thank you for reading!

The Believing Woman is Alert

From the Book" The Ideal Muslimah" by Dr Muhammad Ali-Hashimi
Chapter 1: The Muslim Woman and Her Rabb

One of the most prominent distinguishing features of the Muslim woman is her deep faith in Allah

(SWT), and her sincere conviction that whatever happens in this universe, and whatever fate
befalls human beings, only happens through the will and decree of Allah (SWT); whatever befalls a
person could not have been avoided, and whatever does not happen to a person could not have
been made to happen. A person has no choice in this life but to strive towards the right path and to
do good deeds - acts of worship and other acts - by whatever means one can, putting all his trust
in Allah (SWT), submitting to His will, and believing that he is always in need of Allah's (SWT) help
and support

The story of Hajar offers the Muslim woman the most marvellous example of deep faith in Allah
(SWT) and sincere trust in Him. Ibrahim `May peace be upon him' (PBUH) left her at the Ka`bah in
Makkah, above the well of Zamzam, at a time when there were no people and no water in the
place. Hajar had no-one with her except her infant son Isma`il. She asked Ibrahim, calmly and
with no trace of panic: "Has Allah (SWT) commanded you to do this, O Ibrahim?" Ibrahim (PBUH)
said, "Yes." Her response reflected her acceptance and optimism: "Then He is not going to abandon
us." Reported by Bukhari in Kitab al-Anbiya1
Here was an extremely difficult situation: a man left his wife and infant son in a barren land, where
there were no plants, no water, and no people, and went back to the distant land of Palestine. He
left nothing with her but a sack of dates and a skin filled with water. Were it not for the deep faith
and trust in Allah (SWT) that filled Hajar's heart, she would not have been able to cope with such a
difficult situation; she would have collapsed straight away, and would not have become the woman
whose name is forever remembered night and day by those who perform hajj and `umrah at the
house of Allah (SWT), every time they drink the pure water of Zamzam, and run between the
mounts of Safa' and Marwah, as Hajar did on that most trying day.
This deep faith and awareness had an amazing effect on the lives of Muslim men and women: it
awoke their consciences and reminded them that Allah (SWT) witnesses and knows every secret,
and that He is with a person wherever he may be.

Xenia's note: Lets supplicate Allah to increase us in Knowledge and Faith