Nobody will live this life without being tested and being put into difficulties. Our hearts will never rest from worries as uncertainties tries to shake our beliefs. We sleep in the nights hoping problems fade away but end up waking up in the morning with more problems. This is the depiction of our everyday lives, and the struggle to maintain hope in Allah, that everything happens for a reason and nothing more than goodness of tomorrow.
As Stephen Covey, an educator, once said with regards to problems, the bigger the changes that we want to make, the more difficult the challenges become. The problems and pains will be ever-increasing as we try to achieve higher things.
But that is a matter of perspective. If you look at how big, hard and impossible seems our problems may be perceived, the mercy of Allah is greater and is ever-increasing! We meddle too much in our problems such that we fail to acknowledge what He provides us yesterday, today and tomorrow. Yesterday, we were given chances to make the change. Today, this is the chance to make that change. And as for tomorrow, at least Allah has given us the space in our hearts to hope. To hope for a better future and to hope that whatever happened yesterday or is happening today, will pave the path of tomorrow.
Thus, as Covey wrote, "we need to identify and apply the principle or natural law that governs the results you seek."
In order to do this, we must open ourselves to honesty and to look deep into our hearts in order to seek the root of the problems. And to reflect, is a gift from Allah. It is a guidance towards better understanding of knowledge and it gives us the ability to extract values from lessons.
People fear and they feel insecure. The future is uncertain, this fears us because it is beyond our control - we cannot do anything about fate and destiny but to control our expectation such that, we hope it will meet reality. What really happens is, we don't put our belief in the process of which if we do our part, Allah will do the rest. Thus, insecurity that is not handled well, kills hope.
The danger of hopelessness is that it kills ambitions. Negativity in our mind drains our hope. We choose to not believe. Because hope is a matter of choice, given the right paradigm of mind.
Thus I want to propose a solution. Put your reliance in Allah.
"If only you relied on Allah a true reliance, He would provide sustenance for you just as He does the birds: They fly out in the morning empty and return in the afternoon with full stomachs." (Tirmidhi, ibn Majah)
This can be translated through your actions. Make intentions for the sake of Allah. Define problems with relation of the way of Allah. Be proactive and execute actions in the way of Allah. And hope for the sake of Allah that whatever the problems is, He gave it so that we can talk to Him. He wants us to talk to Him, to yearn for Him. He wants our love. He wants us to make that extra du'a and He misses our du'a. And that's why sometimes He delays our du'a. So that He can have more time with us.
This is where the challenge comes: To be firm with our hearts to Allah, no matter how bad the circumstances looks like. Find knowledge, practice it, and strengthen your belief and conviction to none other but Him. For Allah is Al-Wakeel, that he controls His worshipers’ affairs and takes care of them.
I will end with this hadith:
The Prophet ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) was asked, “O Messenger of Allāh, which of the people are the most sorely tested?”
He said: “The Prophets, then those similar, then those similar. A man will be tested in accordance with his level of faith. If his faith is strong, he will be tested more severely, and if his faith is weak, he will be tested in accordance with his faith. Calamity will keep befalling a person until he walks on the earth with no sin on him.”
(Tirmidhi)
Author: Asyraf
Photo Credit: Bokeh City Lights by Trevor Diaz