Stay in Control

 *Stay in Control*

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بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

In hardships and calamities, it is natural to get swept away by the affliction of the moment. During such trials of faith, unless we are careful, Satan can inject fear and plant doubts in our hearts and minds.

Our beliefs in such vulnerable states may become overpowered by feelings of the moment resulting in the dwindling of our faith. Some of us start questioning the fairness and wisdom underlying such divine decisions while others get mired in a blame game. All in all, we may find ourselves lost, helpless, and stalled finding it difficult to gather ourselves and move forward.

For such situations specifically and others in general, Islam teaches us to stay in control by hanging on to the Mercy and Grace of Allah. We pray that Allah keeps us safe from the challenges and trials of life, but as Muslims we should know and understand Quran’s message and the prophet’s guidance for handling tough moments in life.

My people!

Even when all doors appear to have been closed, as true believers we should never let feelings of helplessness succumb us. Yes. Consider the following Hadith of the Prophet (PBUH) and ibn Al-Qayyim’s commentary on that Hadith:

*It was narrated from Abu Hurayrah (r.a.) that the Prophet (PBUH) said: “The strong believer is better and more beloved to Allah than the weak believer, although both are good*. If anything befalls you, do not say ‘If only I had done (such and such), the such and such would have happened,’ rather say: ‘Allah has decreed and what He wills He does,’ for *‘if only’* opens the door to the work of the shaitan.” 📚(Muslim, 2664).

Ibn al-Qayyim (r.a.) said: This Hadith includes several important principles of faith, including the following:

(1) “Do not feel helpless”: Feeling helpless is contrary to striving for that which will benefit him, and

(2) it is contrary to seeking the help of Allah."

Now,

The one who strives for that which will benefit him and seeks the help of Allah is the opposite of the one who feels helpless.

If we does not attain what was not decreed for us, then we may feel either of two things: Helplessness, which opens the door to the work of the Satan, so we see people saying “if only,” but there is nothing good in saying “if only” in this case, rather, that opens the door to blame, panic, discontentment, regret and grief, all of which are the work of the Satan.

The Prophet (PBUH) forbade us to open the door to shaytan's works in this manner, and told us to adopt the second option, which is looking at the divine decree and bearing it in mind, for if it was decreed for us, it would never have missed us and no one could have prevented us from attaining it. So, “If anything befalls us,, we should not say ‘If only I had done (such and such), the such and such would have happened,’ rather say: ‘Allah has decreed and what He wills He does,’”. Hence this hadeeth is one which a person can never do without. 📚(Shifa Al-Aleel, 37-38)