Gratitude
By Abdul Rahman Chao | 2026-01-14T21:37:52.415218+00:00 | Topic: Iman
Khutba on Gratitude
Opening and Islamic Greetings
(السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ - Assalamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu.) I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah. I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.)
(حَيَّ عَلَى الصَّلَاةِ، حَيَّ عَلَى الْفَلَاحِ، اللهُ أَكْبَرُ، اللهُ أَكْبَرُ - Come to Prayer. Come to success. Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest.)
Quranic Opening Verses
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ اتَّقُوا رَبَّكُمُ الَّذِي خَلَقَكُم مِّن نَّفْسٍ وَاحِدَةٍ وَخَلَقَ مِنْهَا زَوْجَهَا وَبَثَّ مِنْهُمَا رِجَالًا كَثِيرًا وَنِسَاءً وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ الَّذِي تَسَاءَلُونَ بِهِ وَالْأَرْحَامَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ عَلَيْكُمْ رَقِيبًا
O people, fear your Lord who created you from one soul, and created from it its wife, and spread among them many men and women. And fear Allah with whom you ask for mercy. Indeed, Allah is ever watching over you.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَقُولُوا قَوْلًا سَدِيدًا * يُصْلِحْ لَكُمْ أَعْمَالَكُمْ وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ ذُنُوبَكُمْ وَمَن يُطِعِ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ فَقَدْ فَازَ فَوْزًا عَظِيمًا
O you who have believed, fear Allah and say a firm word that will amend for you your deeds and forgive you your sins. And whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger has certainly won a great triumph.
Traditional Opening Praise
الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ نَحْمَدُهُ وَنَسْتَعِينُهُ وَنَسْتَغْفِرُهُ، وَنَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنْ شُرُورِ أَنْفُسِنَا وَمِنْ سَيِّئَاتِ أَعْمَالِنَا، مَنْ يَهْدِهِ اللَّهُ فَلَا مُضِلَّ لَهُ، وَمَنْ يُضْلِلْ فَلَا هَادِيَ لَهُ أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ.
Verily, all praise and thanks belong to Allah. We praise Allah, we seek His assistance and we seek His forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah from the evil that resides within our souls and from the evil that results from our sins. Whomsoever Allah guides, none shall misguide. And whomsoever Allah allows to be led astray, then none shall guide them back to the straight path. I bear witness that there is no God worthy of worship except Allah. And I bear witness that Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, is His final messenger and servant.
Quranic Verses on Taqwa
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَلَا تَمُوتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنتُم مُّسْلِمُونَ
O you who believe, fear Allah, be God conscious, and do not die except as Muslims.
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ اتَّقُوا رَبَّكُمُ الَّذِي خَلَقَكُم مِّن نَّفْسٍ وَاحِدَةٍ وَخَلَقَ مِنْهَا زَوْجَهَا وَبَثَّ مِنْهُمَا رِجَالًا كَثِيرًا وَنِسَاءً وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ الَّذِي تَسَاءَلُونَ بِهِ وَالْأَرْحَامَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ عَلَيْكُمْ رَقِيبًا
O mankind, fear your Lord who has created you from one soul, and from it its mate, and from both many men and many women. So fear Allah through whom you ask one another of the rights, and by the wombs that bore you. Verily, Allah is ever watchful over you.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَقُولُوا قَوْلًا سَدِيدًا * يُصْلِحْ لَكُمْ أَعْمَالَكُمْ وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ ذُنُوبَكُمْ وَمَن يُطِعِ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ فَقَدْ فَازَ فَوْزًا عَظِيمًا
O you who believe, speak the truth, fear Allah and speak the truth. He will render your deeds righteous, and He will forgive your sins, and whoever obeys Allah and His messenger has achieved a great victory.
Introduction to the Main Topic
إِنَّ أَصْدَقَ الْحَدِيثِ كِتَابُ اللَّهِ، وَخَيْرَ الْهَدْيِ هَدْيُ مُحَمَّدٍ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، وَشَرُّ الْأُمُورِ مُحْدَثَاتُهَا، وَكُلُّ مُحْدَثَةٍ بِدْعَةٌ، وَكُلُّ بِدْعَةٍ ضَلَالَةٌ، وَكُلُّ ضَلَالَةٍ فِي النَّارِ
Verily, the best speech is the speech of Allah, and the best guidance is the guidance of Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم. And the worst of all affairs is that of religious innovation, for all that is misguidance, and all that leads to hellfire.
The Story of Three Men from the Children of Israel
The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم tells us of a story that comes from a time before him. This story takes place among the children of Israel. There were three people who were afflicted with some sort of physical pain and ailment. One of them was a leper. He had leprosy. And you have to understand, thousands of years ago, leprosy was an incurable disease. Now we know in today's world, it's a bacterial infection that requires penicillin, and then you're on your way, alhamdulillah, by the will of Allah. But back in the day, they didn't know that, so if you had leprosy, it was practically a death sentence.
And one of them, it says that he is bald, but if you look in the hadith, it actually is closer to the meaning of having alopecia, someone who has no body hair, because he says in this hadith that the people would run away from him. And being bald doesn't make people run away from him. And the third one was someone who was visually impaired, he was blind.
The Angel's First Visit
So Allah sent an angel to the first person, the leper. And he said to him, what do you want? He said:
لَوْنٌ حَسَنٌ وَجِلْدٌ حَسَنٌ
Nice color and good skin. And I want Allah to cure me of this ailment that is causing people to shun me and push me away.
So the angel passed his hand over him, and by the will of Allah, he was cured. Then he said to the leper, what do you want? What kind of wealth would you like? He said, I would like to have a pregnant she-camel, a female camel, very large. And so it was given to him.
So he went to the second person, this angel went to the second person, and said to him the same thing. What would you like? He said, I would like Allah to cure me of my alopecia, my hair loss. And so he was cured by the will of Allah. And he asked him, what would you like? He said, I would like to have a large, I would like to have a female, or a cow. And I would like to have one that is pregnant. And so it was given to him.
And the third person who was blind, same conversation happened, I would like Allah to cure me of my blindness, and he was given a pregnant sheep.
The Test of Gratitude
After time had passed, and they had now settled into their new life, Allah wanted to test them. And he sent them an angel that came to them in the form that these people used to suffer in.
So the first angel came to the first person in the form of a leper. And he said to him, I have been traveling, I have lost my way, I am at my wit's end, I have nothing else. And I ask you by Allah, the one who gave you nice skin, that you give me one of your camels so that I might be on my way.
So this person, what did he say?
الْحُقُوقُ كَثِيرَةٌ
I have a lot of responsibilities. And you should know that these three people, they had a valley full of livestock. So one of them had a valley full of camels, another one had a valley full of cows, cattle, and another one had a valley full of sheep. He just had to give one. He says الْحُقُوقُ كَثِيرَةُ - I have a lot of responsibilities.
And so the angel now says to him, and he's in the shape, in the form of a leper. He says, weren't you the one that Allah جل جلاله cured you of leprosy? And He gave you all this wealth? And look at the arrogance, the gall, the brazenness that he says. What does he reply? He says:
إِنَّمَا وَرِثْتُ هَذَا كَابِرًا عَنْ كَابِرٍ
This is old money. This is money that I inherited from the previous generations. So the angel says:
إِنْ كُنْتَ كَاذِبًا فَصَيَّرَكَ اللَّهُ إِلَىٰ مَا كُنْتَ
Then may Allah turn you back to what you were.
And so he returned back to that state. Lost everything. Second man, the person who was suffering from baldness and alopecia, same thing happened to him. Made an excuse about what kind of responsibilities he had. Trying to deny his responsibility to acknowledge the blessings of Allah جل جلاله that were given to him. And so he was changed back to his former self.
The Grateful Servant
And so he went to the third person, the person who used to be blind. The angel explained to him his situation. He said, I am blind and I need your help. Please give me one of your sheep so that I may be on my way. So the man said, take, take whatever you need. And he says:
أَمْسِكْ
Hold on to your wealth for you have passed the test, whereas your two friends have failed the test.
Brothers and sisters, this hadith is a sahih hadith. It is an authentic narration. And we see that three people were tested by Allah جل جلاله. They had physical ailments and they were also very poor. So Allah جل جلاله not only restored their health, but He gave them new wealth. And after they had enjoyed these blessings, they were asked to acknowledge and perform the civic duty of giving back, on which both accounts they obfuscated. They completely denied and tried to get out of it.
Ramadan and Gratitude
Brothers and sisters, we know that the main goal of Ramadan is to attain taqwa:
كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الصِّيَامُ كَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ
We know about that. But more often than not, when Muslims talk to their co-workers, they will say like, well you know Ramadan also teaches us to be grateful.
And this is found in the Quran as well. Allah tells us in the Quran:
وَمَن كَانَ مَرِيضًا أَوْ عَلَى سَفَرٍ فَعِدَّةٌ مِّنْ أَيَّامٍ أُخَرَ يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ بِكُمُ الْيُسْرَ وَلَا يُرِيدُ بِكُمُ الْعُسْرَ وَلِتُكْمِلُوا الْعِدَّةَ وَلِتُكَبِّرُوا اللَّهَ عَلَى مَا هَدَاكُمْ وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ
Ramadan is the month of the Quran in which the Quran was revealed, guidance and clear proofs. And so whoever witnesses this month, then let them fast it. And whoever is ill or traveling, then let him
make up the days at another time. يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ بِكُمُ الْيُسْرَ - Allah wants for you ease and Allah does not want difficulty for you so that you may complete these days and that you praise Allah and that you become grateful.
The scholars of the past differed as to what is this gratitude referring to? Is this the fact that Allah gave you a license? Allah gave people the opportunity to make up the fast if they're traveling and ill?
For sure, that we should be grateful for. But the ulema also said in general, the fact that Allah has given all of you here sitting right now, that you are alive right now witnessing Ramadan and fasting, may Allah accept. That is a blessing that cannot be denied. How many people have left us this year only to live a few days before Ramadan and they were called back to Allah.
The Foundation of Worship: Gratitude
Brothers and sisters, gratitude is the bedrock of what motivates us to worship. And the reason being is that if you really understood the countless blessings that Allah gives you, that should propel you to gratitude, to devotion and worship. It is the way of the prophets of the past that they had this noble characteristic of having gratitude.
Allah says in the Quran:
وَلَقَدْ أُوحِيَ إِلَيْكَ وَإِلَى الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِكَ لَئِنْ أَشْرَكْتَ لَيَحْبَطَنَّ عَمَلُكَ وَلَتَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ * بَلِ اللَّهَ فَاعْبُدْ وَكُن مِّنَ الشاكرين
Allah tells Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم like we revealed to the previous prophets, that if you were to commit shirk, worship other than Allah, all your good deeds would be pulverized and destroyed, nullified. And then you would be among the losers. بَلِ اللَّهَ فَاعْبُدْ وَكُن مِّنَ الشَّاكرين - But indeed worship Allah and be among those who are grateful.
Ibrahim (AS): A Model of Gratitude
عليه السلام Allah describes Ibrahim
إِنَّ إِبْرَاهِيمَ كَانَ أُمَّةً قَانِتًا لِلَّهِ حَنِيفًا وَلَمْ يَكُ مِنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ * شَاكِرًا لِأَنْعُمِهِ اجْتَبَاهُ وَهَدَاهُ إِلَىٰ صِرَاطٍ مُّسْتَقِيمٍ
Verily, Ibrahim was a nation unto himself, devoted in worship to Allah, turning towards Allah and he was not among the mushrikeen, among the polytheists. شَاكِرًا لِأَنْعْمِهِ - thankful of the blessings that came to him from Allah.
The Arabic Root of Gratitude and Its Opposite
Brothers and sisters, gratitude is, the root in Arabic is to thank. And that's why, you know, you hear people saying شكْرًا or in Urdu شکریہ. It's from the same word, to be thankful. And the opposite
of thankfulness is ingratitude. But the Arabic word is most interesting because this word is the root of
كفر of disbelief.
And why is that so? Because when you are given a blessing and you deny the blessing, it is a form of disbelief, it is a form of ingratitude. And so the greatest form of ingratitude towards Allah is by disbelieving in Allah, the one who has given you everything.
"Allah says in the Quran, remember me and I shall remember you. And be thankful to me and do not be like those who are ungrateful. Do not be ungrateful to Allah."
The True Nature of Gratitude
Brothers and sisters, gratitude is not just about a nod, a smile, a thank you and moving along. It is something that is deeply rooted in your heart. That whatever blessing that comes to you, acknowledge that this blessing came to you without any effort from your part. That if Allah didn't bless you with that opportunity, you would have no chance of getting it.
Yes, you might have worked hard and studied hard, but who is the one that preserved your memory so that you could pass the test? You worked hard at your job, but who is the one that brings you your rizq in the form of your paycheck?
Allah: The Most Appreciative (Ash-Shakur)
Allah tells us to be thankful because He Himself also appreciates what we do. Even though Allah doesn't benefit from what we do, He doesn't increase Him in might and power. One of His name is Ash-Shakur:
How is Allah shakur to the creation? Allah is appreciative of every good deed that you do. Allah doesn't say, Oh, it's something very small, okay, whatever.
And whoever does one ounce of good, then he shall see it. In other words, Allah will reward you.
The Story of the Dog and the Well
The Prophet ﷺ tells us of a hadith of a man who was walking by a well, and he saw a thirsty dog, so he descended into the well, and he procured water and put it in his shoe, and he gave the water to the dog, and the dog drank it. What did the Prophet ﷺ say?
Allah thanked him for that act. Allah acknowledged that deed, that small deed that he did, and what did he do? He forgave all of his sins, and rewarded him.
Whatever of the blessings that come, it's from Allah.
Remembering Allah's Blessings
Umar bin Abdulaziz رحمه الله used to say:
Remember the blessings of Allah. Think, ponder, think back to those times that you were asking Allah for something, and Allah gave it to you. Remember that because in its remembrance is gratitude.
Gratitude Develops Empathy
Brothers and sisters, how do we acknowledge these blessings that Allah gives you, and how does it transfer to your action? Science has proven, research has shown, that when a person is grateful to Allah, they end up learning and developing empathy in their heart.
So when you look at those who are less fortunate, unlike the atmosphere that we are living in right now, where some people espouse the view that helping those who are in need, whether it is through government assistance or not, it is their mooching off of the system, their leeches on the system.
When you are grateful, you do not have that kind of arrogant attitude, looking at poor people with arrogance and disdain, as if they were all lazy, and you're the only one that's working hard over here.
And if you look in this hadith, the angel came in the exact form. He came in the medical condition that this person used to suffer in, to what? To bring about some empathy, because he experienced it, and that's what empathy is. And yet, what did that person say? What did those two people say?
الْحُقُوقُ كَثِيرَةُ - I have a lot of responsibilities. And when they're asked to acknowledge, they can't. They say, this is old money. I inherited this.
A Prophetic Supplication
And so brothers and sisters, the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلمhe used to make a dua. And I think it's very important that we learn this dua, memorize it, and teach it to our kids. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم used to say:
O Allah, I ask you to give me the blessing of performing good deeds and to abandon evil deeds, and the love of those who are less fortunate.
الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ وَالصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَى أَشْرَفِ الْأَنْبِيَاءِ وَالْمُرْسَلِينَ نَبِيِّنَا مُحَمَّدٍ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ أَجْمَعِينَ
أَقُولُ قَوْلِي هُذَا وَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ
Second Khutbah: Practical Application of Gratitude
Brothers and sisters, after talking about the importance of acknowledging that gratitude to Allah comes from the heart, that it's supposed to be something that you do and you remind yourself of, how do we make this characteristic in light of the month of Ramadan something that is practical knowledge, practical that you can do right now.
The Example of Aisha (RA) and the Prophet (SAW)
Aisha رضي الله تعالى عنها said she saw the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم performing prayers at night, not the Isha prayer, the Qiyam al-Layl and not specifically Ramadan, outside the Ramadan until his feet would swell, until his feet would crack. And she would say, Messenger of Allah, why are you doing all of this when Allah has forgiven you your past and whatever that is to come. He said, what?
Shall I not be a grateful servant?
Simple Ways to Show Gratitude
So brothers and sisters, gratitude is tested in the way how you show it to Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى . The easiest thing that you can do is by thanking Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى on your tongue and meaning it in your heart. Even if it is as simple as saying:
الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ وَالشَّكْرُ لِلَّهِ
All praise and thanks is due to Allah.
The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم even tells us in a narration that verily Allah loves for His servant that if he is to eat one morsel أَنْ يَأْكُلِّ أُكْلَةً that if he is to eat one bite of food that he thanks Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى for it. Like with every bite he eats he says الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ. And with every drink that he takes with every sip of water that he takes that he thanks Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى for it.
Using Allah's Blessings Properly
Brothers and sisters, thanking Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى also requires that you take the blessing that Allah has given to you and to use it in the right way. Imagine if you gave someone a thousand dollars but
instead of using that a thousand dollars to do something that is beneficial they went and they gambled they gambled it all away. They went and I don't know bought like a hundred boxes of of like little Debbie's cakes or whatever. Like what is this? Why did you spend all this money doing that for?
And so what about if a person uses the blessing of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى for sin? May Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى protect us.
The Prophet's Generosity in Ramadan
Brothers and sisters, in this month of Ramadan we witness great acts of devotion of prayer, of fasting. But if we look at the way of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم he was described as one of the most generous people:
He was one of the most generous people. And he was more generous in the month of Ramadan. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم understood the great blessing of Ramadan. And so every night he used to be visited by Jibril عليه السلام and Angel Gabriel would review the Quran with him every night. So you would think what does that have to do with anything? It's the fact that when you take these opportunities and you seize upon these opportunities you show your thankfulness to Allah جل جلاله by what the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم is doing and that is he was so generous in Ramadan that he is described as what? A beneficial cloud that comes and brings good. It's a metaphor that the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم brings so much good like that rain cloud that brings rain to the crops.
Allah Loves Generosity
Brothers and sisters, the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم also narrated in a sahih narration in which he says:
Allah جل جلاله is generous and he loves generosity and Allah جل جلاله is magnanimous and when you say al-jud in Arabic it's not just giving in wealth it means to be generous in every sense وَيُحِبُّ مَعَالِيَ الأخلاق and he loves noble character وَيَكْرَهُ سَفْسَافَها and he dislikes bad character.
The Story of the Prophet's Cloak
Brothers and sisters, I want to end off with a story of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم of a woman that came to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and she gifted the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم with a cloak, a burda and this burda was very very nice it had nice stitching to it it had nice tassels on it:
The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم accepted this gift from this woman and he was in need of this cloak and so he put it on. So one of the companions saw the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and he said:
يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ مَا أَحْسَنَ هُذِهِ فَاكْسْنِيهَا
O Messenger of Allah how beautiful this is, this cloak is, let me wear it. The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم didn't say it's mine excuse me, it's a gift given to me. He said نَعَمْ - yes, he took it off and he put it on this companion even though he needed it and so after the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم departed the companion said why did you put the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم in such a difficult position you know he needs it and you know that he would never turn away anyone that asks for anything he said I wish I saw the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم put it on so I wanted some of that barakah and I hope to be cloaked in it.
The True Meaning of Giving
Brothers and sisters this hadith really teaches us about the true meaning of giving and that is we should give to our institutions and we support da'wah efforts not just simply by coming and giving the things that you don't want and unfortunately not all masajid a lot of the masajid have become dumping grounds you have all these used clothes and old fridge that barely even works bring it to the masjid that's not what donation is. Allah جل جلاله says:
You will not achieve goodness righteousness until you give what you love and in this example the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم loved it and he needed this robe this cloak yet he gave it and without any reservation.
Closing Supplications
We ask Allah جل جلاله to make us among those who are generous, we ask Allah جل جلاله to make us among those who are grateful, we ask Allah جل جلاله to make us among those who acknowledge all of His blessings, we ask Allah جل جلاله to make us among those who use His blessings in the right way, we ask Allah جل جلاله for all the money that we are blessed with that we use it in the halal method that Allah and His Messenger have prescribed.
Our Lord, give us good in this world and good in the next world, and save us from the punishment of the Fire, and establish the prayer.