Joe Bradford 5-8-15

As-salamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu. I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah. I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah.

Allah is whom we praise, we praise Him and we thank Him. We seek refuge in Him from the evil of our own souls and the evil of our actions. Whomsoever He guides, none can misguide Him. Whomsoever He leads astray, then none can guide Him to the truth. And I bear witness that there is no one worthy of worship but God alone and that Muhammad ﷺ is His slave and messenger.

All you who believe, fear Allah as He should be feared and do not die except as Muslims. O mankind, be mindful of your Lord who created you from one soul and from that soul created its mate and from those two spread many men and many women. Be mindful of those whom you ask your rights from and be mindful of the wombs that gave birth to you for verily He is ever watchful over you. All you who believe, be mindful of Allah and speak the truth. He will guide you to righteous deeds and forgive you of your sins. And whomsoever obeys Allah and His messenger has achieved the greatest achievement.

The Greatest Acts of Islam

One of the greatest acts in Islam is one of the simplest acts as well. Al-Hafidh Ibn Hajar, rahimahullah, in his book Al-Amali Al-Mutlaqa, he narrates with his isnad, which he says is hasan, that the Prophet ﷺ said:

(Al-Amali Al-Mutlaqa, hasan isnad)

From the greatest of actions, the most virtuous of deeds, is to place happiness in the heart of a Muslim.

The idea of السعادة, of السرور, felicity and joy, happiness, it's a precious pearl. It's something that we have to protect.

Some of the scholars of the past have said that from the signs of happiness in a person's life, مِنْ عَلَامَاتِ السَّعَادَةِ صَرْفُ اهْتِمَامِهِ إِلَى أَمْرِ اللَّهِ دُونَ ضَمَانِهِ - from the signs of happiness in a person's life, felicity in their natural state and how they operate day in and day out, is that they focus all of their efforts on the commands of their Lord without guaranteeing for themselves the results that come there from.

And one of the signs of the opposite, one of the signs of being denied happiness, felicity and the joy that's experienced through faith, is that in our hearts there is no importance given to the commands of Allah, but all importance given to the promises and guarantees that He gave the believer.

Al-Hasan al-Basri used to say لَيْسَ الْإِيمَانُ بِالتَّمَنِّي - Faith is not built on high hopes, it's built on actions.

Protecting Our Happiness

What are those things that we can do to protect one of these most precious things that we have in our life? Which is being happy. How many of you watch the news and get tired of seeing things which bring you down? Get tired of the negativity. Get tired of the focus on what is bad.

Give you an example. Many times in the news the first thing that we hear about is murder. And no doubt it's one of the greatest of sins and one of the greatest transgressions that a person can inflict on another. Historically, we actually live in one of the safest times in human history. So our choice on what to focus on and how to perceive it has to be a conscious one.

When we see acts done by others which are wrong, we shouldn't merely wipe them under the rug and act as if they don't exist. But at the same time, we should not live vicariously through the negative. We should not allow the negative to engulf us. We should be people that maintain positivity, that maintain happiness, that maintain a sense of joy.

Which is why one of, again, the greatest acts that you can do in Islam is sadaqah. And one of the best forms of sadaqah is smiling in the face of your brother. So I want each and every one of you here today not to leave the masjid without giving some form of sadaqah. Now you can give it monetarily. That's not a problem. But also I'd like you to smile when you leave the masjid. Regardless of what's happening in your life, smile. You'll see the difference when dealing with people around you.

Ten Ways to Protect Your Happiness

How can we protect our happiness? There are ten things I'd like to outline for you today. And if we can just walk away with one or two of them, then I know that we can improve our mindset and improve our outlook on life in general.

1. Remain Curious

The first is to remain curious. One of the reasons why we become complacent, one of the reasons why we become somewhat uninterested and droll, is that we take our lives and we make the mundane routine. And we forget the curiosity of the child who constantly is trying to learn and discover the things around them.

Have you ever seen the happiness in a child's face when they discover a new flower on the ground? And you say, oh, that's not a flower, that's a dandelion. It's a pretty flower. Or they don't know the difference because they're that fresh in dealing with the information. They love the fact that they've discovered something new.

The Prophet ﷺ said:

(Hadith)

Knowledge is only gained by learning. And you can only become forbearing by being a patient and forbearing person. So whoever actively seeks for good will be given it. And he who seeks to actively stop evil will be prevented from it.

So you have to remain curious. You have to remain a person that sees the good in everything. And stops themselves from involving themselves in negativity and evil.

Many of the salaf of this ummah, when people of innovation would come to them, they would simply not respond. A man came to Imam Malik, rahimahullah. And he said to him, I have discovered things in Islam. And I know things that you don't. And I want to debate you about faith. Imam Malik said, "As for me, I'm confident of my faith. As for you, if you haven't found your faith, go find it." And he left it at that. He didn't allow the negativity that people had, in the form of innovation, in the form of thinking that something was left off, from the completeness of Islam, to bring him down.

وَمَنْ يَتَوَقَّ الشَّرَّ يُوقَهُ - Whoever stops evil in its tracks, stops negativity and bad things in its tracks, will be protected.

2. Stop Negative Talk

So one of the first things we do, after remaining curious and trying to learn about things, having that childlike mentality of introducing ourselves to people, and learning about our surroundings, is that we have to stop negative talk. Many times we're focused on things that are bad around us, and specifically in reference to ourselves.

The Prophet ﷺ said:

(Hadith)

No one from amongst you should say, and in Arabic they say, خَبُثَتْ نَفْسِي, my soul is filthy, or I feel filthy today. Or as we would say in English, I feel like crap today. Excuse the expression. The Prophet ﷺ saying, don't say that. وَلَكِنْ لِيَقُلْ لَقِسَتْ نَفْسِي - Instead he should say, I'm struggling today. I'm grinding through it today.

Notice the difference. Both connotate some form of struggle, some form of recognition that things just aren't 100 today. However, what is the effect that the words have on you? Are you saying a word which shocks you? We shouldn't say those things which are shocking to the ear, shocking to the mind, shocking to the heart, especially when referring to ourselves.

Say to my servants, O Muhammad, let them say what is best. Shaytan tries to tear them apart. One of my teachers, he used to say, the difference between our application and our reading of this verse, is the difference between a nuqtah, between a dot. Did Allah say, فَلْيَقُولُوا الَّتِي هِيَ أَشَدُّ - Let him say what's harshest? No. He said أَحْسَنُ, what's beautiful.

So even in difficult situations, we have to remember that the things that we say, the outlook that has an effect on the outlook that we take.

3. Actively Seek What is Good

After that, we have to actively seek what is good. As we mentioned, فَمَنْ يَتَحَرَّ الْخَيْرَ يُعْطَهُ - Whoever actively seeks for something good, he will be given it.

And Imam Malik, rahimahullah, in his Muwatta, he narrates, that Isa, alayhis salaam, Jesus, the son of Mary, peace be upon him, was walking with his disciples, حَوَارِيِّينَ. And as they were walking on the street, they saw a dead goat. And as they passed by the dead goat, everyone said, سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ مَا أَنْتَنَهُ - SubhanAllah, how stinky is this carcass on the side of the road.

Isa, alayhis salaam, stepped forward, closer to the goat. And he said نَعَمْ وَلَكِنْ مَا أَبْيَضَ أَسْنَانَهُ - He said yes, but how white are its teeth. Beautiful.

Even when we find negativity, found the ability to find the positive in that negative. Turn it around. Don't allow negative energy and negative ideas about things to make you miss out, even on the positive in that.

For example, someone might come to you, and they might wrong you, oppress you, and do everything in their power to make sure that you do not have a good day, and you do not get what is yours. And you may say to yourself, I consider this person to be pure evil, how can I even deal with them, or think that there's anything positive in them. And I'll tell you how.

By realizing that they were sent to you in your life to open a window on reality. To make you realize that nothing lasts forever. To make you realize that you have to struggle. That things aren't just going to come and be given to you. But you have to work for them. And for you to realize not to associate with people like this that are negative, that want to bring you down, that want to oppress you, that want to make you feel less than human.

4. Let Go of Mistakes

If we can do those first three things, remain curious, stop negative talk, look for the good even in bad situations, then we have to let go of mistakes after this. Those that we're around, that we choose to be around, that we know and we love, they'll make mistakes. And those mistakes are part of opening that window to reality. Just like the oppression and the hatred that's sometimes shown to us, is part of opening the window to reality.

Allah says: We have removed the veil from your face. Now you can see with 20-20 vision. Let go of mistakes.

Anas ibn Malik radiAllahu ta'ala anhu, was 10 years old when he was brought to the prophetic household of Habibinan Mustafa ﷺ. And he was presented by Umm Sulaim ar-Rumaisa' bint Malhan, to be a servant in the prophetic household. 10 year old boy. He said:

(Sahih al-Bukhari)

I have never touched silk brocade or silk linens softer than the palm of the Prophet ﷺ. The Prophet ﷺ never said to me, أُفٍّ ever. He never said anything disdainful to me, not even أُفٍّ. And if I made a mistake he would say, قَدَّرَ اللَّهُ مَا شَاءَ فَعَلَ - God has willed it and he does what he wills. And then he would teach me what to do instead.

The mistakes that happen from our wives, our husbands, our children, our co-workers, our bosses, our friends, our neighbors, sometimes we have to let it go. Let go of mistakes that aren't vindictive, but they're just mistakes. You'll find yourself to be able to keep a positive outlook and to remain happy.

Those mistakes can stick with you sometimes. The wrong that people do can stick with you and it's very easy to hold a grudge. But I'm here to tell you today, that if you can let go of your grudges, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has guaranteed for you paradise.

The Prophet ﷺ was once sitting in his masjid, and he told his companions:

(Hadith)

A man will enter the masjid now from the people of Jannah. Abdullah ibn Umar, some narrations, Abdullah ibn Umar, said, I need to find out why this guy is from the people of Jannah. So I went to him and I made up a story. My dad kicked me out, I don't have any place to stay, can I stay with you for the night? The right of the Muslim upon the Muslim is three nights. Haqq al-Diyafah. So he took me in.

And so as I watched him, I noticed he did nothing more than the regular Muslim does. Prayed his five prayers, cleaned up in his home, ate his dinner, and he went to bed at night. He didn't stand for tahajjud, he didn't do anything ad-duha, he didn't do anything extra.

After three days, I was so inquisitive, I went to him and I confessed. In reality, my father didn't kick me out. But the Prophet ﷺ said this about you. And I wanted to be like you. So what is it that you do, that's so great that he ﷺ would say that about you as you walk into the masjid.

He said, honestly, I can't think of anything. There's nothing special that I do. The only thing I do, is that every night when I go to sleep, as I put my head on my pillow, I make sure that I have no grudges towards anyone in my heart before I fall asleep. And then I fall asleep.

Don't allow the day to pass carrying things that take away from your happiness. Go to sleep with a wholesome heart.

5. Cut Off Negative People

Now sometimes, it's not easy enough to just get away from mistakes and give up grudges. Unfortunately, some people are so negative, you have to cut them off. Because the effects that they have on your life, can be so detrimental, that you remain in a negative state all the time.

The Prophet ﷺ said:

(Sahih al-Bukhari)

The parable of the person, who's a good friend, a good companion, a good person to sit with, جَلِيس and a bad person to accompany, to be a companion of, to sit with, is like the person that sells musk, sells cologne, perfume, and the person who blows the bellows.

Many of us may not know what the bellows are. Basically, it's the guy in the old-timey blacksmith shop, that has a huge thing like this, it looks like an accordion, and he blows air into the fire. And when he blows air into the fire, what happens? Immediately sparks fly out.

So the Prophet ﷺ said, the one who sells musk, either he'll gift you some, or you'll buy some, or at least you'll have a good smell when you're around him. But the person who blows the bellows, the guy working in the blacksmith shop, then the only thing you'll get is smoke, and possibly burnt by sparks, and the least that you'll take away from him is a bad smell.

(Sunan Abu Dawud)

So it is imperative that you choose - A man is on the faith of his best friends. Be careful of those that you take as your close friends. Which is why they say, a person is a reflection of the five closest people to them. So surround yourself with happy, positive, intelligent people.

6. Grow a Thick Skin

Lastly, learn how to grow a thick skin. Don't allow anybody to come and inject into your life that which takes away from your سَعَادَة and your happiness.

A man came to the Prophet ﷺ as he was walking with Abu Bakr. He grabbed him from the back. Notice. He grabbed him from the collar. And he yanked it so hard. Abu Bakr said, رَأَيْتُ أَثَرَ ذَلِكَ فِي عُنُقِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ - I could see the effects of his yanking his collar on the neck of the Prophet ﷺ.

And as the Prophet ﷺ was yanked, he turned around with the biggest smile. And he said, Ask. And the man said, Give me. Give me money. And he gave him. He said, Give me money. He gave him. Give me money. He gave him. Give me. And he gave him. Four, five times.

The Prophet ﷺ, then he was quiet. The Prophet ﷺ said, اكْتَفَيْتَ - Is it enough? He said, Yes. He went back to his tribe outside of Medina. And he said, اذْهَبْ إِلَىٰ الْمَدِينَةِ وَآمِنْ بِهَذَا الرَّجُلِ فَإِنَّ فِيهَا رَجُلًا لَا يَخْشَى الْفَقْرَ - Go to Medina and believe in this man. Because in it is a man who does not fear poverty.

Notice, he was negative. The first thing the Prophet ﷺ did was, face him with a smile. The first thing that he gave him was a form of sadaqah in the form of smiling.

8. Know Your Strengths

The eighth point is know your strengths. Many of us are good at certain things. Many of us are bad at certain things. I know for myself I'm bad at most things. But know your strengths and focus on them.

A man came to the Prophet ﷺ and he said يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ فِيمَ الْعَمَلُ أَأَمْرٌ مُقْتَضَى أَمْ رُفِعَتِ الْأَقْلَامُ وَجَفَّتِ الصُّحُفُ - Why do we act? Why do we do anything? Why do good deeds? Why do anything in life? Are the things that we're doing created everyday, day in and day out? Or have the pens been lifted and the ink dried?

The Prophet ﷺ said the pens have been lifted, the ink is dried. He said فَإِذَن فِيمَ الْعَمَلُ - Then why should we do any act? The Prophet ﷺ said:

(Sahih Muslim)

Act for each of you will be facilitated for that which He was created for.

Much of our unhappiness comes from doing things that are expected of us, not things that Allah has endowed us with. A man wrote to Imam Malik and he said to him I see that you've taken to teaching the hadith of the Prophet ﷺ and you should leave this and take to the worship of Allah because in it is your salvation.

Imam Malik wrote back to him and he said الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ قَدْ فَتَحَ اللَّهُ أَبْوَابًا لِعِبَادِهِ - I praise God because He has opened doors for His servants. Some He has opened the door of sadaqah, some He has opened the door of knowledge, some He has opened the door of worship, some He has opened the door of jihad, some He has opened the door of salah, some He has opened the door of taking care of orphans and I am happy with the door that Allah has opened for me, be happy with the door that Allah has opened for you.

So it's important that we know our strengths and we focus on those. We kill ourselves yearly, day in and day out in Ramadan trying to reach an ideal may not work with our work schedule, our commute schedule, or even our physical abilities. Know how you can focus on your strengths in the holy month of Ramadan in every month and focus on that.

9. Know Your Weaknesses

Also, know your weaknesses, number nine. The Prophet ﷺ he said to Abu Dharr:

(Sahih Muslim)

Prophet ﷺ straight up, Abu Dharr, you're a weak man. If you have the ability to never be responsible for two or more people and never take charge of the wealth of an orphan, then do so. He said, because this is a trust. And it will be a source of regret for you on the day of judgment.

10. Always Thank Allah

And lastly, the greatest thing that we can do, the greatest thing that we can do, to remain happy people, to remain people of السُّرُورِ وَالسَّعَادَةِ وَالرِّضَا to be content and joyful, felicitous, happy with what we have, is always thank Allah for what we have. We don't thank Him.

If you were to sit and count the blessings of God, you would never enumerate them.

He ﷺ told us two ways of being people of gratitude. Number one, showing gratitude to those that you're with:

(Sunan Abu Dawud)

Whoever does not thank the people, has not thanked Allah.

I'd like to thank each and every one of you here today. For having confidence in me to be able to stand in مَقَامِ النُّبُوَّةِ, in the place of the prophetic station, and to be able to speak to you today. Because I know that I'm not worthy. And so I thank you for your trust in me. And I thank the masjid for the trust in me.

Each and every one of us has people in our lives that have made a difference. If you haven't said thank you to them today, call them up and say thank you. No matter how long it's been. Let them know that they mean something. It will increase their happiness and it will increase your happiness.

And secondly, remain in a state of constant gratitude to Allah. I never understood the meaning of الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ. When I was a teenager, you know, as most teenagers are, always mad, right? Everything's wrong. And so I was outside of the masjid. I was extremely mad about something mundane issue. And so, a brother came to me and he said, brother, say الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ.

I said, what's that gonna do? Just say it. الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ. Say it again. الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ. Say it a third time. الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ. The smile came back to my face. He said, see, الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ. I said, الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ. He said, الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ.

So it's important that you remain a person of gratitude. One of the things that the Prophet ﷺ taught Abu Dharr as well was he said, إِنِّي أُحِبُّكَ - I love you. وَإِنِّي سَأُعَلِّمُكَ كَلِمَاتٍ - And I will teach you words. Don't forget at the end of every prayer to say:

Lord, assist me to remember you. To show gratitude to you. And to be beautiful in worshipping you.