How Can I Find Peace in My Life?

How Can I Find Peace in My Life?

Complete Lecture by Sheikh Kamal El Mekki

Introduction: The Problem of Focusing on What We Don't Have

And they should remain unhappy like that. There's a story I said just on Friday in the Jumaa Khutbah. I just wanted to repeat it.

And it deals with how people just always look at what they don't have. They look at what they don't have. And they become unhappy because they focus on what's missing.

And they don't focus on what they have. And you know the hadith. If you look at the value of the blessings Allah has given you.

The Value of Allah's Blessings

The value of your eyesight. You cannot put a price on your eyesight. You cannot put a price on your health.

These blessings are worth more than the world and everything in it. I have a friend of mine. And he worked really really hard until he became a millionaire.

May Allah bless his wealth. And in the process of working hard and gathering all this money. His family was destroyed.

And he always tells me. I would rather be making $30,000 a year. Be poor and have my family together.

Than all the millions I have now. And I've got no family. But people always ignore what Allah gives them.

And they say my happiness will be in achieving this goal. I won't be happy until I start a business. I won't be happy until I have a million dollars.

I won't be happy until I have this and that. But the truth is. We all have the ingredients to have a happy life.

The Path to Happiness

All you have to do. Be thankful for what you have. You can still strive to achieve your goals.

Keep a relationship with Allah. Keep making dhikr. Keep making dua to Allah.

Take cues from the seerah of the Prophet. The scholars say. Whatever calamity you go through in your life.

You will find the Prophet went through it or something similar. If you lose a child. If you lose a child.

The Prophet lost a child. If you lose a grandchild. He lost a grandchild.

If you lose a spouse. The Prophet lost a spouse. And so on and so forth.

Learning from the Prophet's Hardships

Every calamity you can go through. The Prophet went through worse. You have a headache.

The Prophet got a headache twice as painful as yours. You have a bad neighbor. The Prophet had three bad neighbors.

Are you listening? The Prophet had three bad neighbors. Do you understand what that means?

The Story of Three Bad Neighbors

What are the odds that you might have three bad neighbors? What if I said right now. Whoever has a neighbor that's their enemy.

Put your hand up. And then most people. I said what if.

Don't embarrass yourself. So if I said. Everybody who has a bad neighbor who's an enemy.

Put your hand up. Okay I have a neighbor who's an enemy. You put your hand up.

Then I said okay. What if you have two neighbors who are your enemies. And you fight with them every morning.

And then. A few people put their hands up. Then I say what if you have three neighbors who are your enemies.

Put your hands up. And one brother has his hand up. You tell me.

What are we going to think of this brother? You tell me. What do you think? What do you think we're going to think of him? We're going to think he's the bad guy. He's the bad neighbor.

He's the troublemaker. It's not three bad neighbors. You're the bad guy.

Right? But the Prophet had three bad neighbors. And the scholars say. What are the odds someone from the Ummah will have three bad neighbors also? But the Prophet always experienced things worse than what you can experience.

How the Prophet Dealt with Bad Neighbors

His neighbors would throw trash. Into his house. And he wakes up in the morning.

And their trash is in his house. If you wake up and your neighbor threw trash into your house. Okay.

And you took that trash. And you put it back into their house. Did you do anything wrong? No.

You gave him his trash back. We're even. Nobody would blame you.

How dare you put his trash back in his house. Well it's his trash. He threw it into my house.

I just gave it back to him. I'm neutral. Zero.

But the Prophet wouldn't even put it back in their house. All he would do. He would gather it.

And he would just say out loud. Is this the right of the neighbor? And is this how you treat your neighbor? That's all he would say. Three bad neighbors.

A Humorous Contrast

What are the odds you will have three bad neighbors? Let me tell you something. My neighbor throws trash in my house. It's on.

I'm not going to throw it back. First I'm going to put it in a big bag. And have my son urinate in it.

Then we'll put it out in the sun. Till it smells really bad. Then we scatter it all over his house.

The roof. So he has to dig to get it. Yeah.

The Incident at At-Taif: A Lesson in Perseverance

The Prophet went through things so difficult. You look at his life. You read his seerah.

And your life becomes easy after that. You know when the Prophet left At-Taif. As he was leaving the city.

They asked the youth and the slaves. To stand on the side of the road like this. And they started throwing stones.

At the feet of the Prophet. And Zayd ibn Harith. Alright.

The Scale of the Persecution

So these are the youth of the city of At-Taif. Which is the second largest city. And the slaves.

How many do you think they were? Don't make me smack you. Be quiet. Nobody under 12 say anything.

I'm 13. I'm 13. Hmm? No, that's too much.

But what do you expect? 50, 60. And they are going to throw these rocks at their feet. And then they chase them out for 5 kilometers.

5 kilometers. That's like 2.7 miles. Isn't it? Something like that.

Imagine someone for 2.7 miles is following you. 60 people and they are just throwing rocks at you. And they pick and keep throwing.

Pick and keep throwing. You are getting a steady shower of rocks. After half a mile you tell them, Really? You crazy? Half a mile you are throwing rocks at me? For almost 3 miles and they are throwing rocks at the Prophet.

The Purpose of the Prophet's Trials

He went through all this difficulty. So he can be a role model for us. He can be a role model for us.

So we can relate to the story of the Prophet. We are going through difficulty. It's not the end of the world.

And that's how it works. It's never the end of the world. You always go through calamities and you come out stronger.

The Nature of Tests and Trials

Never become unhappy just because of this difficulty or this test. Allah already told you in the Quran that you are going to be tested. So when you are tested, Your effort is to get an A plus on that test.

Not to fail. Not to complain. Not to become unhappy.

The Believer's Attitude: Avoiding Perpetual Sadness

And by the way, The last thing I am closing with. And it's very important. Being sad is not one of the attributes of the believer.

The scholars say, Being sad has never been the description of the believer. That he is just sad.

And some people think it's part of being religious to be sad.

Dealing with Ummah's Calamities

There are calamities happening in Syria, And in Palestine, And in Burma, And in Kashmir. And so we have to be sad in order to stand with the people of our Ummah. You don't have to be sad ever.

You make your dua, You make your donations, But you never live your life sad.

Conclusion

Alright, I am going to stop here. Jazakumullah khairan for attentive listening.

Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam.