Facing Your Trials With Honor | Dr. Farah Islam | Juz 23 Qur’an 30 for 30 S7 | Ramadan Series

Opening Reflections on Names of Allah

And I also love, maybe they're not really names necessarily, but epithets, I guess, of Allah, like, Oh, mover of the clouds, or the one who splits the grain and the date stone. There's such poetry in calling upon Allah that way. Allah says سَلَامٌ عَلَى الْمُرْسَلِينَ, you think of the مُرْسَلِينَ, the ones that have been sent by Allah, and the sacrifices they made. You think about yourself, what sacrifices really, really, really, for Allah have I made? You know, Surah Yaseen goes from this man that is warning his people and calling them to Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى. And they are rejecting and saying مَا أَنزَلَ الرَّحْمَنُ مِن شَيْءٍ, no, the most merciful didn't send anything.

Welcome to Quran 30 for 30

Assalamu alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh, and welcome back to Quran 30 for 30 alhamdulillah. As we are now in Juz 23, as we're in the last 10 nights, we want to remind you all to please keep us in your du'a bi-idhnillahi ta'ala, and of course, to support the work of Yaqeen. This may be an odd night, it may be Laylatul Qadr, of course, and as you're pursuing insha'Allah ta'ala, the reward from Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى, we hope that this content has been rewarding to you. And so whatever is left of these nights bi-idhnillahi ta'ala, or if you like to give on the odd nights alone, please do insha'Allah ta'ala, click the link below, and donate generously bi-idhnillahi ta'ala, and we are blessed, walhamdulillah, to have Dr. Farah Islam with us. SubhanAllah, the benefit that we get every time you join us is tremendous, walhamdulillah, so we're really looking forward to hearing your remarks.

Favorite Name of Allah

We should start telling our kids' ages by Quran 30 for 30. How old is he? In 2020 he was... may Allah bless your family, may Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى always surround them with mercy and tranquility and righteousness, allahumma ameen. Dr. Farah, if you don't mind me asking you, putting you on the spot, we're asking every guest, what's your favorite name of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى at the moment, is there one that immediately comes to mind?

I love that question, so alhamdulillah this year we got to go for Umrah, it's the first year that we got to take our son, alhamdulillah, so you know we hoisted him up on our shoulders, let him see the maqam Ibrahim, there are all these special moments, alhamdulillah. So the name, I think that kept coming back to me, because I think when you're in the sacred lands, I think you can't help but be overwhelmed by the splendor of your lord, it's like you're in the palace of the majestic king, and so يَا مَلِكُ, so يَا مَلِكُ, I am in your court awaiting your command at your service. These are the kinds of du'as that felt really powerful at that time.

And I also love, maybe they're not really names necessarily, but epithets, I guess, of Allah, like يَا مُجْرِي السَّحَابِ, oh mover of the clouds, or the one who splits the grain and the date stone, there's such poetry in calling upon Allah that way. Allahu akbar, subhanAllah, you know, we find that precedent in the sunnah of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, to relate to not just the asma' and sifat, but also the af'al, and the doings of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى, and that's a way to bring something really specific into your life as well. May Allah bless you, jazakallahu khayran for that powerful reflection, unique, I don't think anyone else has said that, alhamdulillah, may Allah bless you.

The Majesty of Juz 23

So this is a juz, subhanAllah, juz 23 is a juz truly of majesty, like Allah azza wa jal's majesty, and it starts in the middle of surah yaseen, goes into az-zumar, which, you know, these are two surahs that have so much love in the hearts of the believers, surah yaseen, you know, truly subhanAllah, is reflected upon and recited probably of the longer surahs more than any other surah, it's like surah yaseen, surah rahman, surah al-kahf. And surah az-zumar, the later part of it has the famous verse of forgiveness.

But between these two surahs, there are just a few that I wanted to look at. Surah yaseen goes from this man that is warning his people, and calling them to Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى, and they are rejecting and saying مَا أَنزَلَ الرَّحْمَنُ مِن شَيْءٍ, no, the most merciful didn't send anything. And the scholars have multiple reflections on that idea of them even mocking the caller, mocking the messengers with the names that they are introducing the people to Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى with, like, oh, this rahman you're telling us about did not reveal anything. This forgiving God of yours doesn't really exist, so the way that they were mocking the messengers of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى.

And this man is killed, and of course he says the famous words, يَا لَيْتَ قَوْمِي يَعْلَمُونَ * بِمَا غَفَرَ لِي رَبِّي, if they knew, if only my people knew how forgiving my Lord was to me, and how much he honored me. If they could see where I'm at right now, this is after they beat a man to death. The man is killed by these people, and he immediately, قِيلَ ادْخُلِ الْجَنَّةَ, enter into Jannah, and he says, يَا لَيْتَ قَوْمِي يَعْلَمُونَ, if only my people knew better.

And there's something subhanAllah beautiful about that, because it shows the heart of da'wah, that he wishes that his people would still gain salvation, and there's also a part of, like, he wishes his people who mocked him, and who disposed of him, could see how Allah azza wa jal honored him.

Verses of Peace and Majesty

But fast forward a little bit, since we're focusing on how Allah talks about himself, verse 58:

I love this ayah, سَلَامٌ قَوْلًا مِّن رَّبٍّ رَّحِيمٍ, peace, a word from the merciful Lord, that this is the greeting of every single person into Jannah, that this is not unique to the entrance of this man into Jannah, and of course, al-rahim, as Ibn Abbas mentioned, rahmanun fil dunya, rahimun fil akhira, the Rahman in this world, وَكَانَ بِالْمُؤْمِنِينَ رَحِيمًا, rahim is specific to the believers, the customized mercy of the Lord to the believers.

You also go into as-safat, سُبْحَانَ رَبِّكَ رَبِّ الْعِزَّةِ عَمَّا يَصِفُونَ, to your point about mentioning very particular actions of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى, glory be to your Lord, the Lord of might, far above what they attribute to him, وَسَلَامٌ عَلَى الْمُرْسَلِينَ * وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ, and peace be upon the messengers of Allah, and all praises belong to Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى, the Lord of all the worlds, his majesty, again, he's praising it.

And then one more thing that I noticed, subhanAllah, is actually a repetition, but with similar context, in surah as-saad, Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى mentions, رَبُّ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَا الْعَزِيزُ الْغَفَّارُ, the Lord of the heavens and the earth and whatever is between them, al-aziz al-ghaffar, the Almighty, the all-forgiving, ghaffar is intense.

And then, in surah az-zumar, in the beginning, يُكَوِّرُ اللَّيْلَ عَلَى النَّهَارِ وَيُكَوِّرُ النَّهَارَ عَلَى اللَّيْلِ وَسَخَّرَ الشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ كُلٌّ يَجْرِي لِأَجَلٍ مُّسَمًّى أَلَا هُوَ الْعَزِيزُ الْغَفَّارُ, he wraps the night over the day and the day over the night, he subjected the sun and the moon, each runs for an appointed term, is he not al-aziz al-ghaffar, the Almighty, the all-forgiving.

So it's subhanAllah, like his precision, he knows his creation, he knows you, he created you in a way that you're going to fall, but he also, you know, just the hadith, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, that if you were not to sin, Allah would replace you with a creation that would sin, so that he could forgive them, so they could call upon him, so that he could forgive them, so it is truly a juz of majesty, but majesty and mercy at the same time, paired together so beautifully.

Reflections on Divine Mercy and Majesty

I like how you mentioned majesty and mercy, actually even the majesty of his mercy, it's majestic, being that the mercy of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى is far beyond our implementation of mercy, even if we have it at the right time, sometimes we're merciful for the wrong person, or our reasons at the wrong time, and sometimes we're not merciful to the person that needs mercy, it's always, because it's within that element, or within that foundation of us being human, that we will make mistakes, that we will be negligent, that we will not hit the mark, but ar-Rahman, the merciful, is the one that will supply us and grant his mercy to us in all situations.

But it's important, again, the common theme of the Quran, Allah is telling you about himself to remind you, again, this goes back to dhikr, the remembrance, which that remembrance can bring forth the mentioning of Allah through your tongue, the remembrance in the mind, the remembrance of Allah in the heart, which brings life to the heart, which can bring, further bring life to the actions, but it's that connection of the heart with Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى, by knowing who he is, and knowing who he says that he is not, and then worshipping him based on that.

And then also the sacrifice, as you see in Surah as-Saffat, the sacrifice of Ibrahim, alayhi salam, you know, when Allah says, فَلَمَّا أَسْلَمَا, when they both submitted, Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى, I love, and that's one of my, it's so refreshing at the very end of Surah as-Saffat, وَسَلَامٌ عَلَى الْمُرْسَلِينَ, then he just, وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ, man, every time I hear that I recited, it's like, man, الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ, for Islam, I'm so happy to be Muslim, well I am, you know, you just see.

Allah says, سَلَامٌ عَلَى الْمُرْسَلِينَ, you think of the مُرْسَلِينَ, the ones that have been sent by Allah, and the sacrifices they made, then you think about yourself, what sacrifices, really, really, really, for Allah have I made, you know, what sacrifices have I made, and then I attributed it to myself, if I'm a father, if I'm a mother, but I don't thank Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى, I don't attribute the goodness that I've done for someone, in front of that person, attributing it back to Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى.

And then just seeing the graciousness of Allah, the mercy of Allah, the bounty of Allah, the greatness of Allah, the love of Allah, the protection of Allah, all these manifestations of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى, you just say, الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ, when you recite Surah Al-Fatiha, the next time we recite it, you say, الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ, and you just think of everything that Allah has given you, and everything that He's taken away from you, that you know, but imagine that which you don't know, which is much more, just knowing that there's much more that He's given you and taken away from you, the fact that you, that there's much more of that, that you're not aware of, is another reason for you to say, الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ.

So when you just say الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ, just know that there are many people out there that are suffering, and I'm not really suffering right now, compared to those people, like friends, I mean, you know, obviously goes without saying, our brothers and sisters in Gaza, brothers and sisters in Sudan, brothers and sisters in Yemen, in different parts of the world that are suffering physically, but سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى, the death of some of those hearts brings life to our hearts, insha'Allah.

So we think about what they're going through, what they face, the strength that they've had, the wherewithal that they've had, and how that has brought them closer to Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى, and we're able to see it real time, we're able to see it days later, months later, and it's going to be in the history books, obviously, which always serves as a means to show us the mercy of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى manifested in different ways, but in the end of the day, when you see this, do you say الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ, you know, and that's really the responsibility for each and every single one of us individually, and collectively as communities.

Al-Aziz Al-Wahhab: The Almighty, The Bestower

So, Dr. Farah, on that note, there is something great, the greatest that was given to the greatest, that being the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, which is the Quran being revealed to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, and when the mushrikun asked, you know, how come the mercy of your Lord, the treasures of the mercy of your Lord? Why would they come to you? Why not us? Allah عز و جل responds with, He is العزيز الوهاب in this juz. Can you tell us a little bit about the context of this ayah and what are some of the wisdoms of Allah عز و جل emphasizing His might and His generosity in this ayah?

It's a phenomenal verse, it's a powerful verse, it's a question posed back, it's a counter to the Quraysh, you know. How delusional can you be to think that the gifts of God would be dictated by you? And Allah عز و جل, He refers to His خزائن الرحمة, which I love, this idea of that Allah has a depository, a treasure house of His mercy. And what is that gift that He's telling us, He's giving to us every day from that treasure house? He's speaking of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, that He chose the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم out of this depository or treasure house of mercy to be the mercy to all the worlds. That's the gift that the infinitely giving chose to give us every day.

Number one, the very word of God, and number two, His example as He was the walking Quran صلى الله عليه وسلم. And so in this way, our Al-Wahhab, the infinitely giving, gives to us every day, and we can't comprehend the boundlessness of His gifts. You know, there's that beautiful quote from Ibn Ata'illah رحمه الله who reminds us, he tells us, you know, that Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى chose the hereafter to be the abode where He rewarded His believing servants, because this dunya is too limited. Only in eternity can He give us all that He wants to give.

The Divine Gifts in Our Trials

And oftentimes we live in the if only. We think, you know, if only I'd married that person, if only I was born into a different family, if only I, you know, if only I'd gotten Bitcoin, that's my favorite one right now. Then my life would be better. But that isn't where Al-Wahhab, that isn't where the infinitely giving placed you. Don't waste your years longing for a life you didn't have.

What looks like defeat can actually be victory from the Divine. All those years when you thought that you only saw poverty and missed opportunities, He has only been giving to you. You know, my sisters and my brothers, you know, maybe there will come a day when the veil of unseen will be lifted for us.

Maybe one day we'll see that that illness that afflicted you in this life was really the angels coming as heralds of good news to you, telling you that if you took this tribulation with honor, with steadfastness, with perseverance, and you held on to Allah through it, this could be your ticket to Jannah. And so maybe, maybe when that illness afflicted you, that moment when it did, maybe it was actually the angels bathing you in gold from the heavens. And subhanAllah, we can't comprehend what Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has been giving to us all this time.

That if that veil were lifted, you would be overwhelmed by the gifts of your Lord. And, you know, this reflection, this meaning making, this turning back, this reframing, I understand that oftentimes it comes after the fact, and it doesn't take away the pain or the loss or the grief, but it can help give you a capital R reason for why you went through what you did. And we need that, that solace makes all the difference.

You know, Allah is teaching us through this that to strip ourselves of the illusion of this dunya, that this clinging to this worldly life is exactly what brings us pain. And it's weirdly counterintuitive, I know, but I'm telling you that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is training us not to feel as much pain by putting us through pain. But that's the exact logic that we use when we, in strength conditioning, when we work out, we create micro tears in our muscle fibers.

And when our muscle fibers repair and grow back, they don't grow back to baseline, they grow back stronger. And the same is true of the believer. You know, Allah will keep sending you his gifts until you wake up.

You aren't, and I'm sorry, they're not going to feel like gifts to you, but he will keep sending you his gifts of tribulation until you get the message. Because if you don't learn the inherent lessons wrapped in those gifts of tribulation, they will be wasted upon you. They will wash off you like runoff washes off the land. But Allah will keep sending you those gifts because Allah loves you that much.

He is telling you, I need you to wake up. And so this is not a removed God, this is not a wrathful God, this is a giving God who loves you. Satan gifts you with poverty. Allah gifts you with his forgiveness and an unending eternal garden. So return, dear soul, to your Lord. Return to Al-Aziz and Al-Wahhab.

The Authority of Divine Mercy

It's hard to follow that. May Allah bless you. It's always hard. It's always hard, truly always hard. SubhanAllah. I'd love to hear, what do you... No, masha'Allah, I mean, you know, Al-Aziz and Al-Wahhab, you know, these beautiful names that Allah is and the mighty and he bestows with might, you know, his bestowment of his blessings and his granting of his mercy is always with might and with authority, which shows the authoritative nature, if you will, of the creator of the heavens and the earth.

And I love how you just mentioned turning back to Allah. We're in the month of Ramadan. This is the time to really ponder, to think, to hold yourself accountable, to ask those crucial questions that you haven't asked. And let's be honest, you've probably denied asking those questions alone because you haven't had the time to be alone because you never wanted to be alone in order to face that. But when you are, it serves as a huge opportunity. I forgot who mentioned it, but it was basically when you are silent, the mind starts to speak.

You start to talk. Your heart starts to cry out. And that's what Allah wants from you. He wants your heart to cry out to him. He wants you to be vulnerable to him. He wants you to think about those sins that you've covered up and don't want to think about. But that time that you're alone with Allah, it serves as a huge opportunity to recall and have that history of what you've done and what you didn't do. And then to face it, to face it. And when you face it, you realize, subhanallah, okay, I'm here now.

I feel horrible. Nobody's watching. Nobody's listening to me. SubhanAllah, I remember years ago, Sheikh, you mentioned some of those. It was nice. I think we're in the old value arrangements. You were just talking about making dua and then you just stopped. And you were like, just go, just go. When you're making that dua, just go. Don't worry about the Arabic. Don't worry about it. Just go. And that's what Allah wants you. He just wants you to just go.

And remember that he is Al-Aziz. He is all the almighty. He has the might. He has the strength to overpower any obstacle that you're facing by granting you that tranquility that you never thought that you would get, that sakina, the closure even. I mean, how many of us have relatives that's passed away and we think about, wow, I was not good to that person. I didn't make amends with that person. I didn't think this person would die of COVID, for example. I was so surprised. I didn't visit that person when I said I was going to, when they're in the hospital, when they're in the ICU. Now they're out of the ICU and they give me salams and they're happy.

But when I see that person, it's like, I didn't even visit him. I told him I was going to come and visit them. Those that have been locked up, for example, I never sent them a letter and then they see you and it's like, yeah, he's smiling. But I know inside I didn't do what I wish would have been done for me if I was in that situation. So it's important for us to realize this month of Ramadan serves as a huge opportunity for you to wake up, for you to ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala for forgiveness, for you to think about your life, the good, the bad, the ugly, and each one of these situations that you face in your life to think of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala in his names and attributes and realize that Allah can overpower any obstacle that you're facing and he can transform it into something that is good.

But it takes that small effort, that small effort, that step to run towards him, to walk towards him. You walk towards Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, Allah يهرول, and يهرول is like to make a brisk meaning basically he will give you more than you expect and more than, let's be honest, than we deserve.

The Gift of Calling Upon Allah

I almost feel like not spoiling the last 10 minutes with any reflections. It's beautiful. Masha'Allah, extremely beneficial. Just two dimensions that come to mind, like Allah gifts so even like the way to call upon him, the way that our story starts as humanity is tawbah and dua. Adam was given the words to call back to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala like you made the mistake and the one that you made the mistake towards is going to give you the words, inspire you with the right words to say so that he can forgive you. That's the story of human beings.

So sometimes, like I see in Arafat that just go. People come and they're like, they got their whole list, you know, I'm like, all right, I gotta make this. I'm like, listen, at some point, you just put that list away and just go like, subhanallah, the dua will come. And people are like, how am I going to make dua for six hours? And then subhanAllah, the sunset comes in Arafat. And I can't tell you how many times people come up and be like, that went by so quick. Yep. Where did it go? Where did the six hours go? Like, I can't believe that happened, you know, when you were in tawaf. So like that seventh round came so quick, like, wait, I still have more to give. And Allah is giving you to give and asking him because at the end of the day, the bounty will be rewarded, provided for and with his blessing and with his might and with his mercy. So that's one dimension of this.

Divine Wisdom in Distribution of Gifts

But the other one, which is just from the ayahs and how I was thinking about, because we're talking about the pairing of might and mercy. There's an element of Quraysh looking at the Prophet, I'm like, he doesn't deserve that. He has great character, sure. I mean, he's a sadiq al-ameen, we love him, wonderful man. But he's not like us, like he doesn't deserve all that. You know, we deserve the revelation. So why didn't the Quran come to us? Why didn't this happen to us? Like, why him? You know, and so that is an abuse of the concept of majesty. You're trying to limit the mercy of Allah and you're trying to extol yourself at the same time.

So you're making yourself bigger than you actually are, and you're belittling that person, and you're trying to limit the mercy of Allah as well, all at the same time. So you are violating every single principle that's coming within these verses. And that's Quraysh with the Prophet, but sometimes we have to also be honest with ourselves.

Like, you know, one of the questions that comes up, and I think it's a particular theological problem, is why is Allah letting evil people get away with things? And, you know, there's a whole pathway to answer that, and to reckon with that from the Quran and the Sunnah. And we've had to do so in the wake of the genocide. But there's also another one, which is, you know, this person doesn't seem to be that great, but great things are happening to them. And they're not exerting themselves, but like the mercy of Allah just seems to be descending upon them.

And there's so many wisdoms, and there will go down like trajectories. And so they could say, perhaps that person needs, just like the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam was taught, like yeah, he gave a bunch of camels to certain people that did not sacrifice that much for Islam, right? In fact, they were enemies to Islam for 20 years, and the Ansar are looking at that like, wait a minute, why? But they were worried that perhaps that was a sign of the favoring of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam to those people. They weren't worried about the bounties themselves, they were worried about what the bounties represented.

Allah azza wa jal could be giving someone more sometimes, because they need that softening of the heart, like they can't handle a greater test. And that's one possibility, but there are a hundred other possibilities you don't know. Focus on yourself with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, and the mercy that he gives you, that you're taking for granted, the blessings that you are not paying attention to.

And don't try to limit, and don't try to interfere with the domain of the divine, and allotting or judging who deserves what. That's all with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala at the end of the day, and I think that's an element of this. Of course, on the basis of character, like when they do the scholarships, when they do financial aid, stuff like that, they have merit-based.

If it was merit-based, the pure merit, I mean, 40 years, spotless, if there was a way to apply for prophethood, the Prophet ﷺ is the most worthy person, but prophethood is not applied for, prophethood is chosen by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. That's why Allah azza wa jal mentions Musa ﷺ, is to choose a path of sincerity and to earn, is to be chosen by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Al-Mustafa ﷺ, he's chosen.

But even if it was merit-based, he still would be the most deserving of the people. But Allah azza wa jal chooses, and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has wisdoms, and do not interfere with his might and with his mercy.

Patterns of Change and Growth

Dr. Farah, if you have any thoughts on that? If not, I want to ask you another question, if I can squeeze one in. But I'd like to give you the floor first, if you have any thoughts on anything else that was said. No, even with the question, my question actually builds on what you said and what we were talking about here. You actually have, you know, one of the rare spots of dealing with the community at a grassroots level, counseling, but also teaching.

So it's theory, it's practice, you know, it's sort of like the imam versus the academic. There's the pastoral versus the, you know, the 30,000 foot view, which sometimes doesn't give you some of those intricacies. Someone were to ask you like, hey, I'm sure you get asked this question all the time, by the way, because we get asked as imams. Hey, what are you seeing right now amongst Muslims? And what should we be thinking about? You know, what should we be considering right now? Like, what are you seeing in terms of a rise amongst Muslims that people really need to pay attention to? What would that be?

SubhanAllah, it's huge. I think I'm being fascinated over and over again by the fact that it's women, obviously, mostly who come, that they oftentimes, at this kind of midpoint of life, come to a crossroads, that maybe the life that I've built for myself isn't serving me. All the people pleasing, the precedence is basically that I've set up, has set me up for failure, and I want to change. A lot come in thinking that that means I need to change my husband, or I need to change, you know what I mean? That's oftentimes.

But then through reflection and talking together, it is about, well, wait a minute, what are the patterns that I set up for myself in my life? What were the destructive things that I did? And that I kind of built this life for me, I built this road, but you know what, I can build a different road now. I can take a different path. And that's going to be painful.

It's going to have to be, you know, going back and unlearning all these terrible kind of habits that I've learned that I thought would help me get through life, and relearning, but then re-forging that path. It is a rebirth. And so I'm seeing that over and over again in various confirmations.

Yes, subhanAllah. And it's, yeah, it's painful. And it's painful to hear all those stories as well. Sheikh Abdullah, is there something on the tip of your tongue you're thinking of as he's saying that? I mean, do they feel that, you said painful. What's the percentage of them that just say, you know, bismillah, I'm going to do it. And some of them just kind of stay back and dwell in their, I guess, in their current stressful situation.

They will continue to dwell for a long time. It's true. It's true. SubhanAllah. It's changing yourself. I know. Defeating your nafs. I mean, what you're saying, for example, what you mentioned, Sheikh, you know, not putting those sins under the rug, lifting that rug, seeing all the closets or all the skeletons I've been carrying in that closet all my life. That requires courage.

And I think, I think the vast majority prefer not to do that in our lives. We will continue just on the path that we've built. It is easier. It's comfort. That's what we seek. But we can, insha'Allah, push each other to more.

Closing Reflections

Powerful reflections. May Allah reward you and may Allah allow us to heed this advice. Dear brothers and sisters, please, insha'Allah, keep us in your du'a in these last 10. Push yourselves to change. May Allah guide our hearts to Him. And we'll see you tomorrow.