Life is a journey down smooth paths, rocky roads and extremely treacherous terrain.
While joy comes naturally during the easy times of life, it takes effort to find moments of happiness during adversity.
It’s easy to get caught up in our own stress and anxiety, and I for one plead guilty of this, however, I try to remember that our life is short and temporary, and that the everlasting life is in the Hereafter.
This will to some extent help put our worries in perspective.
Losing a valuable family member recently, I have been jolted to recognize our belief in the transitory nature of the life of this world remembering that whatever difficulties, trials, anxieties, and grief we suffer in this world are something we will only experience for a short period of time.
More importantly, if we remember to handle these tests with patience, God will reward us for it.
By remembering God in the way He has taught us to, we are more likely to gain acceptance of our prayers and His Mercy in times of difficulty.
The Trials of Life
When our heart feels heavy with stress, worry or grief, we must communicate with the only one who not only hears and knows all, but who can also change our situation and give us the patience to deal with our difficulties.
The Quran reads:
{Remember Me, and I shall remember you; be grateful to Me, and deny Me not.} (Al-Baqarah 2: 152)
And
{If you are grateful, I will give you more.} (Ibrahim 14: 7)
As believers, we must be aware that the trials we encounter are there so that God can develop and strengthen our character.
They remind us of our limitations as human beings and our complete need of God and His guidance.
At times we may feel our faith wavering through difficult phases in life. It’s hard to still believe that we can look forward to God’s blessings when we feel everything tumbling around us.
Keeping faith in God and strengthening ties during these times is imperative even when it means taking the first step when you don’t see the whole staircase.
God says in a sacred hadith:
“Whoever comes to Me walking, I go to him at speed.” (Al-Bukhari)
We should try to live in the moment. Without doubt there are moments of joy in even the most painful times of life and we should make every effort to look for them.
We must open our heart to these moments, rest in them and ultimately turn to God.
It is impossible for us to turn to God, and He rejects us. We are replete with hadiths which demonstrate this.
One such hadith reads:
“Allah is happier when a servant of His repents to Him than a man who was on his camel in a waterless desert and the camel escaped from him with his food and water.
When he has lost hope of finding it, he retired to a tree and lied down under its shade. As he was there, the camel suddenly appeared in front of him.
He took hold of its halter and said in his state of excessive joy: ‘O my Lord You are my servant and I am Your Lord.’
He uttered this erroneous statement as a result of his being overjoyed.” (Muslim)
Endless Blessings
Counting our blessings not only helps us to be grateful for what we have, but also reminds us that we are so much better off than many others, whether that is in terms of health, family, financial situation, or other aspects of our life.
Being grateful for all we have helps us maintain a positive attitude in the face of worries and challenges we are facing almost daily.
Taking the time out to thank God for His blessings will not only overwhelm us because we will never be able to enumerate them, but will truly help us recognize God’s undeniable presence in our life.
God says:
Pages: 1 2{And remember when your Lord proclaimed, ‘If you are grateful, I will surely increase you in favor.} (Ibrahim 14: 7)