Gratitude And Patience

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
Assalaamu alaykum

Dear Friends

I pray that you are well.

No matter how good things get, there are people who still only see bad – and they would go to great lengths to point it out to everyone around them. These are the complainers.

Many people don't realize they are complainers. Many of us are complainers to a certain degree. Catch yourself complain one day and you will agree.

Some complainers can be difficult to stop their complaining. You cannot cheer them up, you cannot suggest them solutions, you cannot ask them to pull themselves together, you cannot complain about them, you cannot complain along with them, you cannot ignore them, you cannot confront them.

So what do you do? You sincerely say, "You know that sounds terrible. I don't know how you deal with all these problems!" Ironically, you will find them say, "Well, it's really not that bad!" Remember, don’t be sarcastic when you say it. Be sincere. You don’t have to agree that these are huge problems. Even if everything the complainer says sound trivial to you, remember that it feels like a huge problem to them, otherwise they wouldn’t have gone on with it. What seems trivial to one person can be a huge problem to others.

If we have something to complain, say Alhamdulillah and look at yourself in the mirror in a humble fashion. Recognize that you won't be able to see yourself if Allah didn't bless you with eyes. Your eye is a tremendous blessing from Allah. If you can't see this, then would you trade your eyes for a million dollars?

Think of this one blessing--the blessing of the eyes. In order for the eyes to exist, they have to be on a human body, that is you. Think of everything that have to exist for the human body and for the human being to exist--the earth has to exist. Think of what else in the realm of the milky way and the galaxy for the earth to exist. If planets collide up there, our earth ceases to exist. We take all that exist very much for granted, whereas they are all necessary for the human to live on this earth.

Say Alhamdulillah for everything. Don't complain (even if there is no rain or too much rain). You have more than the eyes to be grateful for. Don't deny that this is already a big blessing. If you deny one blessing, it is as if you are denying all the other blessings. Say Alhamdulillah, Alhamdulillah, Alhamdulillah for everything.

If you live with complainers, be patient.

Patience (sabr) is one of the most foundation of all virtues and difficult to inculcate. All of us are tested with patience everyday. Allah's reward is tremendous for the patient one.

Patience is to faith as what the head is to body. There is no way of disposing patience. As long as we are alive, we are required to be patient. Otherwise, we are going to abuse ourselves if we are not patient.

Everything around us is teaching us to be impatient--AC (when it is a little hot, turn on the AC), credit card (when you see something, you can't wait till you actually have the money for it, pull out the plastic), automobiles (can't walk to the store a block away, start the engine), fast food, etc. So, it is actually a blessing when Allah puts you in a situation that causes you to be patient.

If you think you have patience, go to hajj. If you have the chance, study in Egypt for several years, you will learn patience. Until you are tested with all the different scenarios, you can't say you have patience.

The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

I am amazed at the affair of the believer, it is all good. If he goes through times of difficulty he is patient, if he goes through times of ease, he is thankful.

May Allah make us among the grateful and the patient. Ameen,

Please don't forget us in your night prayers. Jazakallahu khairan.

And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam
Aisha