What Happens When Your Intentions Shift
What Happens When Your Intentions Shift
Asalam alaekum waramatullahi wabarakatu dear Sis,
Trust you're doing great.
I remember when I started this Arabic journey, my intention was crystal clear. I just wanted to understand the words of my of my Creator, nothing else. I believed that on my journey to Him, this knowledge would really help.
I believed my relationship will be so much deeper when I could get what exactly He was telling me and really appreciate the depth of each word He sent down. It was a great intention, till you people came along and started asking me to translate sentences , lectures and converse with native Arabic speakers.
To take some responsibility though, the Nafs kicked in and I started swaying in multiple directions. Before I knew it, I started thinking of joining conversations in Masjid Al Haraam, I even included proficiency level / beginner to my LinkedIn profile. It went on and on and it is pretty embarrassing to think of the many directions that went.
But you see Arabic ehn? It will humble you! The language is so beautiful and filled with so much depth that you will invest good time and incredible focus to learn it. On those days when it gets tough, your language proficiency on Linkedin will not be good enough to keep you going.
In my case, going back to the real reason why I really wanted to do this, before I swayed , is what has kept me. Alhamdullilahi , I could retrace my steps.
This journey has taught me a good lesson in renewing our intentions and how we can easily slip by just one 'moment of glory'. You might have started off well but find yourself somewhere completely off course, May Allah save us.
Anyway, the journey continues! I pray that Allah eases this journey for us all. path. May He keep our intentions sincere intention and may this journey be recorded for us as part of our striving.
REFLECTION OF THE WEEK
Disappointment with oneself? You are not alone.
As humans we have an innate tendency to slip and make mistakes.
“By the soul and how He formed it. Then inspired it with its (instincts of) evil and piety (91:7-8)
Often our heart and state of iman oscillates like a pendulum swinging backward and forward in our commitment to faith. This fluctuation of iman can be disheartening for some, to the degree where they may even be tempted to give up trying altogether. For example, you make the intention to read the Quran for 10 minutes a day, but fell victim to scrolling through social media instead. Or you made a promise to give up a bad habit, an addiction perhaps, but you relapsed into the habit, and now you feel low and hopeless. We should take solace in knowing that as long as we are trying, Allah hears us, and therefore we should not feel despondent. When we trip up, we should instead turn to Allah seeking His forgiveness, using our shortcomings to motivate ourselves towards improvement and a stronger connection to Him.- Shaykh Hammad Fahim
Speaking of knowledge journeys, Sis Barakah really cracks me up! I love listening about her classes and the many funny incidents in Hadith or Fiqh class! I also am really looking forward to her sharing her journey with us. Insha Allah, we will learn from her consistency, trials and determination to keep going through the different phases of her life.
If you are struggling with starting, sustaining or even funding your Islamic knowledge , please join us on the 25th of June to learn and share with Sis Barakah. It will be FUN!
Am I the only adult that LOVES this show? I know it is for kids but the reminders are so beautiful and it is a great way to learn about Islam for the entire family. I have had a good time these past couple of days, binging the videos! May Allah bless them.
That will be all for this week!
We leave you in Allah's care,
One Of Us at Ibadahplug.