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Asalam alaekum waramatullahi wabarakatu,
Trust you are doing great, striving and thriving.
Please tell me that I am not the only one Google Photos stresses with the notifcations sbelow?
This is just one platform, there are many others all on a quest to help you gain social relevance through the images you post , videos you make or messages you send out. They have conveniently sold it to us, that if we don’t update people about our lives frequently or create content to show our glamourous lives that we are boring ,irrelevant and maybe even miserable. Status updates have now become the new proof of life and the only way we know if our loved ones alive.
The downside to this is, we don’t see our deeds as worthy unless they are insta worthy, everyone wants to do the big stuff but nobody wants to do the small yet impactful stuff. We only want to speak at events with millions of people. If there is no banner for publicity, we are not doing it. If it is a closed circle event , how can it be worth our time as speakers? Nobody wants to feed the neighbor hood cat, or feed the hungry security man .I mean, who is going to see that? We now believe, that if it does meet the GG( Grand and Glamorous) standard it cannot possible be worth our time.
Reality check, a lot of us will live very ordinary lives and die as ordinary people too. We may never become celebrities and that is absolutely fine. We do not need a million views, a thousand reshares or people recognizing us every time we step out of our homes.What we however do need is to make sure that we are not ordinary in the sight of Allah. This is the only kind of fame and relevance that we should strive for always. It is the only one that matters.
Last week, I learnt about Al Barar Ibn Malik (Anas ibn Malik’s brother) a great hero of his time ,who may not be as popular as his brother but whose contribution and impact Insha Allah will be rewarded by Allah. He played a key role in the battles fought for the sake of Allah .In the battle were this great hero died, Anas ibn Malik had been caught in a red hot iron hook, which he grabbed and did not let go of till Anas was freed. Just look at how much we have gained from the life of Anas Ibn Malik, all because this hero (by the will of Allah) saved him.
Some of us will be like Al Barar, whose names will not be known but whose impact will impact many generations to come.
It does not always have to be grand and it should not be with an intention to be recognized by other than Allah. We have the potential and many opportunities to do live impactful lives in our homes, schools, communities or even workplaces.
Where do we start you may wonder? This week’s resources are curated just for that purpose, to give you ideas on how to start from the little and seemingly ordinary things.
First up, is a Khutbah which really got me thinking on these ordinary things and it is loaded with examples we can learn from the life of the Prophet (SAW).
A lot of us spend so much time at work and in there we have many opportunities to do good. To recognize them though, it starts with us recognizing what the purpose of work is. If you have ever struggled to connect work with your purpose, then this FREE webinar is for you.
In other news, have you heard that our watch party is now in collaboration with The Umffariha Network???Registered yet? It is happening on the 25th of December, which is just in a few weeks.
That’s all for this week folks!
We leave you in Allah’s care,
One of Us At IbadahPlug