Three things that are in Allah’s hands alone
An end of school year message to staff
Listen to the message
Assalamualaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.
Dear Team,
Alhamdulillah another school year has come to an end and I ask Allah ﷻ to accept our efforts and to reward us immeasurably. I ask Allah ﷻ to forgive us for our shortcomings and mistakes. And I ask you to forgive me for my shortcomings and mistakes.
My beloved sisters and brothers, some parting words of advice for myself first and for you: Know that there are three things that Allah ﷻ has kept in His hands and in His hands alone and has not designated them to any of His Angels or other creatures. Understanding what these three things are will help us set the direction of our lives, where we should put our trust in, and where we should direct our energies towards.
1st is Life
The first of those things is life. Allah ﷻ says in the Qur’an:
قُلِ ٱللَّهُ يُحۡيِيكُمۡ ثُمَّ يُمِيتُكُمۡ ثُمَّ يَجۡمَعُكُمۡ إِلَىٰ يَوۡمِ ٱلۡقِيَـٰمَةِ لَا رَيۡبَ فِيهِ وَلَـٰكِنَّ أَڪۡثَرَ ٱلنَّاسِ لَا يَعۡلَمُونَ (٢٦)
Say, “Allah gives you life, then He makes you die; then He gathers you for the Day of Resurrection, about which there is no doubt. But most people do not know.” (Quran 45:26).1
Not only is Allah ﷻ the only one to give and take life, He ﷻ is the only one who determines when it is given and taken and the manner in which it is given and taken. Whether one is healthy or not and so on.
2nd is “Rizq” (sustenance)
The second is rizq. Allah has kept the rizq in His hands and gives it out to Whom He wills, in whatever manner and form He sees fit. Allah ﷻ says in the Qur’an:
وَفِى ٱلسَّمَآءِ رِزۡقُكُمۡ وَمَا تُوعَدُونَ (٢٢)
And in the heavens is your livelihood, and what you are promised. (Quran 51:22).
3rd is Knowledge
The third is knowledge. Allah ﷻ, the source of all knowledge, is the one who decides how much of any knowledge is granted to among His ﷻ creatures. He ﷻ is the one who taught the human being things that even the angels were unaware of. He ﷻ is the one who showed Moosa (as) that even a prophet and messenger of God can learn from others.
The relentless pursuit of the three
People struggle and waste their life away in the pursuit of health, wealth, and knowledge without paying heed to their source. But if we realize that all these three things are in the hands of Allah ﷻ and if we dedicate our life instead in serving Him and His cause, Allah will make our affairs easy for us in these three things:
يَـٰٓأَيُّہَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓاْ إِن تَنصُرُواْ ٱللَّهَ يَنصُرۡكُمۡ وَيُثَبِّتۡ أَقۡدَامَكُمۡ (٧)
O you who believe! If you support Allah, He will support you, and will strengthen your foothold. (Quran 47:7).
We’ll be questioned on these three on the Day of Judgment
It is interesting that all the five questions that we will be asked on the Day of Judgment are related to these three things:
- How did we live our life on earth?
- How we utilized our youth?
- How did we earn our wealth?
- How did we spend it?
- And what did we do with our knowledge?
If we understand that life, wealth, and knowledge are in the hands of Allah ﷻ and Him alone and put our trust in Him and exert ourselves in His service, He ﷻ will not make these three a test for us. Instead, they will be a source of blessing and will draw us closer to Allah ﷻ.
One of the greatest universal truths
Understanding that life, wealth, and knowledge are in the hands of Allah ﷻ is one of the greatest universal truths of this life and those who understand it orient their life accordingly. Their relationship to this material life is like that of a shadow to its source. We will never be able to catch our shadow if we continue to chase it. It will always run away from us. Likewise, this dunya will keep running away from us if we continue to chase it. But if we orient ourselves to the source of all light and move in the direction of that light, then this dunya will follow us in the same way that our shadow does when we walk towards the source of light.
An opportunity to walk towards Allah ﷻ
So my dear sisters and brothers, the work that we do at Abraar Elementary will remain for some just a venue for advancing their careers. But for those who understand that life, wealth, and knowledge are in the hands of Allah ﷻ alone, we realize that working at Abraar is an opportunity for us to walk towards Allah ﷻ, the source of all light, and everything else, yes, even our careers, will follow us.
I ask Allah ﷻ to help us realize and never to lose sight of the magnitude and importance of the work we do at Abraar. Rabbana taqabbal minna innaka antas sami ul aleem, watub alayna ya maulana innaka antat tawwabur raheem.
Jazakamullahu khaira everyone and have a wonderful summer and do not forget us in your duas.
Footnotes
- Itani, T. (n.d.). Quran in English—Clear and Easy to Read. Retrieved July 1, 2023, from https://www.clearquran.com
