The Way Forward – Summary

This Khutba is a summation of the 7 Khutab titled ‘The Way Forward’. Here, I am going to highlight the action points only. I will begin with my gift to you, which is my own motto: “I will not allow what is not in my control to prevent me from doing what is in my control.” This is based on the reality that when we stand before Allahﷻ, we will not be asked, ‘What happened?’ But we will be asked, ‘What did you do?’ Get ready for the long haul.This is a generational project so the sooner we start the better. Never give up because the balance will tip.It just requires sustained effort.

Work only for the pleasure of Allahﷻ. For any building to take shape, first, you need rocks who are willing to go into the foundation and be buried, never to be seen again, known only to the builder but nobody else. We must be ready to be those rocks so that the Muslim Ummah may be reconstructed. Let us remember that victory and defeat is only decided at the end and is not decided by who is left standing, but by which side you stood on. All great successes are built on skin in the game; what you do yourself and take the pain that comes with it. Excellence is the capacity to take pain. Legends are not defined by their successes but by how they bounce back from their failures. If ever there was a legend in the truest and most noble sense of the term, it was Rasoolullahﷺ. Nothing illustrates these principles better than his journey to At-Ta’aif. In the 10th year of Revelation, Rasoolullahﷺ decided to go to At-Ta’aif, to present Islam to the Banu Thaqeef. At that time, many of the biggest names among the Sahaba had already accepted Islam. Abu Bakr, Hamza bin Abdul Muttalib, Omar ibn Al Khattab, Othman ibn Affan, Ali bin Abi Talib (RA) and others were all Muslim and would have given anything to be entrusted with the job of taking the message of Islam to the Banu Thaqeef. But Rasoolullahﷺ didn’t give it to any of them but went himself, with just one companion, Zaib bin Haritha (R). We all know the story of the journey and all that happened during it, but if we talk about personal commitment to the cause demonstrated by action, there’s no finer example. As for resilience, Rasoolullahﷺ’s dua after leaving At-Ta’aif is testimony to his faith and Tawakkul on Allahﷻ. This is the very essence of Islam and the standard which we must compare ourselves to. After all it is the same Allahﷻ that we worship. But we have changed.

He begins with: O Allah! To You alone I complain of my helplessness, the scarcity of my resources and my insignificance before mankind. You are the most Merciful of the merciful. You are the Rabb of the helpless and the weak, O Rabb of mine!  And he ends his dua with: May it never be that I should incur Your anger, or that You should be angry with me. And there is no power nor resource, but Yours alone.  

This is the essence and the most beautiful example of Taqwa and Tawakkul that I can imagine. To always be focused on the pleasure of Allahﷻ alone. Imagine his situation. He had been walking for about three days to At-Ta’aif. There he and Zaid bin Haritha (R) had been attacked and reviled because of which both had been injured and were bleeding profusely. His emotional injuries were clearly much worse. He was a scion of the most honorable tribe in the Hijaz and descendent of its most honorable chief – Abdul Muttalib. He was famous and honored among all people before he announced Islam. He was a brave warrior, the Messengerﷺ of Allahﷻ who was on a mission as directed by His Rabb to invite people to Islam. He had a right to expect Allahﷻ’s help and protection. Yet when he reached At-Ta’aif, he didn’t see the help of Allahﷻ or His protection. He was insulted, reviled in public, attacked, and was injured and had to flee his persecutors. He knew that His Rabb was witness to what was happening and had the power to stop it and to punish the attackers. Yet Allahﷻ did nothing. There is no example of Ridha bil Qadha that I can imagine,