On Allah should the Believers rely

JABRIL.MUHAMMAD

The worst kind of trouble arises from slander. Surahs 113 and 114 urges us to seek refuge in Allah from the whispering of the slinking devil, who whispers, not into the ear, or the head, but into the very hearts of people. They do this so subtlety, that later the victims speak vicious slander about others with passion, from their very hearts, that of which they are either totally or partly ignorant.

On page 417 of Closing The Gap, the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan continued:

I pray that every Believer will seek and find Him as your place of refuge and security–that though you walk in the valley of the shadow of death, you will fear no evil–for you are with God and God is with you.

He will prepare a table for you in the midst of your enemies. He will fill your cup till it runs over. And surely goodness and mercy shall follow you and me and us all the days of our life. And we will dwell in that place of refuge; that house of Allah God, forever.

In 1929 when the stock market crashed, rich people who made the stock market their place of refuge went out and committed suicide. What will rich people do who have made millions of dollars and feel in the fact that they have so much money that they have a refuge? What happens when the dollar collapses and has no more value, then where will you find your refuge?

There are those who have placed their stock, their hope, their trust in their ability to make money; their ability to do what they do that gives them material strength. But once that is disturbed then they fall apart. So if you put your trust in a weapon and the weapon fails; if you put your trust in your friends, your professor or you take your doctors of law or your monks for lords beside Allah and then you see them troubled and can’t solve their problems, you take your leaders and your teachers as lords beside Allah and then you see them in a state of confusion, then what about you who depend on these sources for your refuge.

Then tell me how do you trouble God? How do you disturb Him? How do you defeat Him? Well since no one can, then what better place of refuge do we have than placing all our trust and confidence in that which cannot be shaken; that which cannot be disturbed; that which cannot be overcome. So if I am in that, then I am not disturbed no matter what goes on around me. I’m not shaken no matter what the circumstances are. I am not troubled by what troubles the world because I have found the greatest source of refuge–the unshakable, the invincible, the unconquerable, the Mighty, the Wise, the Lord of the Worlds.

You practice that, then every trouble that comes into your life you go to Him. He sees you through. Then He brings greater trouble. You go to Him. He sees you through. Then He gives you a greater test, a greater trial and you go to Him and He sees you through. He brings misfortune into your life and you go to Him and He sees you through. The death of a friend; the death of a loved one, you go to Him and He sees you through.

There is no Believer that has not been tried who placed their trust in Him and He saw you through with little things, then He gives you a bigger trial and a bigger trial and even misfortune in your life, even loss of property; loss of fruit; loss of life, you go to Him and He brings you through. Then what is He teaching us through all these lessons in our endeavor to serve Him? He’s saying, “My servant put your trust in Me. I will see you through.”

Sometimes we turn away from refuge. “Why me? Why do I have cancer? Why must I suffer? I’ve been good. I’ve been faithful. I’ve tried to be true.” Then God watches. And from deep within yourself, the voice will say, “Yes. Why not you? Do you think that you would be left alone on saying you believe and will not be tried? How dare you say that you are a servant of God? Did not you see how I tried Abraham with a son that he loved? And I told him to go up on the mountain and sacrifice that boy that you love that you sought and longed for. Abraham, did you do what I asked you to do?”

I’m sure he struggled with his emotions. “But who is greater, the gift or the giver? So if I gave you a son, am I not greater than the son that I gave you? Do I not deserve your devotion; your loyalty; your obedience; your submission? So take him up on the mountain and sacrifice him there.” And when Abraham determined to obey God, God stayed his hand. He found in God a place of refuge and from that he became the friend of God.

Wouldn’t you like to have God as your friend? What better friend could we have? He’s always watching the servant with what He tries him with. No prophet escaped trials. Didn’t they boil Abraham in oil? Was He there with Abraham? Who was in the lion’s den with Daniel? Who was in the fiery furnace with the three Hebrew boys? Who fed Elijah when Elijah was running in the wilderness?

What a friend we have in the Almighty Creator!

He’s been teaching us all through life that He is our place of refuge.

But when we turn away because of a misfortune or because of an untimely death of someone that we love or any loss of property or diminution of fruit, if we turn away, then we lose the love of our Protector, for He says, “I’m going to try you.”

But give good news to those who are patient and steadfast under trial.

Steadfast in what? In seeking Him as your place of refuge.

More next issue, Allah willing.