This week’s sermon discusses the topic of Striving and The Concept of Tawakkal In Facing Challenges

• One key attribute of a believer is to have tawakkal in Allah s.w.t.
• Tawakkal means leaving the outcomes of our efforts to Allah s.w.t., after we have done our best and strived to our fullest to achieve something.
• Tawakkal will teach us to always hope for Allah’s help and mercy and never give up.
• All acts which are accompanied by tawakkal will give us confidence and bring calmness to our hearts.

Tawakkal does not mean that we leave all matters to Allah, but do nothing and or we do not even try to find a solution. The true tawakkal is to know and acknowledge that everything is determined by Allah, and to be confident with Allah’s care and protection for all matters.

My dear brothers,

In the midst of this economic recession and the challenges of the world we live in, certainly many of us may have worries and concerns about many things. The increasingly complex demands of life, the uncertain nature of jobs, our children’s education, all these add to our worries surrounding our own and our family’s future.

Last month, we heard news of a couple overseas who committed suicide and killed all their five children, when they lost their jobs. When we worry about an uncertain future, we begin to lose our calm and our pressure with life increases.

But this is in part due to our lack of awareness that everything comes from Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala and everything returns to Him. When we understand this, we will not be as pressured if we lose something, or when a calamity befalls us. This is in keeping with verses 155-157 of Surah al-Baqarah:

“And We will most certainly try you with somewhat of fear and hunger and loss of property and lives and fruits; and give good news to the patient, Who, when a misfortune befalls them, say: Surely we are Allah's and to Him we shall surely return.”



When we understand these verses, we will see failure or difficulty in life differently. We will be patient, learn from our experience to improve ourselves, and leave the outcomes of our efforts to Allah ta’ala.

At the same time, tawakkal does not mean we do nothing and we do not put in effort. It is totally unacceptable in Islam that a Muslim uses tawakkal as an excuse to be lazy, to not strive, and not look for solutions to problems and issues.

In fact, we are not holding on to the concept of tawakkal truly if we leave matters before even trying, because tawakkal only makes sense if we try our best and put in our utmost effort. Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala explains in the Holy Quran that change and goodness will come firstly from our own efforts:

“Surely Allah does not change the condition of a people until they change their own condition.” (Surah al-Ra’d: 11)




The Prophet Muhammad s.a.w. said in a hadith :

"Indeed, if you truly have tawakkal in Allah, He will bless you with His bounties (rizq) like how He blesses the birds, who leave their nests in the morning with empty stomachs, but return in the evening full of food.” (Narrated by Imam Ahmad, At-Tirmidzi, and Ibnu Majah)



This hadith explains that those who truly have tawakkal in Allah are like the birds who continuously leave their nests in search of food, though never certain if they will find food. But due to their efforts although they are not guaranteed success, Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala fulfills their needs.

My dear brothers,

Let us learn from this beautiful example from our Holy Prophet s.a.w. Be like these birds. They never stop searching for food everyday. We should never stop trying. We should always try to improve ourselves. Even if we are tested with retrenchment, even if we lose our jobs, we must never stop trying.

Even if we lose something or we fail, we must strengthen our resolve and work ever harder. Then, we leave the outcomes of all our efforts to Allah, and we have full tawakkal in Him.

Ths Sis Mahirah for sharing =)