bismillah..
segala yang berlaku adalah ketentuan Allah. Jodoh, rezeki, hidup dan mati, semua telah pun terkalam di luh mahfuz. Petunjuk Allah pasti datang, bagi mereka yang yaqin dan meletakkan sepenuh penyerahan kepada Allah.
alhamdu lillah, hati ini tenang selepas menyatakan hasrat penolakan. Mungkin ada yang lebih baik untuk dia. Dan sememangnya Allah telah menetapkan org lain utk ku. Permata yang selama ini menunggu dan mengharap dipilih oleh jauhari impian terus meletakkan harapan kepada Allah.
moga ini lah petunjuk istikharah ramadhan. permata ini terus berdoa agar jauhari masih sabar menanti.
Ya Allah..layarkan ku ke arah cinta MU, bersama nakhoda pilihanMU utk ku.
Amin ya rabb




O Allah!! Behold I ask You the good through Your Knowledge, and ability through Your Power, and beg (Your favour) out of Your infinite Bounty. For surely You have Power; I have none. You know all; I know not. You are the Great Knower of all things. O Allah! If in Your Knowledge this matter be good for my faith (Deen), for my livelihood, and for the consequences of my affairs, then ordain it for me, and make it easy for me, and bless me therein. But if in Your Knowledge, this matter be bad for my faith (Deen) for my livelihood, and for the consequences of my affairs, then turn it away from me, and turn me away therefrom, and ordain for me the good wherever it be, and cause me to be pleased therewith.

Bismillahir rahmaanir rahiim
Alhamdu lillaah, syukur yang tidak terhingga kepada Yang Maha Memberi Rezeki, tanggal 17 Syawal 1426H pasangan Nadiah dan Radin Zayd dianugerahkan permata yang bernilai. Fatihah lambang bermulanya episod hidup mereka sebagai abah dan mama. Fatihah lahir di Meriter Hospital jam 6 pagi, tika adzan Fajr dilaungkan di Madison, di kala dingin salju meresap. Kelahirannya adalah rahmat dari Allah pada pasangan muda ini.
Setelah beberapa hari umm Fatihah keluar dari hospital, dan sepulangnya kita dari tamrin sepanjang cuti thanksgiving, beberapa sahabat dari Minnesota dan kita menziarah keluarga baru ni. Org Minnesota nak sampaikan hadiah BESAR utk mama Nadiah dan abah Radin, satu stroller with car seat! Masyaa Allah..jazaakumAllaahu khayran kathiiran.

Teringat dalam surah Aali 'imran tatkala detik kelahiran Maryam alayha salaam, ibunya mendoakan
"wa inni sammaytuhaa Maryam wa inni u3iidzuhaa bika wa dzurriyyataha minasy-shaytonir-rajiim"
"..and I have named her Maryam, and I seek refuge with You (Allah) for her and for her offspring from shaytaan the outcast"

Betapa indahnya dan mendalamnya maksud do'a ibu Maryam ni. Maryam adalah salah seorang dari empat wanita yang mulia yg disebut dalam hadith nabi Sal-Allaahu alayhi wa sallam di mana dalam hadith tersebut rasulullah melakarkan empat garisan di atas tanah. Apabila sahabat bertanya maksud empat garisan itu, Rasulullah menerangkan yang ini adalah empat wanita yang mulia dalam Islam, iaitu, Saydatina Khadijah al-Kubraa, Saydatina Faatimah az-Zahrah, Maryam bint Imran dan Asiah, isteri Firaun. Dan dari Maryam lahirlah Nabi Isa alayhi salaam.

Fatihah, Satu pembukaan
tanda kesyukuran, tanda kesabaran, tanda keredhaan
seperti kain putih sesuci fitrah
dengan harapan dicorakkan dengan tarbiyah
dihiasi dengan akhlaq nan indah

Fatihah, Satu permulaan
langkah pengislahan, langkah keimanan, langkah ujian
diberi sebagai penghibur hati
dengan amanah untuk dipenuhi
agar menjadi mujahidah sejati

ahlan wa sahlan, Fatihah.
Mabruk Nadiah dan Zayd
Doakan kita jadi mcm antum! :)

sepi benar senja ini
bayunya semilir menganak ombak kecil
jalur ufuk pula mengemas terang
kapal dan layar terkapar

mengapa nantikan senja
barukan terdetik pulang ke pengkalan
gusar malam menghampiri
ku tewas di lautan

tuhan
layarkan ku ke arah cintamu
tuntuni ku menggapai redhamu
rimbunan kasihmu ku berteduh
kepadamu ya tuhan
berikan secebis keinsafan
bekalan sepanjang perjalanan
mencari ketenangan

biar kau menjadi saksi
tulus tangis ku kala dini hari
kesempatan yg hanya sebentar
moga keikhlasan ku terlakar
berikanlah ku hidayah
agar dikuatkan iman yang lemah
moga diberkati hidup ini
menuju bahagia yg kekal abadi

pdmu tuhan
kan kuserahkan
cintaku pd mu

harapanku moga dikurniakan
manisnya iman berpanjangan
moga lautan hilang gelora
untukku berlayar

Sesiapa mencintai Allah pasti semakin sunyi dengan manusia. Di tengah keramaian dia rasa keseorangan. Saat kesukaan dia berduka. Jika orang tertawa dia menangis. Jasadnya dengan manusia, batinnya kepada Allah" "Ketenangan dan kebahagiaan adalah hembusan dari langit, diturunkan ke dalam lubuk hati orang yang beriman, mereka akan tetap berhati teguh, di kala insan lain mengalami kegoncangan... (Syed Qutb)

Bismillah..

Alhamdulillah..baru balik dari exam biophysical chemistry. Sejuk kat luar tu, tapi lega sbb dah selesai satu lagi midterm.
Minggu ni mmg packed. Monday ni midterm agronomy, yg sepatutnye buat hari ni, tapi sbb prof baik hati (merci beacoup, professeur!) die bagi amik on monday. Biochem lab 651..buat cloning utk hasilkan "glowing" colony. Starting from Wednesday, hari2 kene check plate utk tgk glowing colony. Esok pun kene cek cell library utk streaking.  Tadi sebelum exam biophy chem, ada agro lab sampai pukul 445pm. Alhamdulillah, hari ni habis cepat. Kalau tidak selalunya sampai pukul 530pm. Dalam hati fikir2 sempat lagi kot nak cram study biophy chem nih..ada 2 jam lagi. Tapi kene kejar waktu maghrib jugak, sbb dah nak luput. So kejar2 balik rumah and solat maghrib. Rasa lapar sgt2 sbb tak makan proper breakfast and lunch (patutnye puasa je..hmm) so bake aje potato wedges. Sementara tunggu Isya' (6 pm) salin la equations yg dirasakan dpt membantu.
Sempat la selak2 notes and problem sets sikit2. Mmg kalut la jugak rasanya sbb first midterm hari tu tak berapa bagus. Dah la kelas ni 4 credit, amik skali ngan graduate students pulak tu. So mmg pressure la. Masuk waktu Isya', solat dan doa, agar dikurniakan kefahaman dan dilapangkan dada menerima ilmu. Hati masih rasa tak tenang, rasa risau, so tangan terus capai Qur'an dan baca beberapa ayat dr surah aali imran.

Sampai di ayat 159:
fa idzaa 'azamta fa tawakkal 'alaLlaah. InnaALlaha yuhibbul mutawakkiliin.
Then when you have taken a decision, put your trust in Allah, certainly, Allah loves those who put their trust in Him.

Terharu kejap, hampir mengalir air mata. "Ni dia yg aku perlukan, terima kasih Ya Allah..".
Rasa tenang menyelinap dalam hati. Diulang-ulang lagi ayat tu. Kemudian di sambung ayat 160:

The Treatise for husband and wife :: a reflection

Bismillaah ..

This write up is simply my own reflections on how to strengthen the relationship between spouses. I gather all these information from different Islamic classes I’ve attended as well as my past experiences with family and friends. I hope this would benefit us in building a strong relationship with our spouse, whom Allaah has specifically chosen to be our companion of this world and the Hereafter, in shaa’ Allaah.

Before I continue further with the tips, I just want to share a small reminder. How many of us realize that marriage is indeed, one of the means for us to get closer to Allaah, subhaanahu wa ta’aala? Through marriage, Allaah, jalla jalaalahu, strengthen a believer with the presence of his spouse. Imagine that we have a partner who would memorize quraan together, who would share nasihaah whenever we’re in need of one, who would walk together with us in enlivening the sunnaah of the Prophet, sal Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallaam, who would get us up for qiyaam, who would attend al-maghrib classes/seek knowledge together with us ;) ? May Allaah grant us a righteous spouse who’ll be the coolness of our eyes, aameen.

The importance of marriage cannot be looked down upon, as Brother Muhammad Al-Shareef pointed out in the BOC class last year. “The minute Allaah, subhaanahu wa ta’aala, createad Prophet Adam, ‘alayhi as salaam, He created a wife for him, ya’ni Hawwa!” Ustaadz said that if we’re to embark a journey of da’wah, we should get married first (this is the prerequisite of becoming al-maghrib instructor btw), as we would become stronger through marriage. He also pointed out that the earlier one gets married, the better it is for him; so that he can direct his full focus on more important things in life (such as da’wah, building the society,etc), rather than thinking about getting married over the years. In addition, having 2 forces (ie husband and wife) combined together in dealing with things, are a plus and far better than thinking/solving by our own. And personally, I always ask myself this question: why would we wait any longer to get closer to Allaah subhaanahu wa ta’aala when He has laid down the opportunity for us, through marriage?

So in shaa’ Allaah, after acquiring a clear understanding on the function of marriage in Islaam, we can go deeper in exploring the ways to strengthen this relationship. I divided the tips into several main aspects:

--
a) Worship
I. Getting for qiyaam together: the husband and wife should make an effort to get each other up for qiyaam, everyday, in shaa’ Allaah.
II. Going to the masjeed together for congregational prayers or praying together at home (the prophet used to pray his voluntary prayers at home) : we make it to be the rule between me and my friends that none of us should pray except in congregation, especially for fajr, maghrib and ishaa’. Maa shaa’ Allaah, now, we don’t feel comfortable to perform prayer by ourselves, and we always look forward to pray together!
III. Helping each other in memorizing quraan: can work on a schedule and husband will listen to what the wife has memorized, and correct her, and vice versa.
IV. Performing voluntary acts together (ie sunnaah fasting, naafilaah, charity,visiting the sicks,volunteering,etc). Bro Muhammad once told that one day, he and his wife got a death news in the community. They’re initially planning to fast the next day, but bro Muhammad told his wife that since he’s planning to follow the funeral, he might not be fasting. Then, his wife told him that don’t you remember the hadeeth of abu bakr performing 4 acts in one day ? (visiting the sick, fasting, following the funeral, giving charity). Bro Muhammad said that he cannot stop thanking Allaah for giving him such a righteous wife :).
V. Reading quraan for each other : the prophet used to read quraan for aisha when she had her menses. Wife can also read quraan for her husband.

b) seeking knowledge/da’wah:
I. Attending Islamic classes together (ie almaghrib classes, conferences, halaqaah at the masajeed,etc)
II. Together maintaining an Islamic library at home.
III. Giving a short khaatirah before sleeping: take turns between husband and wife in sharing of what they’ve learned with each other.
IV. Listening to lectures together, or reading books for each other (like a bed-time story style )
V. Plan together on da’wah projects/building the community.

c) everyday life:
I. Make known to each other how much he/she means to you (thru words and actions): if the prophet encourages us to tell our brother if we love him for the sake of Allaah, how much more should we make it known to our spouse?
II. Eat with hands, and from the same plate : Sh. Abdul Bary said that if you are too lazy to lick your own fingers, get ‘somebody else’ to lick them for you. I still remember that when I was small, my dad used to clean my plate with his hand, and he would ask me to lick from his hand. I would most of the time bite his fingers ;). Also, my housemates and I eat from the same big tray (4 of us) everyday, and subhaan Allaah, it really connects our hearts together.
III. Feed each other (ie putting food in one spouse’s mouth), just like a mother would feed her son. My mom always, until now, feed me and my sisters and it really establishes our strong love for each other.
IV. Drinking from the same cup: aisha used to put her mouth on exactly the same spot where the prophet had his mouth on when drinking.
V. Wash his/her hands : my sister and I used to wash each others right hands after we finish eating as we’re too lazy to use our left hand to wash out the soap.
VI. Jokes/quizzing/ playing games with each other. The prophet used to be very playful with his wives.
VII. Exchange gifts : doesn’t have to be expensive. Small, but meaningful. The prophet said that tahaaddu, tahaabbu (exchange gift in spreading the love).
VIII. Cook together: cooking together is so much fun, even among sisters only. In addition, the husband can make a surprise by cooking a special meal for the wife once in a while :). One note on cooking: Bro Muhammad told us that he doesn’t like his wife to spend so much time in the kitchen (ie he prefer simple meals). He said that you don’t get married for your wife to spend her lifetime in the kitchen. There’re so many other works that she can work on, other than cooking heavy meals everyday. This is how the true da’ee look at the responsibilities laid down for him and his wife.
IX. Calling spouse with the name he/she likes : the prophet used to call ‘aisha “humaira’—the reddish girl.”
X. Intimate relations: follow as close as possible the sunnaah of the prophet; du’aa before the relations, being under sheet during it, taking ghusl or at least make wudhoo’ after completing it. The prophet used to get up for qiyaam, and then he’d enjoy his wife( we learned this from the TPA class). Sh. Abdul Bary said that this is an incentive for husband n wife to get up for qiyaam, and this is the best time to have marital relations as you just finished performing qiyaam and you have extra energy after that. He also would perform ghusl together with ‘aisha.
XI. Preparing/grooming oneself for each other: husband n wife should always look good in front of each other, wearing nice dresses, fragrance, wife wearing kohl, etc.
XII. Singing/writing poetry : wife becoming 7urr al-3ayn for the husband in this world who’d entertain her husband.

--
Of course there are more tips that we can learn from the Sunnaah of the prophet. Hopefully this would serve as a beginning step for us to learn more on how to strengthen the relationship between spouses, according to the sunnaah in shaa’ Allaah.

“ Rabbanaa hablanaa min azwaajinaa wa dzurriyyatinaa qurrata a3yoonin wa ja3alnaa li al-muttaqeena imaama” aameen.

Allaahumarzuqnaa azwaaj as-soliheen,aameen.

Baarak Allaahu feekum,
Umm Ibraaheem

Jazaakillaahu khayran ukhti!! semoga kita mendapat zawj soleh utk sama2 mencapai mardhatiLlah
ummu ammar :)

Dari Abu Hurairah r.a. Dari Nabi s.a.w sabdanya; " Allah Ta'ala sangat gembira menerima taubat seseorang kamu melebihi kegembiraan seseorang yang menemukan kembali barangnya yang hilang." - Sahih Muslim

assalaamu'alaykum..takde apa nak berceloteh hari ni. Baru semalam balik dari Milwaukee setelah berprogram sehari suntuk. Alhamdulillah, walaupun sekejap, tapi banyak yg dipelajari semalam. Dapat juga dgr pengalaman seorg sister yg menceritakan detik2 pengislaman dirinya 30 thn dulu. Masyaa Allah..dari kecil lagi die dah dididik dengan taqwa. mak die pesan jgn buat sth yg kita tak mahu org tahu kite buat. Disebabkan hidayah Allah turun pada hati die yg bersih dan ikhlas (pada bulan ramadhan pulak tu), die menerima cahaya Islam. Allaahu akbar! Sister Jamilah berkahwin dgn speaker jemputan IFR (ustaz abdul mun'im) and dikurniakan 6 org hero..bestnye~ hmm..

Seronok juga berifr kali ni..alhamdulillah dapat "tarik" 4 org adik2 baru. walaupun terpaksa naik bas ke sana sbb senior yg sorg ni tak reti drive (sorry dek..akak xde lesen..) tapi derg semangat jugak nak pegi dan sanggup "korban"kan sambutan homecoming hari jumaat lepas. (btw, wisconsin menang over purdue..yes!) tanya derg, derg puas hati gak and derg rasa nak pegi lagi program2 misg..alhamdulillah..sekurang2nye lepas saya grad ni..adalah lagi generasi madison yg teruskan perjuangan.. :) jumpe jgk dgn akhwat dr NU and UIUC, selain muka2 lama..rafeeq ad-darb, aslam and ani and my beloved Ummi..kak nur. walaupun kesihatan tak berapa baik disebabkan perubahan cuaca yg tetiba (demam 3 hari~) tapi rasa semangat berjumpe dgn sahabat sahabiah semua.

sbnrnye nak ckp pasal kekuatan wanita ni. kalau nak describe wanita selalunye guna perkataan yg berkaitan dgn kelembutan; fragile, sensitif, cepat terasa, manja, lembut. tapi sebenarnya kat sini lah terletaknya kekuatan wanita. kata2 yg lembut beserta keikhlasan mmg boleh melenturkan hati yg keras. bila ditambah dgn air mata..lagilah cepat cair. mcm kalau kita tuang air pada ais, ais yg beku akan cair dan turut sebati dengan air.
baru td call rumah, tanya khabar family. bila bercakap ngan adik laki sorg ni.dah besar panjang..salunye susah nak tegur lelaki umur2 camni ni..org kate ego tinggi...tapi..

ima: camane ramadhan?
anas: ok lah..
ima: apa yg ok? baca qur'an tak every night? dah sampai juzu' mane? tarawih tinggal tak?
anas: er..tak..
ima: kenapa? bz study ke?
anas: aa..ada exam
ima: kalau kita berkira dgn Allah, mcm mane kita nak expect Allah tak berkira dgn kita? Allah yg bagi kita masa. Walau mcm mane bz pun kita, jgn lah korbankan masa ibadah, lg2 time ramadhan ni. Ima tak kisah pun kalau awak tak score exam, tapi jgn la abaikan ibadah dgn Allah (time ni tah ngape tah sebak sangat, pastu nangis..takut jugak die marah..sbb tegur2 die)
anas: eh awak nangis ke? nape?
ima: sorry la ter"emo". tapi saya tak nak awak tinggal solat and baca qur'an..lagi2 sepuluh malam akhir ni. ye?
anas: ok

lepas tu sembang ngan abah mama and sambung balik kerja. tak lama lepas tu ada message kat hand phone
Anas: Salaam. stat esk saya x tinggal trwih n baca qur'an ok :)

alhamdulillah..alhamdulillah ..terharu~ saya pun :).
mungkin hati die tersentuh dengan air mata saya. harapnya hati die lembut dgn siraman hidayah Allah. bukan niat kak ima nak marah awak..tapi kak ima sayang awak and semua adik2 lain. and abah mama jugak. kak ima salu doakan supaya kita sume dekat dgn Allah. kak ima nak kita satu family together masa Allah kumpulkan semua org hari akhirat nanti. ima sayang korg.
fa amma man uutiya kitaabahu biyamiinihi. fa saufa yuhaasibu hisaaban yasiira. wa yanqalibu ilaa ahlihi masruuraa (al-inshiqaaq 7-9)

Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim

Asalamu Alaykum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh,

I hope everyone is striving to make the most of this Ramadan. May Allah (SWT), in this blessed month, forgive us our sins, shower us with His mercy, and admit us into gardens underneath which rivers flow. Ameen.

I just wanted to ask you all for a few minutes of your time to share with you a story that happened to me this past week. It is a little long, but, if Allah (SWT) wills, you will find it beneficial.

You guys know how it is in Ramadan as a college student, or even as a high school student; it's difficult to study, you get tired quick, your brain gets fatigued, it's just generally difficult to study the same way you study outside of Ramadan.

Well, I had two exams scheduled for this past Friday 10/14, the first being a Clinical Immunology exam, and the latter being a Microbiology exam. Because I didn't do to well on my first mid-term in Clinical Immunology, I decided I would try and finish studying for that exam first, and then move on to Microbiology. So the plan was to try and have my studying for Clinical Immunology done by Sunday night, 10/9, and then from Monday through Thursday, study Microbiology, and Friday, go and take the exams. But, it was just that, just a plan. One which wasn't exactly followed unfortunately. I ended up studying for my Clinical Immunology exam until Thursday night 10/13, the day before my two exams.

One of the goals I set for myself this Ramadan was to not miss a night of Tarawih prayers, because Abu Hurairah reported that the Prophet (PBUH) is reported to have said, as is mentioned in Sahih Bukhari, "Whoever establishes prayers during the nights (i.e. Tarawih) of Ramadan out of sincere faith and hoping to attain Allah's rewards, all his past sins will be forgiven." So, even with my looming exams, one of which I had not even began studying for, I was there Thursday night for Tarawih at the masjid. After Isha' prayers, one of the brothers asked me "Don't you have two exams tomorrow?"So I replied in the affirmative. His response was, "So why don't you go to the library to study?" I simply said that I will try and study after Tarawih Insha'Allah. So I prayed Tarawih. After Tarawih, I decided to go to the library to print out a copy of the study guide with all the answers typed out (was 16 pages of single spaced material!) that a brother in the class had prepared and come back to the masjid to pull an all-nighter there.

At the library, I happened to run into that same brother. I asked how the exam preparation was going, and he said that Alhamdulillah, he is ready for it. Earlier, the brother had given me a copy of the exam given in the class each of the past two years so I can use them to test myself once I finished studying. But, because my exam was in about 12 hours, I didn't think I'd have time to study AND go over the exam without knowing the correct answers. So I asked him if he had gone over the exams and had the right answers to the questions, so at the very least, I could study the answers to the questions. He told me that for one of the exams, there was only one question wrong, the rest were all right. So happy to at least have that information, I printed out the study guide and went back to the masjid to study all night there.

I didn't begin studying until approximately 12:30 am. But Subhan Allah, because I had been pulling all-nighters for my Immunology exam each of the past four days, I was extremely tired, and decided to take a 20-minute 'power-nap'. Heh, what a power nap that was. I woke up after 20 minutes and right away knew there was no way I can go on. My body was just too tired, my brain to fatigued, and my eyelids too heavy. I lied down in the masjid and didn't wake up until 6:00 am. Now, I am the baby of the house... so my mom calls me to make sure I am up for Suhoor and since I am at the masjid, I don't have any food. So she tells me to go get some. So just when I am about to leave the masjid, a brother walks in with three donuts. He gives one to me and one to another brother who was pulling an all-nighter with me. So having fulfilled my mother's request, I got ready for Fajr, prayed, and went home. My Clinical Immunology exam was at 9:10 am, so I used most of the remaining time to quickly review all my notes and then went and took the exam.

I only had 1 hour to study for my Microbiology exam now; this after only getting in about 30 minutes of studying. So I try to look over the study guide answers, but again, sleep overtakes me. I took another 20-minute nap, but this time, Alhamdulillah, I was able to function afterwards. I look over the study guide a little more, and then decide to look over one of the exams that the brother had given me, the one which he said there was only one wrong answer. There are four different versions to the exam. The one I had was form A. I went over the exam a couple times, and then, it was time... time to face the music.

I went to the class, fully expecting a big fat F. I see the three other Muslim brothers in the class so I go sit next to them. One of them comments, "I hope this exam is the same as the ones we have!" To which the second replies sarcastically, "Yeah right, like that's going to happen..."So the former says a beautiful statement. He said, "Why not? If we make dua' to Allah, then why won't it be the same?"At that, I paused and thought for a moment. But I didn't have too long to think as the exams were being passed out. I took my exam and handed the pile down the row. I looked at the front cover, and it said "Form A". I stopped, and, going on what the brother just said, made a short dua' to Allah (SWT) to help me in the exam, make it easy for me, and grant me success.

So I open the booklet, and the first question is the same as the previous exam copy I had. So was the second, the third, the fourth... the tenth, the fifteenth... I couldn't believe it! I was still unsure about some of them because I didn't study the old exam real well, but knowing that I didn't have much going for me, I filled out the answers I thought to be correct, and within 25 minutes, was done with the exam. We are allowed to keep our exams so I went outside and compared my exam with the old copy I studied from, and Subhan Allah, of the 33 questions, 31 were the same. Of the 31 that were the same, 29 were even in the same exact order. Only two were switched. There were two new questions that I didn't know so I guessed on them both. I went to the teacher asking him what the correct answers were for those two, and by the grace of Allah, I got them both correct! I ended up getting a 100% on the exam!

The reason why I am mentioning all this to you guys brothers and sisters is not to gloat that I got a 100% on this exam. The reason why is because I want us to learn a lesson from this. Allah (SWT) provides for his servants from sources we never even imagine. As Allah (SWT) says in Surah Al-Talaaq, "And whosoever fears Allah and keeps his duty to Him, He will make a way for him to get out (from every difficulty). And He will provide him from (sources) he never could imagine. And whosoever puts his trust in Allah, then He will suffice him. Verily, Allah will accomplish his purpose..." [Al-Talaaq, 65:2-3]. And what is amazing is that I am not even some righteous person... I am a sinner man, a sinner... but still, Allah (SWT) provided a way out for me, wa Lahul Hamdu wesh Shukr.

I want to highlight one thing. The statement of the brother the day before my exam after Isha' prayer and before Tarawih. He told me that I should be studying in the library. The reason why I disagree is because it may that I decide to spend the 90 minutes I would have been praying Tarawih to study instead. But who is to say my efficiency will be the same? Or that I will have Barakah in my time? I would rather try to keep my duty to Allah (SWT) and then put my best foot forward. When doing this, you will find the blessings of Allah (SWT) in your time, your efficiency, your memory, and your affairs, Insha'Allah ta 'ala.

This is not to say that you guys shouldn't study and hope for a miracle. No, not at all. What I am trying to get across brothers and sisters is this: do not sacrifice your Ibadah time for your studies. Let something else be the goat, but not your Ibadah. Cut down on your social time, your internet time, your phone time, your sleep time, anything, but do not cut down on your Ibadah time. You will find that Allah (SWT)'s blessing will be with you. We are in such a blessed month that the devils are chained, the gates of hell are closed, the gates of paradise are opened, a month that is the most beloved month to Allah (SWT). Do not let this month pass you by without making the most of it. Indeed, the one who Ramadan comes upon him but he does not have his sins forgiven has suffered a mighty loss.

Those of you are thinking this story is a fluke, this is not the first time something like this has happened to me. In 2002, I had a Calculus I exam on a Monday, which happened to be the day after the 27th night of Ramadan. But I did not want to miss making I'tikaaf and Qiyam on this night, so I stayed at the masjid. And Subhan Allah, I remember I was so busy that month, I had 15 credits and three other Islamic classes, it was Ramadan, I was organizing an Eid Dinner, I was heading up activities with the youth group, I was spearheading a fundraising project... basically, I was swamped, and naturally, behind in my studies. So I study a little for the Calculus exam and then go the next day to take it. It was winter, but it was a clear day Alhamdulillah. I went to the class and sat there, waiting for the teacher to come in. 5 minutes go by, no teacher. 10 minutes, still no teacher. 20 minutes, still no teacher. Then a lady comes into the class and announces that the teacher got stuck in a traffic jam and will not be coming to class. The exam will be placed in the Math Testing Center, and we will have a week to take it. Subhan Allah! Indeed, whoever seeks to keep his duty to Allah (SWT), Allah (SWT will provide a way out for him and provide for him from avenues which he did not expect.

I apologize for the length of this email. But please brothers and sisters, if you got this far, MAKE THE MOST OF THIS MONTH. Death is waiting for us around the corner. Prepare for your meeting with the Lord of the Worlds.

Quick Tips:

* Don't underestimate the power of Dua', especially that of your mother and father for you, as well as between Athan and Iqama, at the time of breaking the fast, in the last third of the night, and when it rains.
* Don't sacrifice your Ibadah time for anything. You may not meet Ramadan again, let this be the best one of your life.
* Plan ahead. We are nearing the last ten nights. If you have exams coming up, study ahead of time. We should all make the intention to make Qiyamul Layl these last ten nights Insha'Allah ta 'ala.

I ask Allah (SWT) to allow us to make the most of this Ramadan. That we be among those who fast and pray in this month full of Iman, sincerity, and hope in His rewards. That He make our last words from this life "La Ilaaha Illa Allah", that our best deeds be our last ones, and our best day the day we meet Him. Ameen Ya Rabbal A'alameen.

Asalamu Alaykum wa Rahmatullahi ta 'ala wa Barakatuh,

Abdulah
me: this is a powerful one! subhan Allah