Hardship and Us

 There were times when we felt we were at the lowest.

Life seems dark and future looks scary.

Nothing is on our side.

No luck nor dime.

And that's what I feel right now.

I just lost a job that I had always wanted and to get a new one seems like almost impossible.

To be honest, I don't know what to do right now.

Tests after tests. I am jobless but still need to pay my bills.

And it is hard. To be frank, it's really hard for me.

The moment I got the news that I did not get my dream job, I am so frustrated. I lost hope.

Then, I took some time and reflect.

I told myself, this time I need to be positive.

This hardship won't knock me down.

It had been 4 years since I graduated from my master programme and since that I am still jobless. 4 years of very tiring job hunting which goes fruitless. Maybe I am not the lucky one. That's it.

But, this time, I won't despair. Infiru khifafan wa tsiqalan. Strive whether in ease or in hardship. That's Abu Ayub Al Ansari's life motto and now I make it mine. So, Mina, infiru khifafan wa tsiqalan! 

Hardship and our life is inseparable.

Just like sunshine that comes after rain.

As long as we are still breathing, we will encounter hardships.

We cannot run away from hardship just like it's impossible for us to run away from death. It is sunnatullah. The nature of this dunya. We are not in jannah yet.

But,  the most important thing is how we face these hardships. This is the key.

Some people when given sour lemons, they are able to make a lemonade out of them. The same thing we can do when Allah gives us hardships. We can turn them into our strength! And it's during  our hardship that the quality of our iman manifests!

So, with that in mind, I made a decision, I will get out of these hardships stronger! Better! And wiser!

So, I think I need to find another alternative to pay my bills and Alhamdulillah, all praise to Allah, it had been settled and Allah makes it easy for me. Subhanallah. It's true, when Allah closed one door, he will open another. And what's better is that I don't need to beg from anyone, I will get paid for my own efforts and works and that's such a relief for me. 

I told myself ,

It's okay if it's not your sustenance this time and maybe that job is not a good one for you and that's why Allah put it away. All praise to Allah and I will say alhamdulillah for this is a blessing in disguised indeed. That's what I believe.

So, hardships will always be hardships. It's the way you set your mind that will lessen the burdens. 

Sometimes, when things go beyond our control, just let it be and learn to let God. Let God do what we cannot do ourselves. For He is the most knowing and most wisest. Learn to trust God and learn to have faith. A firm one. Have faith even when you don't understand what God had planned for you, have faith when you think that life is so unfair to you. Have faith because Allah is the most fair in His affairs. It's not that life is unfair to you, it's just you who don't understand what lies behind the so called unfairness, and what lies behind this unfairness is always hikmah and goodness! Of course it is always hikmah and goodness! Have firm believe on that. Because with hardship comes ease! That's what our Lord had promised us. And His promises are always true!

Then, after having faith, this doesn't stop there. Surat Al-Baqarah verse 45 stated that "seek help with sabr and solah".

Like I previously said, it is during hardship that qualities of our iman manifest. So, whenever you are facing hardship, you need to strengthen your relationship with God. Improve your solah. If before this you did not pray five times a day, now, it is time to fix that. Fulfill your obligation towards God. Then, start to pray sunnah prayers. If obligatory prayers are medications for your soul, the sunnah ones will be the supplements for it. It strengthens your innerself, it solidifies your soul and with the stronger soul and iman, comes what may, you will overcome it easily. Easy peasy lemon squeezy! Haha!

Wake up for qiyam. Make a lot of duas during tahajjud. Because Imam As-Syafie once said the duas made during tahajjud are like arrows that do not miss their targets. So, make a lot of duas and supplications during hardships. It will help a lot. Because with our ability to make duas, there will come hopes. We have God who is capable of anything, so, why despair? 

What is more important is that the quality of our ibadah must be consistent even after our hardships have ended. This is the true hikmah of hardships that they mould us to be a better abd even afterwards! Be steadfast and persistent and if possible increase the quality of our imaan and ibadah even after the hardships. Let the hardships that we are facing become a stepping stone towards us being a better servant!

The formula for hardship will be

faith + solah + duas + efforts + increased ibadah + consistency  = success

So, strive whether in ease or in hardship ! 

Viel gluck!

Lots of love,

Mina