Where Prayer Goes

I had time in my life when I was totally desperate and almost lost faith. I thought what happened with all those prayers which I asked from God. Then the answer came to me in the form of following options. Some one told me that:

Allah (God) always has three replies to our prayer.

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100 Ways To Make Yourself Feel Good

1. Call an old friend, just to say hi.
2. Hold a door open for a stranger.
3. Invite someone to lunch.
4. Compliment someone on his or her appearance.
5. Ask a coworker for their opinion on a project.
6. Bring cookies to work.
7. Let someone cut in during rush hour traffic.
8. Leave a waitress or waiter a big tip.
9. Tell a cashier to have a nice day.
10. Call your parents.
11. Let someone know you miss them.
12. Treat someone to a movie.
13. Let a person know you really appreciate them.
14. Visit a retirement center.
15. Take a child to the zoo.
16. Fill up your spouse’s car with gas.
17. Surprise someone with a small gift.
18. Leave a thank-you note for the cleaning staff at work.
19. Write a letter to a distant relative.
20. Tell someone you thought about them the other day.
21. Put a dime in a stranger’s parking meter before the time expires.
22. Bake a cake for a neighbor.
23. Send someone flowers to where they work.
24. Invite a friend to tea.
25. Recommend a good book to someone.
26. Donate clothing to a charity.
27. Offer an elderly person a ride to where they need to go.
28. Bag your own groceries at the checkout counter.
29. Give blood.
30. Offer free baby-sitting to a friend who’s really busy or just needs a break.
31. Help your neighbor rake leaves or shovel snow.
32. Offer your seat to someone when there aren’t any left.
33. Help someone with a heavy load.
34. Ask to see a store’s manager and comment on the great service.
35. Give your place in line at the grocery store to someone who has only a few items.
36. Hug someone in your family for no reason.
37. Wave to a child in the car next to you.
38. Send a thank-you note to your doctor.
39. Repeat something nice you heard about someone else.
40. Leave a joke on someone’s answering machine.
41. Be a mentor or coach to someone.
42. Forgive a loan.
43. Fill up the copier machine with paper after you’re done using it.
44. Tell someone you believe in them.
45. Share your umbrella on a rainy day.
46. Welcome new neighbors with flowers or a plant.
47. Offer to watch a friend’s home while they’re away.
48. Ask someone if they need you to pick up anything while you’re out shopping.
49. Ask a child to play a board game, and let them win.
50. Ask an elderly person to tell you about the good old days.
51. During bad weather, plan an indoor picnic with the family.
52. Buy someone a goldfish and bowl.
53. Compliment someone on their cooking and politely ask for a second helping.
54. Dance with someone who hasn’t been asked.
55. Tell someone you mentioned them in your prayers.
56. Give children’s clothes to another family when your kids outgrow them.
57. Deliver extra vegetables from your garden to the whole neighborhood.
58. Call your spouse just to say, I love you.
59. Call someone’s attention to a rainbow or beautiful sunset.
60. Invite someone to go bowling.
61. Figure out someone’s half-birthday by adding 182 days, and surprise them with a cake.
62. Ask someone about their children.
63. Tell someone which quality you like most about them.
64. Brush the snow off of the car next to yours.
65. Return your shopping cart to the front of the store.
66. Encourage someone’s dream, no matter how big or small it is.
67. Pay for a stranger’s cup of coffee without them knowing it.
68. Leave a love letter where your partner will find it.
69. Ask an older person for their advice.
70. Offer to take care of someone’s pet while they’re away.
71. Tell a child you’re proud of them.
72. Visit a sick person, or send them a care package.
73. Join a Big Brother or Sister program.
74. Leave a piece of candy on a coworker’s desk.
75. Bring your child to work with you for the afternoon.
76. Give someone a recording of their favorite music.
77. Email a friend some information about a topic they are especially interested in.
78. Give someone a homemade gift.
79. Write a poem for someone.
80. Bake some cookies for your local fire or police department.
81. Organize a neighborhood cleanup and have a barbecue afterwards.
82. Help a child build a birdhouse or similar project.
83. Check in on an old person, just to see if they’re okay.
84. Ask for the recipe after you eat over at someone’s house.
85. Personally welcome a new employee at work and offer to take them out for lunch.
86. While in a car, ask everyone to buckle up because they are important to you.
87. Let someone else eat the last slice of cake or pizza.
88. Stop and buy a drink from a kid’s lemonade stand.
89. Forgive someone when they apologize.
90. Wave to someone looking for a parking space when you’re about to leave a shopping center.
91. Send a copy of an old photograph to a childhood friend.
92. Leave a pint of your spouse’s favorite flavor of ice cream in the freezer with a bow on it.
93. Do a household chore that is usually done by someone else in the family.
94. Be especially happy for someone when they tell you their good news.
95. Compliment a coworker on their role in a successful project.
96. Give your spouse a spontaneous back rub at the end of the day.
97. Serve someone in your family breakfast in bed.
98. Ask someone if they’ve lost weight.
99. Make a donation to a charity in someone’s honor.
100. Take a Child to a Ballgame·

Hope Until The Very End

One day, as Ali bin Abi Taalib and al-Hussain bin Ali were walking together, they heard a man supplicating to Allah. The man was begging Allah to forgive him for his evil crimes. His sincere tone and eloquent words aroused the interest of Ali, who turned to his son and said, “Do you not hear the man who is so very contrite because of his sins? Go catch up with him and call him.”

When al-Hussain caught up with the man, he saw that he was clean-looking, clean-smelling, with nice clothes and altogether handsome- except that he seemed to be paralyzed on the right side of his body. Al-Hussaid said, “Answer the summons of the Leader of the believers, Ali bin Abu Taalib.”

Dragging his right side, the man followed al-Hussain back to where Ali was waiting for them.

“Who are you and what is your story,” asked Ali.

“My story is that of a man who did not fulfill the rights of others and is now being punished for that,” said the man.

“And what is your name?” asked Ali.

“Munaazil bin Laahiq,” said the man.

“And what is your story?” asked Ali.

“I was famous among the Arabs for my frivolous and sinful exploits. Merciful and kind, my father would constantly admonish me and advise me to mend my ways. He would remind me of Allah’s punishment, saying, ‘My son, do not go against He who punishes with the Hell-fire!’ When he would persist in advising me, I felt his voice grating on my nerves. I would get so frustrated that I would beat him with harsh blows. In response to my blows, he one day said, ‘By Allah, I will fast without breaking my fast and I will pray without stopping to sleep.’ He fasted for an entire week, but seeing no change in my behavior, he climbed a camel and set off to perform Hajj. His parting words were, ‘I am going to the House of Allah, and there I will seek help from Allah against you.’ When he reached Makkah, he embraced the curtain of the Kaa’ba and supplicated against me, asking Allah to make me paralyzed on one side of my body. By the One Who raised the sky and sends down the rain, no sooner did my father finish his supplication than I became paralyzed on my right side, which became like a piece of wood. Anyone that would then pass by me would point to me and say, ‘Allah answered his father’s supplication against him.’”

“What did your father do then?” asked Ali.

“O Leader of the Believers, after he became pleased with me, I asked him to go back and invoke Allah on my behalf. He agreed to do so. I walked alongside him as he rode on his camel, until we reached a place called the Valley of Arak. When we reached there, a group of birds flew away from a tree, their sudden movement frightened the camel. As the camel raced off in a state of fright, my father fell off it and died.”

It was certainly late for the man, but not too late, and so Ali advised him to continue to supplicate and to repent for his past misdeeds. Ali then parted from the man, but before leaving him, he taught him the supplication that a person in distress should say.

There is hope until the very end. We should never give up.

Importance of Dua (Prayer, Asking From God)

Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported that Allah’s Messenger (PBUH) said:
“Whoever does not ask from Allah, He (Allah) becomes angry at him.”
(An authentic Hadeeth reported by Ibn Majah, At-Tirmidhi, Al-Haakim and others)

In the previously quoted saying of the Prophet (PBUH), there is proof that the supplication means requesting something from Allah, through which His Contentment is attained. This is since not asking from Allah out of pride and self-dependence is not permissible with respect to the Self-sufficient, the Most Praiseworthy.
A poet took the meaning of this Hadith and put it into poetic form saying:

“Allah becomes angry when you abandon asking Him, while the Son of Adam becomes angry, when you ask him for something.”

Therefore, Allah loves from His servants that they ask Him and that they turn towards Him and that they manifest their destitution and lowliness in front of Him. And He has made it a duty upon Himself to not send them back disappointed and empty-handed, as His Messenger (PBUH) has informed us:

“There is not a Muslim upon the earth that calls to Allah with a supplication except that Allah gives it to him or He removes some evil of equal proportion from him as long as he doesn’t supplicate for something sinful or to sever family ties.”
So a man amongst the people said:
“What if we ask numerous requests?”
He (PBUH) said:
“Allah is Akthar (Able to respond to numerous requests).”
(Sahih Kitaab Al-Adhkaar wa Da’eefihi (1223/920 & 1224/961)

In this is a sufficient clarification of the fact that Allah guarantees the answering of the supplications. This is however, according to its conditions. Thus, we shall go into details with the discussion concerning it, its description, its conditions, its proper time and place and its etiquettes, as well as what invalidates it.