It's Important to Follow the Good Word
Anas was a nice, well-behaved and hard-working boy. For some reason, his father had to move to another city, and Anas had to leave all his friends behind.
Shortly after Anas and his parents moved to their new apartment, the neighbors in the building came to visit. Anas was very happy because there were several children of his age. Anas liked his new friends a lot, and in time they became very close. But there was a younger boy in the group named Irfan who would always interrupt the games they were playing because he always wanted them to play what he wanted; and if he didn't get his own way, he would be cross with them.
One day, when all the boys were playing in the garden, Irfan joined them. They were playing with a new toy of Anas's. Irfan's arrival made everyone uneasy because they knew that whenever he joined in a game there would always be an argument. So, this time, the boys didn't let him play with them. Irfan became very angry; he took Anas's new toy, threw it on the ground and broke it. Anas was very upset, and he and his friends started to argue with Irfan. Uncle Afsar heard the noise of the boys' voices and looked out the window. Grandpa Afsar loved the boys very much, always took an interest in them and often talked to them about the existence of Allah, the blessings He gives and the acts of worship that He commands. When he saw the boys arguing, he immediately came down to join them. Irfan was crying. The boys told Uncle Afsar what was going on and then they all sat down in the garden to talk.
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Anas explained what had happened: "Uncle Afsar, my friends and I always get along well together and play without fighting. But Irfan always ruins our fun, and we don't want to be friends with him anymore."
"But they don't do what I want," Irfan complained.
Uncle Hanif then said: "Come on boys! We all want to feel good and lead a secure life and to find friendship and happiness where we can. But it's not enough to desire these things. And we can't wait for someone else to give them to us. Feeling good in a safe environment and making good friendships require special effort and self-sacrifice. If everyone insisted on having only what they wanted and thought of themselves rather than giving in to others, there would only be unhappiness and arguments among us. But believers who fear Allah behave differently; they are patient, forgiving and don't insist on having their own way. Even when someone wrongs them, they don't take offense; they put the well-being of others before their own wishes and do the best they can not to upset those around them. This is a characteristic of the superior moral behavior that Allah has commanded His servants to practice."
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Anas asked: "OK, Uncle Hanif. If a bully comes up to us and uses bad words, what should we do then?"
Uncle Hanif answered: "Of course, we must act as Allah has commanded. Allah tells us how in the Qur'an:
A good action and a bad action are not the same. Repel the bad with something better and, if there is enmity between you and someone else, he will be like a bosom friend. (Surah Fussilat: 34)
Our Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, also advises Muslims to treat good to others in a hadith as follows: '… Whoever wishes to be delivered from the fire and enter the garden should die with faith in Allah and the Last Day and should treat the people as he wishes to be treated by them…' (Muslim)"
The boys then said thank you to Uncle Hanif and promised to do their best to get along with one another in the future.
Where Does The Humility of Believers Come From?
In the Qur'an, Allah commands believers to be humble. Our Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, also states in one of his hadiths as follows:
"Allah has revealed to me that you should humble yourselves to one another. One should neither hold himself above another nor transgress against another.'' (Muslim)
Believers are those who know that Allah created everything, that all things belong to Him and that it is He Who gives to human beings their every blessing. For this reason, no matter how good-looking, rich, intelligent or respected they may be, they never become arrogant. The Qur'an tells us that believers are humble:
The servants of the All-Merciful are those who walk on the earth in humility and, who, when the ignorant speak to them, say, "Peace." (Surat al-Furqan: 63)
Allah announces the good news to the believers of the reward for this good morality:
… Your God is One God so submit to Him. Give good news to the humble-hearted. (Surat al-Hajj: 34)
How can We Remember Allah?
Believers know that Allah sees and hears them at every moment and that He creates everything that happens to them. Every moment of their lives they remember to think about Him. They do this by trying their best to keep Allah in their minds, to know that He has created everything and every event that comes their way, to consider what meaning He intends for them in these events, to try to understand the hidden meaning of creation, and they tell other people about all these things. Allah tells us in the Qur'an that believers remember Him at all times:
[People with intelligence are] those who remember Allah, standing, sitting and lying on their sides, and reflect on the creation of the heavens and the Earth [saying]: "Our Lord, You have not created this for nothing. Glory be to You! So safeguard us from the punishment of the Fire." (Surah Al ‘Imran: 191)
In a hadith, the Prophet Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, describes the remembrance of Allah as below:
Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, stated: "As my servant thinks about Me so will I be for him. I am with him if he will remember Me. If he calls on Me in himself I will call him in Myself, and if he calls on Me in a group of people, I mention him in a better group in My Presence. If he approaches Me one handspan, I will approach him one arm's length; if he approaches Me one arm's length, I will approach him by a cubit; if he comes to Me walking, I will come to him running." (Bukhari and Muslim)
