Repentance & taqwaFrom the masjid's own video, Sep 26, 2025.

Return to Allah in every season

“Nobody knows when we will die.”

The khateeb, at 29:14

In one sentence

Being al-awwab means continually returning to Allah in both prosperity and hardship through repentance, worship, and good deeds, thereby seeking His mercy and success.

The khutbah in 6 steps

  1. Introduces al-awwab through Dawud, Sulayman, and Ayyub in Surah Sad.
  2. Explains returning to Allah through prosperity and adversity, distinguishing tawbah, inabah, and awbah.
  3. Connects awbah with daily istighfar, travel supplications, and Duha prayer.
  4. Calls the Muslim community to collective repentance and emphasizes Allah’s mercy after sin.
  5. Uses Malik ibn Dinar’s transformation to illustrate the power of sincere tawbah.
  6. Closes with mortality, good deeds, and prayers for oppressed Muslims.
Try this week
Return to Allah in both prosperity and hardship, rather than only during crises.
Say istighfar more than one hundred times each day.
Pray four rak'ahs at the beginning of the day, understood as Duha by most scholars.
Make tawbah after mistakes and recite the cited Quranic verses with understanding.
Follow bad deeds with good deeds and treat people with good character.
Observe the additional prayers mentioned: two to twelve rak'ahs of Duha and six between Maghrib and Isha.
Sources the khateeb cited
Surah 38Shows Dawud, Sulayman, and Ayyub all described as repeatedly returning to Allah.
Surah 3Uses repentance and restraint from persistent wrongdoing to show the path to forgiveness.
Surah 4Promises Allah’s forgiveness and mercy to those who seek forgiveness after wrongdoing.
Surah 57Calls believers to humble their hearts through remembrance of Allah.
Quotes

In the khateeb's words

“nobody knows when we will die, the breath we take we don't know if we're gonna breathe it again”
Al-Masjid Islamic Center · Greenville, NC
Play from 29:14
“he came to rob us and we robbed him he came to steal us our dunya and we took him to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala”
Al-Masjid Islamic Center · Greenville, NC
Play from 31:23
Talk about it at home

For the dinner table

Today’s khutbah taught that being al-awwab means returning to Allah again and again, in good times and hard times. The speaker used Dawud, Sulayman, and Ayyub to show that wealth, poverty, and hardship do not change our need for Allah. He encouraged us to make tawbah, keep istighfar, pray regularly, especially Duha, and follow mistakes with good deeds. Allah’s mercy remains open, and even a life marked by sin can be changed through sincere return. We should remember that life is short and carry this habit of return into our homes and community.

  1. What is one daily habit that could help you remember Allah more consistently?
  2. How can we help someone who has made mistakes return to Allah?
  3. What does it mean to return to Allah in both good times and difficult times?