4:18 the fear of Allah is…5:36 if an individual does…20:42 lives are not changed…22:36 to see how much you…
Repentance & taqwaFrom the masjid's own video, Nov 21, 2025.

Balance fear of Allah with hope

ICLI

“If an individual does not continuously re-evaluate his relationship with Allah, that means that he does not have a priority for Allah in his heart.”

The khateeb, at 5:36

Watch the khutbahFamily kit
In one sentence

Believers should balance fear of Allah with hope in His mercy while continually reassessing their relationship with Him through sincere worship and gradual change.

The khutbah in 6 steps

  1. Expresses gratitude for attending the mosque and introduces the paired concepts of patience, gratitude, fear, and hope.
  2. Explains that fear of Allah should draw believers closer rather than make them flee.
  3. Connects balanced fear and hope to prioritizing Allah and establishing prayer.
  4. Warns against both despair of Allah’s mercy and complacent sinning justified by hope.
  5. Uses examples from Umar, Ya'qub, and prophetic teachings to illustrate balanced faith.
  6. Calls for self-assessment, gradual habit change, and sincerity in private worship before concluding with supplications and prayer instructions.
Try this week
Reassess the importance of your relationship with Allah.
Gradually reduce a bad habit instead of expecting instant change.
Establish prayer as a gift and priority rather than treating it as a burden.
Examine how you behave when alone and no one except Allah is watching.
Sources the khateeb cited
Surah 55Uses fear of standing before Allah to point to the reward of paradise.
Quotes

In the khateeb's words

“the fear of Allah is such that we become so so humble in front of Him that this fear causes us to come back to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala”
ICLI · Westbury, NY
Play from 4:18
“if an individual does not continuously re-evaluate his relationship with Allah that means that he does not have a priority for Allah in his heart”
ICLI · Westbury, NY
Play from 5:36
“lives are not changed overnight we have to bring gradual steps into our lives to come closer to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala”
ICLI · Westbury, NY
Play from 20:42
“to see how much you love Allah is to see how you act when Allah is watching you and no one else is watching you”
ICLI · Westbury, NY
Play from 22:36
Talk about it at home

For the dinner table

This khutbah taught us that a healthy relationship with Allah holds fear and hope together. Fear should bring us back to Allah, while hope in His mercy should not become an excuse to keep sinning. We should check whether prayer and obedience are genuine priorities, especially when nobody else is watching. Change can be gradual, so we should take steady steps away from bad habits and toward Allah. The goal is sincere taqwa, trust in Allah, and worship that continues in private.

  1. What is one habit you could improve gradually this week?
  2. When is it easiest or hardest to remember that Allah is watching?
  3. How can hope in Allah’s mercy help us without making us careless about our actions?
Where it was given

The masjid

Islamic Center of Long Island835 Brush Hollow Rd, Westbury, NY 11590ArchiveAll khutbahs at ICLI48 khutbahs
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