A believer turns blessings and hardship into good
“No matter what happened, you're never defeated if you're a believer.”
As the Hijri year 1447 ends and 1448 begins, a believer is never a loser: gratitude turns blessings into good and patience turns hardships into good, so we should close the year by examining our intentions and dedicating the coming year to Allah.
The khutbah in 7 steps
- Marking the transition from Hijri year 1447 to 1448 as a moment of reflection
- The hadith 'amazing is the affair of the believer', all of a believer's affairs turn to good
- Gratitude as what makes blessings good, illustrated by Sulaiman and the throne of the Queen of Sheba
- Patience in misfortune, including acknowledgment of the fear the San Diego community recently endured
- Life is defined by deeds, and deeds are valued by intention (niyyah)
- Call to self-accounting before the year's end and dedicating the new year to Allah
- Closing supplications and salawat upon the Prophet
In the khateeb's words
“What makes something good is not the nature of it, the worldly, material nature of it.”
“no matter what happened you're never defeated if you're a believer”
For the dinner table
This khutbah was given just before the end of the Islamic year 1447 and the start of 1448. The khateeb reminded us that for a believer, nothing is ever a total loss: when good things happen, being thankful to Allah makes them truly good, and when hard things happen, being patient makes them good too. He told the story of Prophet Sulaiman, who saw a miracle happen right in front of him and immediately said 'this is from the grace of my Lord' instead of bragging. He also comforted the community about a frightening event nearby, reminding everyone that Allah promises believers will never truly be defeated. Finally, he asked each of us to look back at our year and decide: who was it all for? Before the new year begins, we should set our intention to live it for Allah.
- What is one thing from this year you want to say 'Alhamdulillah' for out loud right now?
- What does 'beautiful patience' look like when something goes wrong for you?
- If your next year was a journey, who or what would you want it to be for?
More on the Islamic calendar
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