Repentance & taqwaFrom the masjid's own video, Jan 9, 2026.
Please Allah through obedience and effort
“When you make dua to Allah, you operate off of what you made dua for and you make effort.”
In one sentence
Muslims must actively strive to please Allah and avoid displeasing Him by obeying revelation, sacrificing what they love, pairing dua with effort, and preparing for accountability.
The khutbah in 6 steps
- Faith brings hope for Jannah but requires actively pleasing Allah and avoiding disobedience.
- True striving includes giving from what one genuinely loves, not merely unwanted possessions.
- Iblis illustrates how desire, pride, and self-directed reasoning can oppose submission to Allah.
- Believers should prioritize Allah’s commands, Quranic recitation, and night worship.
- Dua must be paired with effort, endurance, and requests for spiritually beneficial outcomes.
- Every bodily blessing and action is a trust for which believers will be accountable.
Try this week
Give zakat or sadaqah from something you genuinely love, not merely something you want to discard.
Make specific dua for guidance, Quran commitment, steadfastness, and beneficial outcomes, then pair each request with effort.
Prioritize prayer and masjid attendance, including making the effort to attend Fajr on time.
Recite Quran with measured recitation and establish some night worship.
Attend the Monday after-Maghrib iftar and ta'aleem gathering for explanation and questions.
Sources the khateeb cited
Quran 61:10-11Presents faith and striving with wealth and self as the bargain that saves from punishment.
Quran 2:208Calls believers to enter Islam wholeheartedly and avoid Satan’s footsteps.
Quran 73:1-4Supports night worship and measured Quranic recitation.
Quran 2:200-201Contrasts asking only for worldly benefit with seeking good in both lives and protection from the Fire.
Quran 2:214Explains that entry into Jannah involves severe trials and reassures that Allah’s help is near.
Quran 19:5-6Uses Zakariya’s supplication and Maryam’s childbirth pain to illustrate asking Allah and enduring hardship.
Quran 19:23Uses Zakariya’s supplication and Maryam’s childbirth pain to illustrate asking Allah and enduring hardship.
Quotes
In the khateeb's words
“first objective is to please Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala second objective is not to displease Allah because we can please Allah so much that we will gain Jannah”
“when you give truly of what you love you keep the old one and you give the new one to your friend that's when you're giving truly what you love of your wealth”
“When you make dua to Allah, you operate off of what you made dua for and you make effort.”
“If I asked all of you now, do you believe Allah is going to reward you for what you do? You will say, "Yes." Well then why aren't you acting on it? Why aren't you acting on it?”
Talk about it at home
For the dinner table
Today’s khutbah reminded us that saying we are Muslim is a beginning, not the finish. We should seek Allah’s pleasure and avoid what displeases Him, especially by giving from what we truly love rather than only what we no longer want. Desire and pride can pull us away from obedience, so we should let Allah’s guidance shape our choices. We should pair our duas with real effort, care for our prayers and Quran, and remember that our bodies and actions are trusts for which we will answer.
- What is something you value that you could share with someone else?
- What good thing can you ask Allah for and then work toward this week?
- How can we make our daily schedule show that prayer matters to us?
Keep listening
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