Page 31 - The Secret Behind Our Trials

THE MUSLIM OF
DIFFICULT TIMES

The quality of a Muslim's belief and moral character is revealed
in difficult times. Under such circumstances, we see their superior
morality, courage, patience, trust, perception, fortitude, tolerance,
willingness to forgive, self-sacrifice, mercy, humanity, appreciation,
conscience, and composure.
"The Muslim of difficult times" indicates an individual who en-
dures every difficulty, frustration, and deprivation while displaying
the qualities listed above. Such people never compromise their
moral character, encounter every eventuality with great maturity
and trust in Allah, see the reason for everything that happens and
the good in it, and exhort others to practice the same superior moral-
ity. As The Qur'an says: "… when they came at you from above and
below, when your eyes rolled and your hearts rose to your
throats..." (Surat al-Ahzab, 10), these difficult times are when believ-
ers undergo serious testing and are beset by frustrations.
When we speak of difficult times, some examples come to the
mind of people who do not know Allah: a natural disaster, losing a
job, bankruptcy, and similar events. But for those with faith, the dif-
ficult moments refer to more serious situations: a time when a per-
son is deprived of his or her most basic requirements, and when the
frustrations are far more serious than those experienced in daily life.
The Qur'an defines such times when "the heart roses to the throat" as
periods when every imaginable kind of difficulty, illness, and disas-

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