Allah Is The Rich, You Are The Poor

This is a fact that none can escape, yet you go after the treasures of the world and renounce the Lord of Truth.

"Know that the life of this world is but a play and a passing delight and a beautiful show, and the (cause of) your boastful) vying with one another, and (of your) greed for more and more wealth and children." (Quran: 57/20)

Look at this world with the eyes of your heart, you will find it ugly and loathsome; look at it with your physical eyes and it will lure you to the side and slaughter you.

Be content with whatever Allah has decreed for you. Fear Allah in your innermost being. Implement His commands. Once your heart complies with the Divine Decree, the Lord of Truth will grant you from sources you never imagined:

"And whosoever is conscious of Allah, He will make a way for him to get out (from every difficulty). And He will provide him from (sources) he never could imagine. And whoever puts his trust in Allah, then He will suffice him. Verily, Allah will accomplish His purpose. Indeed Allah has sent a measure for all things." (Quran: 65/2-3)

Beg of His mercy; turn to Him with a heart full of sincere repentance.

"O you who believe! Turn to Allah with sincere repentance." (Quran: 66/8)

Stand before your Lord with humility, implore the Dispenser of Grace by His Most Beautiful Names and Attributes of perfection. If He fulfills your wish, increase in your gratitude and servitude to Him. If He denies your request, then succumb to the Divine Decree of the All-Wise with a submissive heart. Do not argue or object to His will. Always remember:

"…Allah knows and you know not." (Quran: 24/19)

Allah disposes of everything as He wills, and commands as He wills:

"He is not to be questioned about what He does, though they are subject to His questioning." (Quran: 21/23)

If wealth and happiness are destined for you, they will come to you at their appointed time according to the Divine Decree of Allah, the Lord of the heavens and the earth. Do not be greedy but be moderate because you will receive all that was written for you. If you do so, you will earn the displeasure of the All Mighty, and lose all spiritual comfort in this life. Maalik Ibn Deenaar once said: "If you want to acquire true knowledge of Allah, the All Mighty, then consent to His management and planning. Make not your mind and desire, passion or will associates to Him."

O you of sound health but weak heart! Wake up and run to your Creator with repentance on your tongue, tears in your eyes, and sincerity in your heart. Cry before Him, before others cry for you. Make haste, O heedless one!

"Has not the time come for the hearts of those who believe to be affected by Allah's Reminder…?" (Quran: 57/16)

Remove the veils of darkness that have corroded your heart. Adorn it with His fear and love.

Do you not fear the moment when you will stand before your Lord? There will be no screen between Him and you, nor an interpreter to translate for you. And your Creator will question you. You will find nothing to your left nor to your right but the blazing Fire of Hell. Do what the Prophet of Allah advised you, if you truly fear Allah:

"…So let each of you protect himself against Hell-Fire, be it even with half a date - and if he finds not, then with a kind word."

You are the servant, He is the Master. Prayers come from you, answers come from Him. Abstinence comes from you, protection comes from Him. Repentance comes from you, acceptance comes from Him. Go towards him walking, He will come to you running.

Make your deeds pure for His sake alone, and He will extend His mercy to you. Upload His religion, and He will extend His bounty to you. Follow the Sunnah of His beloved, and He will extend His love to you.

Look forward to your meeting with Allah. It will be very soon. Sooner than you can imagine! Make preparations for this meeting. Get rid of the love of this world from your heart; free it from everything other than the Lord of Truth. Do not buy the world and pay with the hereafter as a price. Do not sell the hereafter to acquire this world.

"…Shall We tell you who are the greatest losers in whatever they may do? Those whose efforts have been wasted in this life while they thought they were acquiring good by their deeds…" (Quran: 18/103-104)

The Most Wise did not create you to gratify your base desires and passions, nor did He create you for fun, amusement, eating, drinking, sleeping, or having sex!

"I have created the Jinns and the humans solely to worship Me." (Quran: 51/56)

But you are so heedless as if you have drunk the elixir of immortality. You think that the Angel of Death will never squeeze your soul out of your body? You have forgotten that you will pass through the Siraat with the intense Fire of Hell underneath you. You are unaware of the thrashing that awaits you in your grave by the angels of Allah. Hot stones of Jahannam for you to walk on, herbage bitter than aloes, foul putrid meat to eat, your lips to be cut by coarse scissors, getting trampled under the feet of the people of Pharaoh, cutting your own flesh from the sides to eat it, scratching your chests and faces with brass nails - all this awaits you if you do not pay the Zakah, if you fornicate, devour usury, slander others, backbite, or malign people's honor.

This is just the grave, Hell is yet to come!

"…the punishment of the Hereafter is greater, if they but knew." (Quran: 68/33)

By: Kamil Mufti
Source: islaam.com

How to Fast Healthily During Ramadan

With the fast of Ramadan upon us, we thought it might be useful to look at ways of trying to maintain a healthy diet whilst fasting. Fasting for 12 to 24 hours or more can lead to dizziness and fatigue and a lowering of metabolic rate as a means of conserving calories or energy. Here are some simple guidelines to make sure that your diet remains balanced and healthy during this fasting period:
Don't skip breakfast
Even though the thought of sleep may be far more appealing than waking up to force down some food, don't skip breakfast. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. For years, research has shown that breakfast (the breaking of the overnight fast) provides the essential nutrients and energy needed for concentration while keeping hunger symptoms like headaches, fatigue, sleepiness and restlessness at bay. In addition, it also gets our metabolic rates up and going - it is therefore vital to ensure an adequate intake at breakfast time.
Eat a wide variety of foods
Especially now, when your daily intake is limited to two meals per day, you need to put extra effort into including foods from all the food groups. Our bodies need at least 40 different nutrients every day to ensure that we grow adequately and maintain good health. Although most foods contain more than one nutrient, no single food provides all the necessary nutrients. Moreover, foods have benefits that can't be replicated by a pill. It is thus important to eat a wide variety of foods every day, so as to ensure that we get all of these nutrients. The way to ensure variety, and with it a well-balanced diet, is to select foods each day from each of the five food groups:

• Breads, cereals and other grain products
• Fruit and vegetables
• Meat, fish and poultry
• Milk, cheese and yoghurt
• Fats and sugars (these contain very little nutrients and are high in calories and therefore their intake should be limited).

Use low glycaemic (GI) foods at breakfast to help control blood sugar levelsCarbohydrates are now classified according to their glucose response or glyceamic index. The GI measures how fast the carbohydrate of a particular food is converted to glucose and enters the bloodstream. It therefore tells you which carbohydrate foods satisfy hunger for longer. The lower the number of the GI, the slower the food is converted to sugar and the better it is. Selecting low GI foods therefore helps maintain normal blood sugar control, minimizes hunger pangs and satisfies appetite without providing excess calories. Also, by controlling blood sugar levels, you prevent excessive eating binges as a result of low blood sugar levels. Click here for a list of common food products and their actual GI values. Remember to include low GI foods at each meal, and to avoid eating high GI foods on their own, but rather to mix them with low GI foods, which will give an intermediate GI overall.
Be aware of your cooking methods
By making small changes in your cooking habits, you can create great-tasting foods that are also healthy for you. Although special recipes are an important part of family tradition, many of those treasured favorites have too high a fat content for today's generation of health-conscious cooks. You do not have to give up those old favorites - convert them! Here's how:

• Always trim off all excess fat from before cooking or use veal, venison, chicken and Soya as lower fat options. Remove poultry skin before or after cooking. Choose light meat (breast) instead of dark meat (leg, wing).
• Cut down on fat intake during cooking wherever possible:
  - cook onions in a small amount of water or even vegetable stock rather than oil or butter
  - use non-stick frying pans and non-stick sprays (like Spray 'n Cook) rather than oil or margarine if frying
  - bake, grill or roast foods rather than frying
  - cook roasted meat or poultry on a wire rack so that the fat can drip off
  - vegetables should be steamed or boiled with as little cream or margarine as possible
  - when preparing rice, noodles and other grains, season with herbs, spices and broths rather than added fat
  - prepare soups, gravies and sauces in advance, so that they can be refrigerated and the layer of fat that forms on top removed
  - experiment with herbs and spices to add flavor and zest to low-fat cooking. Herbs, such as basil, bay leaf, oregano, or rosemary adds distinctive flavors and colors to meat and vegetables. Spices, like cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg enhance the sweet taste of foods, and seasoning blends, such as chili powder, curry powder provide a complex array of flavors
• Avoid taking in too much salt
  - Use garlic, dry mustard, pepper, onions, mushrooms and tomatoes to add flavor to meat and vegetables
  - Add sliced lemon or lemon juice to white meats and fish
  - Use herbs and spices instead
• Make healthy changes to recipes
  Use your regular recipes, but start cutting the fat in half. If a recipe calls for cream or whole milk, use evaporated or fresh skim milk. If a recipe calls for a whole egg, use two egg whites, etc.

Eat enough carbohydrate foods - especially those rich in fiber
These foods provide the body with energy. They are often incorrectly labeled as fattening and unnecessarily limited. They are rich in vitamins belonging to the B group, and are an excellent source of fiber. Bear in mind that hi-fiber foods have a greater effect on satiety than their low-fiber counterparts. Examples of foods high in fiber include brown rice, whole grains, fresh fruit and raw veggies.
Remember your fruits and vegetablesFruit and vegetables add colour and variety to the menu. They are often termed our "protective" foods as they help the body fight off sickness and disease. This is because they are rich sources of a variety of vitamins and minerals. An added benefit is that they are relatively low in calories and also contribute to our daily fiber intake.
Drink sufficient fluidAlways include water in your diet and limit your intake of caffeine-containing beverages. Caffeine is a diuretic and will not provide adequate hydration.
We all know that maintaining a balanced diet by eating healthily has a vital influence on your well being. Try following the above principles so that this fast period does not sway too much from the principles of good nutrition.

Source: health.iafrica.com