Call Upon Me; I Will Respond to You

"Call upon Me; I will respond to you."

First sermon

All praise be to Allah as is befitting to His great sovereignty and glorious status. I bear witness that there is no deity but Him, having no associates. To Him belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth and whatever is within them. And He is over all things competent.

I also testify that Muhammad is His Servant and Messenger, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, his family, his companions, and all those who will follow them in righteousness till the Day of Judgment

O Servants of Allah, I urge you and myself to be mindful of Allah the Almighty and obey Him, in light of what He says,

"O you who have believed, if you fear Allah , He will grant you a criterion and will remove from you your misdeeds and forgive you. And Allah is the possessor of great bounty." (Al Anfal: 29). He also says, "So give good tidings to My servants who listen to speech and follow the best of it." (Azzumar: 17-18).

Dear Muslims,

No matter what conditions any man may endure; whether he enjoys great or bad times, he is healthy or sick, he achieves success or is caught in failure, he needs his Creator, the Independent. Constantly, he is aware of his weakness before his Lord, the Almighty. He, therefore, seeks refuge in Him through prayers. In so doing He insists in asking in hope for fulfilling his needs and overcoming his difficulties. How can he not pray to Allah, whereas He says, "call upon Me; I will respond to you." (Ghafir: 60).

O you who is plunged into pain, leaving him blank and is hardly able to rid of his grief; O who is deeply sad and depressed; O who is needy, to whom are you going to resort for relieving your worries? Do not you seek your Lord's assistance, Who is Closer to you than the jugular vein?

Have not you read in His holy book: "and when My servants ask you, [O Muhammad], concerning Me - indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me." (Al Baqara: 186). Certainly the Glorious is He responds to those who turn to and supplicate to Him, and, by His favour, does not disappoint them. So be keen to insist in invoking Allah as the Prophet pbuh used to do. It was reported that when he pbuh prayed, he prayed three times, and when he asked for Allah's blessings, he asked three times.

1 It was also narrated that our Master Muhammad pbuh would invoke his Lord in an inclusive manner. Abu Musa Al Ashaari, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "I brought (a pot full of water) for ablution to Allah's Apostle pbuh, he made Wudu, prayed and said, 'O Allah, forgive me my sin, and expand for me my abode, and bless for me that which You have provided me’ I said, 'O Allah's Messenger pbuh what were those prayers you invoke (Allah) with?' He pbuh said, 'did they miss anything good?"

For her part, Umm Salama, may Allah be pleased with her, reported that the Prophet pbuh would say when he performed the Subh (morning prayer ) what means, "O Allah, I ask You for beneficial knowledge, goodly provision and acceptable deeds.”

Dear Servants of Allah,

Truly, by His grace, He responds to your supplications. So be obedient to Him and ask Him humbly, as the Almighty says, "indeed, they used to hasten to good deeds and supplicate Us in hope and fear, and they were to Us humbly submissive." (Al Anbiyaa: 70). A good example of such an attitude was that of the Prophet Nuh (Noah), pbuh. He complained to his Lord, Who says, "and Noah had certainly called Us, and [We are] the best of responders. And We saved him and his family from the great affliction. And We made his descendants those remaining [on the earth] and left for him [favorable mention] among later generations: Peace upon Noah among the worlds." (Assaffat: 75-79).

The Prophet Nuh pbuh was quoted in another verse praying to Allah as saying, "indeed, I am overpowered, so help." (Al Qamar: 10). It was a distress call that he was overwhelmed by his own folk who turned rebellious. He admitted he could not confront them for that was beyond his power. So he pbuh asked Allah to deliver His justice by punishing them because they were infidel to Him.

It was so much a compelling invocation that it shook the gates of heaven, ushering in the Divine order: "then We opened the gates of the heaven with rain pouring down and caused the earth to burst with springs, and the waters met for a matter already predestined. And We carried him on a [construction of] planks and nails." (Al Qamar: 11-13).

Similar examples included the Prophet Zakariah pbuh when he asked his Lord to grant him progeny. He pbuh was quoted in the Quran as saying, "and [mention] Zakariah, when he called to his Lord, "My Lord, do not leave me alone [with no heir], while you are the best of inheritors." (Al Anbiyaa: 89). Although he has reached extreme old age, he did not give up, nor did he lose hope. So he pbuh retreated and called his Lord a private supplication: "he said, 'My Lord, indeed my

2 bones have weakened, and my head has filled with white, and never have I been in my supplication to You, my Lord, unhappy.

"And indeed, I fear the successors after me, and my wife has been barren, so give me from Yourself an heir who will inherit me and inherit from the family of Jacob. And make him, my Lord, pleasing [to You].' [He was told], 'O Zechariah, indeed We give you good tidings of a boy whose name will be John. We have not assigned to any before [this] name'." (Maryam: 4-7).

The Glorious is He responded to his supplication and did not let him lonely as He blessed him with Yahya pbuh, a successor to him and an offspring. The Almighty says, "so We listened to him: and We granted him Yahya." (Al Anbiyaa: 90).

The Prophet Ayyub (Job) pbuh was afflicted by disease, yet he remained patient, looking forward to Allah's reward. He pbuh asked his Lord saying, "indeed, adversity has touched me, and you are the Most Merciful of the merciful.' So We responded to him and removed what afflicted him of adversity. And We gave him [back] his family and the like thereof with them as mercy from Us and a reminder for the worshippers [of Allah ]." (Al Anbiya: 83-84).

For his part, Allah's Messenger Yaqub (Jacub) pbuh suffered from the parting of his son Yusuf pbuh and that of his brother. He accepted his agony by saying, "so patience is most fitting. Perhaps Allah will bring them to me all together. Indeed it is He who is the Knowing, the Wise." (Yusuf: 83). Then he complained to Allah saying, "I only complain of my suffering and my grief to Allah, and I know from Allah that which you do not know." (Yusuf: 86). Allah the most Compassionate answered his prayer and brought back his son as shown in this verse: "and when the bearer of good tidings arrived, he cast it over his face, and he returned [once again] seeing. He said, "Did I not tell you that I know from Allah that which you do not know?" (Yusuf: 96).

Also, our Prophet Muhammad pbuh endured great misfortunes when he lost his wife and uncle, who was supportive to him. And when he went to Taif to invite its people to Islam, he faced the worst opposition and was treated badly. They mobilised their youth and the ill-mannered among them to harm him: they threw stones on him until his feet bled.

Thereupon, He pbuh complained to his Lord saying, "O Allah, to You I complain about the weakness of my strength, my lack of options, and my inability to people. O Most Merciful, You are the Lord of the weak, to whom are You entrusting me? Is it to a distant (stranger) who despises me or to an enemy to whom You have given

3 control over my affair? If you're not angry with me, then I do not care (about everything that happens to me) except that Your protection for me is immense.

"I seek refuge in the light of Your face that illuminates the darkness and by which any matter of this world and the hereafter finds resolution. May it never be that I should incur Your wrath, or that You should be displeased with me. I will continue to seek Your satisfaction until you are satisfied (with me). There is neither might nor power except with You."

Knowing this, raise your hands to your Creator and insist on your supplications to Him. Prostrate to Him humbly and tell Him about your grievance for He knows everything. He knows the secret-what is [even] more hidden, and He removes afflictions. The Almighty says, "is He [not best] who responds to the desperate one when he calls upon Him and removes evil." (Annaml: 62). In this regard our Prophet pbuh said, "nothing turns back the Decree except supplication." On the same, He pbuh also said, "hearts are like containers. Some are larger than the others. So when you ask Allah the most Exalted, put trust in Him, for Allah does not accept the supplication from an inattentive, heedless heart."

With this in mind, may Allah respond to our prayers, achieve our hopes and accept our good deeds. May Allah help us to obey Him, His Messenger Muhammad pbuh and those He has decreed on us to obey in compliance with His orders:

"O you who believe, Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger and those charged with authority among you." (Annisaa: 59). May Allah direct us all to the blessings of the Glorious Quran and benefit us all in whatever is in it of the Ayas and the Wise Dhikr.

I say this and ask Allah the Great, the Most Honoured for forgiveness for me, you and all the Muslims for every sin, so invoke Him for forgiveness, for He is the Most Forgiving, Most Merciful.

Second sermon

Praise be to Allah. I bear witness that there is no deity but Him, having no associates. I also bear witness that our Master Muhammad is His Servant and Messenger, may the peace and the blessings of Allah be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his pure family, his companions and all those who will follow them in righteousness till the Day of Judgment.

O Servants of Allah, please obey Allah the way he should be obeyed and duly observe Him in private and in public. Please also know that our Lord may answer our supplications soon in this world or later in the Hereafter, or He may avert evil from

4 us. On this matter, Allah's Messenger says, "there is no Muslim who calls upon his Lord with a supplication in which there is no sin or severing of family ties but Allah will give him one of three things: either He will answer his prayer quickly, or He will keep equivalent reward for him (in the Hereafter), or He will divert an equivalent evil away from him They said, "then we shall supplicate plenty." The Prophet pbuh said, "Allah is more plentiful (in responding)."

Dear Muslims,

Keep on invoking Allah and never lose hope even if the answer is getting late. Because Allah's mercy is vast and His generosity is unlimited please insist in asking Him as our Prophet pbuh said, "the invocation of anyone of you is granted (by Allah) if he does not show impatience by saying, 'I invoked Allah but my request has not been granted.' So he abandons prayers."

Dear Servants of Allah,

Bear in mind that you are asked to offer prayer and greetings upon our most noble Prophet pbuh for Allah says, "indeed, Allah and His angels sends blessing upon the Prophet. O you who have believed, ask [Allah to confer] blessing upon him and ask [Allah to grant him] peace." (Al Ahzab: 56).

On the same matter, the Prophet pbuh said, "for everyone who invokes a blessing on me will receive ten blessings from Allah."

May the peace and the blessings of Allah be upon our Master Muhammad pbuh, his family and all his Companions. May Allah be pleased with the Rightly Guided Caliphs: Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali, and all those who will follow them in righteousness till the Day of Judgment.

O Allah, we implore You at this instant not to let a sin unforgiven, a distress unrelieved, an illness unhealed or a handicapped without relief, a dead without mercy or a debt unsettled. Our Lord, give us in this world that which is good and in the Hereafter that which is good, and save us from the torment of the Fire.

O Allah, may we ask You to help us with what gets us closer to Paradise and furthers us from hell. O Allah we seek Your grace to admit us, our parents, whoever has done a favour to us and all Muslims to Your Paradise.

May Allah grant success and continued good health to our leader HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan. May Allah also ensure success to his Deputy, HH Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, and provide strength and assistance to his

5 brothers, Their Highness The Rulers of the Emirates, and his trustworthy Crown Prince HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

O Allah, forgive all of the Muslims, men and women, living and dead, and make blessings follow us and them. May Allah have mercy on Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Maktoum and all their brothers, the Late UAE Sheikhs. O Lord, forgive and show mercy to our parents, relatives and whoever has done a favour to us.

We pray to Allah, the Most Gracious, to preserve the UAE from all temptations, both apparent and hidden, and continue blessing the UAE and all Muslim countries with safety and security.

O servants of Allah, remember Allah and He will remember you. Be grateful for His benevolence He will increase His blessings to you. Allah, the Most High, says, "and establish prayer. Indeed, prayer prohibits immorality and wrongdoing, and the remembrance of Allah is greater. And Allah knows that which you do." (Al Ankaboot: 45).

Translation

Mostapha El Mouloudi

Note: The English translation of the Quran and Hadith is an interpretation of their meanings, and does not have the status of their original Arabic texts.