My Lord, I Love You
My Lord, I Love You
Dear brothers and sisters in Islam,
Have you ever tried in a moment of serenity to say sincerely,‘I love you, my Lord?’ Have you ever uttered it from the bottom of your heart?
You may take this matter lightly and say, ‘What is all the fuss about? We all love Allah The Almighty, and it is very easy for us to say so.' However, I believe that if you have ever experienced this closely, you would not say so. Claims like these are very easy to make, but the real question is: do the words truly spring from the bottom of your heart? Do you love Allah The Almighty wholeheartedly? Do you love Him in such a way that your love preoccupies you from anything other than Him?
I asked some of my brothers in Islam to enact this experiment for a week and to write down their notes while trying to urge their hearts to utter this declaration without deception or lying, and to avoid saying with their tongues what is not really in their hearts. The results were as I expected: most of them failed to utter the words, and wrote, “Whenever I tried to utter it I felt that I was a liar; I only managed to utter it sincerely once.”
Indeed, the matter requires sincerity and transparency, as well as practical application of this love.
‘Abbaad ibn Mansoor, may Allaah have mercy upon him, said, "During the lifetime of the Prophet, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, some people claimed that they loved Allaah The Almighty, but Allaah The Almighty wanted them to translate this claim into action. So, Allaah The Exalted Says (what means): {Say, [O Muhammad], "If you should love Allaah, then follow me, [so] Allaah will love you and forgive you your sins. And Allaah is Forgiving and Merciful.}[Quran 3:31]"
Likewise, the Jews and the Christians claimed that they are the children and beloved ones of Allaah The Almighty: {But the Jews and the Christians say, "We are the children of Allaah and His beloved."}[Quran 5:18], but Allaah The Almighty Says to them (what means): {Say, "Then why does He punish you for your sins?" Rather, you are human beings from among those He has created. He forgives whom He wills, and He punishes whom He wills.} [Quran 5:18]
In this verse, Allaah The Almighty refers to the fact that love has certain signs, including the fact that one does not punish those whom he loves. Hence, the absence of these signs means that the claim of being loved by Allaah The Almighty is false.
If you truly love Allaah The Almighty, then provide the evidence. Where is the evidence of your true love for Allaah The Almighty?
How can we claim that we love Allaah The Almighty and then disobey Him?
You may inquire, ‘Does love for Allaah The Almighty mean that one must be sinless?’
The answer is “no”. We are not infallible, because we are neither prophets nor angels, but love for Allaah The Almighty makes one repent quickly and return to his Lord constantly. Hence, when you see such a person, he would appear as if he is sinless.
Ash-Sha‘bi, may Allaah have mercy upon him, said,“If Allaah The Almighty loves a slave, his sins would not harm him.”
‘Abdul-Rahmaan ibn Zayd ibn Aslam, may Allaah have mercy upon him, said, “Allaah The Exalted may love His slave to the extent that He may say to him, ‘Go and do whatever you want, and I have forgiven it in advance.’”
The meaning is that Allaah The Exalted will guide such a slave to sincere repentance, and the acts that expiate any sins he commits, until he becomes sinless. If this were the only benefit of gaining the love of Allaah The Almighty, it would have been sufficient.
My dear brother and sister in Islam,
Do you really want to love Allaah The Almighty and to be loved by Him?
Do you really aspire to this love that will quench your thirst forever?
Are you ready to do whatever it takes to attain this great honor?
Do you want a remedy for your heart to stop committing sins and misdeeds?
Have you fallen into an unsuccessful love affair that has affected you psychologically and left unforgettable painful traces in your heart?
Do you suffer from the evil of this world and its blights and aspire to gain divine protection and care?
Do you wish to enter Paradise while you are still on earth, to taste real happiness when you find the sweetness of faith inside your heart?
If that is how you feel, then come with us on this faith-boosting journey in the gardens of the “love for Allaah”, hoping that we will be able to plant this great meaning in our hearts.
How can we not love our Lord?
My dear brother and sister in Islam,
Whenever you find that your soul is driven to sins and evades good deeds; or loves misguidance and swerves from the right path; or loves what you know angers Allaah The Exalted and neglects or even hates what Allaah The Almighty loves, then you should know that this trial is mainly caused by your ignorance about Allaah The Almighty.
That is because if you really knew Allah The Exalted, you would love Him sincerely and fear Him in a manner that befits him.
If a slave knew his Lord through His most beautiful Names and Attributes, even for a moment, he would fear Him, because He is severe in penalty. However, He would also aspire to His mercy, as He is the Beneficent, the Merciful.
However, the problem is that we do not glorify our Lord in the manner that is due to Him. Allaah The Exalted Says (what means): {They have not appraised Allaah with true appraisal. Indeed, Allaah is Powerful and Exalted in might.} [Quran 22:74]
Hence, the feet slip into sins and deviate from the right path.
Ignorance about Allaah The Almighty is the cause of all sins, because whoever disobeys Allaah The Exalted is certainly ignorant, just as whoever obeys Him is knowledgeable. This is because when one knows Allaah The Almighty and realizes His glory, pride and loftiness, he will fear and never disobey Him.
It was said, “If people had contemplated the greatness of Allaah The Almighty, they would have never disobeyed Him, because fear of Allaah The Exalted is sufficient knowledge, while underestimating the wrath of Allaah The Exalted comprises limitless ignorance.”
Is there any sweetness or delight in a sin that will cause loss and deprivation? What will benefit you if you lose your Lord? Who will compensate you if you are deprived of the mercy of your Lord that encompasses everything?
O you who knew the path of Allaah The Exalted and then deviated from it, what affliction can be graver than yours? Allaah The Exalted Says (what means): {O you who have believed, whoever of you should revert from his religion - Allaah will bring forth [in place of them] a people He will love and who will love Him} [Quran 5:54]
Abu Al-Ash-hab As-Saa’ih said,
When I was doing Tawaaf (circumambulation) I passed by a little slave girl clinging to the curtains of the Ka‘bah, and saying, ‘Alas! What alienation after the sweetness of closeness! Alas! What humiliation after dignity! Alas! What poverty after richness!’
I asked her, ‘What is wrong with you? Did you lose your money? Have you been afflicted with a calamity?’
She said, ‘No, but I once had a heart, and then (I) lost it.’
I said, ‘Is this your calamity?’
She said, ‘Is there any calamity worse than the loss of the heart, which connects you to the beloved One?’
I said, ‘Your beautiful voice has distracted people from performing Tawaaf.’
She said, ‘O Shaykh, is this your house or His House?’
I said, ‘No, this is His House.’
She said, ‘Is this your sanctuary or His Sanctuary?’
I said, ‘No, this is His Sanctuary.’
She said, ‘Then leave me to plead before Him as He called us to visit Him!’
She added, ‘I ask You (O Allah) by Your love for me to return my heart to me!’
I said, ‘How do you know that He loves you?’
She replied, ‘He mobilized armies and sent them for me to get me out of the lands of Shirk (polytheism) to adopt Tawheed (Islamic Monotheism) and allowed me to know Him. Of course, this means that He cares for me.'[Sifat As-Safwah]
My dear brother and sister in Allaah,
Contemplate and think, but never be heedless.
Do not ever incline to hasty joy, to this passing world, or to bliss that is blemished with worries and sadness.
Is it logical to eat poisoned food to satisfy your hunger, hoping that you will get rid of its effect by taking medicine later?
There is no doubt that this is a hazardous risk, because death may come suddenly. Did you receive guarantees from anyone that this is not going to happen? Why not? Ask the traffic officials about car accidents, and doctors and those who attend funerals frequently about the number of people who die every day at an early age. Why do you not believe that you may face this destiny sooner than you expect, especially since you are walking in the opposite direction and know well that you are away from Allaah The Almighty?
My dear brother and sister in Allaah,
Let me speak with you a little about our Lord, hoping that these words will reach your hearts and make you love Him truly.
Come, let us learn more about our Lord in a different language: the language of love.
It is astonishing that your heart is not filled with love for your Lord, while you see His creation everywhere in the universe. His great bounty is in every breath. His amazing forbearance is evident in that He sees you committing actions that displease Him without punishing you.
This overwhelming generosity of Allaah The Almighty is met on our part by sins and misdeeds; however, when we merely return to Him, He accepts our repentance graciously and even transforms the misdeeds of the repentant slave into good deeds.
I ask you to imagine this scene, knowing that Allaah The Almighty is far Exalted above everything:
A person extends his hand towards you to help or shake hands with you, while you turn away from him and walk away in the other direction. Despite this rudeness, he is still extending his hand towards you.
I ask you, what will be your reaction to this scene? Would you not censure the one who turns away for his atrocious behavior? Then, what will you do when you know that Allaah The Exalted: “Continues to stretch out His hand in the night so that the sinners of the day may repent, and continues to stretch His hand in the daytime so that the sinners of the night may repent.”[Muslim]
Imagine with me the scene of a benevolent master who has a poor servant, whom he gives food, drink, money and satisfies his needs in return for some easy tasks. However, this poor servant flagrantly disobeys his master or neglects his duties towards him. Even when he performs these tasks, he performs them according to his own wishes and desires. Do you not think that this master has the right to expel this obstinate servant? However, he does not do so; rather, he gives this servant respite to return and apologize. What great benevolence!
Should you not respect and praise this benevolent man? I think that the message is clear, and Allaah is far Exalted above everything.
Look! Your Lord is The Ever-Affectionate, who does everything to make His slaves love Him, and He even loves them, before they love Him: {a people He will love and who will love Him...} [Quran 5:54]
His blessings precede the slaves’ thankfulness, while He is The All-Mighty and The Owner of Grandeur.
Imagine a great and awe-inspiring king who tries to make his subjects love him in every possible way, while he does not need them.
However, he keeps asking them: Do you need anything? Do you have any need?
The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “When half of the night or two-thirds of it is over. Allaah, The Almighty, The Exalted, descends to the lowest heaven and Says, ‘Is there anyone asking to be given? Is there any supplicator to be answered? Is there any seeker of forgiveness to be forgiven?’ (Allaah continues saying this) till daybreak.”[Muslim]
He loves you, but you do not love Him properly! Indeed, He loved you as He chose you to be a Muslim, so, what have you done to thank Him for this great blessing?
‘Ubaydullaah ibn Al-Hasan, the judge of Basra, said,
I had a non-Arab beautiful slave girl, and I liked her very much. One night, she was sleeping with me, but when I woke in the middle of the night, she was not beside me. In fact, I expected something evil. However, I found her in Sujood (prostration) while praying, “I ask You by Your love for me to forgive me!” I said to her, you should have said, “I ask You by my love for You…”. She answered, “You do not understand! His love for me saved me from Shirk (polytheism) and admitted me to Islam and it also allowed me to wake up to pray, while you were sleeping.” I said to her, “Go! You are free for the sake of Allaah.” She said, “My master, you did not do good to me! I used to receive two rewards, but after being free, I will only receive one reward![I‘tiqaad Ahl As-Sunnah]
A worshipping woman used to supplicate Allaah The Almighty saying, “I ask You by Your love for me to forgive me!” It was said to her, is it not enough for you to say, “I ask You by my love for You…”? She answered, “Do you not know that He mentioned love for His slaves, before their love for Him: {a people He will love and who will love Him} [Quran 5:54]”
What great divine mercy! Indeed, one despises himself when he imagines this divine bounty, which is met with disobedience and ingratitude.
My dear brother and sister in faith,
Why do you go away from Allaah The Almighty while He is close to you? Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {And We have already created man and know what his soul whispers to him, and We are closer to him than [his] jugular vein} [Quran 50:16]
Consider His overwhelming bounty and benevolence to the extent that He Says in the Qudsi Hadeeth (sacred narration): “Whosoever approaches Me by one span, I shall approach him by one cubit; and whosoever approaches Me by one cubit, I shall approach him by the span of outstretched arms, and whosoever comes to Me walking, I shall go to him running.”
If we judge this from a worldly point of view, it is simply amazing.
Why should a master be so willing to accept the return of his disobedient and rude slave? This slave ought to correct his mistakes, go to his master, who would not move an inch towards him, and cover the great distances that he walked away from his master to learn his lesson. However, here, The Master moves towards His slave at a faster pace once the slave shows a sign of repentance! Should this not make the slave feel ashamed?
My dear brother and sister in Allaah,
Consider the great Attributes of your Lord. Do you know that your Lord is Bashful? Do you know that? He feels shy of rejecting whoever supplicates Him.
Some of the people who supplicate Allaah The Almighty could be sinful and negligent. However, let me ask you a question:
- Do you know of a slave who humbled himself before His Lord and then did not come to know the true meaning of honor?
- Do you know anyone who sought refuge with Him without obtaining His help?
If this has happened to anyone, then let him accuse himself not Him, because He is The Generous and The Benevolent.
Look! He sees you committing sins and misdeeds, but He covers you up and does not expose you.
Imagine a kind father who gives his son all that he needs; however, the son decides to steal secretly from his father. Imagine what would happen if one day, suddenly he encounters his father in front of him while he is busy stealing his money. Certainly, the son would tremble with shock and consider this a catastrophe. He never expected that his father would see him in such a state. He would stammer, and shiver with fear, waiting for his father’s reaction. What do you suppose would happen if unexpectedly, the father does not reproach the son or even let him know that he has seen him, as if to tell him, “Please, do not ever do this again!”
If this son has any sense of shame, what should he do?
My dear brother and sister in Allaah, what do you think about your Ever-Forgiving, Ever-Thankful Lord, who thanks whoever obeys Him? Allaah The Exalted and the King of all kings thanks you for obeying Him -- can you imagine that? He even multiplies the reward of the smallest good deeds ten times and even limitlessly. He receives the date fruit or morsel of food that you offer in charity and increases it until it becomes like a mountain. He saves you from Hell because of giving half a date fruit in charity... What a great Lord!
Do you not feel that your heart beats for Him? Have you shed tears while you read His beautiful attributes and contemplate His magnificent creation?
You meet His blessings and benevolence with ingratitude! What harm has He done to you to prevent you from loving Him? In fact, all the blessings that you enjoy are from Him. He is The One Who provided you with health, money, work, a spouse, and children. All this is from Him and He distinguished you with what is beneficial for you, and promised you that you will find in Paradise what no ear has ever heard and what no eye has ever seen on the Day of Judgment.
Can you tell me: How do you dare to disobey Him and then allege that you love Him?
