Asalamualikoum wa rahmatollahi wa barakato. This is Najwa Awad from Yaqeen
Institute and today I'm just gonna be talking for a couple minutes about
making the most out of the last ten days and the last ten nights especially when
you feel like you have been doing your best. I think during Ramadan it's very
easy to get caught up with comparisons and looking to what other people are
doing to see how we are personally experiencing Ramadan. So let's say for
example you are a parent with young children and you're not able to read
Quran or go to taraweeh like some other people can. It's very easy to get
this made into a little pessimistic that you subhanAllah I'm not able to do what other
people can do, I wish I could do what they could do but I can't and I think
it's important for you know for us to remember that Allah does not punish us
for blessings he's bestowed on us and so while yes it is challenging to have
children during Ramadan or be entrusted with responsibilities such as taking
care of an elderly parent who is sick or perhaps you know you know a man might
have to work several jobs just to make ends meet and so we might feel bad about
the responsibility that's been entrusted to us but alhamdulilah, a tremendous
amount of good deeds can come from those things even if they don't appear to be
you know the the typical ibadat that we think of during
Ramadan and you know I think intentionality plays a really big role
so having the intention if you are not able to do some of you know
the nawafel and to read Quran throughout the day because you are at
home with the kids, making the intention that you are taking care of your kids
for the sake of Allah and you are the next generation of the ummah and feeding
them in clothing them and nurturing them Allahoalam maybe you will get more
good deeds than the person who has a lot of time is just sitting reading Quran
in the masjid. Or if you are just working working working and because you
are not able to you know provide for your family any other way
making the intention that you are working to take care of your family can
give you a lot of reward so I think it's important for us to you know continue to
do a lot of the deeds that we look at you know as traditional deeds but it's
also important for us to maximize you know the maximize Ramadan by you know
doing those deeds but also taking our everyday good deeds and making the
intention to do for the sake of Allah. And so also for those busy folks I think
using Laylatul Qadr towards the end of Ramadan for their advantage can help
them feel like they have made up for missed opportunity or lost time. We know
that we get a lot of reward from Laylatul Qadr so taking some
small deeds that can give a lot of reward is essential during those last
ten nights especially for people who feel like they don't have the luxury of
time that's as some other people do. So what are some things small things that a
person can do. Taking three minutes after Isha and going online
and and donating whether it's even five dollars or ten dollars to charity every
night during last night's and surely you will hit Laylatul Qadr one way or
another and that ten dollars will be multiplied many times over and you can
get a lot of a reward or for the woman for example who has children and she can't
go to taraweeh, praying two rakats or praying four rakat by herself after i
isha every night during the last ten nights, even if it just takes you know
five seven minutes it can help her get a lot of a lot of good deeds and so we
don't really need to have this and we don't really need to have this black or
white thinking where it's well I can't read the whole Quran so I might as well
not read anything or I can't pray at the masjid so I might as well
you know not do any extra prayers. Laylatul Qadr applies to you whether
you know you're at home or you're out or you have a lot of time or you don't have
a lot of time so everybody has this opportunity towards the end to take
really small deeds and multiple multiply them many times over. So it does take
some intentionality some thinking ahead and this can be done the night before
and you're going to sleep or during you know during fajr time what are
small deeds that I can do throughout the day or at night that can have a
tremendous amount of impact for me so I walk away from with odd feeling like I
did some some good. So I hope that helps and may Allah bless you and your family
during the last ten days and ten nights and may you find comfort in knowing that
Allah is most merciful and and knows best your intentions and and what you're
capable of. Asalamualikoum wa rahmatollahi wa barakto.