"Then, He will not neglect us"

Subhanallah..

A very good entry by Dr. Nik Munirah Nasir aka kak nikmun Sheffield..

Satu contoh pergantungan yg sgt hebat yg ditunjukkan oleh Siti Hajar..cube kite reflect and muhasabah balik, mcm mane keadaan kite bile diuji dengan ujian yg kecil shj drpd Allah?

Astaghfirullah...moga bermanfaat..

A snapshot into the past, from the narration of Ibn 'Abbas:

Abraham brought her and her son Ishmael, while she was suckling him, to place near the Ka'ba under a tree on the spot of Zam Zam, at the highest place in the mosque. During those days there was nobody in Mecca, nor was there any water so he made them sit over there and placed near them a leather bag containing some dates and a small water-skin containing some water and set out homeward. Ishmael's mother followed him saying, "O Abraham! Where are you going, leaving us in this valley where there is no person whose company we may enjoy, nor is there anything?" She repeated that to him many times, but he did not look back at her. Then she asked him: 'Has Allah ordered you to do so?" He said, "Yes" She said, "Then He will not neglect us," and returned while Abraham proceeded onwards.

Stop right there. What did she say? Is she for real?

Let's zoom the camera to this particular scene. Here we have this fairly young mother who is still nursing her small child and out of the blue, her husband said, "Let's go for a 'vacation'." And of course, back then they don't have the comforts of cheap flights or even a petrol powered car with air conditioner. And traveling through the desert…there is no 'Welcome Break' or MOTO services every 5 miles or so for coffee and or trips to the toilet. No AA or RAC to call if the camel breaks down. Really harsh condition, especially if you are traveling with a small child.

And suddenly her husband just left them in the middle of nowhere, with just a small supply of dates or water and moved on. Nope, there is no Premier Inn or Travelodge in the middle of the desert back then. Its just THEM, with a meager supply of dates and water. And she is just a woman. Still breastfeeding her child. Tired after a long long journey. Her husband didn't say exactly when he is coming back. Is he even coming back? Ever? How long will she be staying there? What will she do? Who is going to take care of her? The child? Where to get water? Or food? Is it safe to be out here on her own? will there be wolves lurking about?

And what is it did she say again? 'Has Allah ordered you to do so?" "Then He will not neglect us," Such conviction. Such confidence. Such FAITH.

Amazing.

Each one of us has been in what we can say as 'The Siti Hajar Moment'. Those times when you are faced with a difficult situation, or struggling to cope with something that seemed very heavy to bear, or when things went wrong, or things did not go as plan... basically anything, that puts you off the track. Anything that sorts of like punched you in the stomach and leaves you catching your breath as you lay crumpled on the floor, wondering what did you do to deserve this.

Usual reaction was to get upset about it, which is human. As we see how Siti Hajar reacted initially, she questioned her husband repeatedly. Why, why? Are you seriously leaving us here? Here in this barren land where not even an ant at sight? Why, why?

But the minute she realized that this is from Allah, and her husband confirmed it, her heart became firm and calm. Surely if Allah has willed for this to happen, then He will provide the way to get through this. He will, no doubt, show them the way to handle this situation. He will help them cope with this. He will not leave them. He is with them.

However, this realization did not make her completely useless. Even though she is confident Allah will not leave them, she did not just sit there and wait for things to magically appear. Instead, she still worked hard to find a source for water. From one mountain (As Safa) to the other mountain (al Marwa) she ran not just one round, but seven! If that is not hard work, I don't know what is.

Indirectly she has provided us a general framework of how to deal when faced with all the 'Siti Hajar Moments' in our lives. To get upset/worried initially as a reaction is only human, but you have to then realize that if Allah has ordained for it to happen to you, then He will not leave you to it on your own. He will help and provide for you somehow, maybe sometimes in ways that we don't even realize. However, you still need to put in some effort as well yourself, to balance your side of the equation.

So the next time that you find yourself in a sticky situation, remember the words of Siti Hajar, and put yourself briefly in her shoes:

" Has Allah ordained for this to happen to me? Well then, He will not neglect me. He will help me..."