Can My Life Take a Turn for the Better Because I Practice Islam Now?
Answered by Ustadha Shazia Ahmad
Question
I’m desperate. The last four years things seem to be going downhill for me, my OCD got worse and I started failing at school because I was occupied with intrusive thoughts. Alhamdulillah, I gained Islamic knowledge, and now I’m at home after failing a college course.
I’m taking a break and staying at home now, with no job and no academic studies, and I worry that life will always be like this. I went to a Catholic school, and my friends were non-Muslims and non-practicing Muslims; I’ve now lost them, but they weren’t good for me, so alhamdulillah that I lost them.
Could life just change suddenly, and my problems go away even if I just stay home and become a practicing Muslim?
Answer
Yes, your life can suddenly change and turn around for the better because of the baraka of your actions and Allah’s pleasure in seeing you practice. However, I encourage you to be proactive and not wait for success to knock at your door.
Resources
The first thing that strikes me is that you might not use all the resources around you to do well in school. What is available to you? If you are having trouble at school, you should try all avenues of aid. Get a tutor, attend office hours, email your professors, contact peer tutors, form a study group, and make friends with advanced classmates. Never be afraid to ask for help; succeeding without help is near impossible. In sha Allah, you will also help others in need one day.
Don’t Give Up
In addition to taking the means to do your best, I ask that you turn to Allah wholeheartedly. Pray on time, give regular charity, supplicate at tahajjud time, and surround yourself with positive, proactive Muslim friends. Reduce your screen time dramatically if you haven’t already because screen time feeds laziness and a lack of productivity. Make a plan to study or follow a better academic path, trust in Allah’s promise, and wait patiently for the fruits of your efforts. Tell yourself that things will change, and have total conviction that they will. In the meantime, show gratitude for what you do have.
Allah Most High told us in the Quran, “O believers! Seek comfort in patience and prayer. Allah is truly with those who are patient.” [Quran, 2:153]
And He said, “And seek help through patience and prayer. Indeed, it is a burden except for the humble, those who are certain that they will meet their Lord and to Him they will return. [Quran, 2:45-46]
And Allah Most High also promised us, “So, surely with hardship comes ease. Surely, with that hardship comes more ease.“ [Quran, 94:5-6]
Consign all your problems to Him and never stop waiting for His answer, for the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) said this about impatience: “The supplication of every one of you is granted if he does not grow impatient and say: ‘I supplicated, but it was not granted.’” [Muslim]
Please see these links as well:
Am I Accountable if I Can’t Be Patient in a Test?
I Feel Like I’m Destined to Be a Failure. What Can I Do?
Trying to Practice but Feel Like a Failure: What Should I Do?
How Do I Get Over My Failure and Start Studying for My Retakes?
Given the considerations in such cases, we urge you to please consult reliable local scholars or counsellors about the specifics of the situation. Jazakum Allah khayr. May Allah facilitate all ease and good for you.
May Allah give you the best of this world and the next.
[Ustadha] Shazia Ahmad
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Ustadha Shazia Ahmad lived in Damascus, Syria for two years where she studied aqida, fiqh, tajweed, tafsir, and Arabic. She then attended the University of Texas at Austin, where she completed her Masters in Arabic. Afterward, she moved to Amman, Jordan where she studied fiqh, Arabic, and other sciences. She later moved back to Mississauga, Canada, where she lives with her family.
