Today, there’s no place where Charles Darwin’s social theory of evolution has played out like Nigeria in which life is now about “survival of the fittest.” Even the blind that does not see, the deaf that does not hear, the child that is yet feeble, and the very elderly that is too old to know what is happening around him knows that there’s hardship in the country; all because of the incredible inflation in the prices of goods and services. It’s real that times are biting Nigerians hard.
Every day, more and more Nigerians get impoverished and hopeless about the next moment in their life. With the naira perpetually losing its strength, food is becoming unaffordable to many households. This is in spite of all the human and material resources that Allah has endowed the country with. Unlike China and India both of which collectively own half of the world’s population, Nigeria is the only part of the world where population has been turned into a curse rather than a blessing; with stark poverty ‘flashing’ gloomily on the face of citizens.
Truly, life is naturally a course of varying degrees of trials which Allah deploys to measure and examine the quality of sincerity in a person’s faith. While it is natural that everyone likes to have all the good things that would make living on earth delightful, destiny sometimes works against this desire by subjecting an individual to unpleasant experiences he would wish he never encountered. Adversity could be suffered in different ways including flood disaster, low farm yield, accidents, crack or total collapse of a marriage, bankruptcy, illness, or demise of a dear one, joblessness (or loss of an existing job), crash in a business venture, etc.
Life, they say, is never one sweet song. It is, therefore, characteristic for individuals to experience failures or suffer adversities just as nations could also be made to endure hardships on the way to prosperity. It would really appear extraordinary if a person gets everything he wanted in life. Even if one was lucky to have everything, not everything would have come at the time he wanted them. Allah reminds us in Qur’an 2:155-156 “But we shall test you with something of fear and hunger, some loss in goods or lives or the fruits (of your toil), but give glad tidings to those who patiently preserve; who say when afflicted with calamity: To Allah we belong and to him is our return”.
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Allah mentions in the Qur’an 2:214 “Or do ye think that ye shall enter the Garden (of Bliss) without such (trials) as came to those who passed away before you? They encountered suffering and adversity, and were so shaken in spirit that even the messenger and those of faith whom were with him cried…” A man is tested or tried according to his level of faith. The more righteous a person is, the more likely that he suffers a more critical trial. This explains why prophets and messengers of Allah were the most severely tested.
Islam teaches that we link everything that comes our way in life, whether good or bad, to Allah (SWT). Indeed, this is the sixth article of faith in Islam. Whenever a believer does experience any misfortune or distress, it is required of him to reaffirm his basic conviction that to Allah belong all things and to Him is the return of all. It is not righteous for a believer to ascribe any catastrophe, disaster or mischance to someone or something immediate or remote. The ups and downs of life are generally a part of the exigencies of the life on this planet. No calamity befalls a person or a nation of people without the knowledge of Allah (SWT), the Omniscient. Even a leaf, fresh or dry, does not fall from a tree except by Allah’s leave.
When some things or everything appear difficult, turn to Allah, the Provider (Ar-Razzaq) and the Receptive (Al-Mujib). He is always there to give you ease from every hardship. When things are in turmoil or seem to be working against your individual and collective wish, put your hope in Allah. Lamentations and blame games are not likely to give us the succour we desire at the time we need it. All we need, therefore, to survive the current spate of the socio-economic crisis bedevilling us in Nigeria is persevering patience that is bonded with prayer. Allah affirms in Qur’an 2:45 “Seek (Allah’s) help with (persevering) patience and prayer even though that is difficult except for God-fearing.”
Allah does not close one door but readily opens another. Qur’an 65:2 says, “…And for those who fear Allah, He (ever) prepares a way out.” Allah is always there to lift us up when we are down. Hence, let us believe as Nigerians with faith in the omniscience and omnipotence of our creator that Allah who “neither sleeps nor slumbers” is there to rescue us from our current misadventure of difficult times. When nothing makes sense to us because we are confused or perplexed, Allah remains our guide. When friends and relations are too busy to find out how we are getting on, let’s turn to Allah for guidance on all issues. May Allah grant us wives, children, jobs, and all that would be the comfort of our eyes and heart, amin.
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