SaqibSaab

5 Lessons Learned from Counseling at MMYC Spring Conference 2008 – pt. 2 of 2

[#3 - The Power of a Youth Camp/Retreat]

When the Prophet (SAW) grew up in Mecca, he would escape to the Cave of Hira to get away from society for a moment and reflect on life. After Prophethood, this practice of temporarily leaving life continued every Ramadan when the Prophet (SAW) made I’tikaf in the masjid year after year.

My wife, a Michigan native, has been attending the conference as a kid since it began in 2001 and continues today serving as a counselor. She wrote on her blog about the conference.

“I decided to come back again as a counselor this year at the conference, and it’s safe to say, that MMYC magic is still alive and well. I don’t know what it is about the conference that just *works*. Maybe it’s the speakers. Maybe it’s the hype of no parents + spring break + hotels. Maybe it’s the yearning to seek knowledge. Or maye it’s that all throughout the conference I was surrounded by a new batch of Muslim youth, soaking in the MMYC experience, making friendships, and being revitalized.”

I have attended just a few camps and retreats in my life, but every single time they change your life in ways you can’t while living life “normally” with school, work, and home. This is especially so for youth camps and retreats.

Read more »

5 Lessons Learned from Counseling at MMYC Spring Conference 2008 – pt. 1 of 2

I recently attended the MMYC 2008 Spring Conference in Michigan this past weekend. The conference is a annual retreat for high schoolers, and I served as a counselor for a group of young brothers attending. The conference is a success every year, and this year it sold out around 300 seats to high schoolers spending a weekend away from school and life to come closer to Allah.

It was my wife who convinced me to apply to be a counselor, and alhumdulillah I am so happy that I got accepted and went, as the event changed my life. I learned a number of lessons from counseling at the conference, and feel they apply just as much to anyone else involved in Da’wah. Read more »

6 Things You Can Do To Increase Your Faith During Finals – Zubair Khan & Imam Suhaib Webb

1. Set up a continuous worship schedule

I remember my exam days, when I lived in the states: sleepless nights, lots of caffeine and plenty of fajirs in the Masjid. It was so amazing that outside of those times I would find it so hard to pray in the night, make dua, fast and struggle in worship. But, when exams rolled around I became a 24 test maniac making nearly unbelievable sacrifices for my exams. Although, for some of us, this might seem negative at first? I would like to think that it means we can do it!

If you can stay up, work like crazy, live off of coffee and struggle for a weeks towards success in this dunia, even disappearing and making ‘itikaf in the library, then surely you can struggle a little for the Hereafter. You have the potential, it just needs to be redirected towards Allah. Thus, the first lesson we learn from this time is one related to potential and priorities. The Arabs have a saying, “If the girl is pretty, then the high mahr is no problem.” Meaning, if the goal is beloved to the person, he will put forth great effort and feel very little stress. Read more »

Question Yourself

When I began high school, I attended a local Friday night youth group halaqh. One night, the brother preparing the talk for the night handed out copies of an article with a series of powerful questions on it. The questions were very powerful, but as for what they were and what they asked, it seems just like a lost memory of my high school days.

Years later, an old friend from the youth group found his copy of the article while cleaning out his room. He showed it to me and I was blown away. Being older and more aware of Islam and myself, the questions on it hit home much harder.

I wondered where this list came from, so I gave it a Google search, inputing the questions from the list in quotations. It turns out the list is archived on Islaam.com; that list is actually an article entitled “Question Yourself” by Shaykh Husayn al-Awaaish translated for Hudaa Magazine back in 1995.

Read over the questions yourself and ask yourself how well you live Islam everyday in your own life, and ask Allah ‘azza wa jal to help you answer them better on a daily basis.

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Dear Self,

Do you pray fajr (morning prayer) in the mosque in Jamaa`ah (gathering) every day?

Do you keep all prayers in the masjid in Jamaa`ah?

Did you read any portion of Allaah’s Book today?

Are you consistent in saying your thikr (words of remembrance) and praise of Allaah (T) and wird (regular daily dhikr) after every prayer?

Do you pray all the regular sunnah prayers (supererogatory prayers) before and after the fard prayers? Read more »

The Correct Way To Pray According To The Salaf

Nice attention getting title, huh? This isn’t about Fiqh of Salah, per se, but then again it is. Sometimes we may focus so much on the physical movements and actions of Salah that we may overlook another equally important aspect of prayer, niyyah, or intention. Check out this quote I read from Sayings of the Salaf:

‘Abdullâh b. Mubârak said:

I asked Sufyân Al-Thawrî, “When a man stands to pray, what should he intend by his recitation and prayer?” He replied, “He should intend that he is personally entreating his Lord.”

Muhammad b. Nasr Al-Marwazî, Ta’dhîm Qadr Al-Salâh Vol. 1 p199.

“Entreating” his Lord? I know it’s a translation from an Arabic word, but what does that mean??? Read more »