How i came to find the truth
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than you all for reading. and i know the shemagh is not required, but the beard for me is. one thing i always knew from exposure to Muslims was that to be taken seriously, you had a beard as a male. and it fits me. i have been growing a beard since i was going through puberty and only cut it once i enlisted in the army. when i got out i grew it back for good.
the shemagh was something i picked up in my travels, and i hung onto it as a symbol to myself of struggling for justice. so now it remains as a personal symbol.
as far as my personal life being easy all of the sudden, its not. in fact i am going through some problems right now with my employer. nobody said everything would be smooth sailing once you decide to submit to God. in fact the opposite is usually true. it is a test.
N' Shallah i will make it through this test.
one thing i wanted to add to this post is that i also read a lot about our founding fathers during my several periods of reflection. one thing that sticks out is the more they matured, the more worldliness they sacrificed for the sake of pleasing God and bettering themselves. two figures i studied in depth were Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson.
if you really look at their lives and how they eventually grew and conducted themselves, you might even come to the same conclusion that i did and many others have. They didn't know it, but they were Muslim. and it reflected in their daily lives, their ideas, and ultimately in the two Documents that birthed America the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the US. the principles there are directly in line with the Qur'an.
Both claimed to be Deists. which is simply believing there is one Creator of the whole universe, and that reason and intellect, or logic should be used to determine facts about religious figures such as Jesus. this is very similar to the teachings in the Qur'an. they even rejected the deity of Christ and in many cases focused on the logic of his teachings. Benjamin Franklin eventually made himself a list of things he consistently did in order to contact God on a daily basis and improve himself. he believed it was an ongoing process. this list of things is very similar to the principles of Islam. They also rejected the doctrines of the various churches of the time as ludicrous and contradictory, much like we all do when we really look at how silly some of the doctrines of the church are. Jefferson even went as far as taking the teachings of Jesus in the Gospels and arranging them in chronological order to show "the most sublime and benevolent code of morals which has ever been offered to man."
of course there is a lot of other details in their lives, and some of the ideas of Deism that dont quite fit into the teachings of Islam, but since they did not know about the Qur'an, and were truly doing their best to live as best they could, they were obviously as close to true believers as you could find in the earliest days of American culture. they were also quite a contrast to the Christians of their day. in fact i think it is safe to say they were often times more moral than their Christian counterparts.
it is my true belief that God guided these men and placed HIS principles in their hearts in order that they would share these ideas with their peers, and form the two most revered documents in the history of the United States. this ultimately is the seed that was planted to make the way clear for all of us to come to Islam in this nation.
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Salaam bro,
as far as my personal life being easy all of the sudden, its not. in fact i am going through some problems right now with my employer. nobody said everything would be smooth sailing once you decide to submit to God. in fact the opposite is usually true. it is a test.
There will not be sudden change in you nor your life, but facing problems? I believe "Facing problems" are not from Allah. If it is a test, it cannot be a "PROBLEM" otherwise it will be called an "AZAAB ".
440
440 Indeed, Allah does not wrong/injustice the weight of an atom; and if it is good He will double it. And He grants from Himself a great recompense.
1044
1044 Allah does not wrong the people in the least, but it is the people who wrong themselves.
The above aayat is for the mankind. But the aayat below is for believers and wrong doers.
4521
4521 Or do those who work evil expect that We would treat them the same as those who believe and do good works, in their present life and their death? Miserable is how they judge.
May Allah guide us all towards the truth pr
Mohammed M. Khan -
let me clarify, i am struggling with injustice from my employer. he is an independent contractor for a larger nationwide company. that's what he told this company anyway, but the truth is that since 3 of them share the profits secretly from this company, he allowed the other two to dictate how the rest of us are treated. so it was their bright idea to short the rest of us a half a paychecks worth of income, and they all pocket the other half we are supposed to get.
now since he is posing as the sole owner of his independent contract, those of us that didn't know it demanded raises. well it was promised, then he skirted the issue and now it is obvious it will never happen. so they continued to get greedy til two of us that were getting abused decided to leave. now there is even more work and no way possible to complete it all without breaking the company's strict policies.
so yesterday they got the 7 day warning. usually that is only a formality and its a signal they are going to end the contract anyway. so they are going to lose the contract. well instead of them wising up and deciding they should quit using the rest of us, now they use intimidation, even more sneakiness and even try to appease us with small refunds for travel, etc. its too late however.
so that is what i mean by problem. i am looking for a new job right now since now that i know the truth i cant even be associated with these people.
last night i got a suggestion from one of the guys who works for another contractor in the same company, but he pays what he is supposed to pay, if fair, and so far i have not heard any complaints about him as a boss, so i will be talking to him as soon as possible.
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Salaam brother,
let me clarify, i am struggling with injustice from my employer. he is an independent contractor for a larger nationwide company. that's what he told this company anyway, but the truth is that since 3 of them share the profits secretly from this company, he allowed the other two to dictate how the rest of us are treated. so it was their bright idea to short the rest of us a half a paychecks worth of income, and they all pocket the other half we are supposed to get.
now since he is posing as the sole owner of his independent contract, those of us that didn't know it demanded raises. well it was promised, then he skirted the issue and now it is obvious it will never happen. so they continued to get greedy til two of us that were getting abused decided to leave. now there is even more work and no way possible to complete it all without breaking the company's strict policies.
so yesterday they got the 7 day warning. usually that is only a formality and its a signal they are going to end the contract anyway. so they are going to lose the contract. well instead of them wising up and deciding they should quit using the rest of us, now they use intimidation, even more sneakiness and even try to appease us with small refunds for travel, etc. its too late however.
so that is what i mean by problem. i am looking for a new job right now since now that i know the truth i cant even be associated with these people.
last night i got a suggestion from one of the guys who works for another contractor in the same company, but he pays what he is supposed to pay, if fair, and so far i have not heard any complaints about him as a boss, so i will be talking to him as soon as possible.
Thanks for clarifying it.
I suggest you to seek Allah help on EACH STEP you take. Allah is the all Knowledgeable and Listener.
And remember the aayaats quoted above in my previous post. IF you are believer, then surely you will treated differently EVERYWHERE as said in 4521 above. And if any problem comes to you again that means there is some problem from your side as mentioned in 1044. So, keep your eyes wide open. InshaAllah, you will be happy soon.
May Allah help you and guide us all towards the Truth pr
Mohammed M. Khan -
Selam Joseph and welcome to the forum. I normaly don't read stories as long as yours but in this case I did. Sory to hear you were homeless, that must have been very hard. The good thing is that you have remained honest and a good person.
Do you go to mosks these days and do you consider your self Quran only muslim. If you do consider your self Quran only and go to mosks as well other muslims know about it? You know where do you stand?
Thanks
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to answer your question, i have just decided to submit, obey, surrender and learn peace from Allah not very long ago, so i have not found a masjid that i know beyond the shadow of a doubt teaches the clear teachings of the Qur'an. this is not something i am taking lightly. i want to make sure i am fully grounded in the correct way. i dont want to join a local masjid and find out they are squabbling over Hadith or claiming to be this or that, i just want to meet people who simply say "i have chosen to submit to the creator and believe that the Qur'an is the best possible prescription for life". i dont really care for Hadith, those are stories, and often times in my mind they are the same as wives tales, something that even the bible warned against. i dont believe it is wise to take a separate name to belong to "unique" sect or division, doing this means you are deliberately committing Fitnah. isnt it good enough to say "i am Muslim"? isn't it good enough to say "the Qur'an is God's word and that is good enough for me"?
even though i understand the principles behind the 5 pillars, it is very difficult for me to actually practice even the salat right now. logistically my work does not allow for the many breaks i would need to take in order to wash and partake in salat. i often times dont even get a chance to eat a real meal and must do so while i am driving. this has become a huge issue for me, since i want to obey, but i am restricted from doing so. this is another reason i really want to find other employment. there are so many negative aspects to my work, that i cannot reconcile the job i have now with actively practicing Islam. it really is to the point where i would have to choose between work and salat. i dont like this kind of quandary. since the job i do is so demanding and is prohibitive of doing what i should, then it has to go.
even though i enjoy reading the Qur'an, viewing videos of sheiks and other scholars about Islam, i know this is only scratching the surface. i need a community of fellow believers, its not natural to simply be an internet Muslim. after all where is the personal friendship? how can i go to someone on the web all the time if i have a real pressing matter i need help with? i think we can all agree it is better to be a part of a community of believers than to be isolated.
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I don't think that you will find a masjid that doesn't teach the hadith. Internet is the only solution, hopefuly a temporary solution only. I recomend you get a book Natural republic by the monotheist group. They have taken verses about prayers from the Quran only and came up with only three prayers in a day. The midle prayer you can pray within a window of many hours.
I strongly recomend the book. Anyway, I need to start praying to inshallah.
Thanks
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getting up every day and going to work earning a honest living, taking care of your family and community that's practicing islam. speaking for myself....quitting my job so i can pray is not what will make me a righteous person earning my wings. i am sure God understands everyone's situation and He makes it clear that he does not want to impose hardship on us. i pray while walking, driving, eating, well... throughout the day.
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i do the same, in fact on the weekends i fast similarly to what one would do during Ramadan. and i devote the bulk of the weekend to spiritual study. i also think about how Islam applies to my life throughout the day, and pray to/ worship Allah all day during work. often times i hum a contemporary Muslim tune, or repeat the words to myself. and i have found i am much happier and at peace with others just by doing these things. and a genuine smile doesn't hurt.
since i have made the conscious decision to follow the will of the creator, things are for the most part falling in place.
now of course i dont always go unhindered through the day, sometimes people look at me weirdly, i have even had some say i look like a terrorist since i have a beard. instead of taking offense, i just talk to them with the same respect or even better than i did before i decided to follow the creator. this usually diffuses these ignorant comments and they realize they have nothing to worry about.
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Salam & welcome
. so on a suggestion from a few friends, i decided to go with them to see Nuremburg. what a city that was. red light districts, bars, pubs, outdoor beer gardens, you name it, everything was ripe for the picking. we strolled the city streets, looking at everything, snapping pictures like a buch of dumb tourists and enjoying the sights. then we decided it was time to visit one of the smaller clubs to see if we could pick up some girls. well that's where i met my ex wife. she actually was checking me out more than i was her. she didnt speak the best english, but i didnt care about that, it was fun to talk to someone from a different culture. so we hit it off.
N?rnberg is a beautiful city with lots of historical sites, parks, greenery, churches etc. I find it strange and, frankly, a bit offensive that you are describing it as if it was some kind of Las Vegas. (No offence to L.V. residents, but you know what I mean. )
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really its far from las vegas, but to a young stupid American, it would not really seem any different, but later i saw how different it was after we got to explore the city more and get away from the pubs and bars.
why get offended? this was neither a personal slight against you or the city.
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really its far from las vegas, but to a young stupid American, it would not really seem any different
OK. hmm
why get offended? this was neither a personal slight against you or the city.
I'm German, and while I'm far from being patriotic, I do sometimes get a bit defensive of my country. http//www.boesealtemaenner.de/forum/Smileys/bam/flag_germany.gif
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I'm German, and while I'm far from being patriotic, I do sometimes get a bit defensive of my country. http//www.boesealtemaenner.de/forum/Smileys/bam/flag_germany.gif
ach du leiber!
well i have to say i did enjoy the country, especially hiking through the woods or visiting ruins.
it was a lot of fun while i was there, for the most part.
but not all of it was fun. it was the same place i was deployed to Bosnia from, and the same place i met my ex-wife, so there are sad memories too.
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i do the same, in fact on the weekends i fast similarly to what one would do during Ramadan. and i devote the bulk of the weekend to spiritual study. i also think about how Islam applies to my life throughout the day, and pray to/ worship Allah all day during work. often times i hum a contemporary Muslim tune, or repeat the words to myself. and i have found i am much happier and at peace with others just by doing these things. and a genuine smile doesn't hurt.
i am looking for the ayat in the koran that touches upon what you said and still looking.....
for how islam applies to my daily life ---- well, i wake up in the morning to sounds of nature - that's my alarm clock and then i hear the plow truck. i just want to pull the covers over. i ask God to help me get through the day. and should today be my last day on earth, then to make my exit be with honor. most of my thinking/reflecting/praising God actually takes place in the bathroom as it takes me about an hour to get ready. as i am brushing my teeth, i am thinking about stuff. i look at my reflection in the mirror. i find myself thinking about things we discuss here while taking shower. lately pretty much every morning, theres snow to clear in the driveway, as my lips and hands are near frozen - i am praying to God for early spring. but i do look at the snow on rooftops, tree tops and think how beautiful it is! the other day, i just stood there looking at the snowflake in awe. of course, after i spent good 40 minutes clearing the driveway and the plow truck dumps more wet heavy snow and i just want to scream, i start complaining to God. i get to work - yeap another day. and i ask God to help me do the right thing and live right by God. when i feel stressed, i ask God to help me. when i feel like just screaming at someone, i ask God to help me calm down and to be nice. when i feel exhausted from lack of sleep or feel the pain in my heart (from divorce) is just about to explode, i ask God to give me the strength to go on. after work, i head to the gym for an hour or so. another chunk of time when i go into my zone, thinking/reflecting/talking to God. every day now, i thank God for my current job as it is not as stressful as my previous of putting in long hours, not even having time to go to the bathroom and not having time for my hobbies. living alone, i do feel afraid sometime but immediately i call upon God and i feel calm. i usually sleep with the quran next to my pillow - don't know just find it comforting. when i am not working, i am cooking, cleaning, doing household chores, doing my hobbies. of course, posting on the forum!
well...i could go on and on but everything i do in my daily life from watching tv to eating to going to work to working out at the gym to helping people to cleaning the house to reading the koran.....all are application of islam in my daily life.
putting a smile on someone's face, saying a kind word, doing the best that i can at work, being a better person....all of these is what i consider practicing islam. at the end of the day, i just hope that i have lived an honorable life and earned God's blessings. with each passing day, i am one day closer to facing God at the end.