Lemonade Recipe: One Part Lemon, One Part Allah

“And surely We shall try you with something of fear and hunger, and loss of wealth and lives and crops; but give glad tidings to the steadfast, who say, when a misfortune strikes them: “We belong to God, and to Him we are returning. Surely are they on whom are blessings from their Lord, and mercy. Such are the rightly guided.” (2:155-2:157)

Trial and calamity are facts of life, the purpose, of which we must always remember, is an opportunity to gain nearness to Allah (swt). We should also remember that even in calamity, looks could be deceiving. Sometimes those dark moments, the ones that seem impossible to get through without faith, often precede the greatest light.

How many times do we look at other people’s lives thinking, “Their lives are so perfect.” But as much as people may try to hide it, calamity befalls us all. We’re taking a nice Sunday stroll and life hands us a lemon. Or in some cases, we’re riding a bike and a lemon flies at us so fast and hard it knocks us down! Okay, it may not be that bad, but unpleasant things do happen, to all of us. Allah (swt) has promised us this life is a life of trials, and no person will go through it free of tribulations. When we look at others and wonder how they are free of hardship, we need to remember this is only our perception. In the world of Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, it is easy for us to hide the challenges in our lives behind pretty pictures and status updates showing how “perfect” everything is.

On the other hand we interact with others around us and see them happy no matter what they are dealing with. Even when exhausted from struggling with finances, raising children or juggling jobs and family, they are always upbeat. We pass it off to Allah (swt) making it easy for them because they are “good.” Right? This is all too often misunderstood. Allah does not test us because we are “bad” or allow others to enjoy smooth sailing because they are “good”, rather He tests us as a means of growing closer to Him. If we remain focused on attaining His pleasure, we become stronger in navigating through these challenges and attaining everlasting happiness in Paradise. Even the most beloved creation of Allah, our Beloved Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) faced trial after trial throughout his life and his prophethood. In fact, Allah (swt) has said that as we grow and strive to be nearer to Him (swt), the tests will grow as well. So how do these individuals maintain such calm, poise, and focus through these undoubtedly difficult trials?

Almost as hard as the lemon that knocked us down, we realize it is not about how big or small the lemon is, it’s about how we deal with the lemon. Make lemonade, you suggest? Our hearts are tired, hurt and we are feeling dejected, we might respond. Allah has tested us such that we feel we don’t have the emotional strength to turn this lemon into lemonade. Instead, like in all other things we need help with, we turn to our Lord, our Creator, our Provider and we ask Him to make the lemonade instead! Some of the ingredients in these moments must come from us before asking Allah to make the lemonade. As we know, we must always tie our camel before putting our trust in Allah. Remember if the taste of the lemon is too tart, check to make sure you have all the proportions correct, an extra spoonful of patience might do the trick!

Here are the ingredients:

One heart full of tawakkul
A heaping handful of patience and
The blessings of good company and mentorship

Tawakkul

“And whoever relies upon Allah - then He is sufficient for him.” (65:3)

Allah (swt) reminds us in the verse above that though we may search in various places and people for solutions to the challenges presented to us, these may be helpers but they are not the source of help. Rather, if we put our problems in the hands of Allah, He will take care of all of our affairs. The size or depth of our troubles is no issue to Him as His mercy, wisdom and forgiveness are infinite. Ibn Ata’illah said, “Relieve yourselves of worry after you have planned, but do not concern yourself with what Allah has undertaken on your behalf.” He is reminding us in this hikm that the first steps to Tawakkul are to plan, work hard, seek means and after that, faithfully release it to the hands of Allah.

Patience

Who, when disaster strikes them, say, "Indeed we belong to Allah, and indeed to Him we will return.” (2:156)

When our life becomes disrupted by hardship and difficulty, there are many things we can do physically and spiritually. First, remember whatever the difficulty it will not last forever. Even separation from a loved one is only temporary; families and friends can be reunited with each other for all of eternity in Jannah. Secondly, talk to someone you trust to express what you are feeling and go for a walk or a run to release the physical energy from being worked up. These things will help but for the heart to regain its rhythm, we must remember Allah (swt). Make dhikr, read Qur’an, spend time in prayer and reflection and be in the good company of those who also strive for nearness to Him. When we focus our spiritual and emotional energy on our relationship with Allah (swt) more so then what has befallen us, we will be focusing on the everlasting relationship. It is in this that we will find peace and comfort. Part of patience in difficulty is to remember Allah does not give any hardship greater than one can bear. In times of hardship, we must realize whatever the test, it is something within our ability to handle. The question we must ask ourselves is whether we can gather the courage in those times to dig deep within ourselves and search for the strength we may not yet realize we have, but Allah knows is there. Through this, we will maintain the perspective that all of our lives are a fleeting moment and our goal is a home in Eternal Paradise with our Lord.

Good Company and Mentorship

“A man is on the deen of his companion so look to whom you take as a friend.” –Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)

Humans are social beings. It is natural for us to want to socialize and to want the company of others. However, we must remember that we are also beings that are influenced by those around us. The more time we spend with someone, the more likely they are to influence our manners and even our attitude. It is critical to our spiritual health to recognize this. Look at who you spend time with at work, at school, in your personal time and for those who are single, reflect on whom you are choosing to spend the rest of your life with. Our Beloved Prophet (peace be upon him) is reminding us that if we want to stay on the path of Allah (swt), then we need to surround ourselves with people who have the same objective. This will help ensure that in times of calamity, when our hearts are more prone to the whispers of Shaytan, our companions and mentors will counter his whispers with the beautiful reminders of Allah’s infinite mercy and His promise that with all difficulty, comes ease.

With such perspective, the biggest lemon brings the sweetest lemonade. With Allah on our side, patience to push us when no one else is around and mentors and friends to pick us up when we fall, how big or small the test is makes little difference because what we are seeking is the sweetness of the test. Our focus is on Allah (swt) and knowing there is hikma in His decree and accepting. The heart is often shown in difficult times, that we should love none other then Him and should long for none other then Him. The ease that comes with trial does not mean everything we wanted appears before us but if we gained nearness to Allah through it, then everything we will ever need, certainly is.

When life hands you lemons, give them to Allah and ask Him to make lemonade!