I wanted more. And He gave me more.

But isn’t having more bad? Is that a sign of me being ungrateful? Greedy perhaps? Shouldn’t I just be satisfied with what I have? And is my asking Allah for more makes me a selfish person?

Well, the answer may surprise you. On the contrary, the more you ask Allah, the more He loves it. In a hadeeth, The Prophet ﷺ said: “Whoever does not ask of Allāh, incurs His wrath.” Rated Ḥasan by Al-Albānī, Silsilah Al-Aḥādīth Aṣ-Ṣaḥīḥah, no. 2654.

But what do we do? Actually, we do the opposite. We ask people. And sometimes we even beg them. But that’s just like us asking another weaker being because the one who gives to them, to whom you are begging for, is ultimately from the same source. It is all from Allah. And let’s face it, when we ask someone for a favour, perhaps the first time, it may seem alright. But as we go for the second time onwards, people would actually stay away from us.

In fact, it is said that Allah is displeased when you stop asking Him and mankind is displeased when asked (Ibn Al-Qayyim). So what is the secret in getting more? 

Well it began 5 months ago. I was reading this book and it mentioned how when a person writes down 10 things they are grateful for in the mornings, they actually become more grateful and the brain actually processes negative news differently. Can you imagine that? Your brain acts as a coping mechanism for you to deal with life’s trials when you are in a state of gratefulness. 

Don’t get it mixed up with toxic positivity, (where the belief that no matter how dire or difficult a situation is, people should maintain a positive mindset.). In that situation, a person may deny or refuse to accept hardships or difficult things as they are. But here we are actually journaling our thoughts, our emotions, and stating it as it is. So that we actually take a closer look at our blessings and in turn, be grateful for the tonnes of favours which we have been given and note the 1 or 2 or maybe 10 problems that we are facing. 

So recently, I was asked about journaling. Gratitude journaling in particular. And I realised at that time, I was the only one loving or actually making it my daily habit, Ma Shaa Allah, but since then,  Allahumma baarik, almost everyone of them are diligently filling up their gratitude journals! 

So basically this was how it went. I said, Ma Shaa Allah, so actually why I journal is because Allah gave me more. Like He promised, in Surah Ibrahim Ayat 7: 

وَإِذْ تَأَذَّنَ رَبُّكُمْ لَئِن شَكَرْتُمْ لَأَزِيدَنَّكُمْ ۖ وَلَئِن كَفَرْتُمْ إِنَّ عَذَابِي لَشَدِيدٌ

And [remember] when your Lord proclaimed, 'If you are grateful, I will surely increase you [in favor]; but if you deny, indeed, My punishment is severe.'

And as I said, Allah did give me more. More than I could ever imagine. More of what you may ask? Contentment, rizq, time and Sabr to name a few (what more could a girl for right? Actually, when Allah says He loves when we ask, I journal more! To ask more and I look forward to it because it’s an Ibadah! Du’a is the essence of worship! 

An-Nu'man bin Bashir (May Allah be pleased with them) reported:

The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Du'a (supplication) is worship."[Abu Dawud].

So when I count my blessings, the little things don’t bother me so much anymore. I’m drawn to journaling. And I look at what I wrote. So it gave me a purpose of why I do what I do. I hope that you will also be drawn to journaling and I pray that Allah gives you more! Because I actually wanted to be someone the see the good in something. And sometimes it’s hard with all these distractions in life. But I can say Ma Shaa Allah, this journaling helps me to really just see the good in everything. Allahumma baarik. Of course this is not without a glitch because sometimes I forget to do it. And it shows in my day, in my night. I’ll be so restless, like what haven’t I done today? That I just take whatever piece of paper next to me and start writing what I’m grateful for. And then I sleep. Alhamdulillah. 

Thanks for reading it till now and I pray that you’ll enjoy your journaling and that we all are Istiqomah in this act of worship of being a grateful servant just as how our Prophet SAW said in a hadith below:

Al-Mughira said that the Prophet got up at night to such an extent that his feet became swollen. On being asked why he did this when his former and latter sins had been forgiven him, he replied, “Should I not be a grateful servant?” 

[Bukhari and Muslim]

♥️🤲🏼 Aameen