Dear Jemaah,

Let us strive to boost our takwa to Allah s.w.t. by abiding and loving what Allah has commanded upon us and abstaining from His prohibitions. May our lives always be filled with barakah from Allah s.w.t.

Friday Jemaah,
It is obligatory upon us as Muslims to be grateful to Allah s.w.t. for all the nikmat (blessings) that He has bestowed upon us. Being grateful does not simply mean that we utter words of gratitude, but it has to be translated and reflected through our actions in our daily lives. For example, good health is a gift from Allah – A healthy body enables us to perform our acts of worship with perfection. A healthy and active mind allows us to get through our daily activities. The same applies to the senses that Allah has blessed us with – hearing, seeing and so on.

Hence, a believer (mukmin) who is grateful will also realise that these gifts from Allah are entrusted upon us and must hence be put to good use to increase our takwa. Allah s.w.t. says in surah Al-Baqarah verse 195:
Which means: “And spend in the way of Allah and do not throw [yourselves] with your [own] hands into destruction [by refraining]. And do good; indeed, Allah loves the doers of good.”

We are also reminded to practise moderation in eating and drinking, and not to be excessive. Allah s.w.t. says in surah Al-A’raf verse 31:
Which means: “O children of Adam, take your adornment at every masjid, and eat and drink, but be not excessive. Indeed, He likes not those who commit excess.”
From these verses, we can conclude that not taking care of our health as well as our diet is something that Allah s.w.t. dislikes. When we do not watch our diet and daily food intake, we are hence not taking good care of physical health. This may then cause us to be exposed or vulnerable to various illnesses.


My dear brothers,
Let us not start monitoring our health or stop smoking only after a warning from the doctor, following a health scare or an illness. Let us not wait until then before deciding to start watching our diet and making time to exercise.

Official national statistics show that many people today adopt unhealthy lifestyles, be it their diets or the lack of exercise; causing an increase in the number of people with chronic illnesses such as heart attack, high blood pressure, stroke, diabetes and cancer.

Dear Jemaah,
Rasulullah s.a.w. is the perfect role model for us to emulate. If we study the Sunnah of the Prophet s.a.w. related to eating, we will learn that Prophet Muhammad s.a.w. enjoyed nutritious food and drinks, and also maintained a balanced diet throughout his life. This was explained in the book of At-Tibb An-Nabawi (The Prophet’s Medication) that Rasulullah s.a.w. would always ensure that his diet was balanced and ate in moderation.

There are narrations from the Companions r.a. that described Rasulullah’s physique – he was well-built, his chest and stomach were flat, his face was clean and it glowed like a full moon; and he took quick steps and was not feeble.

This picture of Rasulullah s.a.w. as painted by the Companions, is proof that the Prophet s.a.w. was a healthy person. He was healthy physically and spiritually. It is with such a healthy body and an active mind that he was able to effectively implement his life’s vision and mission, as a servant of Allah who devoted himself fully to The Creator; and as a Rasul who led the ummah from all walks of life toward success in this world and the hereafter. If we are to claim that we love the Prophet s.a.w., then we should try to emulate the Prophet’s lifestyle. Rasulullah s.a.w. said: “The strong believer is better and more beloved to Allah than the weak believer although there is good in each.” [Hadith reported by Imam Muslim]

Friday Jemaah,
Taking care of our health – both physically and spiritually – is hence pertinent to ensure that we would be able to carry out our responsibilities and obligations well. Physical health can be maintained through healthy eating, keeping a balanced diet and exercising. We also need to stay away from unhealthy habits such as smoking that will adversely affect our health. Good physical health will also have a positive impact on our spiritual well-being.

Eating food that’s halal and healthy can have positive effects on one’s spiritual and physical well-being. Good mental health is a reflection that we are able to manage our stress and could hence avoid from suffering from mental disorders that may affect our abilities to function properly.

Let us develop and maintain our physical health because it will help to build our spiritual and mental strength. May Allah s.w.t. grant us iman and takwa, as well as physical and spiritual health so that we can continue to increase our acts of worship and devotion to Allah, insyallah. Amin Ya Rabbal Alamin.

Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura
Friday Sermon
22 August 2014 / 26 Syawal 1435

http://www.muis.gov.sg/cms/downloads/khutbahs.aspx

 
Top