#me 8 years old depressed & unaware: so. if i get killed for believing in god i go to heaven immediately? sounds great sign me up

[transgenderbobdylan]

related to that. when i was a kid there was nothing i wanted more than to be a martyred saint

[steve0discusses]

Yugioh S2 Ep 47: How Exactly Can Any of This Get Resolved In 2 Episodes?

Ah, it’s 4AM, and these people decided it was finally time to pass out after a day of getting tied to bandsaws, getting tied to anchors, getting abducted, getting possessed, getting tied to various types of chairs, building box forts to escape your abductors, falling off of the box forts you built, beating up like 8 people, falling madly in love with Serenity, throwing lots of dice at people, falling out of love with Serenity, learning to see for the first time after a very major operation, having a fistfight on the roof of a 4000 ft in the air blimp, eating a mountain of tacos at a buffet, falling into the ocean, driving a helicopter into a shipping crane, drowning, telling your school bully that you are a reincarnated Pharaoh, learning that your favorite playing card is your one true love who died 5000 years ago, getting dangled off of a 20ft rope tied to a flying helicopter, deciding that your favorite playing card is in fact NOT your one true love who died 5000 years ago, telling a bunch of strangers about that one time your baby brother killed your Dad after seeing a single motorcycle, and getting trapped in the Shadow Realm in a giant hourglass.

They’re pooped. And, we get a nice montage of all of Kaiba’s itty bitty luxury beds that were really only built for Yugi and Mokuba and have been just super inconvenient for everyone else.

And Joey is not dreaming about donuts, instead he’s having guilt dreams.

and then, yes, she in fact did chain herself up to a wall and he watched her drift away.

CONGRATS, GIRL!

Man, by Yugioh standards she just got engaged, right? Good thing everyone else thinks Bakura’s in a plot coma because that is going to be the most unexpected walk of shame.

Also in this montage, Kaiba is not sleeping, and is instead staying up on his computer researching dragons. Yeah. Sounds about right. I honestly can’t picture Seto asleep. I don’t think he does that. I think occasionally Seto kind of pauses wherever he’s sitting like a fish, does a quick Rem cycle, and then he’s back to furiously typing on whatever computer he’s sitting at 10 minutes later.

(read more under the cut)

Meanwhile, these two are duking it out on the roof. I reallllllly wish they were actually punching each other like Tristan and Duke showed us a few episodes back but, nah, it’s cards.

Again, no matter who wins this fight, it will be a very good outcome for our protagonists, so it’s really a fight between which of the evil dudes do you like more? Do you like the Local Nasty Boy Next Door who cannot go to card prom with you because he’s too busy stabbing himself in the arm and murdering? Or, do you prefer the New Cargo Pants obsessed boy in town who seems completely unaware of which century it is, what a blimp is, and what clothes are supposed to be worn with what clothes. Or, is your fave Oldstyle Cargo Pants, who committed atrocious acts of blasphemy, violence and murder just so he could drive a motorcycle around at a moderate speed while wearing a sensible helmet and senseless pink crop hoodie?

All of them really want to destroy/rule the world, all of them really want to kill god (well, Yami, so basically the laziest godform I’ve ever seen in an anime) and all of them probably smell like super bad. Make your bets, they’re all three gonna have a card fight.

And to make this duel somewhat more confusing, Marik likes to sort of take over Bakura’s body and shout at himself. It’s...there’s a lot of psychological stuff going on right now. Anyways, this is when we find out officially that Odion decided not to tell Marik that he killed his own Dad, and instead blamed it on Shadi.

So I guess that’s why Shadi’s been hiding this whole tourney? I mean, Shadi...just kind of peaced out...and like other than being an exposition dump I’m not sure why he ever bothered to come here today?

But because Marik was in Tea’s brain without me knowing, he overheard the true story for the first time, and he was like “ah yeah I’ve killed a loooot of people, this makes sense.”

Bakura has taken almost an entire season, but he’s decided that now he’s playing cards anyway, he wants the good kind. Bear in mind, Bakura was passed out during the other duels where we found out that God Cards are ass.

And I will say that like, in caps there’s some things I can’t really show you since they’re meant to move--but Bakura and Marik turning into pieces as they duel was visually a pretty fun idea. It felt like the animation team was really enjoying it. Like this was their duel to cap the season and so they made it as much a ridiculous spectacle as you can a paper card game. (and the animators probably welcomed a change of place, they’re running out of weird ways to place cards down on a very large watch)

And then we revisit a familiar locale.

So like...this place is different.

First off, my favorite giant green bowling pin is just...gone...and then second off, either Yugi is just getting older, or Yami is just taking up that much more space. But this room definitely wasn’t brick lined before, which is...that kind of says a lot about what Yugi’s been sacrificing to have this puzzle installed into his brain.

Also, apparently Yugi drew a fish once and he was so proud of it, that it got immortalized in here.

The red tomagachi is exactly like the one I had in Middle School. I killed it so many times. I also like how they dodged Nintendo copyright but still gave us a little nod that yes, Yugi is a Nintendo nerd but legally cannot say so. I actually went and looked up handheld systems, and this one looks a lot like the Gameboy Advance. I cannot imagine the spooky stories that happened involving this particular Gameboy Advance, and if maybe that’s why Yugi no longer plays the thing.

Like I’ve been catching up on some GDQ and with Yugi’s curse, do you think he CAN just casually play a video game? Or, do you think he’s just always speedrunning and breaking games whenever he sits down to them? Like he’s just naturally doing TAS runs every time he picks up a controller, glitching through walls and going to the final boss when he’s only at like level 2? Like when he picks up Pokemon he probably almost never has encounters, and then when he finally does it’s just MissingNo and he’s like “Man, I have like 20 of these, and they all look like ass! I just want a freakin rattata.”

Anyways, Yugi was feeling kind of bored here so he went across the hall to visit his friendly neighborhood parasite.

And so, much like how Marik has decided to have a heart to heart with himself on a very tall ledge, so has Yugi and Pharaoh. Except, they’re not having a chat about who killed their own Dad, because we have never seen that guy and he may as well not exist, it would make no difference on the show.

Unless there’s a twist coming up that Yugi killed his own Dad, which, even with this show, I think we can safely assume he has not.

I’m pretty sure.

Just angsting out in my mind labrynth with my 5000 year old emo ghost, wearing lots of guyliner and belts around both our necks. Staring into the abyss made of the convoluted maze of unused stairs and unopened doorways of my unraveling mind. Don’t mind me.

I can’t believe they brought up Shadi only to completely change the subject because even these two are like ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Bro brings up that between the two of them, Pharaoh is a lot more hesitant about looking into his past. Something about people being stored underground for 5000 years and the murdering and all that extra stuff makes him maybe consider that maybe this power ain’t so great. So he’s just...decided not to open doors anymore. Yugi’s going to do it anyway, and Pharaoh will support him in that search, but Pharaoh alone is just fine not knowing if he was an evil asshole 5000 years ago. He doesn’t want to know or really see the point in finding out if it’s fact or not. There’s enough evidence already there. Ignorance is bliss and all that.

But it seems like if one is doubting the other has to not doubt just out of necessity. I don’t know what happens to this brain if both Yami and Yugi become depressed.

I mean like...

...

It was on the wall in the museum, right?

And like, Ishizu is down the hall and you could just ask her, right?

Shadi is around, he probably knows, or at least can go invisible and check.

The short term memory on all the children on this show, I swear. It’s almost as bad as real life children.

Anyway, the very last episode of the season is next and like...we made no steps towards resolving any of these plot strings so next episode is either going to be 4 hours long or it will just be a title card at the end of the episode that says “And then they all died! The end!” just like my very first stop motion animation feature when I was a wee tot, which honestly would probably make more sense than how they will probably end up tying all these lose ends. If they...ever do it.

Not holding out.

Anyway, if you just got here, this is a link to read all these recaps in chrono order from S1 Ep1, knock yourself out http://steve0discusses.tumblr.com/tagged/yugioh/chrono

[carterconlon]

Will I Ever Be Free? by Carter Conlon

Download PDF of "Will I Ever Be Free?"

"When He had come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed Him. And behold, a leper came and worshiped Him, saying, 'Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.' Then Jesus put out His hand and touched him, saying, 'I am willing; be cleansed.' Immediately his leprosy was cleansed. And Jesus said to him, 'See that you tell no one; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them'" (Matthew 8:1–4).

I believe the following question tugs on the hearts of many Christians today: Will I ever be free? Surely the leper in the above account was living with the same question in his heart. In those days, leprosy carried a stigma with it so severe that the person with the affliction was required by Old Testament law to put a veil over his face. This speaks of the necessity for the person to mask his or her true condition. They walk through society feeling unclean, pretending that they have victory when they do not—as is the case with many in the Body of Christ today.

The leper's condition may have started small—perhaps as a little spot under his eye—but eventually it began to consume him. Similarly for many today, captivity starts as a small thing. Consider how so many people in this generation are trapped in pornography, not realizing its mental and physical repercussions. They may have started viewing something online, unaware that it was going to make an impression on their brain and become part of their character. They thought they could contain it, but now it has spread throughout their mind, and they are captivated by it. Pornography puts people in a prison from which it is almost impossible to escape, apart from the power of God.

Or think of the person who just reached for a glass and thought, "I can consume this little bit of alcohol. What harm can it do?"They thought they could control it, but now it controls them. Or maybe it started as just a little bit of depression, but now it seems to be a darkness that literally envelops them. And now they are left with a cry in their heart, "Oh, God, is there any hope for me? Will I ever be free?"

THE HUMAN CONDITION

The apostle Paul speaks of the condition of the human heart in the book of Romans: "For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find" (Romans 7:18). In other words, "I know what I should do; I know what my life should look like. But somehow I have lost the power to move in that direction. "The good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice" (7:19). Have you ever felt that way? Have you ever made a New Year's resolution only to have it crumble into the sand ten minutes after midnight? You were convinced that it was going to be different this time. You were going to be that husband or that wife that you never had been. You were going to be that father, that brother, that friend. You were going to be honest. You were not going to lose your temper. You were not going to drink. But it was not long before you were right back in your old behaviors because you are imprisoned.

Paul goes on to say, "Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good" (Romans 7:20–21). In other words, "I want to do right, but something has gotten hold of me, and it is consuming me. It sends me on a pathway that I do not want to be on—practicing things that I know are wrong. "For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?" (7:22–24). Who will set me free? Who can make a difference in my life? Then he says, "I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!" (7:25).

That is where freedom is found, just as in our opening passage when Jesus reached out and touched the leper. I love that picture. Jesus simply touched him, and healing came immediately. No terms, no conditions. He did not say, "Let's go back and talk about who caused this in your life. Did your father love you? Was your mother kind?" He just reached out because here was a man who knew what he was: someone who could not change himself; a man who was sick of feeling unclean.

When you become sin-sick, you are at the beginning of a healing that only God can bring to His people. You get to the point where you say, "I don't care who knows what I am. I want to be free. I want to be clean."By stepping out of the crowd and saying what he said, the leper was identifying himself to the multitudes that were all around Jesus. He stepped out and admitted, "I am dirty. Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean."

EVERYTHING POINTS TO CHRIST

Interestingly, after Jesus healed the man, He said to him, "See that you tell no one; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them" (Matthew 8:4). This may seem a bit odd unless we remember that everything in the Bible points to Jesus. You see, before the world was even formed, God knew His Son would have to come and die in order to redeem those who had been created in His own image. Therefore everything, even in the Old Testament, points to the Savior. So let's look in the book of Leviticus to better understand why Jesus gave the man those instructions.

"Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 'This shall be the law of the leper for the day of his cleansing: He shall be brought to the priest. And the priest shall go out of the camp, and the priest shall examine him; and indeed, if the leprosy is healed in the leper, then the priest shall command to take for him who is to be cleansed two living and clean birds, cedar wood, scarlet, and hyssop'" (Leviticus 14:1–4). It was understood under Old Testament law that leprosy was an incurable disease that only the hand of God could heal. And if God, in His mercy, chose to heal you, then a gift had to be offered in the temple before God as a testimony.

"The priest shall command that one of the birds be killed in an earthen vessel over running water"(Leviticus 14:5). Note that after Jesus had died on the cross, the Bible says, "One of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out" (John 19:34).

"As for the living bird, he shall take it, the cedar wood and the scarlet and the hyssop" (Leviticus 14:6). "Where they crucified Him"(John 19:18). The cross would be the cedar wood. So one bird was to be sacrificed, and one was to be washed in the blood. But it was to be done in conjunction with wood, which represents the cross of Christ.

The book of Matthew tells us that the soldiers stripped Jesus, and they put a scarlet robe on him (see Matthew 27:28). As Jesus was dying on the cross, "they filled a sponge with vinegar, and put it upon hyssop, and put it to His mouth"(John 19:29). So now we have the cross, which is the cedar wood. We have the robe, which is the scarlet. And then the hyssop that they put to His mouth. Everything in the Old Testament points to Jesus Christ!

"Dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water. And he shall sprinkle it seven times [which means the perfection or completion of God] on him who is to be cleansed from the leprosy, and shall pronounce him clean, and shall let the living bird loose in the open field" (Leviticus 14:6–7).

In other words, the one who is cleansed in the blood is to be released—no longer confined or restricted but sent into the open field! And the purpose is not just to fly around aimlessly, for all creatures in nature—birds in particular—do what God tells them to do. And so when Jesus sets you free, you become what God has designed and intended for you to be. Remember, the Bible says that if you are in Christ, you are a new creation. The old things in your life have passed away. Old bondages have lost their authority over your life; old prison gates must open and let you go. You have been set free by the blood of the Lamb to go and become everything God has called you to be.

THE LORD IS WILLING

The beauty of this whole story is the fact that God still desires to touch you, even though something may have put you in bondage. You may feel ashamed, you may be rejected by people—even those who claim to be followers of Christ. But, remember, Jesus was not offended by the leper who came to Him. He was not at all affronted by his condition. As a matter of fact, Jesus reached out and touched him immediately. You see, every time the Son of God encounters an honest heart, He simply reaches out and touches.

Perhaps the question in your heart is, "So, what do I do now?"I encourage you to press through the crowd. Die to your pride. Go to Jesus and say, "Lord, if You want to, You can touch me and cleanse me." If you come with an honest heart, I can assure you that He will reply, "I want to." He always has wanted to, and He always will want to! That is the reason Christ came to earth. He came to set you free and give you a new future.

You and I are living in an hour when the Church has to be free. We have to have a living testimony of Christ. After all, it is hard to argue with a leper who has been miraculously healed. It is time for the Church to arise and say, "Lord, touch my life. Set me free and send me into the open field—wherever it may lead, whatever it may require."

If you let the Lord touch you, people will begin to look at your life and say, "That is the bird who used to live in a cage. There it goes!" You are going to fly through your city. Everywhere you go, there will be something noticeably different about you. You will not be bound by the cords of this society any longer. And you will understand and experience what Jesus talked about when He said, "And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free"(John 8:32).

This newsletter is an edited version of "WILL I EVER BE FREE?," a sermon given on November 10, 2019 in the sanctuary of Times Square Church in New York City. Other sermons are available by visiting our website at tsc.nyc. You are welcome to make additional copies of this sermon for free distribution to friends. However, for all other forms of reproduction or electronic transmission existing copyright laws apply. This sermon cannot be posted on any website or webpage without permission from Times Square Church. Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture taken from other versions are noted.

[roomalthoughts]

08.15.2018: recovery/relapse pt. 2

Quotes from the app, Sprinkle of Jesus: 

“Stop dating while you are healing. You are damaging innocent people.” 

“Remember, growing always feels like breaking at first.” 

“It’s worth it to stay alive. Because life is hard in the moment, it’s hard to see what can be down the road. You get the tunnel vision and think that the current moment is all you have left. But that’s not it. There can be more. Please let there be more. Please stay alive.” -Joshua Dun (drummer of twenty one pilots) 

“God has never looked in your mirror or mine and wished He saw someone else.” -Bob Goff 

“When a person tells you that you hurt then, you don’t get to decide that you didn’t.” - Louis C.K. 

“Just remember, they left you. You’ve been hurting, you’ve been alone and they were no where to be found. Fuck closure, fuck those random text and phone calls that only come because they’re bored with the person they left your ass for. They don’t love you, they never did. They don’t miss you, that’s bullshit. You deserve so much more than what you’ve had.” -r.h. Sin 

“Here’s the thing: You don’t get better overnight. The flu doesn’t go away overnight, a broken arm doesn’t heal overnight, not even a tiny paper cut will heal overnight. Therefore, you can’t expect a broken heart and an ill mind recover in 8 hours. You are on your way. You are on the right path, whichever it is. And if it’s not the direction you should’ve taken, turn around, go anywhere. Just do what you need to do to make life yours again. To make yourself feel you.” 

“Prayer. I’m praying that I have the strength to grow from this. I’m praying that I have the strength to learn from this. I’m praying that I have the strength to heal from this.” - N.J Johnson

I picked quotes that are about different subjects (mostly they all have the same theme, which is pain) since I’m going to hit them on this post. 

The first part of recovery/relapse, I talked about how I struggle with depression, anxiety and anorexia. I said that it isn’t easy knowing that you have a problem and you need help. I decided that on this part, I would just spill the beans (if you need more info, check out my three blogs: counseling, to the bones & the bones pt. 2) and be more open about the common theme: pain. 

Pain changes us in many ways that it might scare others. 

Pain MAKES you change your ways. Pain MAKES you see the world differently. Pain MAKES you learn your lessons the hardest way possible. Most importantly, pain MAKES you stronger yet wiser. Pain is supposed to shake us up a little so we can learn and become wiser throughout our rollercoaster of a life. It is tough when pain comes knocking at our door. It sucks, I know. 

When we are in pain because someone did us wrong, let me be the first to tell you, you have EVERY RIGHT to be beyond pissed off and wanting to hurt them back. I have no problem seeing people or hearing them say, “Well I’m still pissed off that so and so pissed me off.” Why? Because I know they are mad and they have every right so to be (if it is reasonable). I have been pissed and angry at people who did me wrong. It’s OKAY to be mad at someone...but it is not okay to be mad at them for a long time.

That anger and grudge will make you bitter and it can affect your health. Be careful how long you hold grudges...it’s like you’re drinking poison and expecting the other person to die. It’s going to kill you in the long run. 

In order to recover fully and well, you have to let it go and move on. It hurts, trust me. As a child, I grew up in a toxic environment where it would affect how I think and feel in the future. My father was abusive and the damage was obvious as I grew older and more obsessive with my self-image. I didn’t start skipping meals until I was a freshman in high school. I know I mentioned about skipping meals a lot more when I was in college, but to make it clear, it started when I was 13, but I was unaware that it was one of the signs that I was becoming anorexic. I honestly thought it was normal to skip meals and feel weak. I thought it was normal to make myself puke and pretend that I had a full tummy. I thought it was normal for my cheekbones to be more predominant along with my collarbones. I thought it was normal for me to want to wear loose clothing and not let anyone see me in a bathing suit. 

The cycle of puking and skipping meals got worse as the years went by and I hit my peak in 2015, a year after I graduated from high school and I was going into my second year in college. I was loosing weight rapidly and it was worrying my mother because I looked sick. I didn’t have that glow that every girl has when she is extremely happy and healthy. I was killing my own body just so the people that didn’t love me would love me. I was killing myself for nothing. I was going to end up in a hospital if I didn’t stop myself...

Along with fighting anorexia, my anxiety was at an all time and I developed depression as I was growing older. My anxiety was always at an all time high when I swam in high school because my father would either give me the silent treatment or hit me on the way home if I didn’t perform well. I was scared shitless because I knew that I would get a beating if I didn’t beat the girl next to me. I was scared that I wasn’t going to swim well enough to please my own father when I should have been proud of myself for the accomplishments that I made when I swam. I should have been proud of myself for going down to Indianapolis to compete at the state level three times. I should have been proud of myself for being in the top 10 in my high school records for clocking in fast times and putting my name in history for everyone to remember. Even though I didn’t break the school record, I should have been proud of myself for leaving a mark on my high school swimming history. My father made me believe I was worthless and was never going to be the greatest swimmer in his eyes. My anxiety would get the best of me when I competed and it was hard for me to keep a calm mind and say, “You got this. Relax.” It was hard for me to relax when I saw my father in the stands, watching me get ready for my events. It was extremely hard and I would have never guess that my anxiety would eat me alive at nights when I would enter college. I would have never guessed that my anxiety would make me believe that I’m better off dead. 

Counseling did help me a lot when series of events would make me hit rock bottom (both in 2015 and 2017). I was able to pin point where everything started and just reflecting on that as I’m writing this post, it makes me realize that those series of events just pushed me off the edge of a cliff. I would fall and hit the water and just hit the bottom. I wouldn’t be able to breathe because my anxiety would cover my mouth and my lungs would fill with water. My sorrows knew how to swim and I saw the light fading away.  I was held down because I refused to believe that I had a problem. I refused to believe that I was weak and fucking vulnerable. I refused to believe that I was not okay. 

I refused to get help until I made myself worse. 

To this day, I regret waiting so long. 

As I was recovering, I could feel myself resurfacing back to the water and eventually, cough up all the water from my lungs. I reached land and I knew that I did this to myself. That is what I get for waiting so long...I knew I should have reached out for help when my problems began as a young 13 year-old and escalated quickly with my father breaking my heart along with other boys that broke it even more. I knew I should have told my mother or anyone that I trusted to take me to counseling. I am beyond grateful that I had two amazing counselors that helped me recover and heal somewhat from the past. 

As I stated before, recovery is a lifelong process. Doesn’t mean that you will never be 100% healed, it will take a whole lot of dedication and self-control to be where you want to be. It’s not impossible...it is possible to get to the point that one day, you will be happy and laughing with those that you love around you. You will be so happy that you will burst into millions of pieces. Keep the good days in your head and brush out the bad days. One of my professors at my local college once said: “When you feel your thoughts is playing mind games with you, remember those good days. Remember why you held on for so long. Remember why you wanted to stay alive. Do not let your thoughts eat you alive. Fight it.” He was absolutely right. 

If you remember the good days and all the reasons why you held on for so long, you will be okay. Your thoughts will play games with you once in a while when you are alone in your room...but fight it. Take the pain and ignite it. You will get through those claws of depression/anxiety. Listen to music...go outside and look at the sky...draw. Do whatever hobby that will help you relax. 

You will get through this. 

[sabrunyanafsi]

Our heart is the driving force for our bodies. When our heart is content, happy and filled with hope, life moves smoothly. However, trials are a part and parcel of life. Some of these trials make us distressed, anxious and when they persist for a long time, we can end up being hopeless and depressed at the situation. Our heart becomes gloomy and questions begin to swarm our minds:

Why are my prayers not being accepted?

What sin have I committed to suffer such a trial?

When will the help of Allah arrive?

Before we begin with any advice on how to ward off hopelessness during trials, let us remind ourselves of the purpose of our creation. Allah mentions in the Qur’an:

“And We created not the heavens and the earth, and all that is between them, for mere play. We created them not except with truth (i.e. to examine and test those who are obedient and those who are disobedient and then reward the obedient ones and punish the disobedient ones), but most of them know not.” [Qur’an: Chapter  44, Verses 38-39]

The trials in our life are a means to test our faith and obedience to Allah and earn rewards in this life and the next. Allah also says:

“And We will surely test you with something of fear and hunger and a loss of wealth and lives and fruits, but give good tidings to the patient.” [Qur’an: Chapter 2, Verse 155]

This one verse should suffice us to bear all trials with patience as Allah Himself declares the forthcoming of good news to those who do so. But many a time, despite our efforts to be patient, clouds of hopelessness begin to shadow our hearts. Let’s go through a few points that will, in sha Allah, help us bear trials with patience and keep our heart and spirit positive when we are surrounded by negativity.

1. Believe in your heart that Allah is your Aid

Once I came across a patient who was requesting her doctor to prescribe anti-depressants for her as she was going through a stressful phase in life. The doctor, knowing the harm of such medicines, counseled the lady instead. The doctor’s beautiful words still echo in my mind. He said, “Despite believing in the Qadr of Allah , the reason depression encircles us in stressful situations is because we say with our tongues that everything will be fine, in sha Allah, but we do not truly believe it in our hearts.”

Imagine if your mother promises you that she will make things right for you, you will trust her because you know your mother will not leave any leaf unturned to bring goodness to you. Then how is it that we do not believe in the promise of our Lord, who loves us seventy times more than our mothers? He promises us in His Book, not once but twice,

“For indeed, with hardship will be ease, Indeed with hardship will be ease.” [Qur’an: Chapter 94, Verses 5-6]

2. Do your part then seek Allah’s help

In the same Surah (Ash-Sharh), Allah goes on to say,

“So when you have finished your duties, then stand up for worship and turn your hopes to Him.” [Qur’an: Chapter 94, Verses 7-8]

We get so preoccupied with our problems, that we let worry take us over, resulting in disturbed sleep, poor health, abandoned duties and worship, and gradual isolation of ourselves from others. But in this surah, Allah is asking us first to fulfill our responsibilities (even in times of trial) and then worship Him, turning all hopes towards Him. Instead of over-thinking about our problems, we must occupy ourselves in rectifying our relationship with the One who can solve them. We must redirect our hopes from feeble humans to the All-Powerful Lord. When Al-Fattah (The Opener) opens His gates of bounty for you, then who is it that can withhold it from you? Trials are a blessing as they act as a driving force in drawing us closer to Allah . The security and peace one feels upon establishing the connection with Allah cannot be described in words. As Allah says,

“And whoever fears Allah – He will make for him a way out. And will provide for him from where he does not expect. And whoever relies upon Allah – then He is sufficient for him.” [Qur’an: Chapter 65, Verses 2-3]

In a lecture, Mufti Menk explained, “If you sit in a car without driving and you keep making dua to Allah to make you reach a particular destination, your dua will not benefit you in the true sense. When Allah gave you the capacity to move about, and the blessing of knowledge and facilitated for you luxuries, then you are supposed to take some action and then pray to Allah to ease it for you.”

3. Have good thoughts of Allah

In a hadith qudsi, Allah says,

“I am as My servant thinks (expects) I am.” [Sahih al-Bukhari]

This means ‘I am able to do whatever he expects I will do’.

My cousin brother’s life turned upside down, when happiness had knocked his door and left before he could truly welcome it. He was blessed with a healthy baby boy, who died within a week due to some illness. My cousin, being a man of taqwa, bore this trial with utmost patience, and only had good thoughts of Allah . His mother used to comfort him saying that Allah never wishes bad for His believers, and will, in sha Allah grant him more sons. In the next pregnancy, his wife gave birth to completely healthy triplet boys,  ma sha Allah. So beautiful was his reward of patience.

A greater example of patience and hope is found in Prophet Ayyub . How great must have been his patience that he bore 17 years of illness with faith and gratitude? And henceforth, Allah rewarded him by returning him all that he had lost of health, wealth, and family.

Sometimes the trial may be a blessing in disguise as Allah says,

“But perhaps you hate a thing and it is good for you; and perhaps you love a thing and it is bad for you. And Allah Knows, while you know not.” [Qur’an: Chapter 2, Verse 216]

Remind yourself of those times when you eventually realized that blessings do come disguised as trials.

A beautiful example of this can be seen in the love of parents. Every time a toddler puts a dirty thing in his mouth, they snatch it away from him, leaving him hurt and crying. Though they love him, their concern for the safety of their child makes them withhold things from him. To the child, it seems almost cruel that his parents would take away something he desires so much. However, he is unaware that his parents’ actions are for his own benefit. In the same way, we may not understand why Allah gives us a certain trial – but He knows what good will come of it. So always think good of Allah .

4. Develop a positive attitude towards trials

Recently, a story of a crippled family gained much attention in the media. The father, a poor old man, relayed the story of his five children who were born healthy, but as they grew up, suffered slow crippling, one by one, due to a genetic disease. The old mother and father were responsible for taking care of these children ages 7 to 15, who behaved like 2 year olds. What touched my heart in his interview was his outlook towards his problem. Though he was badly struggling in terms of funds and domestic help to look after his crippled children, on being asked if he was saddened by his fate, he said, “Maybe God didn’t trust anyone other than me to take care of these beautiful helpless children.”

Can we compare the problems of our life with his great trial? We must constantly remind ourselves that there is someone out there facing a greater trial than ours. As the old saying goes, “I was feeling sad for having no shoes, until I saw a man with no feet”.

The Messenger of Allah gave us advice for when we have financial troubles:

“Look at those who are inferior to you and do not look at those who are superior to you, for this will keep you from belittling Allah’s Favour to you.” [Sahih Muslim]

5. Deal with your guilt

If the guilt of a sin is killing you on the inside, and you are overwhelmed by the feeling that you are being punished for your sins, then know that Allah ’s Mercy is greater. He mentions constantly in the Qur’an,

“But those who committed misdeeds and then repented after them and believed – indeed your Lord, thereafter, is Forgiving and Merciful.” [Qur’an: Chapter 7, Verse 153]

So we should continuously repent to Allah so that He wards off the punishment for our sins.

Also, the Messenger of Allah said,

“Have taqwa (fear) of Allah wherever you may be, and follow up a bad deed with a good deed which will wipe it out, and behave well towards the people” [40 Hadith an-Nawawi]

Make a habit of following up a bad deed with a good deed, like a heartfelt apology to make up for the damage that happened, or increasing voluntary deeds.

6. Do not underestimate dua

Just like WhatsApp, if we could see blue ticks every time Allah heard our duas, how amazing would that be? But we don’t even need that, because more amazing is the promise of Allah to us:

“And when My servants ask you, [O Muhammad], concerning Me, indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me.” [Qur’an: Chapter 2, Verse 186]

The most amazing part about this ayah is that Allah did not say, “when my pious servant calls upon Me”, He just says – ‘supplicant’, which could be anyone. Allah promises that He will respond to the supplication of anyone without the need of a mediator. So sit in a quiet place, raise your hands and talk to Allah – He is the One who knows you the best, the One to whom you can complain, the One who can rectify any situations for you.

The Prophet has promised that Allah responds to our duas in three ways. He said,

“There is no Muslim who calls upon his Lord with a dua in which there is no sin or severing of family ties, but Allah will give him one of three things: either He will answer his prayer quickly, or He will store (the reward for) it in the Hereafter, or He will divert an equivalent evil away from him.” [Jami’ at-Tirmidhi]

7. Remind yourself: we belong to the Hereafter

Each one of us can bear witness that a thing we had longed for since a long time, once we achieve it, it loses its worth and novelty after a while. That is a part of innate human nature. The hearts of the believers, and all human beings, cannot attain eternal happiness in this life. You cannot eat the same kind of meal continuously for more than a few days, even if it is your favorite meal. Out of boredom, the followers of Prophet Musa were willing to change the decadent meal of quails to the ordinary meal of lentils and onions. That is the reason Allah created heaven for us, wherein even similar-looking fruits will have a different taste every time we eat them. A place where our every new desire will be fulfilled. When we start considering this life to be a journey towards the eternal Paradise, and its trials as hurdles of this journey, the hope for the pleasures of Paradise will act as a barrier for hopelessness to come into our lives. The Messenger of Allah said,

“On the Day of Resurrection the disbeliever who lived the most luxurious will be brought, and it will be said: ‘Dip him once in Hell.’ So he will be dipped in it, then it will be said to him: ‘O so- and-so, have you ever enjoyed any pleasure?’ He will say: ‘No, I have never enjoyed any pleasure.’ Then the believer who suffered the most hardship and trouble will be brought and it will be said: ‘Dip him once in Paradise.’ So he will be dipped in it and it will be said to him: ‘O so-and-so, have you ever suffered any hardship or trouble?’ He will say: ‘I have never suffered any hardship or trouble.’” [Sunan Ibn Majah]

So there will be a time very soon, where the trials of this life will seem like nothing in comparison to pleasures of Paradise in sha Allah.

These are a few points we must keep in our mind when going through a tough phase in life so that we pass through it without hopelessness or ungratefulness creeping into our hearts. Allah has promised in the Qur’an, for those who patiently endure their trials,

“Those will be given their reward twice for what they patiently endured,” [Qur’an: Chapter 28, Verse 54]

I pray to Allah to ease the trials of those who are suffering and to protect us from trials and when a trial befalls us, grant us patience to endure it with gratefulness, Ameen!