Being a revert myself, I faced many challenges on this journey. On one hand, I wanted to exhaust all of the books of knowledge as well as practice the entirety of the Deen. I attribute this to my newfound love for Islam. On the other hand, I faced a challenge – I overburdened myself. I thought that I was some kind of superhuman who could learn and practice everything I’ve learned at once. This zeal would result in me ‘breaking my back’, but I’ll expand on that in this article.
People have told me, literally warned me, that I should take it step by step. Me, not understanding at that time what they meant (and to be fair, I didn’t even ask), I just ignored it thinking that what I was doing was right. Many reverts have that mindset. The important part is to know how to start. Furthermore, it is to understand what is means when somebody gives you the advice of ‘doing things step by step.’
TAKE IT STEP BY STEP
The companions رضي الله عنهم of the Prophet ﷺ started their journey by learning first about Allah and His Messenger ﷺ and their basic duties. When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ sent companions to call people to Islam, he instructed them how to do it.
Ibn Abbas رضي الله عنهما reported: When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ sent Mu’adh رضي الله عنه to Yemen, he said to him:
إِنَّكَ تَأْتِي قَوْمًا مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكِتَابِ فَادْعُهُمْ إِلَى شَهَادَةِ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَأَنِّي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ فَإِنْ هُمْ أَطَاعُوا لِذَلِكَ فَأَعْلِمْهُمْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ افْتَرَضَ عَلَيْهِمْ خَمْسَ صَلَوَاتٍ فِي كُلِّ يَوْمٍ وَلَيْلَةٍ فَإِنْ هُمْ أَطَاعُوا لِذَلِكَ فَأَعْلِمْهُمْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ افْتَرَضَ عَلَيْهِمْ صَدَقَةً تُؤْخَذُ مِنْ أَغْنِيَائِهِمْ فَتُرَدُّ فِي فُقَرَائِهِمْ فَإِنْ هُمْ أَطَاعُوا لِذَلِكَ فَإِيَّاكَ وَكَرَائِمَ أَمْوَالِهِمْ وَاتَّقِ دَعْوَةَ الْمَظْلُومِ فَإِنَّهُ لَيْسَ بَيْنَهَا وَبَيْنَ اللَّهِ حِجَابٌ
“Verily, you are coming to a people among the people of the Book, so call them to testify there is no god but Allah and I am the Messenger of Allah. If they accept that, then teach them that Allah has obligated five prayers in each day and night. If they accept that, then teach them that Allah as obligated charity to be taken from the rich and given to the poor. If they accept that, beware not to take from the best of their wealth. Be on guard from the supplication of the oppressed, for there is no barrier between it and Allah.” [Mutafaqun ‘alayh (Authentically Reported in Bukhari, Muslim, & Ahmad)]
We can take many lessons from this hadith, but I’d like to extract a few for the caller to Islam and a few for the revert.
For the caller to Islam:
- Call others first to the worship of Allah alone and to follow the Messenger of Allah ﷺ .
- Teach them how to do their Salah, do not just leave them on their own.
- Teach them about Zakah (charity), this way they will benefit from their charity by receiving extra blessings. Moreover, the poor as well will benefit.
For the revert:
- Learn about Who Allah is, your duties towards Him, and about His Messenger ﷺ . The more you know someone, the more you love them.
- Dedicate your time in perfecting your Salah as this is the door that opens the hallway to other doors. It is like a treasure box that holds the keys to other treasure boxes.
- Learn about Zakah as this is the right of the poor. This opens the door to khayr (good). The more you give, the more you’ll get in this and the next life.
Here is the link for the book on the life of the Prophet ﷺ
CONSEQUENCE OF NOT TAKING IT STEP BY STEP
Every action or inaction has consequences. I would like to clarify – I do not mean that one should not practice things, but that one must prioritize thing. Obligatory 5 times Salah takes priority over praying 2 units in the night. Again, this does not mean that one should not do the night prayer.
عن أبي هريرة رضي الله عنه قال: قال النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم : «إن الدين يسر، ولن يشاد الدين إلا غلبه، فسددوا وقاربوا وأبشروا، واستعينوا بالغدوة والروحة وشيء من الدلجة». وفي رواية: «سددوا وقاربوا، واغدوا وروحوا، وشيء من الدلجة، القصد القصد تبلغوا»
Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet ﷺ said: “Indeed, the religion is easy. No one overburdens himself with the religion but he will be overwhelmed by it. So be moderate in your religion; if you can’t reach perfection, try to be near to it and receive the glad tidings that you will be rewarded. Take benefit of the morning, evening, and part of the night (to worship Allah).” Another narration reads: “Do your duties as good as you can and try to be near to perfection; make use of the morning, evening, and part of the night. Be moderate, be moderate and you will reach your goal.” [Sahih Al Bukhari]
If anyone overburdened himself with religious duties without leniency, he would not be able to continue in that way and will inevitably stop performing all such duties or part of them. The deeds will fall off one by one, and this is what is meant by ‘breaking your back’. So make sure to perfect the priorities first and be firm on them and then add things step by step. Make sure to always learn more about Islam, as it is an ocean without a shore. I ask Allah to help us all, to guide us, and to keep us firm on His deen. آمــــــــــــــــــين
