Reactions - The Four Types

If someone said that they have never been through any difficulty, then know that they are not telling the truth. Moreover, if someone said that they have never experienced  ease, then that is also not true. In fact, for ordinary people, like you and me, we go through at least a few difficulties each day, but the rest of it is ease and comfort. No doubt, some difficulties are more challenging to deal with compared to others, just like some forms of ease are more comforting then others. The big question is, as servants of Allah, how should we react to difficulty and ease?  

Just before we answer that question, it is very important to know why Allah has created us, as this will help us navigate through the good and bad times of life. So why did Allah create us from nothing, give us a soul, bring us here on Earth and make us Muslims? Have we been created to stay in the mosque all day? Have we been created to eat and sleep the whole day? Have we been created to not care about others? Have we been created to just do whatever we feel like? Have we been created in such a way that no matter what we do in this life, we are guaranteed Paradise? No, but rather, we have been created to enjoy worshipping Allah. Enjoy worshipping Allah in different ways, places, situations, and most importantly during ease and difficulty. Allah said, 
وَمَا خَلَقْتُ الْجِنَّ وَالْإِنسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونِ  
 “And I have not created Jinns and Mankind except to worship me.” [51:56] 

So how should we react to hardship and ease? Broadly, there are four distinct categories of people in times of ease and hardship. Which of the four do you fit in? Or how much of each category do you exhibit on a regular basis?  

The first category are those who turn to Allah during times of ease, but ignore Him during times of difficulty. Allah said, 
وَمِنَ النَّاسِ مَنْ يَعْبُدُ اللَّهَ عَلَى حَرْفٍ فَإِنْ أَصَابَهُ خَيْرٌ اطْمَأَنَّ بِهِ وَإِنْ أَصَابَتْهُ فِتْنَةٌ انْقَلَبَ عَلَى وَجْهِهِ خَسِرَ الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةَ ذَلِكَ هُوَ الْخُسْرَانُ الْمُبِينُ 
“And of the people is he who worships Allah on an edge; if he is touched by good, he is reassured by it, but if he is struck by trial, he turns on his face [to unbelief]. He has lost [this] world and the Hereafter. That is the clearest loss.” [7:94] 

Allah here is saying that some people’s love for Allah is so weak that if a difficulty was to be inflicted then this person, they would forgot about Allah. We see this sometimes in our own lives. During the winter season and when it is cold, do we go through the struggle to do wudu and pray in the cold? To be honest, with instant access to hot water and central heating system, we would not even feel cold. But the question is, will we safeguard our prayers no matter what? On Fridays, you might have to eat quickly or get cold lunch just so then you can come on time for Jumuah. Just because there is less time to have lunch, will you forget about Allah and miss Jumuah prayer?  

The second category are those who turn to Allah during times of difficulty, but ignore Him during times of ease. Allah said,
 وَإِذَا مَسَّ الْإِنْسَانَ الضُّرُّ دَعَانَا لِجَنْبِهِ أَوْ قَاعِدًا أَوْ قَائِمًا فَلَمَّا كَشَفْنَا عَنْهُ ضُرَّهُ مَرَّ كَأَنْ لَمْ يَدْعُنَا إِلَى ضُرٍّ مَسَّهُ 
“Whenever adversity touches the human being, he prays to Us, reclining on his side, or sitting, or standing. But when We have relieved his difficulty from him, he goes away as though he had never called on Us for trouble that had afflicted him” [10:12]. 

Here Allah is saying that some people only connect with Allah during challenging situations. To be honest, a lot of us might fall into this category. When someone dies, we start praying for a bit, but after a little while, we unfortunately stop. When students go through years 11 and 13, the two exam years, some will probably pray the night before the results day and might give charity here and there, but after results day they forget Allah, they forget to pray and make dua to Allah. When people go for job interviews, they pray a bit and ask others to make dua for them, but straight after they get the job they forget to pray and give charity. We do not want to be like such people, but we want to be true servants of Allah that worship Allah regardless of how good or bad the situation is. We know there is a lot of reward in worshipping Allah before and after difficulties in life.  

The third category, which is the worst of the four, are those who ignore and forget Allah during both times of ease and difficulty. Allah said,
  وَإِذَا أَنْعَمْنَا عَلَى الْإِنْسَانِ أَعْرَضَ وَنَأَى بِجَانِبِهِ وَإِذَا مَسَّهُ الشَّرُّ كَانَ يَئُوسًا 
“When We grant people Our favours, they turn away, acting arrogantly. But when touched with evil, they lose all hope” [17:83]. 

Unfortunately, we find people like that on a daily basis. When something good happens, they say it is because of their intelligence, or hard work or it was pure luck. They do not see that it was Allah who gave them the blessing that they are enjoying. They do not acknowledge the fact that their intelligence came from Allah and that Allah is the One who created them with a brain, two eyes, hands and the rest of their body. Furthermore, when something bad happens, some people utter words like, ‘It is God’s fault! Why did God create me?’ Once again this is not appropriate attitude for someone who worships Allah. As believers in Allah, we should have a positive mind-set and say that everything is a test from Allah and that we will try our best no matter what difficulty lies ahead. We should be careful not to fall into this category of forgetting Allah during both times of ease and difficulty. 

The fourth category, which is the best category and one that we should all strive to be in, are those who turn to Allah during times of ease and difficulty. The example that can be given for this category is that of Prophet Yunus (peace be on him). Prophet Yunus did a lot of good deeds during the days Allah had granted him ease. Sometime later, and we all know the story, he was in a very difficult situation whereby he found himself stuck in the belly of a whale. In that challenging environment, Yunus still connected to Allah and made dua to Allah and Allah saved him. Allah said about Prophet Yunus,  
(144) فَلَوْلَا أَنَّهُ كَانَ مِنَ الْمُسَبِّحِينَ (143) لَلَبِثَ فِي بَطْنِهِ إِلَى يَوْمِ يُبْعَثُونَ  
“And had he not been of those who glorified Allah, He would have remained inside its belly [i.e. of the whale] until the Day of Resurrection” [37:143-144]. 

So, Prophet Yunus remembered Allah during both difficult times and easy times and this was the chief reason for his survival. In a similar manner, we should try our best to remember Allah when things are going well for us in school and outside school, as well as during times of difficulty. No doubt we will make mistakes here and there, which is why we should immediately ask Allah to forgive us.  

In conclusion, there are four categories of people in times of ease and hardship; those who forget Allah at times of ease, those who forget Allah at times of difficulty, those who forget Allah at times of ease and difficulty, but then the special category of people who remember and worship Allah during times of ease and difficulty.  

May Allah give us the tawfeeq to remember and worship Him during times of ease and difficulty and may Allah give us the ability to overcome our weaknesses. Ameen.