 All praises due to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. There's a saying, an Arabic saying, Inal insana sumi al-insana li'alatu yansa, that the human has been called human because he or she forgets. So the saying alerts us to something that forgetfulness can be a positive thing. So if we reflect for example on some of the painful experiences that we've had over the course of our life, both physically and or emotionally, psychologically, mentally, the average life witnesses a lot of pain. What if we remember and record that pain with its full intensity and never forgot? Life would be unlivable. So it's a good thing in those instances that as they say time heals all wounds. And with time, most of our physical wounds heal at least the pain, psychological scars they heal. Alhamdulillah. But sometimes forgetfulness can be a bad thing. We live in a time where I believe just my personal experience and opinion that a lot of Muslims have many essential aspects of what it means to be a Muslim. And we need to be reminded. Allah ta'ala reminds us in the Quran. For example, remind them with the Quran. Those who fear the threatened punishment. So we remind them with the Quran. Because the blessing of Allah upon you, how you were enemies, et cetera. So today, inshallah ta'ala, we want to just talk about a few things that I believe many Muslims forget. To begin, we like to boast and we get happy, some of us, that there are two billion Muslims in the world, two billion Muslims. Allah Akbar. But sometimes we forget there are nine billion people on earth. So globally, Muslims are small minority. We get encouraged in the country. 10 million Muslims. Allah Akbar. But we forget that 320 million people in this country. So I say that to say this. Many of us forget that if we're Muslims from those vast overwhelming minorities, Allah ta'ala has chosen us and honored us and distinguished us to be Muslim. So Allah ta'ala reminds us. Struggle in the way of Allah as you rightfully be the case. He has chosen you. If you're Muslim, you've been chosen. And if one recalls that they've been chosen for a great distinction, a great honor, and also for a great responsibility and a great mission, then one cannot go on living their lives like the average Tom Dicker Harry, just the average person. If we remember, no, I'm not an average person. From all those average people out there, Allah ta'ala has chosen me to be a Muslim. Allah has chosen me to keep alive the prophetic heritage amongst humanity. Allah has chosen me in an era where people are responding as it war to a command Shahid. View, look at your screen, look at your phone, look at your tablet, look at your television. But we've been called to respond to a different command. Eqra, read. Eqra bismi rabbi kalladi khalaq. Read in the name of your Lord who created. And there's a vast difference between the consequence of those two factions, but that's a whole nother khutba. We mentioned the last verse, not the verse, the beginning of the last verse of Surah Tulhaj. So this is the first thing we've been chosen, my dear brothers and sisters, to be Muslim. We've been chosen to carry the prophetic legacy amongst humanity. We've been chosen to keep ancient teachings alive in a world that has no or little respect for things that are ancient. Many Muslims proudly call themselves progressives. When the whole essence of progressivism is to divorce itself from anything that has anything to do with the ancient world or ancient traditions or ancient customs or ancient practices, we have to remember. We have to remember something else that the first word, second rather, in this verse reminds us. We've been chosen to be Muslims. And as Muslims, our life is a life of struggle. Our life is a life of struggle. If you find it difficult and challenging to be a Muslim under the circumstances you find yourself involved in, then you should know that's the way it's supposed to be. Even though Allah says He made no difficulty upon us, that's in terms of what we practice. The 50 prayers were reduced to five. The continuity of fasting. The fasting has reduced to fast during the day, eat at night. But to live the life of a Muslim, to have the orientation towards the reality that a Muslim should have, these are not easy things. So much so that it's related, reported from the Prophet sallallahu alaihi wasallam, And he said in the end of the time, at the end of time, there will be days, there will be called difficult days. One who holds on to their religion during those times will be like one holding on to a burning ember. So it's still summer. So some of you have cookouts. The next time you fire up the grill and you put your charcoal briquettes in there, imagine yourself scooping out a red hot charcoal and just casually holding on to it. It's difficult. You'll be juggling it. And we have a principle in our religion that principle goes like this. The reward you get from an action is commensurate to the difficulty of the act. The one who reads the Quran fluently. And it sounds like Abdul Basit or Al-Minshawi or some more recent recirers of the Quran has one reward, the reward of their recitation. The one who reads the Quran and stutters and stammers and struggles has two rewards, the reward of their struggle and the reward of their recitation. So if it's that difficult to hold on to your religion, then the reward must be great. So what is the reward for holding on? What is the reward for resisting the temptations of the day? What is the reward for refusing to give up, to refuse to compromise your religion? And the reward for one who continues to practice, continues to hold on, continues to forge on, doesn't compromise. It's like the reward of 50 men. Now the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam was talking to the companions. So they asked, 50 of us or 50 of them, 50 companions. So we could translate that the one who continues to practice literally, wa al ajroo wa ajroo al aameeli fiha during those times is like the reward of 50 companions. Now, God bless us to hold on. Now, God bless us to remember the reward. My brothers and sisters, when you're confronted with very difficult challenges in your religion, don't look at the magnitude of the challenge. Don't look at the difficulty of the situation. Look at the magnitude of the reward. Look at the magnitude of the reward that you will get if you meet the challenge head on. And we're not asked to just bulldoze through everything in our path. We're asked to struggle. We're asked to try. What I forbid for you leave it, avoid it. But what I command you to do, do to the best of your ability. That's it. Do it to the best of your ability. Do it to the best of your ability. The very phrase at the beginning of the verse implies this. So struggle in the way of Allah as should rightfully be the case. But we recognize the right that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has over us is impossible for us to meet. It's impossible if just giving the shukr that's all for our vision. What would it take? So implicitly, do the very best you can. Do the very best you can, but make no excuses. We're not a people who make excuses. We're people who do the best that we can. And then we leave the outcome to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Don't make excuses. We forget the Quranic message, fundamental aspects. There's a debate raging in this country over the issue of abortion by way of example. And not to delve deeply into that controversy. It's not the place for Juma Khutbah, but to say this. You'll find many of our sisters echoing the slogans of atheists, kathir, women. My body, my choice. My body, my choice. Where's that in the teachings of this land? It's just not women. That's totally rootless. Even a man to say that. Allah ta'ala reminds us in the Quran. That says imperative. It's not recommended. It's not encouraged. It's imperative for anyone who is not at the level of fluidity in the Arabic language that there are in English or Spanish to read the Quran in English or the translation. So that the message informs our consciousness, shapes our consciousness, informs our worldview. Allah ta'ala tells us in the Quran It is your Lord who creates and chooses. They have no choice. We don't have a choice. Allah chooses for us. Allah created us and Allah chooses. And we say, I hear and I obey. So leaving aside the issue of abortion and not to pick on anyone who might have tattoos, just don't get another one. I can't say my body, my choice and tap myself up. Tattooing is a major sin. It's a major sin. As a man, I can't pierce my ears. My body, my choice. I can't get a Mohawk haircut. My body, my choice. This is Allah's body. To Allah belongs everything in the heavens and in the earth. Aren't we in the earth? What happens when we die? What do we mind ourselves of? We belong to Allah. And under him we are returning. But we forget basic fundamental teachings of the religion. Fundamental teachings. It's time to get back to basics. We have to remember and remind ourselves again, Islam is a simple religion. Early on they studied the complexities of the religion. But at the end of the day, they lay out a path for the people, the common people that is simple and straightforward. And many of us converted to Islam because of that simplicity. A messenger to follow, Muhammad Rasulullah. We didn't have to make it up on the fly. We didn't have to just have a general set of moral and ethical principles and we fill in the blanks. We have an involved system of morality, a system that tells us what is right and what is wrong. We don't have to make it up. So may Allah SWT bless us to remember, to remember that we've been chosen. We're not just accidentally Muslim. Who has to back him? He's chosen you to be a source of light when the world is dark. Many of us forget that we are guys for humanity. Just as the Prophet SAW was a guide for us and humanity. But more specifically, he's a guide for us. But he's not here. We forget the role that the scholars play. And sometimes the scholars forget the role that they play. You see, this one's involved in this scandal and that one's involved in that scandal. Because they forget their guides for the people, the heirs of the Prophet. The scholars are the heirs of the Prophets. The scholars are the heirs of the Prophets. So the Prophets who guides for humanity, the Prophets are moral exemplars. You can conclude with the story that you probably heard from me or someone else. The story is said, you call. It's said that Abdullah Ibn Umar met a young Abdullah Ibn Az-Zubayr, radi Allahu anhum, our Rahimullah radi Allahu anhum, our Ibn Umar, our Abihi, Umar al-Khattabi, radi Allahu anhum. And the younger was tending some sheep. And so Ibn Umar, again some say it wasn't Ibn Umar, to leave the details, you call. It said, ask him to give me one of the sheep. Sell me, sell me one of the sheep. And he said they're not my sheep. I don't have the right to sell them. And the the elder, the elder, he said, well, no one's around. And the owner, you have so many sheep, he won't know one is missing. And the young man, the young lad replied, reply for anal law. No human being is around. But Allah is around. And Allah would witness that transgression. And Allah would hold me accountable for not bearing the trust that was deposited with me for anal law. So my dear brothers and sisters, whenever you find yourself in a situation where you're ready to compromise the religion, where you're ready to turn back, where you think is too hard, just ask yourself that anal law and where's Allah. Allah sees and witnesses. Allah knows. Allah hears. Allah knows what we're dealing with. Allah knows how difficult it is. It is Allah who created the test for us in the first place in order that he could strengthen our faith, affirm our faith, and give us a bounteous reward for something we also tend to forget. We're generalizing, not necessarily anyone here. That we're not living for this world. We're living for the akhirah. This world is in a boat of tests and trials. It's in a boat of tests and trials so that we may successfully gain the akhirah, which is the abode of peace where there's no test or trials. There's no oppression. There's no treachery. There's no economic, psychological, social or otherwise other form of oppression. The human imperfections. There's no disease. There's no COVID. There's no malaria. There's no AIDS. None of that exists there. That's the abode of tranquility. That's the abode of peace. That's the abode of salam, darus salam, not this world. So remember, we're not living for this world. We're living for the akhirah. And all of the tests, the trials and tribulations of this world, when Allah, when we bi idhni Allah, bi rahmat Allah, wa bi fadni Allah, when we're in the akhirah, the worst thing we've ever encountered in this world. And while in where we start, we will have no recollection. Some of us are able to transcend the worst of the world in the world, but occasionally we might have a flashback, even an unconscious one. And that pain just comes back briefly. But in the akhirah, we won't have any recollection of it. And if we do, it won't be associated with any pain. In fact, some of the most vexing situations will be a source of happiness because we'll look back at it, or to flash before us. And we'll say, Alhamdulillah, that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala gave me that test, put that test in my life, because that might be the reason I'm here in Jannah today. May Allah give us tawfiq, taisir, qabul. May Allah make things easy for us. May Allah give us the strength to pass any test he might present to us in this world. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala bless us to be mindful of the fundamental teachings of the religion. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala strengthen us. May Allah ta'ala elevate us. May Allah ta'ala bless us. Bestow His mercy upon us. Open the floodgates of His grace before us. Alhamdulillah wa s-salat wa salam ala Rasulillah. If you look at just this room, this assembly, you see a microcosm of one of the greatest gifts Islam has given to the world. And that's the gift of ethnic and national tribal unity and solidarity. You have Asians or people of Asian descent, Arabs, Europeans, Africans, or people of African descent joined in a great congregation of brotherhood and sisterhood. And no one's uneasy. No one's trying to move away from someone who might not be from their tribe or might not have the same complexion they have. That's a great gift. And in these days and times when shaytan, the great divider, and the shayateen, they learned from the two angels at Bab al-Harut and Marut, that was soul's dissension and division between the man and woman. And it goes beyond that. That was soul's division between the children of Adam, Kullukum and Adam, Benny Adam, the children of Adam, the Adam and Puraab, and Adam is from the earth to divide. And we see in this country right now, efforts to divide people along color lines. The Muslims have to be the source of resistance. Many Muslims are becoming more fervent in pursuing these so-called racial, color, ethnic divisions than many of the architects of these devilish ideologies. Devilish because shaytan's the first divider, as we said. And his first rebellion was because of color and because of physical difference. Allah Ta'ala says to Al-A'een, and Allah said to Iblis, to Satan, what prevented you from prostrating yourself to Adam when I ordered you to do so? He said, I'm better than him, superiority. Based on what? You created, he didn't argue along moral lines. I give more charity. I'm kinder to the elderly. I kiss babies. He made no moral argument. He argued based on physical difference. You created me from fire. And you created him from clay. And that physical difference had a color component. Because if you look at fire, it's blue, red, orange, yellow, green. And the clay Adam was created from was black clay. The first racial supremacist was shaytan. And every supremacist following him is walking in his devilish footsteps. And in conclusion, we remind us, myself and yourselves of one more thing, that we've been commanded not to follow the footsteps of shaytan. Our believers enter totally into Islam. In other words, don't take some and reject others. I don't like this. This is sexist. This is incompatible with present sentiments. So I won't take that part. Don't take some and leave some. Take it all to the best of your abilities. And don't follow the footsteps of shaytan. He is unto you a clear enemy. His enmity is not disguised. Now you see it on full display. He's not disguising it. If any time in human history, the clarity of the enmity of shaytan to the human being was on full display is now. So don't follow his footsteps. Don't open the door to following his footsteps. May Allah give us tofeeq and tasheer. May Allah accept from us. May Allah allow us to strengthen us. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala bless us to understand the gravity of Islam and what Islam represents in the face of many different areas of dehumanizing realities, institutions, movements that are unfolding in our world. May Allah give us tofeeq. May Allah bless us to elevate ourselves from the attraction shaytan. He argued based on his physicality. He wants to keep all of us trapped at the level physicality. He doesn't want us to elevate so that our lives, our worldview, the way we see reality is informed by metaphysical realities, by things you can immediately perceive through your physical senses and pleasures that you don't realize are stored up at that level beyond carnal lusts and appetites. And when one elevates, we're ready to respond. So we can respond to shaytan and we can remain trapped at the physical level and everything, even Islam, is reduced to the physical.