Mindset First

By Zahra Aljabri 

I’ve long struggled with my Islamic practice feeling like I wasn’t getting the point or any real benefit from the rituals. I was never focused in prayer, I would make dua’ but was always cautiously optimistic about what would happen. In general, I was constantly feeling like I wasn’t being a ‘good Muslim.’

After, over a decade I’ve finally attained a new understanding and appreciation of my Islamic practice which has put meaning into the rituals. I will write about the journey I took to get to this understanding in another post. For now, I want to get right to the point — our mindset, or way of thinking is what allows us to have the useful understanding of our Islamic knowledge. Without the proper mindset, making sense of and being able to apply all the collected bits of Islamic knowledge we already have is like assembling IKEA furniture without the instructions.

We start with our mindset because we are in constant dialogue with ourselves. In this way how and what we think are the most powerful elements that impact our life. Our thinking influences how we see the world, what we pay attention to, what we feel, and how we behave. If we want to make any change or improvement to our life we must first start with examining our thoughts.

The crucial areas we have to have the right thoughts or mindset in, are how we view Allah (God), ourselves and others. The positive mindset is:

1. View of Allah — Allah wants what is best for us. He is on our side and wants us to achieve and have worldly success in addition to success in the hereafter. Moreover, He will help us achieve that success.
2. View of ourselves — We are good. We are God’s creation bestowed with innumerable blessings and tremendous capacity. Any of our shortcomings, mistakes or flaws do not diminish our divine nature or disqualify us from receiving God’s bounty and mercy.
3. View of others — Others are good. Believe that others are as understanding, considerate and open minded as you. Perceive others’ actions and words positively. (Any hate that is directed at you is a reflection of that person’s feelings and insecurities about themselves.)

Shifting into this mindset is not easy. Our ego, insecurity and the shaytan (devil) are constantly working to have us think the opposite, namely that:

1. Allah is angry and punishing us for all the intentional and unintentional wrong we do.
2. We are not good enough. We don’t add much value and are not significant. We make so many mistakes and to easily give into our desires.
3. Others are judging us because they think they are better or because they are envious of our success. They will try to block or limit us.

This negative mindset can hold us hostage. It tries to disconnect us from Allah by making us think we’re not worthy of love, success, enjoyment or peace. It locks us into low level tension and outright conflict with others. It prevents us from starting and sticking to the good practices that will improve our lives.

 

When we have this positive mindset we understand — with certainty — how our life is a divine gift. We become able to see the opportunities and possibilities that are available to us everywhere we look. It allows us to explore ourselves and tap into the core gift that we’ve be blessed with, and then share that gift with the world. Knowing that Allah is on our side, enables us to move forward doing the work we’ve been blessed to be good in and allows us surrender the details to Allah. Allah will provide for us when we trust in him, and that knowledge alleviates us of stress and worry. We understand that we are not acting alone, Allah is constantly with us, he is strengthening our capacity and sending us others to support and aid us.

I’ve come to attain so much peace, hope and connection because of this beautiful realization. It took me years to come to this understanding piecing together so many disconnecting resources. The transformation in my life has been so profound that I now do whatever I can to make it easier for others to attain this peace and clarity. This is the basis of all my coaching programs- to facilitate this shift in the shortest amount of time for you.

The posts that follow are all designed to shift your thinking, to get into the right mindset. Since, the negative pull is constant we must work daily to purify our hearts and monitor our thoughts. To support you to maintain a positive view of Allah I’ve created an incredible resource — Islamic Devotionals! These are powerful short reminders that allow you to hear Allah as your loving companion and start your day feeling uplifted.

For those who are READY to truly transform their life and break-free of a negative mindset and pull of your ego I invite you to work with me. My husband and I have developed a clear framework that guides you into the confident, supported, abundant and peaceful higher version of yourself. It’s a coaching program designed to step-by-step guide you into the mindset that is going to expand your life, it’s called FRICTION TO FLOW

 

CLICK HERE TO ENROLL IN FRICTION TO FLOW

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Get Powerful Islamic Devotionals here.