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<div dir="auto">By Imam Murtadha Gusau</div>
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<div dir="auto">In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful</div>
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<div dir="auto">All praise is for Allah, Lord of all creation, who guided us to Islam. May the peace, blessings and salutations of Allah be upon our noble Messenger, Muhammad, and upon his family, his Companions and his true and sincere followers.</div>
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<div dir="auto">Dear brothers and sisters! Know that, wallahi, there is no better time to start making positive changes in our lives than this blessed month of Ramadan.</div>
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<div dir="auto">The month of Ramadan is a Muslim&#8217;s recurring opportunity for spiritual enhancement and soul redemption. It is also an annual exercise in self-control and self-restraint, but above all, it is a physical manifestation of our total submission and obedience to Allah Almighty. Because of this submission and obeying of His order, the Muslim fasts, abstaining from food, drink, and sexual intercourse during the days of Ramadan. This is the physical aspect of fasting. By nightfall, the spiritual aspects take over, because while eating, drinking, and sexual relationship between spouses are permitted during nighttime, the Muslim then engages in prayers that take him/her deep into the night. It is a well-balanced program that lifts the spirit, strengthens the resolve, and asserts Tawhid (Islamic Monotheism) as no other act of worship can.</div>
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<div dir="auto">Dear brothers and sisters! The conduct of our Prophet (Peace be upon him) and his Companions may Allah be pleased with them in Ramadan differs a lot than the way Muslims do today. They dedicated their days and nights for worship. Their lives revolved completely around the book of Allah, the Qur&#8217;an. Reciting it in and out of prayers. The Prophet (Peace be upon him) used to review the whole Qur&#8217;an with Jibril (Angel Gabriel) once every Ramadan. Imam Bukhari may Allah have mercy upon him narrated that:</div>
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<div dir="auto">&#8220;Jibril used to repeat the recitation of the Qur&#8217;an with the Prophet (Peace be upon him) once a year (in Ramadan) but he repeated it with him twice in the year he died.&#8221; The Prophet (Peace be upon him) used to stay in ‘I&#8217;tikaf (seclusion in the Mosque) for ten days every year (during Ramadan) but in the year of his death, he stayed in I’tikaf for twenty days.”</div>
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<div dir="auto">The Month of Ramadan is the month of mercy, repentance and charity. The mere revelation of the Qur&#8217;an and the commission of the Prophet (Peace be upon him) to the Prophethood are among the greatest manifestations of Allah&#8217;s mercy. Allah, The Most Exalted, asserts this in numerous verses of the Qur&#8217;an, such as:</div>
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<div dir="auto">&#8220;And We have sent down to you the Book (i.e. the Qur&#8217;an) as clarification for all things and as guidance and mercy and good tidings for the Muslims.&#8221; [Qur&#8217;an, 16:89]</div>
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<div dir="auto">And:</div>
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<div dir="auto">&#8220;So there has [now] come to you clear evidence from your Lord and a guidance and mercy.&#8221; [Qur&#8217;an, 6:157]</div>
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<div dir="auto">And:</div>
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<div dir="auto">&#8220;And We had certainly brought them a Book which We detailed by knowledge — as guidance and mercy to a people who believe.&#8221; [Qur&#8217;an, 7:52]</div>
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<div dir="auto">And:</div>
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<div dir="auto">&#8220;And We send down of the Qur&#8217;an, that which is healing and mercy for the believers, but it does not increase the wrongdoers except in loss.&#8221; [Qur&#8217;an, 17:82]</div>
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<div dir="auto">And when Allah Almighty referred to the commission of our beloved Prophet (Peace be upon him) He said:</div>
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<div dir="auto">&#8220;And We have not sent you, [O Muhammad], except as a mercy to the worlds.&#8221; [Qur&#8217;an, 21:107]</div>
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<div dir="auto">Moreover, when the Prophet (Peace be upon him) said describing himself and listing his attributes:</div>
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<div dir="auto">&#8220;I am the Prophet of mercy.&#8221; [Bukhari]</div>
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<div dir="auto">Beloved servants of Allah! There is no question that our beloved Prophet (Peace be upon him) possessed the highest forms of moral and human attributes. Among human beings, he (Peace be upon him) was the most generous, the most merciful, the most courageous, the &#8216;most&#8217; and the &#8216;best&#8217; of everything good in Islam, and as described by his wife Aisha may Allah be pleased with her, his morals were the Qur&#8217;an.</div>
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<div dir="auto">Now the question is: where does this leave us? Some people dismiss their shortcomings by saying: &#8220;I am not the Prophet&#8221;, but please where does it say that you have to be a Prophet to be merciful, or to be generous, or to be anything for that matter? Granted, that no one can be compared to the Prophet (Peace be upon him) or even hope to partially attain his high levels and standards, but that should not be an excuse for not following his example and striving to be the best Muslims that we can be.</div>
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<div dir="auto">There are many Prophetic narrations that refer to the depravation of an individual from the very thing he deprives others from, or the rewards, in multiples, of that which he provides. Among these narrations are:</div>
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<div dir="auto">&#8220;Allah will not be Merciful to those who are not merciful to mankind.&#8221; [Bukhari]</div>
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<div dir="auto">&#8220;Allah does not bestow His mercy except on the merciful among His servants.&#8221; [Bukhari]</div>
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<div dir="auto">&#8220;Every good deed will be rewarded tenfold, up to seven hundred times, and Allah multiplies to whomever he wills.&#8221; [Bukhari and Muslim]</div>
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<div dir="auto">&#8220;Allah Says: Spend O son of Adam and I shall spend upon you.&#8221; [Bukhari and Muslim]</div>
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<div dir="auto">Dear brothers and sisters! There is no better time to start making positive changes in our lives than this blessed month. In Ramadan, many good things occur: the rewards are multiplied, the devils are chained, the gates of Hellfire are closed, and the gates of Paradise are opened. And every night of Ramadan, Allah redeems believers from the pains of Hellfire. It is the month of mercy, repentance, and charity. Use it or loose it!</div>
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<div dir="auto">Lastly, Dear brothers and sisters! Please, we sincerely seek your financial support, we need your help, we need your assistance, your donation and your contribution on the preparation in this coming blessed and Noble Month of Ramadan and Sallah period for the continuation of taking care of our orphans, widows and the students under our care. Your support is highly needed for Allah&#8217;s sake.</div>
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<div dir="auto">Respected servants of Allah! As usual, we sincerely solicit former your kind and sincere contribution towards the Ramadan preparation for our orphans, widows and students; and the development of our schools and Islamic Center financially, materially and morally.</div>
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<div dir="auto">Our aim and objective always is to have a standard Islamic center and Arabic/Islamic schools for orphans and less privileged Muslims children.</div>
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<div dir="auto">And if you want to pay your Zakah our great Islamic center is waiting for your kind and merciful gesture. Sincerely, your donation will help distribute Ramadan foods, etc for our orphans.</div>
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<div dir="auto">Remember, the Month of Ramadan will not be the same without our families, but unfortunately this is not a privilege enjoyed by everyone. This is the reason we&#8217;re steadfast in planning to provide Ramadan and Sallah feedings for the orphans, widows and students under our care!</div>
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<div dir="auto">We planned to distribute food packages that worth amount up to 4000 widows and 3000 orphans In Shaa Allah, this year.</div>
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<div dir="auto">And your contribution is highly waiting as usual. May Allah rewards all your efforts and your good deeds, ameen.</div>
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<div dir="auto">Remember, Allah Almighty says:</div>
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<div dir="auto">&#8220;If you support the course of Allah, He will support you.&#8221; [Qur&#8217;an, 47: 7]</div>
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<div dir="auto">And the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) said:</div>
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<div dir="auto">&#8220;Whoever relieves his Muslim brother of a hardship from the hardships of this world, Allah shall relieve him of a hardship from the hardships of the Day of Judgement. And whoever makes things easy for a person in difficulty, Allah will ease for him in this world and the Next. Allah is forever aiding a servant so long as he is in the aid of his Muslim brother.&#8221;</div>
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<div dir="auto">And he (Peace be upon him) said:</div>
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<div dir="auto">&#8220;Every act of goodness is considered as Sadaqah.&#8221; [Bukhari]</div>
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<div dir="auto">Here is our Account details:</div>
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<div dir="auto">Account no. &#8211; 0048647196</div>
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<div dir="auto">Account name &#8211; Murtala Muhammed</div>
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<div dir="auto">GTBank</div>
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<div dir="auto">For more enquiries contact, Imam Murtadha Muhammad, the director and Imam Of the Center: 08038289761.</div>
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<div dir="auto">To donate food items, etc, contact the following Numbers: 08038289761, 08056557477</div>
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<div dir="auto">Jazakumullah Khairan as you kindly contribute.</div>
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<div dir="auto">All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of all creation; may Allah extol the mention of our noble Prophet Muhammad in the highest company of Angels, bless him and give him peace and security―and his family, his Companions and all those who follow him correctly and sincerely until the establishment of the Hour.</div>
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<div dir="auto">Murtadha Muhammad Gusau is the Chief Imam of Nagazi-Uvete Jumu’ah and the late Alhaji Abdur-Rahman Okene’s Mosques, Okene, Kogi State, Nigeria. He can be reached via: <a href="mailto:gusauimam@gmail.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">gusauimam@gmail.com</a> or +2348038289761.</div>
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<div dir="auto">This Jumu’ah Khutbah (Friday sermon) was prepared for delivery today Friday, Ramadan 02, 1444 AH (March 24, 2023).</div>
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