Faith Friday: Start Your Day with a Bang

There are days when I wake up feeling blah and anxious. 

I should confess that I am a stress-head. I worry and over-analyse about absolutely everything. 

Fine, not everything. Most things. They range from what I should wear for the day to wishing my teeth were straighter. I also like to envision how my day will turn out and when it doesn't  go as planned I do get a little frustrated. Yes, I am a so-called perfectionist and I can be pedantic. If I can't give 100% on something then I probably won't commit to it. On top of that, I also worry about the state of the Earth and humanity (no kidding). I blame this on the fact that I am a classic Virgo. 

Or the fact that I'm not much of a morning person.

Trust me, I'm trying to work on my issues. 

Having said that, I've recently discovered a great way to start my mornings. After performing Fajr (dawn) prayer one day I decided to open the Holy Qur'an and read Surah Fajr. It's currently my favourite surah to read every morning. It's not very long but it's filled with the best reminders for the beginning of any day and it really does put things into perspective.


This particular surah addresses issues that we face as humans everyday. Arrogance, corruption (especially of powerful leaders), ingratitude, impatience, selfishness, injustice towards orphans and the poor, and the dangers of excessive love for material wealth. 

I feel that through Surah Fajr, Allah subhana wa taala is telling us everything we need to remember before we go out to the open world and start our daily lives. It even mentions the coming of  Judgement Day to warn us about how we will accountable for all our deeds and that everything comes from Him - the good and the bad - because this life is a test to see who will have humility and patience and practice righteousness. What I love most about this surah is its powerful ending.

 I imagine how it would feel to hear my Creator say these words to me...  
(It will be said to the pious): "O (you) the one in (complete) rest and satisfaction!
"Come back to your Lord, Well-pleased (yourself) and well-pleasing unto Him!
"Enter you, then, among My honoured slaves,
"And enter you My Paradise!"
Doesn't that leave you feeling completely inspired to do good deeds that will please Him throughout the day?   Shouldn't we strive to gain life in Paradise, a life that is eternally blissful, instead of only dedicating our lives to this imperfect world that is only temporary? Now that's what I call starting your day with a bang. Spiritually, at least! 

Comments

Mashaallha Shahirah, I so love this post! I seem to be very similar to you concerning brooding over almost everything, perfectionism and not being a morning person.
You found such a beautifull way to improve yourself and it is an inspiration for me as well inshaallah!
xoxo
RS said…
you may be a Virgo... but you've just described ME and I'm a GEMINI!

jeng jeng jeng

www.riskofrain.com
Elisa said…
Masha'Allah, LOVELY post! Really inspiring and what a great idea to read this every morning after fajr!! Thank you, dear sister, for all your words to help us along the way, masha'allah :)
Esra said…
Great post Sha :)

You have inspired me to go and read this surah now!
Chloe said…
Beautiful reminder Sha. I'm really enjoying the Faith Friday articles - I'm looking forward to them every week :)
Nia said…
SubhanaAllah sister.. Indeed, Flip through the Holy Quran, and one will definitely finds Inspiration and answer to whtever questions within.. Wassalam
Anonymous said…
good sharing,sha.

my current favourite surah is Al-Waqiah,alhamdulillah i manage to hafaz the surah,with the help after listening to Muhammad Taha Al-Junayd's CD.
amirahms said…
subhanallah the beauty of kalamullah! i like this post so much..what a great way to start your day with surah Al-Fajr..also a great surah to ponder upon before setting new aims and goals don't u think?...thanks for sharing and enlightening us =)
Anonymous said…
Thanks for writing about this. What a great inspiration indeed, masha-Allah.

Wishing you a great weekend! :)
Laila said…
MahaAllah :) Its a great idea :) I'll do it maybe all the mornings inshaAllah!
and a really beautiful post!
Aisha said…
love love love..i needed this

im so drained i cant think of any other words <3
Great post Shahirah!
This surah is absolutely beautiful. A wonderful feeling showers over you when you start your day with reciting this [and of course surah yaseen]
JazakAllah for sharing :)
LovingBeauty said…
The end bit of surat fajr is so gentle. Thanks for posting.
Hambiah Liyana said…
i am touched and inspired!! thanx. :)
Haiko said…
I LOVE this post. That is absolutely a great way to start out your days and you have inspired me to do the same. Jazakallah Khair! :)
Ida Ali said…
This surah is my alarm tone! Because I thought it might motivate me to wake up for Fajr prayers. So far, it has been effective alhamdulillah :)

P.S. Also I know I can't deal with the guilt of putting off this meaningful alarm.
Alles-Lila said…
thank you, shahirah for this post. at the point of battling with anxiety, your post comes into perspective

M
hatim a.r said…
sha,in case u havent watched this already;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5P1SV7sG8Qg&feature=player_embedded

its really amazing :')
Shahirah Elaiza said…
I'm so happy many of you like this post, the magic is credited to the Holy Qur'an of course. Surah Fajr is indeed the best wake up call =) I try my best to read it every morning, esp. so I don't forget our true purpose on Earth.

Hatim, thanks for sharing! I've seen another one of his videos. He's a very good speaker mashaAllah.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYMKQKSV0bY&playnext=1&list=PLED031AF8B26F7674
MsDieynaba said…
Salam^^

Thanks for the reminder, the Sura sure is an everyday wake up call, it puts things into perspective and promotes dhikr!