Wealth is a great blessing if earned and spent through a proper channel. Wealth does not equal disobedience – it can be used for obedience if you make the right intentions and spend it lawfully within the boundaries of Islam. A Muslim should enjoy the halaal which Allah
gives him/her and use it in obedience. A Muslim should not even conceal it from others as our Prophet
said:
“Whoever has wealth should let its effects be seen.” 1
However, Allah has reminded us of its distraction as well, as He says:
“O you who believe, do not let your wealth or your children distract you from the remembrance of Allah. As for those who do this, they are indeed the losers.” 2
Unfortunately, the hearts and minds of millions of people wander only for things they don’t have. Sitting in the company of poor people will actually help us to get on the right track and enable us to ponder on the blessings we have. Seeing people who are deprived of basic necessities in life will not only softens our hearts, but also make us humble and thankful to our Creator.
That’s why we’ve been told to always look at people below us and not to fall into unremitting worldly race, because it never ends. Allah wants us to be His grateful servants. We are in return promised of abundance. Allah says:
“And [remember] when your Lord proclaimed, ‘If you are grateful, I will surely increase you [in favor]; but if you deny, indeed, My punishment is severe.” 3
Shukr means to have thankfulness, to have gratitude for the blessings by Allah in a very powerful way. It’s been contrasted with kufr which basically means “to deny”. By not acknowledging the blessings we have, we are denying all those blessings. No matter how bad the circumstance turns out to be, we will always find a lot to be thankful for.
People get worried when they are afflicted with any illness or loss in wealth but fail to see the other blessings that have been piled up on them by Allah. The messengers of Allah were tested the most, but they were most thankful for the blessings they were allotted with.
Despite spending a long time in jail while he was innocent, when Prophet Yusuf 
was asked about his state, he replied : “Allah has been very kind to us” 4. He didn`t say, “Oh! I was innocent and yet, sent to jail ”.
Similarly, Ayub was tested in his health and was socially boycotted by his people, yet, he remained patient and was a grateful servant of Allah .
Be Thankful for Everything
A person who is suffering from pain should be thankful, because today, medical science tells us that pain is a very important indicator of something going wrong in your body. There are certain diseases in which a person feels no pain and discovers the actual causative factor in the last stages (like blood cancer). This shows us that pain itself is a blessing. Had there been no pain, we would have never known the abnormality in our body and wouldn’t have been cured on time.
People deprived of food have an excuse to be thankful for as well, because while staying in a state of fasting for a certain period of time, many mechanisms start functionally properly. In a state of hunger, the body removes:
- Dead, dying and diseased cells,
- Unwanted fatty tissue,
- Trans-fatty acids,
- Hardened coating of mucus on the intestinal wall,
- Toxic waste matter in the lymphatic system and bloodstream,
- Toxins in the spleen, liver and kidney,
- Mucus from the lungs and sinuses,
- Imbedded toxins in the cellular fibers and deeper organ tissues,
- Deposits in the microscopic tubes responsible for nourishing brain cells and excess cholesterol amongst others. 5
The best way of paying gratitude to Allah is by accepting the blessings in your heart and praising the Creator by tongue in your private and public lives. Lastly, don’t forget to make the right use of your blessings. 
If someone is blessed with money, he should be thankful in his heart and not think that money is because of his skills or knowledge, rather its from Allah , because there are several people, who are very skillful, yet very poor. Therefore, he needs to praise Allah by tongue, add Alhamdulillah or masha’Allah when talking about how wealthy he is, thank Allah His Provider, and spend his wealth for a noble cause by doing charity, which earns Allah’s pleasure, and not by opening a pornography channel or a Casino, earning the anger of Allah !
This life is not confined to just materialistic aspects but is something beyond that. As a wise person once said: “Don’t Gain The World & Lose Your Soul, Wisdom Is Better Than Silver Or Gold.”
What are the kind of blessings you are grateful and thankful for? Please share with us in the comments section below. We would love to hear from you. 🙂
6 replies on “Don’t Gain The World and Lose Your Soul”
I love to read your articles..short and to the point..keep up the good work
jzk khayr . may Allah reward you
Great article.I’m grateful that Allah still give me chance to repent my sins. I have lost for a long time…but now i’m trying my best to be a better muslim.
Subhan Allah, I feel like this article is written about me. Let me share my story which happened about 4 years ago in relation with this article.
I was a believing muslim but not practicing. I worked at a prestigious organization and was climbing up the ladder and was about to soon be in a management postion. I was very busy the whole day at a mentally demanding job and had no time to look at my children (they have a nanny and a house keeper) or my husband or myself. Half an hour after I get home they sleep and soon afterwards I sleep, too tired to give any attention to my husband. The mornings are hectic, I drop my kids off to school and go to work for another hectic day, where I think about work and nothing else. No praying and No hijab (I believed that I would be an outcast if I wore the hijab) and had lunch while on the job.
I started to hate the job and the organization because I had no time to myself. But since it was a prestigious job no one agreed with me when I wanted to resign and I too felt that I might be making a mistake. While contemplating this a co-worker I trusted was stealing from the company and was using my Sign-in for some of his illegal transactions, and so I was implied in the act and fired from the job. At first I was furious for being blamed for something that I didn’t do. I was still furious with them until about 2 years after the incident.
At first I wanted to get a job at an even more prestigious company to get back at them but to no avail. So I dropped that idea and started to think about all the benefits I’m getting from being fired and made a list 1.) The Labour Union unit in that organization had sued the company on my behalf and paid me half my salary for free to support me until I get a new job. So I was getting free money 2.) I had no support from family when I wanted to resign, but now I am free and I have no sense of doubt of maybe making the wrong move. 3.) I felt like I was born again and given a new chance to start my life over, so I started to think about how I would like to spend the rest of my life. (I was amazed at how Allah had freed me from prison and not a job) 4.) I enjoyed the freedom of sleeping well and playing with my children, etc. No body was dictating how my days should be spent. 5.) I had ample time to be with my wonderful mother, father and grandmother,etc. We developed a new bond with my mother and children.
After searching for a job for a month I decided I will not be employed ever again and that I will be my own master on how I will spend my days. It took me 6 months to decide what to do for a living. Allhamdillah my parents are well off, so I joined their company and started to do buisness by opening my own department in the field which I had experience in my previous job. Allhamdullilah, buisness is good, I am happy and very satisfied.
Mosty importantly I got the time to reflect on my religion, on enjoying Remedan by doing ibada (its not another sleep deprived 1 month for me anymore). Now I am a practicing muslim with my hijab and salat. I even have the time to browse islamic websites and broaden my knowledge on islam. I teach my children Quran and good manners, and shape my 3 kids the way I want them to be, and my husband has more of my attention now. Allhamdullilah, what more can I ask off Allah. If I was not fired I would have still been a miserable, over worked mother and wife, who doesn’t practice Islam. He has given me a blessing in disguise.
When I reflect back to the days when I was employed I don’t understand how I could have worked 10 years in this condition, just because it was a prestigious company. I thank Allah all the time for giving me another chance to make the correct choices in my life, he didn’t just let me be carried away by the waves of daily routine life in that organization until I die or until my retirement. He has guided me the road to him and I shall obediently follow it. He has guided me in way which doesn’t allow me to gain the world and lose my soul.
Subhan Allah sister I’m so happy for you, you are indeed blessed by the Almighty may he continue to shower His mercy on you ?
Alhamdulillah for your life sister. You’revery lucky No many people have this kind of opportunity. May Allah subhana wa ta’ala continue to ease ur affairs and keep you steadfast on His path.