Al-Madinah Academy

as salam aleikom wa rahmatullah wa barakahtuh,

this ayah always reminds me that I have to strive hard to be the example to my child inshaAllah. children are very smart & can quickly pick up on our lazy habits in Islam. if we show them we are lazy in one area, they will think we are hypocrites & not take what we teach them about the deen seriously. for example; if i delay the prayer i am teaching my child its okay to delay the prayer.

Reminding them of who they are and why they were created, teaching them to love Allaah and encouraging them to pray and show Him obedience are some of the ways we can truly show our families how much we care for them and love them. If they don't get some of the luxuries in this life or if they not entertained 24/7, what's the worst that can happen? They may be bored at times and they may feel "angry". But if we fail in our duty of teaching how to be Muslim the consequences are severe indeed. The consequence is that they may end up in a blazing fire which is fuelled by humans and stones. this fire is watched over by stern and harsh angels who will not feel sorry for those in the fire. angels who have been commanded to keep the inhabitants of the fire from escaping; and these angels never disobey a command.

in Islaam we are constantly taught about responsibilty. We do not live just for ourselves; rather, we must be concerned about those around us as well. And of course, those in our very households deserve that we care for them and look out for them even before others. They have the greatest rights over us. Those who believe are warned by Allaah not to only think about themselves; yes, you must live as a believer doing all you can to avoid ending up in the hellfire in the Hereafter, but what about your families? Yo have a responsibility towards them as well. Those under your guardianship are your responsibility. Spouses and children and not like pets; feeding, clothing and sheltering them is not sufficient. You need to guide them and teach them what is required to also avoid ending up in the hellfire. If you truly love them and care for them, you have to do what you can to assist them.

in this ayah, Allah (SWT) is not ordering the believers to protect themselves only from hell fire, but also they have to protect their families as well. that means we are responsible for our familes, wives, childern. we have to order them to fast, pray and do good deeds. this reminds me of the hadith of our prophet (pbuh) when he said that we are like a shepherd and we are responsible for what ever beneath us. we also have to remember if we do not take a good care of our children and educate them about the religion, on judgement day they will tell Allah that we did not educate them and will ask Allah to take revenge for them from us. so be careful.

1) The one who claims to be a believer is addressed here. So if we are believers, we have to heed what follows.

2) We are asked to protect ourselves and our families from hellfire.

3) The fire is described, the fuel is people and stones. Can we picture the burning flesh, the sparks of the fire ignited on the stones? There are angels appointed over it, guarding it. They obey Allaah and do whatever He commanded. So if He commands them to ensure the people have a harsh punishment, they will do that.

4) How can we protect ourselves and our families?
i) I guess by having taqwa ourselves, by being conscious and trying our best to obey and avoid disobedience.
ii) And in addition, to remind our families. For example, we can enroll the kids in beneficial classes, we can arrange for gatherings in which we learn the Qur'aan, etc.

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