A couple of days ago, my husband reminded me of a duʿāʾ I was reciting during our interview at the U.S. Embassy more than two decades ago.
Apparently, he has now fallen in love with that duʿāʾ more than ever.
While the interview was ongoing, I was quiet. Not just quiet, but deeply engaged in turning to my Lord through this beautiful duʿāʾ. I was seeking Allah, placing the matter in His hands, and trusting Him with the outcome.
And indeed, that prayer was answered.
One thing I do not give up on easily is asking Allah for everything—even the things that may seem small or easy to others.
Before that interview, I had spent days making relentless efforts, but alongside those efforts, I kept placing the matter in Allah’s hands through my daily Tahajjud and duʿāʾ.
And this is not the only place where I have held tightly to this duʿāʾ.
I have recited it during the excruciating pain of labour, during the intensity of pushing, and in moments of distress when all I could do was turn to my Rabb and ask Him to make the difficult easy.
Perhaps this is one of the most important things we must learn about life:
It is one thing to love one another through the thick and thin of marriage—to stand together through the tests, trials, calamities, and difficulties of this dunyah.
But it is another thing to know who you are before your Rabb.
To know where to turn when everything becomes overwhelming.
To know how to call upon Allah when you have exhausted every worldly means.
To know that when the situation feels beyond your control, it has never been beyond His control.
You must become someone who constantly calls upon your Lord and returns to Him in every situation—especially when life becomes difficult, painful, uncertain, or displeasing.
Make the effort.
Take the means.
Seek the help of people when necessary.
But never forget to take your affairs to Allah.
The duʿāʾ I was reciting that day—and one I continue to hold close to my heart—is:
اللَّهُمَّ لَا سَهْلَ إِلَّا مَا جَعَلْتَهُ سَهْلًا، وَأَنْتَ تَجْعَلُ الْحَزْنَ إِذَا شِئْتَ سَهْلًا
Allahumma lā sahla illā mā jaʿaltahu sahlā, wa anta tajʿalu al-ḥazna idhā shi’ta sahlā.
“O Allah, there is no ease except what You make easy, and You can make the difficult easy if You will.”
What a beautiful reminder that sometimes the greatest strength we possess is not in knowing how everything will work out, but in knowing Who holds the outcome.
May Allah make us among those who constantly return to Him in every difficulty, place our affairs in His hands, and never become too tired to ask Him.
May Allah ease all our affairs, make our difficulties easy, and grant us hearts that never stop turning back to Him. Āmīn.
Umm Sumayyah Mai
A couple of days ago, my husband reminded me of a duʿāʾ I was reciting during our interview at the U.S. Embassy more than two decades ago.
Apparently, he has now fallen in love with that duʿāʾ more than ever.
While the interview was ongoing, I was quiet. Not just quiet, but deeply engaged in turning to my Lord through this beautiful duʿāʾ. I was seeking Allah, placing the matter in His hands, and trusting Him with the outcome.
And indeed, that prayer was answered.
One thing I do not give up on easily is asking Allah for everything—even the things that may seem small or easy to others.
Before that interview, I had spent days making relentless efforts, but alongside those efforts, I kept placing the matter in Allah’s hands through my daily Tahajjud and duʿāʾ.
And this is not the only place where I have held tightly to this duʿāʾ.
I have recited it during the excruciating pain of labour, during the intensity of pushing, and in moments of distress when all I could do was turn to my Rabb and ask Him to make the difficult easy.
Perhaps this is one of the most important things we must learn about life:
It is one thing to love one another through the thick and thin of marriage—to stand together through the tests, trials, calamities, and difficulties of this dunyah.
But it is another thing to know who you are before your Rabb.
To know where to turn when everything becomes overwhelming.
To know how to call upon Allah when you have exhausted every worldly means.
To know that when the situation feels beyond your control, it has never been beyond His control.
You must become someone who constantly calls upon your Lord and returns to Him in every situation—especially when life becomes difficult, painful, uncertain, or displeasing.
Make the effort.
Take the means.
Seek the help of people when necessary.
But never forget to take your affairs to Allah.
The duʿāʾ I was reciting that day—and one I continue to hold close to my heart—is:
اللَّهُمَّ لَا سَهْلَ إِلَّا مَا جَعَلْتَهُ سَهْلًا، وَأَنْتَ تَجْعَلُ الْحَزْنَ إِذَا شِئْتَ سَهْلًا
Allahumma lā sahla illā mā jaʿaltahu sahlā, wa anta tajʿalu al-ḥazna idhā shi’ta sahlā.
“O Allah, there is no ease except what You make easy, and You can make the difficult easy if You will.”
What a beautiful reminder that sometimes the greatest strength we possess is not in knowing how everything will work out, but in knowing Who holds the outcome.
May Allah make us among those who constantly return to Him in every difficulty, place our affairs in His hands, and never become too tired to ask Him.
May Allah ease all our affairs, make our difficulties easy, and grant us hearts that never stop turning back to Him. Āmīn.
Umm Sumayyah Mai
