04Trust in Allah

After the deep experience of fasting and regaining the strength of my soul, I felt the journey still held more lessons.

Life was still full of the usual challenges and pressures of work and family, but I now had a new way of dealing with them, and began to focus on tawakkul, trust in Allah, as a foundation for living in peace.

I had always believed success depended entirely on personal effort and continuous work.

I set clear goals and pursued them with all my strength, but I lived under constant pressure, because results are not always in my hands, and in moments of failure anxiety crept in and helplessness overwhelmed me.

One day, after a big challenge at work left me frustrated, I remembered the words of Allah:

﴿ وَمَن يَتَوَكَّلْ عَلَى اللَّهِ فَهُوَ حَسْبُهُ ﴾

“And whoever relies upon Allah, then He is sufficient for him.” (65:3)

I sat in my office reflecting on it; its words are simple but carry deep wisdom. Trust is not a passing feeling but a state of contentment and complete confidence that Allah is the Disposer of all affairs.

It seemed to answer every question of worry and fear in my day, so I decided to make tawakkul a core part of my journey.

I realised that trust does not mean passivity or giving up, but giving my full effort and then leaving the result to Allah.

Text in this figure

Tie the camel · take the means · 1 · Pray · and seek help · 2 · Trust · and surrender · 3 · Accept · the outcome · 4 · Figure 12

It was a psychological liberation: I must do what I can and leave to Allah what I cannot. I applied the principle daily; at work I strove hard to achieve goals while being reassured that the results, whatever they were, are by Allah’s wise disposal.

When a problem seemed impossible I paused to remember that Allah was with me and I was not carrying this burden alone.

On a day when I was working on a difficult project and the pressure was mounting, I went out to a nearby park and sat on a bench overlooking thick trees.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath to clear my mind; calm seeped into my heart, I remembered the verse again and raised my hands: “O Allah, help me, for You are sufficient for me and You are the Guardian of my affairs.”

Every time I relied on Allah the load grew lighter. I realised tawakkul is not a momentary solution to problems but a way of life in which I rely on Allah in everything, small or large, and the more I relied on Him the stronger and more confident I became.

My outlook changed: when things did not go as planned I no longer worried or despaired as before, but saw each challenge as a new chance to trust and to be confident that Allah chooses the best for me.

Even in failure I came to see wisdom, and perhaps a good I could not yet perceive.

Trust also changed my relationships. I no longer felt the need to control everything or interfere in every decision, so I became calmer and better at listening and understanding, knowing everyone has their own journey and that Allah arranges matters for all with His wisdom.

One night, reflecting on my journey so far, I realised that tawakkul had given me the freedom I had been looking for; life was no longer exhausting, because Allah was always with me.