“When I was studying in Cairo, my roommate and I needed to get our visas extended. To do this, we had to go to a specific government building in downtown. We’d already done this before and had taken newcomers to do it as well and it was always daunting and long. Before we headed downtown, we stopped by our Arabic center, asking the secretary, “Pray Allah makes it easy for us!” She responded, “Make istighfar. Just keeping saying, ‘Astaghfirullah- Oh Allah, I seek Your forgiveness.’” She continued, “The Prophet [peace be upon him] taught us, "If anyone constantly seeks pardon (from God), God will appoint for him/her a way out of every distress and a relief from every anxiety, and will provide sustenance for him/her from where he/she expects not” [Abu Dawud]. We thanked her for the reminder and headed out, making istighfar. We found a taxi shockingly fast and had an easy ride. We particularly upped our istighfar as we got closer to the building. Instead of crazy waits and disarray, our experience was Alhamdulilah smooth, easy, accommodating. Not only were doors opened for us that we didn’t expect- the moments that were usually filled with exhaustion and angst were instead filled with remembering God, seeking His forgiveness, drawing nearer and nearer to Him. When you’re running late and afraid you’re going to miss your flight, when you’re about to take that daunting exam, when you’ve been up all night with insomnia and have an important presentation the next morning- when you’re sick and exhausted, when you’re so worried about your children that your tears never seem to dry- make istighfar. It doesn’t mean everything is necessarily going to change or be perfect or fixed. But we’ve been promised that it will be our aid. It’s a lifeline. It’s a relief. It’s a means of doors and provision opening for us from places we’d never expect. And isn’t all of that - and so much more- an easy habit worth creating? Astaghfirullah- Dear God, I seek Your forgiveness!”
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