Sharing and living Islam

This is from a set of brochures (20 titles) someone placed at my office's surau. They are compiled by Dr Y Mansoor Marican and published by Islamic Outreach ABIM. This list is a bit long, but I found them useful and informative, so do try to read till the end :)

1. Buy a translation of the Qur’an and give it as a present to a non-Muslim friend.


2. Subscribe to an Islamic magazine and circulate the copies to others after you have read them.


3. Select a good Islamic website and add it to your favourite list of websites for regular reading.


4. Read books on Islam and other subjects that interest you.


5. Join a Qur’an recitation class to learn or improve your recitation.


6. View/listen to at least one Islamic programme on TV/radio every week.


7. Memorize one surah of the Qur’an that you are not able to recite from memory.


8. Pray as many obligatory prayers as possible in congregation in a mosque.


9. Visit a Muslim welfare organisation to find out how you can help in their activities.


10. Start saving for your hajj.


11. Select a sunnah and make it a part of your daily practice. For example, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) never delayed the performance of his daily obligatory prayers.


12. Get permission from an orphanage to let an orphan spend a weekend with you.


13. Find the answers to three commonly asked questions about Islam that you are currently not able to answer satisfactorily.


14. Get to know someone who has converted to Islam, and help to strengthen his/her faith.


15. Make your time in the car productive by listening to good audio tapes on Islam.


16. Read bedtime stories to your young children. In your reading, include stories that highlight Islamic values and stories from the lives of the Prophets (pbut) and great Muslim men and women.


17. Make the breaking of fast in Ramadan in your home closer to the real message by avoiding a lavish spread of food on the dining table.


18. If you know of a public lecture on Islam, tell others about it and try to attend it.


19. If you have a good idea that will help the ummah, mention it to those that you think will take it to the next level.


20. Be upfront with others when you have to perform your Islamic duties by saying, for example, “Excuse me for a few minutes, I need to pray to my Creator.”


21. Write a letter of appreciation and encouragement to a Muslim brother or sister who is doing a lot to help the ummah.


22. Do not delay your marriage by waiting for the perfect partner for you as there is no such person and only Allah is perfect.


23. Spend time with someone who has recently returned from the Hajj to get a first hand description of the Hajj experience.


24. Make a list of things that prevent you from achieving khusyuk in your prayer, and work towards removing them one by one. For example, you can ensure that there is nothing in your shirt pocket that will fall off and distract your prayer.


25. Gather your family member for a 15-minute Islam course every month to explain basic concepts of Islam. For example, one session could be devoted to explaining the difference between zakat and sadaqah.


26. Take advantage of Muslim travel packages to many places including China, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Europe to learn first-hand about other cultures and how Muslims live in those places.


27. Develop the habit of reciting the Qur’an for about 5 to 10 minutes everyday after the dawn prayer or any other time convenient to you.


28. Invite one Muslim familiy in your neihgbourhood to your home for a meal as a way to strengthen your bonds of Islamic brotherhood and sisterhood.


29. Keep a donation box in your home and encourage your family members to put their donation into it. At the end of the year, use the money to buy something useful for a poor family.


30. Keep copies of the Qur’an in your home within easy reach of your family members.
    The Qur’an was not sent to be kissed, embraced or put inside a cabinet to gather dust, but for men and women to read and contemplate about its contents.


31. Invite one non-Muslim family in your neighbourhood for a meal and use the opportunity to find out what aspects of Islam that they don’t understand. If you are unable to explain, find out from others and convey the explanation to them.


32. A little effort by every Muslim will go a long way towards a correct understanding of Islam in the community.


33. Start developing your own data bank of interesting facts about the Qur’an. For example: the longest chapter in the Qur’an, how many verses does it contain, and the last verse that was revealed.


34. Before the year is over, make sure you have paid your obligatory zakat, and performed your prayer to seek Allah’s forgiveness for all your sins.


35. Seek refuge in Allah from Satan and invoke the name of Allah in everything you do. This is your guarantee of success.

*On another note, I find it delightful that, after Ustaz Hasrizal has managed to persuade his zaujah Ummu Saif to blog some time ago, now Ustaz Zaharuddin has persuaded his zaujah Ummu Husna to blog recently. More beneficial reads online, Alhamdulillah. May Allah reward them for sharing their knowledge and understanding of the deen with us.