The Father’s Challenge
A father gives his children a simple challenge that teaches them that Allah Ta’ala is always watching over them.
Once there was a pious father who wanted to teach his children a very important lesson.
“Yahya, Maryam, Ishaq,” he called them. “I have a challenge for you. Here is your favourite chocolate.” The father handed each of the children their favourite chocolate, which they could never resist.
“The challenge is that within the next hour you have to eat your chocolate, but in a place where no one can see you!”
The children eagerly ran off to complete the seemingly easy challenge. Within an hour, the three children stood before their loving father.
“So, children,” he asked them, “did you find a place where no one could see you?”
Ishaq and Yahya nodded, pleased that they had completed the challenge with ease.
“I hid behind a tree and no one could see me,” Yahya said as he licked his lips. “The chocolate was delicious, Alhamdulillah.”
“I found an empty room and closed the door. Nobody could see me,” Ishaq said confidently.
Maryam looked down at her unopened chocolate, disappointed that she had lost the challenge. “I couldn’t find anywhere where no one could see me,” she said sadly. “Wherever I tried to hide, I knew Allah could see me.”
The father’s face beamed with happiness.
“That is exactly what this challenge was about—to teach you, my dear children, that no matter where we are, our Lord can always see us. Wherever we may go, whether in the brightness of the day or the darkness of the night, Allah Ta’ala is always aware of what we are doing,” he explained to his children, who listened carefully with open ears and hearts.
“As Muslims, we should always be aware of this, and this should in fact be a source of comfort to us. Allah Ta’ala is always with us, and as long as we obey His commandments, He will always look out for us and keep us safe,” the father continued. “My precious children, keep this lesson in your minds, but more importantly, in your hearts. It is only then that you can be successful in this world and also the Hereafter. For my children, the one who knows Allah Ta’ala is watching him can never do anything that Allah doesn’t like.”