Imploring God

There is one thing that’s always been constant, and even more so in today’s world, and that is needing God’s help. In sura 1, verse 5 we say: You alone we worship; You alone we ask for help.

So, early on, God reminds us that we must both worship God alone, and ask God alone for help.

And the first thing we ask for help with is guidance: [1:6-7] Guide us in the right path; the path of those whom You blessed; not of those who have deserved wrath, nor of the strayers.

Submitters observe Salat regularly. And every Salat includes Al-Fãtehah which means we are praying to God for guidance 17+ times a day. And reminding ourselves that we worship God alone, and ask Him alone for help.

We learn from Quran that we should ask for God’s help (since that’s a form of worship). This is in contrast with some religious teachings which say not to bother God since He’s too busy. Or it’s selfish of us to ask for ourselves, we should only pray for globally useful things like world peace. But God teaches us we can also pray for ourselves,

especially for our guidance, salvation, forgiveness and help in general.

Supplication: A Form of Worship*

[40:60] Your Lord says, “Implore Me, and I will respond to you. Surely, those who are too arrogant to worship Me will enter Gehenna, forcibly.”

*40:60 Supplication, imploring God for anything, even material luxuries, is a form of worship. Hence the commandment to implore God whenever we have any need. An atheist will never implore God for anything.

So, if God says, “implore Me” then we should implore Him. But what of the people who refuse to? It seems they’re called arrogant. This is also in the footnote of 40:60: “atheist will never implore God for anything”.

[6:42] We have sent (messengers) to communities before you, and we put them to the test through adversity and hardship, that they may implore. [6:43] If only they implored when our test afflicted them! Instead, their hearts were hardened, and the devil adorned their works in their eyes.

[23:75] Even when we showered them with mercy, and relieved their problems, they plunged deeper into transgression, and continued to blunder. [23:76] Even when we afflicted them with retribution, they never turned to their Lord imploring.

From these verses I learn that someone who is arrogant, disbelieves in the Hereafter and whose heart is hardened, won’t ask for God’s help. There are also others who do pray during bad times but then they forget (10:12, 39:8, 41:49 etc.).

So it seems there are two categories: those who simply refuse to pray because they don’t believe in God. They’d sooner die than acknowledge God or seek His help. And the “bad weather friends”. God willing we’re NOT among either of these categories. And instead we worship God, implore God and seek His help consistently. Because even in good times, we need God’s help.

God Answers the Prayers of “His Servants”

[2:186] When My servants ask you about Me, I am always near. I answer their prayers

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