9 Tips to Getting Those Good Deeds Done

May 3, 2013Sana Gul Waseem

You close your eyes and think of the good deeds you
did in the way of Allah
. You gave sadaqah, you gave a ride to someone to the masjid, shared a hadith
and saw someone implementing it, helped out someone read the Quran today, visited a sick neighbor or
called a relative and earned lots of duaas from them.
And you smile and think, Alhamdulillah, you did something today, insha Allah tomorrow you would do
more.
And then a tiny voice says, But what if in spite of all the good deeds I did, I still dont please my Rabb?
And we worry; was it accepted or not? Lets look at some conditions that we can fulfil before doing and
after doing the good deeds:
1. Make your intention clear before you do the deed
Ever wondered why the first hadith in Sahih Bukhari is The reward of deeds depends upon the
intentions and every person will get the reward according to what he has intended? [Bukhari]
It is because the whole criteria of acceptance is intentions if we intend to do something for the sake of
earning the pleasure of Allaw
vis a vis acclaim or the love of some one in the dunya, then thats all we
will get. We should make a firm intention in our hearts and seek refuge from the Shaitan. This also helps
us in doing our deeds with excellence, as we are doing it to please Allah
and we will then give it our
100% in sha Allah.
2. Seek forgiveness every day
Intentionally or unintentionally, we all commit sin during our life.
And Allah does not guide the wrongdoers [Quran: Chapter 3, Verse 86]
So many times, we plan to do something good, but somehow are never able to do it. This inability to
perform good deeds even though we intend to do them and are able to do them, is because of sins that we
have committed knowingly and unknowingly.
And Allah swt says except for those who repent after that and do righteous deeds. Verily, Allah id
Oft-Forgiving and Most Merciful. [Quran: Chapter 3, Verse 89]
So we should take the advice given to us by our beloved Prophet
as he
said:

Turn you people in repentance in Allah and beg pardon of Him. I turn to Him in repentance a hundred
times a day. [Muslim]
Integrate istighfar (seeking forgiveness) into your daily dhikr (remembrance) of Allah

3. Make duaa for your heart

.. And know that Allah intervenes between a man and his heart. [Quran: Chapter 8, Verse 24]
Ibn `Abbas
commented on this verse saying: Allah prevents the believer from disbelief and the
disbeliever from faith. It is reported that the Messenger of Allah
said:
There is no heart that is not between two of the Fingers of the Most Merciful. If He wills, He guides it
and if He wills, He sends it astray. [Ibn Majah]
The Prophet of Allah

used to make the following duaas for the protection and guidance of his heart:

Ya muqallib al-quloob, thabbit qalbee alaa deenik

O You Who changes the hearts, make my heart firm on Your religion. [Ibn Majah]
Rabbana la tuzigh quloobana bada idh hadaytana, wahab lana min ladunka rahmatan innaka anta al
Wahhab
Our Lord! Let not our hearts deviate now after Thou hast guided us, but grant us mercy from Thine own
Presence; for Thou art the Grantor of bounties without measure! [Quran: Chapter 3, Verse 8]
4. Dont procrastinate
Dont delay any action. The moment some good thought comes in your mind, just do it and make this
duaa:
O Allah, I take refuge in You from anxiety and sorrow, weakness and laziness, miserliness and
cowardice, the burden of debts and from being over powered by men. [Bukhari]
5. Watch yourself
The moment you start noticing the first twinge of laziness or the first time you forget to do that good
deed, know it is time for some serious istighfar and start reciting the duaas for it right then.
6. Work harder
Put in that extra effort to turn your good intentions into action. Keep that charity money in your hand
when you walk into the masjid. Put a reminder to call your relative in your cell phone, sleep early to be
able to wake up for Fajr. In sha Allah, Allah
will acknowledge your efforts and reward you even more
and make it easy for you!
7. Dont give up
No matter how tough it gets, even if that duaa you are trying to learn might be too hard to
memorize, dont give up. Learn one line at a time. Whatever it takes, dont give up. Ask Allah
for help
and dont give up. Imagine you are on a mountain and there is a raging fire below and work because you
know that however difficult it is, you HAVE to climb up to save yourself.
8. Seek refuge from the Shaitan
Seek refuge from the Shaitan whenever you feel the energy slipping. Recite surah Naas, surah Falaq and
surah Ikhlaas in the mornings followed by the Prophetic morning duaas. These are the essential vitamins
that our hearts need to function properly throughout the day.

9. Thank Allah
When you feel the energy back in your heart, when getting up for Fajr, when memorizing the duaa and
when giving charity starts to seem easy after all: thank Allah
for accepting your duaa and thank Him
a lot as Allah
says, O you who believe !! Eat of the good things that We have provided for you, and
be grateful to Allah , if it is Him you worship [Quran: Chapter 2, Verse 172]
May Allah
guide us to see our mistakes and seek forgiveness for them, and may He make our hearts
firm in His obedience, Aameen!
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