Allah has created the man to be a strong creature; physical and emotional strength are primarily what men are known for, or rather, should be known for. At times we (men) forget the importance in maintaining that strength which Allah and His messenger (peace be upon him) have spoken to us about time and time again:

• Verily, Allâh loves those who fight in His Cause in rows (ranks) as if they were a solid structure. (As-Saff 61:4)
• On the authority of Aboo Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him), the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alayhe wa sallam) said:”The strong believer is better and more beloved to Allaah than the weak believer, while there is good in both. Guard over that which benefits you, seek Allaah’s Assistance, wa laa ta’jiz (don’t lend yourself to things devoid of benefit, and this could carry many meanings), and if something befalls you, then don’t say ‘If I only would have done such and such,’ rather say, ‘Qaddarallaahu wa maa shaa’ fa’al’ (Allaah ordained (this) and He does what He wills), for verily the phrase ‘If I would have’ makes way for the work of Shaytaan.“
• On the authority of Muhammad ibn ‘Alee ibn Rukaanah, who said, “Verily Rukaanah wrestled the Prophet, and the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alayhe wa sallam) took him down.“

We as men need to practice both our external and internal strength to its fullest potential. Sometimes we fall short, we feel weak, and forget that our families do not need to hear of or see our self pitty, but only our strength. That’s the degree Allah (Subhanaho wa ta’ala) speaks of when He says:

… And they (women) have rights (over their husbands as regards living expenses, etc.) similar (to those of their husbands) over them (as regards obedience and respect, etc.) to what is reasonable, but men have a degree (of responsibility) over them. And Allâh is All-Mighty, All-Wise. (Al-Baqarah 2:228)

I remind myself before others, but dear brothers, step up to this responsibility with regards to your duties to Allah, your family, those near to you, and the Ummah. The Ummah needs us to become the men Allah Has guided us to become.

No matter how hard life hits you, you need to pick yourself up and keep moving forward; if not for yourself then for those who rely on you for comfort and protection. I’ve forgotten how important it is to avoid letting such weakness affect my life, and thus those whom I love. I never want my mother to worry about me and ask “What’s wrong habeebi? You’re really worrying me lately”, I don’t want my young sister to feel afraid by seeing her older brother feeling ‘vulnerable’ and resulting in increasing her insecurity by thinking “If my big brother is afraid, then how can I not be”, I don’t want my young child to see baba feel ‘weak’. I am a man, a father, a son, and a brother, I am their protector, and I am strong.

Join me my brothers. Just as the narrator in 300 said the famous line “Only the hard, only the strong may call themselves Spartans!”, my brothers there is no group of men other than the believers whom are more qualified to make such a statement… “Only the Strong (in faith) may call themselves Muslims”. Let us build our inner and outer strengths for our children, our wives, our fathers, our mothers, our people, and mostly for Allah.

-Scribbler