# Reach Out **Author:** Ustadha Lobna Mulla **Series:** Deeds to Habit **Published:** 2020-05-07 **YouTube:** https://youtu.be/7bV7ZANlyKA **URL:** https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/reach-out-deeds-to-habit **Topics:** Acts of Worship, Sharia ## Description In our age of hyper-connectivity, loneliness is on the rise. Ustadha Lobna Mulla describes the nature of inclusion within Islamic tradition and offers ways to establish a habit of reaching out to others. ## Transcript **[0:00]** What Do First Among Us When We Optimize For a New One? Bismillah, wassalamu ala rasula, alla. assalamu alaikum. You know in this age of hyper connectivity, it's possible for somebody to have a few friends and many many online friends, yet people are increasingly feeling very lonely. **[0:19]** What can we do to change this? Imagine a young man sitting in his room, maybe he has a few friends at school and maybe quite a few not so close friends on social media. He's sitting at home all alone, maybe his parents are very busy, maybe they're busy working, they don't spend a lot of time together and imagine all of a **[0:37]** sudden he gets a text from an acquaintance either from the youth group or from school or from work and says, hey you want to come hang out with us we're going to be meeting XYZ. How would that make that young man feel to get such a text at that time? Wouldn't he feel uplifted? Wouldn't he feel welcomed? **[0:55]** Wouldn't he feel like he belongs just from getting such a text? Let's make it a habit that we reach out to people, call them, text them, somebody that maybe we're not very close to but we have a very easy opportunity to include them. Let's **[1:11]** do so. Prophet Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wasallam said whoever relieves the hardship of a believer in this world, Allah will relieve him of a hardship in the Day of Judgment and whoever helps ease one in difficulty, Allah will make it easy for him in this life and in the hereafter. And the hadith continues to say **[1:29]** that Allah helps his servant as long as he helps his brother or sister. How beautiful is it that Allah subhana wa ta'ala promotes this spirit of goodwill by promising that he who helps his brother in a time of need that that person will be helped in their time of need by Allah subhana wa ta'ala. What greater **[1:47]** way to ease the difficulty of a brother or sister than to make them feel welcomed, supported, included. I wanted to share with you an incident that a fellow classmate of mine shared just a few years ago that a text actually saved his **[2:03]** life. He was suffering from depression, he was contemplating taking his life when all of a sudden he received a text from someone that he hadn't heard from in a while and it was so touching to him because all of a sudden he felt welcomed, he felt included because that person just texted to check up on them. **[2:20]** They said hey I haven't heard from you in a while, how's everything going? Just that text alone saved his life. So let's not underestimate the value of such a small good deed. So let's take this opportunity to develop this habit by any time you see somebody sitting by themself, anytime you think about **[2:37]** someone, call them, invite them, text them and if you can visit them. May Allah be pleased with you. May Allah make it easy for us to develop this habit. Asalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh. ## Other Episodes in "Deeds to Habit" - [Sending Blessings Upon the Prophet ﷺ](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/sending-blessings-upon-the-prophet-deeds-to-habit.md) - [Cherish the Simple and Mundane](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/cherish-the-simple-and-mundane-deeds-to-habit.md) - [Practice Patience](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/practice-patience-deeds-to-habit.md) - [Spend From What You Love](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/spend-from-what-you-love-deeds-to-habit.md) - [Free Yourself from External Validation](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/free-yourself-from-external-validation-deeds-to-habit.md) - [A Habit for the Evening](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/a-habit-for-the-evening-deeds-to-habit.md) - [Islamic Meditation Practices](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/islamic-meditation-practices-deeds-to-habit.md) - [Calling Upon Allah](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/calling-upon-allah-deeds-to-habit.md) - [Make Du'a and Forgive Others](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/make-dua-and-forgive-others-deeds-to-habit.md) - [Free Your Hands and Heart](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/free-your-hands-and-heart-deeds-to-habit.md) - [Fix and Give Away](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/fix-and-give-away-deeds-to-habit.md) - [Reflecting on Nature](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/reflecting-on-nature-deeds-to-habit.md) - [A Habit for the Afternoon](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/a-habit-for-the-afternoon-deeds-to-habit.md) - [2 Easy Deeds to Enter Paradise](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/2-easy-deeds-to-enter-paradise-deeds-to-habit.md) - [A Morning Supplication](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/a-morning-supplication-deeds-to-habit.md) - [Extending Salaam](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/extending-salaam-deeds-to-habit.md) - [Give No Matter How Small](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/give-no-matter-how-small-deeds-to-habit.md) - [A Habit for the Morning](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/a-habit-for-the-morning-deeds-to-habit.md) - [Transforming Struggles into Gratitude](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/transforming-struggles-into-gratitude-deeds-to-habit.md) - [The Reward of Those Who Struggle](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/the-reward-of-those-who-struggle-deeds-to-habit.md) - [Fight Ramadan Fatigue with Istighfar](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/fight-ramadan-fatigue-with-istighfar-deeds-to-habit.md) - [The Power of a Good Word](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/the-power-of-a-good-word-deeds-to-habit.md) - [The Reality of the Afterlife](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/the-reality-of-the-afterlife-deeds-to-habit.md) - [Mindful Eating](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/mindful-eating-deeds-to-habit.md) - [Rekindling Family Ties](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/rekindling-family-ties-deeds-to-habit.md) - [How to Start a 5-Minute Qiyyam Habit](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/how-to-start-a-5-minute-qiyyam-habit-deeds-to-habit.md) - [What is a Habit?](https://yaqeeninstitute.org/watch/series/deeds-to-habit/what-is-a-habit-deeds-to-habit.md)