Why does God do ...?

Some people ask "Why does God do this and that?"

First we must understand that Allah is not obliged to do anything. He does what He wills and is not questioned as He is the Authority and there is none to judge Him. Allah is attributed with attributes of perfection, and it is out of Allah's mercy that He created the world.

As humans we try to understand things. When something happens that displeases us we wonder why did Allah make this happen? Sometimes we can't think of a possible reason (according to our understanding). The story below is an example of this:

The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited island. He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him, and every day he scanned the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming.

Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to protect himself from the elements, and to store his few possessions. But then one day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little hut in flames, the smoke rolling up to the sky.

The worst had happened ~everything was lost. He was stunned with grief and anger. "God, how could you do this to me?" he cried.

Early the next day, however, he was wakened by the sound of a ship that was approaching the island. It had come to rescue him.

"How did you know I was here?" asked the weary man of his rescuers.

"We saw your smoke signal," they replied.

It's easy to get discouraged sometimes when things appear to be going badly. But we shouldn't lose heart, because God is at work in our lives, even in the midst of pain and suffering. Remember, next time your little hut is burning to the ground, it just may be a smoke signal that summons the grace of God.