Author Archives: cmlmd

COLLEGE PARK, MD – Some of us struggle with decision-making. We’re not talking about making good decisions; we’re talking about making decisions period – even bad ones.   Often, the reason for being hamstrung in the decision-making department is due to one having a lack of principles. Options

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – Beginning this past Wednesday night (9/20) and extending until dusk Thursday (9/21), Rosh Hashana, Ras as-Sanah, رأس السنة الهجرية‎‎, lunar new year, Hijri new year, or whatever we call it in our myriad languages and traditions, was upon us. This is an interesting day and period of the year to reflect on. ForContinue reading “Happy Rosh Hashana”

COLLEGE PARK, MD – Submission is the ultimate win-win scenario. When we realize the point in life is to submit to God’s will – not to exert our own – we can accept the factors in our lives that we have no control over. It allows us to endure the sacrifice needed to progress. Submission allowsContinue reading “The Difference Between Winning and Losing”

COLLEGE PARK, MD – Last week we briefly mentioned a triumvirate of actions comprised of preparation, sacrifice, and progress. Acting in that sequence brings real happiness. This week we’ll continue our exploration of this sequence with a dive into the role of sacrifice.

COLLEGE PARK, MD – I’d like to wish you all a blessed Eid of Sacrifice. On that note, sacrifice, preparation, and progress are all closely intertwined. We’ll pick back up on preparation this week. Many of us make use of a metaphor that invokes the concept of planting seeds when we try to progress or implement change ofContinue reading “The Agitation of Preparation”

COLLEGE PARK, MD – Progress is a word we hear a lot in our day and age. It has become a benchmark for whether we are acceptable to society. Are we progressing? Are our attitudes progressing? Is our dress code progressing? Are our relationships progressing? Are our careers progressing? And like so the interrogation byContinue reading “Stop Oppressing to Start Progressing”

COLLEGE PARK, MD – The last few weeks have been a dive into the topics of rites of passage and preparation. Those who actually experience rites of passage are more likely to be preparers for tomorrow. Preparation for tomorrow pretty much sums up our entire job as believers. Those who do their job are givers. TheirContinue reading “Getting Ahead of the Curve”

COLLEGE PARK, MD – Many of us know how to survive. In some ways there is an ease to survival. One has little choice in matters – he or she simply must do what they have to do to get through a time or situation. Thriving can pose a more difficult challenge if one hasContinue reading “What's After Survival?”

COLLEGE PARK, MD – The objective of a believer, in large part, is to be prepared for tomorrow. The highest example of this is the tomorrow of the afterlife. This mentality also has a great worldy benefit. It is the essence of leadership. Leadership is the cornerstone of a healthy society.

SHARPSBURG, MD – Rites of passage are celebrations which occur when an individual leaves one group to enter another. A common example historically has been when a person enters into adulthood from childhood. Bar and bat mitzvahs are a good example from Judaism. These types of rituals are important markers for citizens of a society to beContinue reading “Civil Rites”