Considering that Allah *loves* our du'a, and considering that WE are so *dependent* on our du'a, it amazes me how little we study, analyse and audit our du'a!
Here's ten quick changes which perhaps if implemented can in Shaa Allah take your 'ibadah to the next level:
1. Believe properly, like FULL no shadow of a doubt belief, that Allah responds to your du'a.
Because HE does.
100%.
Maybe not how you were expecting, hoping for, or even deserve, but goodness me HE certainly responds. Not being sure means you didn't understand the One you're calling upon in the first place.
2. Don't cripple your du'a by not living halal.
Not praying, not caring how Islamic your work, business and finances are, not sacrificing to protect family relations, etc, are all ways to risk your du'a not being answered as well.
3. Being sincere in your du'a is better than being talented.
You can know all the Arabic and Sunnah du'as you want but if you are calling upon Allah aimlessly, or not being focused, then stop playing already. If someone asks you for an individual need and you just revert to "O Allah give the Muslims what they want" and claim to have fulfilled your friend's need, you need to check your sincerity. Be truthful to yourself and to others when making du'a. If you don't feel it, don't do it. If you can't fulfil someone's request, don't pretend to.
4. Getting bored or tired during du'a means you should stop.
Time to take a step back and assess what you're really asking for, and whether you really want it enough. You need to analyse how you make your du'a, your body position, your timings, your mindset when doing it, because human beings should never be making du'a half-heartedly. That's why we don't make du'a 24/7 but rather have specific focused times that Allah increases His blessings in for everyone, and then personal individual moments that only we know, that should be taken advantage of.
5. Understand your du'a.
It is better to be able to connect with what you are asking for because you know and understand it and really *feel* it, than to use words you have no idea about it and cannot relate to.
6. Speak to Allah. You are not calling upon an idol.
Our favourite form of communication is conversing with those that we love. Du'a is a conversation too. A study of the Qur'an and Sunnah shows many of our best du'as to be conversations with Allah the One we should love the most. Open up. Tell Him what's wrong, tell Him why you're here, Tell Him why you know He can help, and then ask for that help. If we don't feel comfortable speaking openly to Allah, we don't just have du'a issues but need to work on our iman first.
7. Study your needs properly, be educated and be specific.
Just asking for the Ummah's success and victory to xyz is just lazy and frankly insincere. Research, learn and memorise. Speak to people, read up, investigate. Invest intellectual and emotional energy into the causes you want help for, be specific in what you ask for, and if you're not sure then *tell* Allah you're not sure and place your trust in Him.
8. Vary your du'a.
We're human after all, we get tired and we often go on auto-pilot. Time to shake up the game and learn a new du'a. Memorise one from the Sunnah. Study the fiqh of du'a and the history behind some of them with a qualified teacher. Anything from the Prophet (s) will be more rewarded and purer, and the Arabic language is the best medium of all. If you can't just yet then work on making your own wordings, even in your own language in the meantime. Ultimately Allah listens to the hearts, not the tongues. But tongues matter and the more effort you put in, the more that effort will be recognised, rewarded, and responded to.
9. Be patient.
Patience isn't just telling yourself to stay calm and controlled for a long time. Patience also sometimes includes writing off any expectations in this life. Patience also includes putting your trust in Allah that He knows best what is better for *you*. You may be sure that you understand your situation perfectly, but what about the One who creates situations out of nothing! Soon, you will have forgotten your own situation and be moving on without a care in the world. Our lack of knowledge compared to His infinite knowledge should humble us to keep making du'a and keep believing that the best result will come if we don't be impatient.
10. Most important of all, remember Allah loves du'a.
This is a game-changer. This should make you realise that even if you didn't feel things went great, or that you didn't say what you said correctly, or that you think your du'a could be better, at *least* you called upon Allah alone like commanded. And Allah LOVES that jalla wa 'ala. And so realise this: you can never ever waste your time in du'a, because just the act of du'a is pure worship and that's all we're here for to be honest. And so as the famous reply should be when Shaytan starts whispering doubts to you about how long you will continue this act without any response, you will say:
"I couldn't care less what you think. I *worship* Allah with my du'a."
