Hazrat Babu Faqeer Ali Sahib (ra) was once approached for chanda by Hazrat Mir Nasir Nawab Sahib (ra) – father in law to the Promised Messiah (as)...

I want to relate an incident from the life of the Companions of the Promised Messiah (as) as it contains a great lesson for those of us appointed to remind members and ask them to sacrifice for the causes of Islam-Ahmadiyyat.  This incident shows that we must encourage and ask all members and not start to feel as though we are somehow putting them under undue stress. 

By not discharging this duty of REMINDING we would be guilty of depriving them of the blessings of participating and thus impose upon them a hardship they cannot afford to bear.

BUT REMEMBER we can never succeed with force and threats. 

We will always succeed with love and genuine concern for the welfare of our members.  To be able to remind effectively we must establish a relation of love and affection with all those who are placed under our care - because without such a relationship, no one would receive a positive effect of our reminders and certainly no one would be willing to put his/her neck on the alter of sacrifice because of our asking them to do so IF there was not this relationship of love and affection between them and us ...so that is also a MUST for us to develop.

Only then can we, as officeholders, fulfill the commands of the Holy Quran to constantly remind the Believers because the Believers indeed benefit from these reminders.

Hazrat Babu Faqeer Ali Sahib (ra) was once approached for chanda by Hazrat Mir Nasir Nawab Sahib (ra) – father in law to the Promised Messiah (as).  At that time he [Hazrat Babu Faqeer Ali Sahib (ra)] had absolutely nothing with him.  But Hazrat Mir Sahib (ra) kept appealing to him, "Give something." 

This continued for some time till the time came for Hazrat Babu Sahib to leave work and go home. [Hazrat Mir Sahib accompanied him home] Upon arrival at home he brought out from his house a tin can in which there was about a pound of flour and showing this to Hazrat Mir Sahib (ra) said, "I swear to you that this is all I have in the house." 

Hazrat Mir Sahib (ra) accepted this same flour as Hazrat Babu Sahib’s contribution and left. 

The household went to sleep hungry that night – very likely, but, I say with great certainty that it is these kinds of sacrifices of our predecessors that are feeding all of us today!  [Vol III, Ashab-e-Ahmad]

Hazrat Mir Sahib (ra) spent all this time securing this sacrifice from the poor Sahabi of the Promised Messiah (as) because he knew this was the best use of his time and he knew that this was the best for Hazrat Babu Faqeer Ali Sahib (ra) and his children.  He knew that the privation of hunger for a night was a small price to pay for the limitless rewards that await all who sacrifice in the way of Allah.

We must ask ourselves a very important question:

Our parents and their parents sowed for us the gardens in which we are dwelling and enjoying our lives.  What shall we leave for our children? 

If we respond to the calls of Hazrat Khalifatul Masih (ab) today as responded the Companions (ra) of the Holy Prophet (sa) and the Promised Messiah (as) – then we can be assured that they too will inherit gardens here and Hereafter along with us.

May Allah, of His Grace and Mercy, enable us to follow the paths laid out before us by Allah and His Messenger and His Messiah and Mahdi and be ever attached to and totally dedicated, in word and deed, to the Khalifa of the time.  Aameen.
Wa aakhiro da’wawana anil hamdo lillahy rab bil aalameen!

Waseem A. Sayed, PhD
National Secretary Waqf-e-Jadid
email: wsayed@PROTECTED
cell: 909-636-4397