05/31/1998
IWDM Study Library 
Faith and Good Works

By Imam W. Deen Mohammed
John Ramadan:
Titled "Faith And Good Works; A Plan for Strong Families and Strong Communities" was recorded Sunday, May the 31st, 1998 at the Ramada Inn South in Harvey, Illinois. The lecturer as Imam W, Deen Mohammed, Muslim American Spokesman, and now lmam Mohammed
IWDM:
Thank you. We certainly enjoyed this evening, the fashion show, the group, that entertained us with their music and songs. The young man, son and father, father and son and daughters joined them too. I think that young man got a future. Yes, he's got a future. He's got a very exceptional voice. Rare to come along with a voice like that and spirit and rhythm. Good rhythm, good spirit. I think he's a genius there. Yeah, I think there's a genius there. And by the way, you see he is blind. Well, he's partially blind, but it's hereditary. His father is blind, but that doesn't stop his father from being industrious and successful as a businessman. He has a piece of land or farm and he takes care of bees and sells honey. That's his business. And he gives so much honey and bee products to us. I wonder how he's making money. We have more than enough ourselves. We shared with others, family members, staff members, workers. I even took some to a neighbor and I certainly enjoyed that fashion show. 
It was very promising. I understand that the Shabazz group, the brother and his wife, wife as the creator of all those wonderful fashions, wants to join us to make business for the community. So soon we hope to meet with them and see if we can work out a plan to have their fashions in catalog sheets for our distributors so that the whole community will be able to select their creations, if you choose to. There is a demand on me too. I was not told to limit my talk to 10 minutes or 15 minutes, but my young son here, Mohammed, once, about a year or so, maybe two years ago, I was getting ready to go to speak and had him with me and I have him with me tonight. And he said, daddy, he said, don't talk long. So, he looked at me and looked like he felt sorry for me. He said, daddy, talk good, but don't talk long. So, I promised him, he asked me again tonight. He said, is that all you're going to say? He looked at the paper here. He said, is that all you're going to say? I said, well, these notes, I speak on these notes. These are just notes. I said, but since you're concerned. I'll just speak from a few of these notes. So, he's waiting for me to close out right now. 
I don't know if all of us realize this, but we have come from an insignificant community, in the world scene. In the world scene, we're an insignificant community. You are not an insignificant anymore, community anymore on the world scene or in the world picture. We're not an insignificant community anymore. Brother Imam Plemon, the convener of our Council of imams, the Shuraa or Council of Imams and Masajid or Masjid, that is religious houses and schools, et cetera. He just got through telling us about the plan to take our students from our schools, our private schools, to Malaysia, again, they've already gone once, a very successful trip before with Imam Plemon and a selected group of adults along with the selected group of students.
We've heard of the kind of relationship that's developed for our students at our community in Malaysia, southeast or southeast country. The country that I just returned from is very near there. In fact, I could have taken a plane and have been in Malaysia in about less than two hours, less than two hours by plane. And it took us about 22 hours to go from the US to where I went in Bangladesh. Bangladesh is thought of as a poor country. We always think of Bangladesh as a poor country, not well developed industrially, but they have very excellent plans for developing. And from what I have seen during the days that I spent there, Brother Rafah and myself, they're really doing a marvelous job. I walked through, looked like to me at least a block, one block long factory making clothing, more than one level, all done by them, Bangladesh people. I saw the overseer of the operation who introduced himself to us. He was also the owner. And he told us how he spent about 17 years, I believe he said abroad, most of that time in the US, studying the garment making industry.
And he told us that what he did was just take what they were doing. He was fortunate to work with a very excellent organization and he took what they were doing and just brought it out of America and put it in Bangladesh. Knowing the spirit of those people, the spirit of the Indian people, these Indians, far Eastern Indian. Knowing the spirit of those people, I'm convinced without having to go and search America to see if what I believe is true. I'm convinced that he had definitely made improvements on the operation that he saw and studied and learned. And that improvement is only explained in my understanding, by a factor operating in those people, causing them to excel. And that factor is that the world is so far ahead of them and they have awakened to that fact. 
Any people who will awake to the reality of their condition and not be pleased with it, they'll be fired by nature with a determination and with the power to excel. I've been speaking around the country, as you say, well, are you speaking on that subject? That subject was really for this occasion, this event. This is what this event has shown the subject, people working together as a family, embracing all humanity as we do. Yes, caring about families, having faith in family, the unity of mankind, the family of man, and devoting ourselves to improvement of our own family life at home, in the apartment, in the room, or in the nice home that we have, home accommodation. This is what we preach. This is what we try to live. And I'm sure you feel that in the air tonight. You feel that in the air tonight. Our youngsters are here. They're beautiful, they're respectful, and they have a great future because they have a big, big, "big" Influence in their lives. And that influence is our recognition that we were held back. 
Now we are free and we have awakened to see that though we 're free, the world is far ahead of us, maybe not politically. We have some terrific political guys around and in office, women too, but economically, financially, in terms of business sense, we are too far behind everybody else. Our neighborhoods tell us that when we come out of the house or come into our neighborhood and we look to see who's responsible for the industry here in this neighborhood, who's responsible for the big business in this neighborhood, who's responsible for the big traffic of money and wealth in this neighborhood? We have to admit it's not us. Somebody else is responsible for that. And that makes us more determined to do something really unheard of before. And you know what that is? Take charge of our own future. 
Take charge of our own financial future. The vision of CPC is a vision to do just that, to help us get in position where we'll be in charge of our own future. If you understand the religion of Islam as given in the Holy Book of the Muslim, the Qur'an and in the life habits and practices and teachings or example of Muhammad to whom it was revealed. That man, that great man, that best man in creation that G-d gave the Qur'an to for all people, really, for all people. If we study him, study the Qur'an, study him, we will agree that G-d wants us to take charge of the future. Prepare for the future. That's what the desire for heaven is all about. Heaven is the hope that works within us to influence us in many ways positively, to take charge of the future. Not to live just for the day, but live for the destiny. Live for the meeting with your G-d. That's the future. So even the idea of heaven is an idea that's given to us to condition us to work for the future. Heaven is the long distance future, the longest journey, I would say destination, its the longest destination. Its the destination after all other destinations have been met or reached, or we have failed to. 
It' is the last one, then death. And we hope that we have done enough on this side to earn heaven, a future reality, not present, but future. A future goal that the soul needs and the soul wants to reach or to have. So, if I'm understanding the teachings of G-d correctly and the factors of Muhammad correctly, then I think this obligates me to care about myself, care about my children, care about my loved ones, and to want to have them see a tomorrow better than today. A next year, better than this year, a future better than this presence. So, we have to apply that in every area of our lives, not just morally, spiritually, but in terms of education. 
If we apply this in every area of our lives, we'll be working for improved schools, improved conditions for our schools, and improved education, improved schools, improved environment for the schools. We'll be working for all around improvement for our schools, our effort and education. We apply the same philosophy, the same interest. If we have that same interest in our business appetite, we'll be very, very successful as business people. The business people who have no more than a plan to feed their physical appetite or physical needs, they don't stay in business. They can't stay in business. They have to be motivated by something bigger than just physical appetite. The one who just wants a fine car, a wardrobe he can show off and a big bunch of dollars, a big fist, full of dollars in his pocket?
Soon as the money accumulates in the cash register, he's going to take it out because that's all he is working for. But the one who's working for a bigger goal will take that money out of that cash register and put it in the bank and invest almost all that money back into his business. And you'll see him going on like, he's not making any money at all. He might look poor two years from now than he did when he started, but he's richer. He's richer. His money is going where it counts. His money is going to things that will assure him a better future. And this is what we want, and G-d has given it to us. Thank you. Pray to G-d for forgiveness and for success as Muslims. We're on the way. As salaam alaikum.


