Sarah

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Allah, Peace be upon you all, This story happened to me personally… Three weeks ago I got on my web site a mail sent by a girl who lives in Australia and I will quote to you the contents:

((I am a girl, of Lebanese origin, my father is a Muslim and my mother is a Christian. I lived in Lebanon the first ten years of my life and then my father and mother immigrated to Australia and ever since then I lost all connections with the Middle East. My age now is 22 and with my immigration to Australia I have also lost all the ties to religion. All I knew was that I am a Muslim and that was all.. I don't know what the Koran looks like.. I don't know what the opening chapter in the Koran looks like (Al- Fatiha, the opening).. I don't even know how to pray.. In brief, religion doesn't have any significance or impact on my life.

My father and mother got separated and each of them got married to someone else. Then I went to College and then both my mother and father left Australia and left me alone without a family or brothers. I know nothing of my grand parents in Lebanon.. So I lead a lonely life.. I had to work to provide for myself.. I was studying in the morning at College and working by night at a bar.. I had a boy friends, in all the sense of this word in the Western life-style. There was no sin in the book I haven't done and I did it without any sense of shame or remorse.. I am a Westerner to the bones.. I know very little Arabic and because I am so pretty I have joined the beauty pageant of New Zealand and have won at the city where this beauty pageant was held. Now I am getting ready for the major beauty contest in New Zealand.. I have also become a front-page model for an illicit magazine.

During my visit to a family (also of Lebanese origin) living in Australia I saw an episode on their TV talking about VIRTUE & CHASTITY and it had an indication of the web-site on the sub-title. I had a total break-down and I felt that the episode was addressing me personally.. I am now sending you this mail to ask you: is it possible that God can accept me?? Is it possible that I can return to God??))
This was the mail I got.. and I said to myself, Glory be to Allah Subhan Allah, the human soul, no matter how low in the gutter it could be, yet still it might yearn to Allah.. like we hunger for food our souls hunger also for Allah.. So I answered her by saying: Of course, God will accept your repentance and I briefed her on what she should do to repent.

• Two days later she called again and said: I have repented to God and have left my boy friend and shall never see him again
• Two days later she called and said: I want to learn how to pray
• Two days later she called again and said: I want to have tapes for Koran

So we sent her some tapes by DHL for two recitations (Sheikh: Agamy and Sheikh: Mashary Rashed), also the Koran of Meddinah and all my series on tapes.

One week later, she called to say: I have given up my title in my city's beauty pageant Then the final surprise was when she called four days ago saying: I have donned the Muslim-women veil…
But the story hasn't ended yet because exactly two days after she donned the veil she felt some sharp pain and went to see a doctor. There she learned that she has a brain tumor and that her remaining days are on the count.

This girl is going to be admitted to surgery in Australia next Friday to undergo a very serious brain operation where the odds are 20:100 according to their doctors. So, Sarah, has sent to me the bellow message saying what scientists would fail to say:

((I am happy to be meeting God.. I am happy because I repented before learning about my illness.. I don't know if my father or mother will know what happened to me because they rarely call.. but I repented three weeks ago.. only three weeks ago… I have disobeyed God for twenty years.. I ask God to reward me with Heaven and I ask Him to make me serve Islam one day through your web site.. this web site has been my window to Islam))

Comment by Amr Khaled: Please call God with me, so He Might Take her hand to recovery and I will be with you again on Friday to update you.. Glory be to Allah who guides his servants so He Would Be Merciful to them with his endless Mercy.

((The moan of repentance from the sinner is far better to Us than the Glorification's of hypocrites))
End of the first message from Shiekh. Amr Khaled

Several days later, after the operation, Shiekh. Amr Khaled wrote again in the same page:
((Truly to Allah we belong, and truly to him shall we return.. 1:156)) God, we ask Thee, to support us in our calamity and to bestow upon us with a better substitute.. Sarah died, 22 years old, and was buried in the Muslims graveyard in New Zealand.. They prayed on her soul (Al-Jumu'ah, Friday soul (Al-Jumu'ah, Friday prayer) and she has managed to send me a small message just before her operation:

((I lived so far from God for 22 years, but have repented to Him only 3 weeks ago.. but I ask you to be my witness that I have left my boy friend, given up the beauty contest, donned the veil and took to praying.. I ask you to be my witness that I did all that for my God.. I know no Muslims but you and this forum so please call God for me so He Would Have Mercy on me and Forgive me.. call Him to Guide my mother who knows nothing about me)).

Signature: Sarah

Amr Khaled continues: Please do all you can for her.. Hajj, Umra, give charity, call God for her and ask God to dedicate it all to Sarah.. You have witnessed with me how Merciful God Is.. He Has Destined her to die at this age and that very instant, yet He Has also Destined Himself to Mercy and Has Guided her to repentance so she would leave all the worldly sins only 3 weeks before her death..

((Verily, therein is indeed a reminder for him who has a heart or gives ear while he is heedful)) 50:37 Surat Qaf (L)

End of the second message by Shiekh. Amr Khaled

Several days later Shiekh. Amr Khaled continued:
I have stolen a few moments from my Umra (small pilgrimage) to share with you this message.. I was touched by your reaction to Sarah's story, the number of participants in the discussion group, your supplication to Allah for her and the times you completed the Koran for her. I hope God gathers us all in Heaven.. I would like to tell you that I have made the first Umra for Sarah and that it was one of the most memorable Umras in my life.. I hope God keeps this Umra as credit for you Sarah.. My wife will also make another Umra for her, if God Wills, so I ask God to accept from us all..