Catholic Church of Our Lady of the Rosary - Qatar
"INSHALLAH" IF GOD WILLS IT
We have the unique experience, as Christians living in Qatar, to practice our faith in a Muslim country. As we work and move about the city of Doha, many of us have picked up a few familiar words that have become part of our vernacular: Ma salama, Mashallah, Yalla, and Khallas. But the word we hear most often spoken by Arabs and Expats alike is Inshallah: If God wills it.
There is an intrinsic call for humility in this expression. It doesn’t mean: When I get around to it, or When I have the money to do this, or When I have the strength to take care of this. It acknowledges that we can accomplish nothing without God’s grace; that if it is His Will for us, nothing is impossible. And yet, we often forget this fact.
God gives us many opportunities to demonstrate humility in our daily lives along our path to salvation. For instance, we have been encouraged in the Mass readings these past few weeks to “love your neighbour as yourself” (Mt 22:39) and to forgive “not seven times, but seventy-seven times” (Mt 18:22). When we don’t get the things we want in life, or times get hard, we are called to remain humble in the knowledge that our Father in Heaven knows what is best for us and for our salvation. The American Country singer, Garth Brooks, hit the nail on the head when he sang, “Some of God’s greatest gifts are unanswered prayers.” We are reminded in the Letter of St. James, “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble”(James 4:6).
So how do we achieve the humility needed to walk faithfully in the Narrow Path? We need to pray daily for the Grace necessary to overcome our pride, our need for control, our beloved connection to the things of this world...our humanity. Instead of just asking God for the things we need and want, we should end our prayer with, “If it is Your will, let it be” and mean it from our hearts. He will reward those who approach Him with a humble heart. Inshallah!