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The Gaza Winter Walk & Talk is only three and a half weeks away! If you haven’t signed up yet, here are six reasons to motivate you to sign up, get fundraising, and walk for the people of Gaza.

1) Don’t underestimate the reward of supporting widows and the needy

The Prophet (saw) said, ‘The one who makes efforts for a widow and the needy is like a warrior in the cause of Allah, or like one who constantly stands for prayer at night and fasts during the day’. [½ñÈÕ´ó¹Ï]

It is difficult for most of us to regularly pray at night or fast during the day, but we can all make efforts for needy people. All you have to do is join the Gaza Winter Walk and encourage others to do the same!

This year, the funds you raise will go towards repairing damaged shelters of refugees in Gaza. All of them are needy and many of them are widows.

At present, these shelters are structurally unsafe and urgently need to be repaired to make them liveable. Moreover, they have broken roofs, windows and walls and inadequate ventilation, leaving refugees vulnerable to the bitter cold of winter, the heat of summer, and rain and flooding.

By joining the Gaza Winter Walk, you will gain the reward of protecting these vulnerable refugees.

2) Walking for our brothers and sisters was beloved to the Prophet (saw)

SubhanAllah, the Prophet (saw) even said, ‘That I walk with a brother regarding a need is more beloved to me than that I seclude myself in this Masjid (in Madinah) for a month’. [Tabarani]

The full hadith really emphasises just how much reward you can gain from the simple action of joining the Gaza Winter Walk:

The Prophet (saw) said, ‘The most beloved people to Allah are those who are most beneficial to people. The most beloved deed to Allah is to make a ½ñÈÕ´ó¹Ï happy, or to remove one of his troubles, or to forgive his debt, or to feed his hunger. That I walk with a brother regarding a need is more beloved to me than that I seclude myself in this Masjid (in Madinah) for a month. Whoever swallows his anger, then Allah will conceal his faults. Whoever suppresses his rage, even though he could fulfil his anger if he wished, then Allah will secure his heart on the Day of Resurrection. Whoever walks with his brother regarding a need until he secures it for him, then Allah the Exalted will make his footing firm across the bridge on the day when the footings are shaken’. [Tabarani]

According to the above hadith, by joining the Gaza Winter Walks, you will be gaining four amazing rewards!

• Benefiting people = being from the most beloved people to Allah
• Removing the troubles of ½ñÈÕ´ó¹Ïs = doing the most beloved deed to Allah
• Walking for our brothers’ and sister’s needs > secluding in worship in the Masjid.
• Walking for a brother or sister and fulfilling their need = firm footing when walking across the Bridge (Sirat) on the Day of Judgement).

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3) You’ll be walking in Rajab, a sacred month

‘Indeed, the number of months with Allah is twelve [lunar] months in the register of Allah [from] the day He created the heavens and the earth; of these, four are sacred. That is the correct religion, so do not wrong yourselves during them…’ [The Noble Qur’an, 9:36]

The scholars explain that Allah says ‘so do not wrong yourselves’ because committing sins in these four sacred months carries more punishment. Likewise, doing good actions during these sacred months carries more reward, alhamdulillah!

This year’s Gaza Winter Walk will take place on Saturday 13th February - the first day of Rajab. This is one of the fourth sacred months of Allah:

The Prophet (saw) said, ‘Indeed, time has come back to its original state which it had when Allah created the Heavens and the Earth; the year is twelve months, four of which are sacred. Three of them are in succession: Dhul-Qa'dah, Dhul-Hijjah, al-Muharram and Rajab of Mudar [named after the tribe of Mudar as they used to respect this month], which stands between Jumada (ath-Thani) and Sha‘ban’. [Bukhari]

Don’t miss out on supporting a worthy cause during a sacred month - in sha’ Allah, this good deed will weigh heavier on the scales!

4) You’ll be supporting the blessed people of Shaam

The Prophet (saw) referred to the people of Shaam as an elite group of this Ummah, as can be seen in the following hadith:

Shaam includes present-day Syria, Palestine, Lebanon and Jordan, extending from the Euphrates River to the Sinai.

The Messenger of Allah (saw) also said, ‘The chosen land of Allah is Shaam and in it are His chosen people and servants. A group from my nation will certainly enter Paradise without any reckoning or punishment’. [Tabarani]

He (saw) also said, ‘When the people of Sham (Greater Syria) become corrupt, then there is no good in you. There will never cease to be a group in my Nation (Ummah) who will be helped (by Allah). They will not be harmed by those who forsake them until the Hour is established’. [Tirmidhi]

By fundraising for Gaza, you will be supporting Allah’s ‘best servants’ in His ‘chosen land’!

5) You’ll be supporting a land mentioned in the Qur’an

Shaam - which includes Gaza - has been mentioned in the Qur’an.

Allah also describes it as ‘the holy land’ [The Noble Qur’an, 5:21]. Moreover, He specifically singles out the land surrounding Masjid Al-Aqsa ‘which We have blessed’ [The Noble Qur’an, 17:1].

It is important for us to pay attention to the ‘elites’ which Allah singles out, as He says:

′And your Lord creates what He wills and chooses; not for them was the choice’. [The Noble Qur’an, 28:68]

At the Gaza Winter Walk & Talk, we’ll be discussing the virtues of Shaam and how Allah and His Messenger have described them. Don’t miss out on learning more about this blessed land and supporting its people!

6) You will help people the Prophet (saw) prayed for

Of course, the Prophet (saw) used to pray for his whole Ummah, but he specifically singled out Shaam on many occasions.

For example, Anas (ra) narrated that the Prophet (saw) looked towards Iraq, Shaam and Yemen and said, ‘O Allah, bring their hearts over to Your obedience and relieve them of their burdens!’ [Tabarani]

He (saw) also said, 'O Allah, bless us in our Shaam! O Allah, bless us in our Yemen!' [Tirmidhi]

SubhanAllah, we have the opportunity to relieve the burdens of the people whom the Prophet (saw) himself prayed for.

This is on top of gaining the reward of helping widows and the needy, doing a truly beloved action to Allah and His Messenger (saw), increasing our good deeds during Rajab, and supporting the land mentioned in the Qur'an. That's a lot of reward - and all you have to do is sign up to the Gaza Winter Walk! Register today and start your fundraising journey!

We hope you enjoyed this article and we look forward to hearing your fundraising stories! Do share this article with friends and family, as the Prophet (saw) said,Ìý‘Whoever guides someone to goodness will have a reward like one who did it’. [½ñÈÕ´ó¹Ï]

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