I just read something that mentioned how Allah went slow on forbidding wine. It wasn't an immediate command to not drink wine, in surah Baqarah, Allah mentions the harm that alcohol causes but he didn't say anything else. Then in surah Nisa, Allah says not to approach prayer when in a state of intoxication. Then, in surah Ma'idah, He finally says to avoid it. Allah was so merciful to the people of that time, and he gradually made it forbidden so it wouldn't feel too hard for them. SubhanAllah. 

Also, when Allah made it forbidden, these people immediately let it go and gave up drinking. This obviously was not easy for them as drinking was a habit, but it was their love for Allah and the Messenger SAW that made this easier. SubhanAllah. It's always possible to change our habits, and we must never think Allah is unaware of our struggles.

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم  - الحمد لله وحده والصلاة والسلام على من ﻻ نبي بعده

The revelation of prohibition of alcohol, gambling, altar sacrifice, and divining arrows particularly struck me because of the reasoning Allah (SWT) mercifully provides in the Qur'an to a community rife with such practices. Three key points are mentioned here:

1) These practices are 'rijs' (filth) and a mark of Shaytan, who intends for mankind to use them to nurture enmity and hatred between people
2) These practices take one away from the remembrance of Allah (SWT) and upholding the salawat
3)Those who work to abstain from these practices are working towards success

Allah (SWT) has given the believers, through these ayat, a formula for success and a formula for failure:
To succeed, the Muslim must avoid the haram, unite with the people, and keep up the remembrance of and prayer to their Lord. To fail, one will interact with the haram, divide the people, and neglect salah and dhikr. 

This ayat seem especially pertinent to those who have doubts about the prohibitions of Allah (SWT), finding perhaps not a great deal of worldly harm to the individual. Many studies have been conducted to show the health benefits of alcohol, for example, and some argue for gambling and casinos as a place and practice to bring people together. Even the concept of 'luck,' or oddities of the sort that relate to divining arrows for making decisions, may seem innocent and therefore unnecessary to prohibit in the Qur'an and teachings of Rasulullah (SAW).

Allah (SWT) is, of course, completely unbeholden to any of His creation in having to defend His commands, and yet through His Mercy on the believers He reveals a wisdom of these specific ahkam: the act that takes the believers away from their Lord (SWT) and His Messenger (SAW) and away from each other is the worst type of act—as is termed in the Qur'an, FILTH. And the acts that bring the believers closer to their Lord (SWT) and His Messenger (SAW) and each other is the best type of act that will lead to success, as promised by Allah (SWT). 

May Allah (SWT) count us among the successful.

Ameen.

Masha'Allah, these are some great points derived from these ayaat, and it is beautifully written. Jazakallahu khair for sharing this with us.

One of my cousins tested Covid positive and has zero symptoms. Masha'Allah, she feels healthy and continues to work from home and has been keeping up with her normal exercise routine. Other people who get Covid 19 end up in the ICU or die from the disease. Many people are somewhere in between, some with long-term side effects. 

Because the virus is harmful for many people and detrimental to our communities (for example, the overburdening of the hospital/medical system), we adhere to certain restrictions in an attempt to contain the virus.

The contrast between the the way some people are impacted by Covid 19 vs others made me think about the consumption of alcohol. Some people may drink a little alcohol and remain mostly unaffected by it, while many become addicted and cause a lot of damage to their own lives and to the lives of others.

According to NHTSA.gov, approximately 30 people in United States die in drunk-driving crashes every day. That's more than 10,000 lives per year. Those are people's loved ones - mothers, fathers, children, aunts, uncles, wives, husbands, brothers, sisters, grandparents, friends, etc. This is in addition to the lives that are ruined through the countless harmful effects of alcohol consumption (for example, medical, psychiatric, social, and family problems).

While some people may not care about God's laws and say 'I can manage just fine with some alcohol. I'm not hurting anyone', they are still playing a major role in supporting an industry and culture that destroys lives. The Covid 19 pandemic has shown us that we, as humans, are interconnected and our personal decisions impact the health and lives of others.

May Allah help those who are struggling with alcohol addiction overcome this problem and may Allah protect all of us from the harmful impact that alcoholism has on society and individuals.

Ameen! Alchohol addiction is awful and it's more Dangerous withdrawing than some strong drugs. Subhannallah! Yet so easy to find and accessible to all.  La howla wa la quita illa billa.  

SubhanAllah intoxicants, gambling, idols, drawing lots affect and hinder our ability for conscious decision making, which is needed if you were to ever be successful. That's why maybe the Ayah ends 'so that you may be successful' and not with full certainty because our actions do not dictate the future but it is Allah  who does.

The 7 steps of human decision making are the following (references below):
1. Identify the decision.
2. Gather relevant info. 
3. Identify the alternatives.
4. Weigh the evidence.
5. Choose among the alternatives. 
6. Take action.
7. Review your decision.

When we observe the forbidden actions, it seems they impact healthy decision making at different stages:
a) Intoxicants: Affect #1, #2, and #7 of the human decision making process. They lead the individual to zone out from reviewing their thinking/decisions, and to identify decisions they need to make. 
b) Betting/Gambling: Affect #3 and #4 in that they give you the illusion that you have better luck than others although the odds are against you to win in all situations except for which you already know the outcome; and so that latter behavior would be considered instead as 'cheating'. Even in casinos, it's known that the 'House always wins' as evidence that your odds are lower than casinos, yet people still gamble.
d) Drawing lots: Affect #5 in that they take away our free will and duty to make the right choice by relying on randomness instead.
c) Idols: Affect #6 and #7 in decision making in that you transfer this liability of making a proper decision and its consequence to an idol -  by way of luck/blessing -  although the idol is evidently helpless and not conscious. The believer's dependence/reliance (Tawakul) on Allah is that of patience and trust that Allah may have a better plan for them as mentioned in verse 29:59 'Those who patiently endure, and put their trust in their Lord.' without that Tawakul impacting their conscious decision making and the excellence required in performing a task.

Wa Allahu A'alam

References: 
https://www.lucidchart.com/blog/decision-making-process-steps 
https://hbr.org/1967/01/the-effective-decision 

SubhanAllah. Jazak Allah Khair for sharing this beautiful reflection with us. May Allah help us and guide us ya rab 🙏🏼