Fuel Shortage; Power of Prayer and God

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Professor Amtul Razzaq Carmichael, UK

Recent events in the UK’s petrol stations have rekindled my memories of fuel shortages in Pakistan.

Reflecting on these events makes me appreciate how our parents used such opportunities to reaffirm the bond of faith with Allah the Exalted.

In Lahore, our car used to run on bottled gas. Once there was an extreme shortage of gas and the only place where gas bottles were available was a station near the Fortress Stadium.

One day my father picked us up from school and set off for Fortress Stadium to collect the bottled gas.

We had very little gas left in the car. Just before we arrived at the Sherpao Bridge, the fuel metre went red and the “E” sign started to flash. We still had the bridge to cross.

My father said to us with extreme conviction that we have no fuel now, and only the power of prayer can get us over the bridge to the forecourts.

He enjoined us to start praying with all our might; I vividly remember praying to God inspired by the real conviction in my father’s voice.

While we prayed, my father drove over the bridge and took the left turning to the fuel forecourt. Right in front of the forecourt, the engine cut out.

My father turned to us and said, ‘See, this is how Powerful our God is and this is how strong the power of prayer is’.

I distinctly remember my father’s face, radiant with the joy of having experienced the blessings of God.

To an outside person looking in, such moments may not seem so substantial – a car continuing to move to the precise location where we need it to go.

But as an Ahmadi Muslim, this was another link in an amazing, lifelong chain of accepted prayers. When you stand in the midst of the difficulty, only you and your Creator knows how desperate you are.

And when the prayer is accepted, Allah Almighty imprints like a steel nail into your person the conviction that it was He Who came to your rescue.

This was an important lesson during my formative years. I am immensely grateful to God for revealing Himself to me in such a powerful and memorable manner. This helped shape my approach to things in life.

All my life, whenever faced with any challenge, I have felt motivated to call upon the power of prayer for Divine help.

May fuel shortages in the UK soon be resolved and become a source of blessings and guidance for pious souls and become a way of experiencing the blessings of Almighty God. 

About the Author: Professor Amtul Razzaq Carmichael MD, MEd, FRCS (Gen Surg.), MBBS, is a consultant. She qualified in 1987 with gold medals for academic excellence and undertook her surgical training at major teaching hospitals in London, Edinburgh, and Philadelphia. She has authored many articles for major peer-reviewed scientific journals. She is a senior member of The Review of Religions Editorial Board as well as Assistant Manager.