July 17, 2026

When The Answer Comes Late

Let not the tardiness of the response, despite your persistent pleading, be the cause for your despair. For He has guaranteed a response in what He chooses for you, not what you choose for yourself, and at the time He desires, not the time you desire.

Ibn Ata Allah al-Iskandari was a thirteenth-century Egyptian scholar who once dismissed Sufism as empty ritual until a meeting with the Shadhili master Abu al-Abbas al-Mursi changed the direction of his life. He went on to lead the Shadhili order in Cairo, teaching students who came to him with the same restless question: why hasn't God answered yet. This aphorism, drawn from his collected sayings in the Kitab al-Hikam, speaks directly to that ache, insisting that delay is not abandonment. It takes courage to keep showing up for a prayer, a project, or a hope when the timeline belongs to someone else.