Keeping the heart steadfast

Keeping the heart steadfast
Arabic: ‍رَبَّنَا لَا تُزِغْ قُلُوبَنَا بَعْدَ إِذْ هَدَيْتَنَا وَهَبْ لَنَا مِن لَّدُنكَ رَحْمَةً ۚ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْوَهَّابُ
(They say): “Our Lord! Let not our hearts deviate (from the truth) after You have guided us, and grant us mercy from You. Truly, You are the Bestower.” (Aali Imran 3:8)
THIS IS VERY very powerful and very beautiful dua of the Quran. We turn to Allah and we say “رَبَّنَا لَا تُزِغْ قُلُوبَنَا” (Rabbanā Lā Tuzigh Qulūbanā)-. Master, do not let our hearts deviate “رَبَّنَا لَا تُزِغْ قُلُوبَنَا” (Rabbanā Lā Tuzigh Qulūbanā). “ زاغ” (Zāgha)- in Arabic is when something curves slightly and you don’t realize it’s curved. 
And so the dua is “رَبَّنَا لَا تُزِغْ قُلُوبَنَا” (Rabbanā Lā Tuzigh Qulūbanā)- do not allow our hearts to go deviate. Deviation isn’t a 90 degree like you you’re going this way, you started going that way, you just forgot about it. No. The heart when it gets close to Allah it doesn’t get distant from Allah in a split second. It inches away from Allah little by little by little by little by little. And we are asking Allah to put protective measures in place so that we don’t slowly but surely get away from Allah without realizing it and before you know it you have no sensation of iman anymore.
We know some of us feeling a closeness to Allah,want very much that our hearts not migrate away, deviate away “بَعْدَ إِذْ هَدَيْتَنَا” (Ba`da ‘Idh Hadaytanā)- after Allah ’ve guided us. After Allah e guided us. It’s interesting right Allah didn’t say ‘After You guided them’,Whenthe heart hasn’t deviated then we ourselves, our entire being is guided. So beautiful. So “رَبَّنَا لَا تُزِغْ قُلُوبَنَا بَعْدَ إِذْ هَدَيْتَنَا ۚ” (Rabbanā Lā Tuzigh Qulūbanā Ba`da ‘Idh Hadaytanā)- then He says “ وَهَبْ لَنَا مِن لَّدُنكَ رَحْمَةً” (Wa Hab Lanā Min Ladunka Raĥmatan)- very powerful language. He says, “Grant us” “هبة” (Hiba) in Arabic is a gift. “وهب” (Wahab)- the verb is to give a big gift Ya Allah give us the great grant, the generous grant, the gift that comes especially from Your secret vaults. 
. In other words, it’s as though you’re saying, “Ya Allah…” please listen to this carefully by the way, “…I have turned away from you before, time and time and time again. I got close to you and then I migrated away. And then close to you and then I migrated away. I’ve been through this before this is a cycle for me.” And so when you get into a cycle you start thinking, I start thinking to myself, it’s gonna happen again. It’s typical. It’s nothing new about this. And that’s the time to ask Allah “ وَهَبْ لَنَا مِن لَّدُنكَ رَحْمَةً” (Wa Hab Lanā Min Ladunka Raĥmatan)- Ya Allah, there must be some secret weapon of mercy that You have in your arsenal that You will grant me this time that this cycle will break. That I am actually going to continue to migrate towards You and my heart will not turn away from You. You know? This is an ayah of hope that we don’t look at our track record in the past and say you know what I’m hopeless. I go through these cycles all the time. “وَهَبْ لَنَا مِن لَّدُنكَ رَحْمَةً ۚ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْوَهَّابُ” (Wa Hab Lanā Min Ladunka Raĥmatan ۚ ‘Innaka ‘Anta Al-Wahhābu) and not even a “الواهب” (Al-Wāhib)- You no doubt are the Giver of gifts who gives a lot and gives repeatedly over and over and over again. Ya Allah I don’t want this gift one time. For You to pull out that special vault of Your love and mercy and Your guidance and the straightening out of my heart. I don’t want it one time. I know I’ll need this again tomorrow. I’ll need it again the day after and I’ll need it again the day after. So I call You the one who gives continuous, continuous and repeated gifts. SubhanAllah. What a dua to ask Allah you know.
– this is one of those duas. Where that fever won’t come off. And you keep turning to Allah and saying “رَبَّنَا لَا تُزِغْ قُلُوبَنَا بَعْدَ إِذْ هَدَيْتَنَا وَهَبْ لَنَا مِن لَّدُنكَ رَحْمَةً ۚ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْوَهَّابُ” (Rabbanā Lā Tuzigh Qulūbanā Ba`da ‘Idh Hadaytanā Wa Hab Lanā Min Ladunka Raĥmatan ۚ ‘Innaka ‘Anta Al-Wahhābu)- May Allah azza wajal make us all recipient of His most beautiful gift, His loving mercy.
AMEEN