Small Deeds, Great Impact: Lessons from History - Shaykh Dr Haitham al-Haddad (Jumu’ah Summary 26/9/25)
The world today is not as it was before. The challenges humanity faces are unprecedented – injustice spreads unchecked, and the genocide in Gaza continues before our eyes. These are not isolated events; they reflect a deeper truth. The Muslim ummah is no longer in a position of leadership.
When Muslims held leadership with a consciousness of Allah, remembering that every action would be accounted for in the Hereafter, justice was upheld. But when leaders forget God, injustice prevails.
As Muslims, we carry a weighty responsibility – not only to those around us, but to all of humanity. The Qur’an instructs us to be witnesses to justice, to stand firm for what is right:
كُونُوا قَوَّامِينَ لِلَّهِ شُهَدَاءَ بِالْقِسْطِ
“Be steadfast in upholding justice, witnesses for Allah…” (Surah al-Ma’idah, 5:8)
The Prophet ﷺ reminded us never to belittle even the smallest good deeds:
لَا تَحْقِرَنَّ مِنَ الْمَعْرُوفِ شَيْئًا وَلَوْ أَنْ تَلْقَى أَخَاكَ بِوَجْهٍ طَلْقٍ
“Do not belittle any good deed, even if it is meeting your brother with a cheerful face.” (Sahih Muslim, 2626)
Another narration states that even if it is giving soup to your neighbour.
And in yet another Hadith:
إِمَاطَةُ الْأَذَى عَنِ الطَّرِيقِ صَدَقَةٌ
“Removing something harmful from the road is charity.” (Sahih al-Bukhari, 2989; Sahih Muslim, 1009)
Every seemingly minor act carries immense weight. Each deed contributes to the wider picture.
Three Stories That Changed the Course of History
Salman al-Farisi (RA) and the Trench
During the Battle of the Trench, Salman al-Farisi suggested digging a trench around Madinah – a tactic unfamiliar to the Arabs of the time. What began as a single idea altered the outcome of the entire battle.Nu’aym ibn Mas’ud (RA)
At the same battle, Nu’aym secretly embraced Islam, though no one knew. Through wisdom and strategy, he sowed doubt between the Quraysh and the Jews, weakening their alliance and disrupting their plans against the Muslims. A single man, through a single intervention, shifted the balance of power.Seyit Ali Çabuk, 1915
In the Dardanelles campaign of the First World War, the Ottoman Empire stood on the verge of collapse. Amidst the turmoil, an ordinary soldier, Seyit Ali Çabuk, lifted three artillery shells – each weighing 275 kg – onto the cannon by himself and fired at the Allied fleet. His heroic action changed the course of battle, proving that one person’s courage can echo through history.
Qur’anic Reminders
Even in the Qur’an, the voice of a small ant is recorded when it warned its colony to take shelter from the approaching army of Prophet Sulayman (AS):
قَالَتْ نَمْلَةٌ يَا أَيُّهَا النَّمْلُ ادْخُلُوا مَسَاكِنَكُمْ لَا يَحْطِمَنَّكُمْ سُلَيْمَانُ وَجُنُودُهُ وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ
“One of the ants said, ‘O ants, enter your dwellings so that you are not crushed by Sulayman and his hosts, while they are unaware.’” (Surah an-Naml, 27:18)
No word or act is too insignificant to be remembered.
In Surah az-Zalzalah, Allah reminds us of the gravity of even the smallest deed:
فَمَن يَعْمَلْ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّةٍ خَيْرًا يَرَهُ • وَمَن يَعْمَلْ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّةٍ شَرًّا يَرَهُ
“So whoever does an atom’s weight of good will see it, and whoever does an atom’s weight of evil will see it.” (Surah az-Zalzalah, 99:7–8)
On the Day of Judgement, people will long for just one more deed – yet even their closest kin will turn away:
يَوْمَ يَفِرُّ الْمَرْءُ مِنْ أَخِيهِ • وَأُمِّهِ وَأَبِيهِ • وَصَاحِبَتِهِ وَبَنِيهِ
“On that Day, man will flee from his brother, his mother and his father, his wife and his children.” (Surah ‘Abasa, 80:34–36)
Building Leadership Through Action
Leadership will not return to the ummah overnight. It begins with individual responsibility, with each of us playing our part. Every smile, every act of kindness, every stand for justice – all of it matters.
When Muslims embrace this collective spirit of action, they will rise again to leadership, not for power, but to uphold justice and mercy as Allah commands.
So never belittle any action. Even the smallest good deed may carry the greatest weight – in this world and in the Hereafter.
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