Bismillah. My goal this year for Futuwwah 5 is to raise 2 million dollars. If we're gonna change the world we need to move. That means paying our teachers and rocking the culture. I have a friend who has raised 1.5 mil for a organic halal and tayyib affordable meat business. I want to ride that and double down so our men's program can really impact men deeply. One part of our Archery program will include organic halal nutrient dense wild game meat as part of my process of raising men. I want a Muslim rebrand of https://www.sacredhunting.com/experienced-hunters Bismillah

Archery for me is less about sport or hunting. Its highest aim is spiritual. To fully align towards The One without association, distraction, or hypocrisy. At every level, inwardly and outwardly it is about being on point, not proud of the self, and unattached to the outcome. Yesterday I was accurate but not so precise and in 3 rounds I hit an arrow 3 times and broke it. Today I was more precise, my groups were much tighter. Nothing has taught me more about all levels of self and beyond than the monotheistic art of archery. Alhamdulillah for The Final Revelation that completes reality by telling all stories in full and correcting adulterated stories of some of the greatest of the humanly "perfect" prophets and messengers. Nothing is more elevating to Faith than good data and nothing i know of gives immediate feedback about one's alignment than Archery. Alhamdulillah Let's Goooooo!

Today as I was shooting I was thinking about how to most quickly help students of archery become good archers and what came to me was that the answer to this is effectively in our deen. When we think of the great shaykhs and imams over time, the intellectual foundations, or the various contributions that Muslims but forth that have become so built into the West we see that Islam has a process that builds brilliance. The curriculum and practice of being Muslim brings out special God given gifts that only emerge through processes of struggle and knowledge acquisition. To add, those gifts are also guided by goodness. What comes from the Muslims isn't just inventions that change the course of history or that bring new levels of benefit to humanity, but that all of it really is to point back their goal in the first place which is to steer us to The One True God and magnify His glory in each generation. So yes, while we focus on Allah as our goal, we are present in the process of our religious rituals, they are the vehicles that get us there. Look at the 11 Step process that USA Archery uses. The 11 steps are just the landmarks, what about the details and transitions between those steps? But the steps give us something to focus on, and by doing that we can achieve our goals more quickly. Here they are: 1. Stance 2. Nock 3. Hook and Grip 4. Set 5. Set-Up (*Up) 6. Draw to Load 7. Anchor (*Face) 8. Transfer to Hold (*Brace) 9. Expand/Aim 10. Release/Follow Through 11. Feedback Let's take a 30,00 ft view for a second. Islam is not only a religion, but a religion based on a curriculum. We learn and we apply. As Islam grows in America like it did in other countries we need a curriculum. We need steps in a process if we're going to get anywhere. When we master processes goals are more consistently achieved. Focus on the moment and the score will take care of itself. Our deen is rich and steeped with steps, for instance Hajj has rituals. Those rituals determine if one's Hajj is valid or not. Some rituals may be omitted and can be made up in another way for the ritual to still be valid. Some rituals are absolutely mandatory otherwise the entire Hajj is invalid. We learn the steps, focus on fulfilling them, and making up any missed or invalid parts, and then, finally after doing all that - the grand finale - Trust, to leave everything up to Allah and allow the results to be utterly up to Him.

I was living life and I thought I was doing really well until those things started showing that there was a lot for me to learn. I was divorced. And what that meant was that I had to take a real deep look at myself. But I wouldn't change that for anything because what came out of it were things that really hadn't hit me about life, my family, and myself as a leader. What came up for me at the end of all of my reflections was that I wasn't doing things for Allah. I thought I was, but I didn't really have a way to get any data to measure that intention and application of sacred knowledge. In stories of the great shaykhs we often hear how when they reached a level of intellectual knowledge and even social status, they questioned their sincerity. That's a sign of sincerity, to question your sincerity. There can be no real deep contemplation and true change if one doesn't take authentic inventory of the underlying intentions and purposes that one is doing things for. So I went on a journey, and the first place I landed was in the arms of a shaykh who took me in and helped to support and guide me while I did the difficult work of personal transformation. That experience alone shifted my perspectives and renewed my commitment and how I would approach life from that point out. Anyone ever had a struggle that made them shift?

I'm still trying to figure out this platform, but in the main Skool group you're rewarded for posts and interactions, especially ones that are liked and commented on. I like that and I don't like that in ways. Ultimately I think it's a good thing for Futuwwah 5. Looking forward to the seeing the level EX-Voltron happen. Subhanallah, it already is. Walk to Allah and He'll run to you.