From Disappointment to Honor – A Dua Manifestation Story You Need to Read

By: Fouzia Usman

My daughter has been participating in the Qur’an competition at MAS LA Con every Thanksgiving for the past three years. It’s an event we started attending regularly for the last few years.

Last year was her third time competing, and while I was cheering her on, I struggled to support her the way she needed. Every time she came to me asking to be tested or heard, it was either too late in the evening, I was in meetings, or rushing between pickups and drop-offs. She was frustrated. “You’re always the one encouraging me to participate,” she said, “but you don’t help me practice.”

She wasn’t wrong. And that stayed with me.

Still, she kept going — practicing every single day with her friend, committed and consistent. On the day of the competition, I was finally by her side. That’s when I actually got to sit and test her, and listen to her recitation.

When her turn came, she went in with nerves, and I waited outside making heartfelt dua. But when she came out, her face told me everything. She looked crushed. “I made mistakes in one of the easiest surahs,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. “I got too nervous.”

I hugged her tightly and tried to console her: “Even if you don’t win, you’ve already won. Every letter you recited was a good deed, and Allah has seen your effort. That’s what matters.” But I could see it in her eyes — she wasn’t convinced.

As we walked slowly toward the convention center for Maghrib, she asked me, “What’s the dua we say when something difficult happens?” I shared the dua with her:

"Innaa lillaahi wa innaa ilayhi raaji’oon. Allahumma’jurni fee museebati, wakhluf li khayran minha."
“We belong to Allah and to Him we return. O Allah, reward me in this hardship and grant me better than it.”

We both kept repeating it. But deep down, a part of me wondered — how could this dua apply here? The competition was done. She had made mistakes. How could anything better come from this moment?

But I pushed those thoughts aside and kept making dua. We prayed Maghrib together, and even though I kept trying to lift her spirits, she remained downcast. I didn’t know what else to do other than leave it to Allah.

And then… within minutes of Maghrib, our phones lit up with messages.

“Is Zayna available to recite Qur’an during Qur’an Night?”

This was completely unexpected. Qur’an Night usually features many famous Qurra(reciters of the Quran)  who they invite just for the Quran night— not students who had just finished competing. But they were asking for her.

She looked at me, eyes wide, and asked, “What should I recite?”

Without hesitation, I said, “Surah Fath.”

She practiced, got ready, and when the moment came, Sheikh Ibraheem took the mic and said, “Are the parents of Zayna Ahmed here?” I didn’t know why he was calling us — We felt honored at that moment.

Later, I asked Sheikh Ibraheem how it all came together. He shared that Qur’an Night didn’t even include a plan to have competition students recite. But hearing about Zayna’s dedication and beautiful voice, he felt she deserved to be honored even after she made mistakes in the competition. They created that entire segment for her — and planned it in just 30 minutes.

SubhanAllah.

If Allah wants something to happen, He doesn’t need it to be on anyone’s schedule or plan.
He writes it into existence—perfectly, beautifully, and beyond comprehension.

Zayna ended up winning third place. But even if she had won first, it wouldn’t have led to this moment.

This experience was a powerful reminder for me: we, with our limited human understanding, often can’t see how things will unfold. We think it’s over, that nothing good can come from a particular outcome. But Allah is Al-Fattāḥ — the Opener. He opens doors from places where there are no doors.

We may not be able to comprehend the path, but we can always hold on to the rope of dua.
Trusting Allah doesn’t mean understanding everything.
It means submitting everything—and watching the impossible unfold before your eyes.

And in that moment—when my daughter stood on stage, reciting the Qur’an before thousands—I realized this wasn’t just a story of disappointment.

It was a living proof of what heartfelt dua, divine mercy, and Allah’s perfect plan can create.

So to anyone holding onto a dua that seems out of reach—keep holding.
Even when you can’t see the light.

Because sometimes, Allah answers in ways more beautiful than you ever imagined.

May it renew your hope and energize your heart as you call out to Al-Jabbār, Al-‘Azīz—the Lord of the worlds—in these blessed nights.

🌿 Please make a special dua for Zayna:

• May Allah increase her in love for the Qur’an and make her among those who live by it, memorize it with sincerity, and are raised with it on the Day of Judgment.
• May He make the Qur’an her companion in this world and a light in her grave and in the Hereafter.
• May Allah bless her voice to soften hearts and open doors for His deen through it.
• May He protect her heart from pride and her intentions from wavering, and accept every letter she recites as a witness in her favor.
• May she grow to be among the carriers of the Qur’an who are honored by the angels and loved by Allah.
• May Allah also grant her parents the full reward of every letter she recites, every heart she touches, and every soul she inspires.

Ameen.