Date/Time
Date(s) - 01/01/2020 - 01/31/2020
All Day

Location
Diyanet Center of America
9610 Good Luck Road
Lanham
MD
20706
United States
United States

Revival With The Prayer – I PRAY TOO!

Download the Prayer Chart

Dear Families!
Prayer… It is the apple of our eye, the pillar of our religion. It is when we feel closest to our Rabb and the first deed that we will answer in the afterlife. It is a hot topic in our daily lives and it is an indispensable part of our lives. There is also one more thing we dote on, we ponder upon and sometimes even concerned about…
The prayers of each individual in our family…

Of course, the biggest responsibility of a Muslim is to teach his family and children about prayer. It is to worry about leaving behind a generation that might be careless about their prayers and to strive for and to find solutions for this matter. It is to take action for the ayah “And enjoin prayer upon your family [and people] and be steadfast therein.” (Taha, 20/132) It is crucial to be steadfast in our prayers and consider them as an indispensable part of our lives. With this very concern asks Ibrahim (as) in his dua: “My Lord, make me an establisher of prayer, and [many] from my descendants. Our Lord, and accept my supplication.” (Ibrahim 14/40) and Luqman (as) advises his son: ‘O my son, establish prayer, enjoin what is right, forbid what is wrong, and be patient over what befalls you. Indeed, [all] that is of the matters [requiring] determination.’ (Luqman, 31/17).

There is no doubt that the biggest responsibility is on the parents when it comes to instilling the idea of prayer in our kids. This education starts in the womb of the mother. The sensitivity of the mother for her prayer, the way she communicates with her Lord along with her baby is the first step for this. When the baby is born, the call to the prayer that is recited in his ear and the iqamah has the same purpose. In a world that he is completely unfamiliar with the first thing that he is inspired becomes the prayer.

One of our brothers used this method to get his children to pray regularly: “When we got married, I bought my wife a beautiful prayer mat. I have been laying it out on the floor myself for 8 years now. Then, we had a baby. This time I got a small prayer mat. Right now, we have five prayer mats. I lay them out on the floor day and night…” When a kid turns 7, parents should teach them about the prayer and encourage them to pray without thinking they are too young as our Prophet (saw) advised us to do so (Abu Dawood, Salah, 26). They should sit them down, have a deep and meaningful conversation and explain it in detail to make them love to pray. They should emphasize the rewards and spiritual benefits of praying. If they are still not praying at 10 after a 3-4 year training a bit of fear is also necessary sometimes. They should know what is going to cost them in the afterlife if they do not pray. Without turning it into an expectation kids should be rewarded for their prayers as well. This is a long and endless journey. Of course, it is not easy, it requires patience. However, we should never forget that we are shedding a light on them and teaching them a way of life.

Dear Families and Children!
We want to support our families in raising their children as practicing mu’mins. That’s why; we are inviting you to our awarded contest “I pray too!” which is aimed at encouraging 7-12-year-old children to pray regularly. Let’s hope that this becomes a beautiful beginning for our children!

What’s the purpose of the contest?
The main purpose of the contest is to help children between the ages of 7-12 to pray regularly.
To help remind parents of their responsibility for instilling praying into their kids’ lives.
To teach our children how to pray.
To make it easier for children to pray by motivating them through this contest.
The aim of our competition is not to compete with our children. In this competition, everyone will compete with himself.

Calendar

Application Deadline: Friday, January 31, 2020
Orientation: Saturday, February 1, 2020, DCA Cultural Center Auditorium-7:30 pm
Contest Days: February 2, 2020, through March 12, 2020 (40 days)
Education Seminars: Saturdays, February 15-29, 2020, Cultural Center Auditorium, 7:30 pm
Award Ceremony: Saturday, March 14, 2020, DCA Mosque, After Isha Prayer 7:30 pm

Who Can Join the Competition?

❖ Boys and girls who were born on February 2, 2008, through February 2, 2013 (ages 7-12)

What are the conditions of the competition?

The contestants are expected to make wudu and pray their 5 daily prayers on time throughout the contest dates. They are also expected to ask their parents to fill out their prayer chart. (The prayer chart can only be filled out by the parents, not the children!)
There will be an educational seminar on Saturdays, February 15-29, 2020. They all are expected to attend these seminars and each attendance will give them extra points.
Praying in the masjid with the first jamaat will give them extra points. Once they finish praying in the masjid in the congregation, children should get the signature of the imam. The contestant who prays the most amount of prayer in the masjid with the first jamaat will receive a big surprise gift.
Missed prayers can be made up for at a later time. However, keep in mind that the made-up prayers are never worth the same as the ones that are prayed on time.
It is also not the same to make up for prayer the same day of missing the prayer vs. at a later date. In other words, making up for a missed prayer on the same day is more valuable than making up for it at a later date.
Children who do not get a chance to pray in school are expected to make up for their prayer within the same day. 3 missed prayers that are not made up on the same day but are made up at a later date will be considered as 1 missed prayer.
Contestants will receive some surprise gifts in orientation.
This contest is designed to compete not against each other but against yourself. There is not going to be a first, second or third, etc. Meaning if all of our children manage to pray all of their prayers they will all receive the same gift.

What are the awards?

For a total of 40 days, the ones who;
❖ Prayed the most Salah in the mosque with first Jamaah will get a surprise gift
❖ Prayed all of their prayers on time or missed up to 5 prayers (1 day): 100 USD DCA Gift Card
❖ Missed 6 to 15 prayers (2-3 days): 75 USD DCA Gift Card
❖ Missed 16 to 25 (4-5 days): 50 USD DCA Gift Card
❖ Missed 26 to 50 prayers (6-10 days): 25 DCA Gift Card

Surprise gifts and “Certificate of Salah” for all the contestants!
DCA Gift Card can be used in DCA Gift Shop, DCA Cafe and DCA Guest House

When is the Award Ceremony?

❖ The award ceremony will be on Saturday, March 14th, 2020 at DCA Masjid after isha prayer.

How Can I Join?

Fill the form below on this page until January 31st, 2020.
Application Fee: $20

Educational Seminar Address, Date and Time Info

❖ On Saturdays, February 15-29, 2020, there will be an orientation for all the parents and their children about the contest rules, awards, and educational seminars. All parents and children are expected to attend the orientation. The prayer chart will be distributed during this orientation.

Sponsorship for the competition

Would you like to support this competition? We kindly ask parents to support our contest “I pray too!” for awards, competition expenses, and all such good activities for the future, etc.)
❖ You can donate via our website. Click here
❖ Share our posters on your social media accounts.
❖ You can also support us by recommending the competition to your friends.

Jazakallahu Khayran and Thank You!

“My Lord, make me an establisher of prayer, and [many] from my descendants. Our Lord, and accept my supplication.” (Ibrahim 14/40)
‘O my son, establish prayer, enjoin what is right, forbid what is wrong, and be patient over what befalls you. Indeed, [all] that is of the matters [requiring] determination.’ (Luqman, 31/17).