What do the stories in the Holy Qur’an mean for our daily life?

The stories in the Holy Qur’an are not mere accounts of the distant past. They are meant to improve our daily lives, because they show how God deals with people, then as now.

The Holy Qur’an tells many stories, such as how Moses (as) struck a rock at God’s command and water came forth. Some read these accounts like a history book and then ask what they have to do with us today. The Holy Qur’an answers this question itself. As the first verse above says, they are a lesson for people who reflect.

So the aim is not to gather knowledge about the past. The aim is to live our own lives better today. God’s way with people does not change. What held true then holds true now. Whoever reads in these stories how people in distress trusted God and found help, or how arrogance was brought low, sees in them a mirror of their own life.

The second verse above gives another reason. The accounts of earlier messengers make the heart firm. They gave strength even to the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) in hard times. It is no different for a believer today. Whoever knows that others before them were tested and stood firm does not lose heart so easily in their own difficulties.

That is why it is worth asking one simple question with every story in the Holy Qur’an. What is God telling me through this today? Whoever reads in this way finds in ancient narratives counsel for family, work and faith.