When you say that you are a slave of Allah? What does that really mean?
I have always seen God as a father. He provides, guides and loves me. And, as a daughter I happily obey him because I know that what he intends is only for my best interest. He created me because he loves me and wants me to experience "life" and be happy (the definition of those two terms however is subjective) But when you say that I am a slave, I imagine God to be cruel. He created us because he's bored and wants to entertain himself :/
Hello, it's nice to see you on TTI and asking questions! And I know a lot of people have already answered this question beautifully, but I thought I'd input my 2 cents anyways. =)
You see, by the definition of 'slave' you put in the end of your question it shows the connotations that much of the world has put on the word slavery. Being that the master is cruel and slaves are a means for self pleasure. However, in Islaam being a slave is not like that at all! Similar to the feelings you described, it is a state of complete submissiveness. Allaah created us, He is thus our Master, in the sense that He knows what is best for us and will direct us to that and we will follow.
In arabic it is denoted by the letters ع ب د which have various meanings, of them to
worship, adore, venerate, obey with submissiveness or humility, approve, apply, devote, obedience etc... and each are intrinsically connected and give a fuller meaning of the word intended - in this case being an 'Abd' or slave.
So you see, in these words there is no intention of degrading a person, no meaning of being lower as humans or anything of the like (although in comparison to God we certainly are not equal in status), but it shows the difference in classification of the one who we serve and worship (God) and the ones who serve and worship (us).
The only one we serve and are slaves to are our Lord.. If you look through history, you
will find cruel rulers who are as you described, but we are not subservient to their whims which center around their own desires. Rather we serve only God and what He wishes of us. And so if you think about it, who better to be a slave to than the one who created and loves us? Who else is better to unconditionally follow and obey? I honestly cant think of anyone else, as they are all fallible while He is not.
Which is why I will proudly say "Ana 'amat Allah wal hamdulillah 'ala ni'matil Islaam"
"I am a slave of Allaah and all Praise and thanks are due to Allaah for the blessing of Islaam"
I hope I made sense. =)