What does it look like when Allah sends a sign to someone who isn’t even looking for one? For John Smithers, a Slovak-American PhD candidate at the University of Illinois Chicago, the answer came through a piece of Arabic calligraphy he had placed on his computer desktop simply because it “looked cool” — entirely unaware that it was the Shahada, the Islamic declaration of faith. His story is a striking reminder that divine guidance (hidayah) can arrive in the most unexpected ways, and that sincere seekers of truth are often already far closer to Islam than they realise. Combined with a timely and respectful conversation about Easter, Good Friday, and how new Muslims can navigate family relationships during Christian holidays, this episode of The Deen Show offers wisdom that is as practical as it is spiritually profound.
A Sign Hidden in Plain Sight: The Moment Allah Called John to Islam
John had been quietly researching Islam for some time when a student in one of his university classes glanced at his computer screen and stopped mid-question: “Are you a Muslim, bro?” He wasn’t — but the calligraphy on his desktop was the Shahada: the testimony that there is no god but Allah, and that Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) is His Messenger. That single moment of recognition, John recounts, felt like a direct call from Allah. He was soon connected with brothers from the Muslim Students Association at UIC, and on October 6, 2012, he took his Shahada — publicly testifying to the same pure monotheism carried by every prophet from Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus to the final messenger Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon them all). What drew him, as it draws so many converts to Islam, was the simplicity and directness of the faith: a direct, unmediated connection with the Creator, with no intermediaries and no confusion about who is worthy of worship.
“At that moment I almost felt like Allah was calling upon me to be a believer, because I put that there without even any knowledge of what that meant. And after that — it was history.”
— John Smithers, on discovering the Shahada on his desktop
Navigating Easter as a New Muslim: Practical Wisdom for Family Relationships
Recorded on Good Friday, this conversation addresses one of the most common and emotionally charged challenges for new Muslims in the West: how to remain present and loving within a non-Muslim family during their religious holidays. John’s approach is a model of maturity — he attends family gatherings for Christmas and Easter, says Bismillah quietly in place of grace, and steps back from anything he cannot participate in as a Muslim, without turning it into a confrontation. The host Eddie distills this approach into three essential principles every new Muslim should carry:
- Honour and maintain family ties: The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said he came to perfect good character. Accepting Islam is not a reason to become harsh, rigid, or estranged. Let your family see the transformation in your character — patience, kindness, and service — before anything else.
- Opt out of religious ceremonies gracefully: A Muslim is not obligated to participate in acts of worship that contradict Islamic monotheism, but declining should be done with gentleness, not judgment. Be present at the gathering; simply abstain from what you cannot do in good conscience.
- Make sincere du’a (supplication) for your loved ones: Muslims already pray for divine guidance at least 17 times daily in Salah. Let the emotional weight of these family moments intensify your sincerity. The du’a of a person for their parents and loved ones is among the most powerful forms of worship, and it increases your own connection with Allah.
“I didn’t become a Muslim to estrange myself from my family. If anything, this is a time to engage with them, to share my beliefs, and to become closer. These times are good times to be around the ones nearest and dearest to your heart — and to thank Allah for guiding you on this path, and to ask Him to guide them too.”
— John Smithers
At its heart, this episode is a reminder that Islam is not a faith of isolation or confrontation — it is a faith of purpose, clarity, and mercy for all of humanity. Muslims love and revere Jesus (Isa, peace be upon him) deeply; you cannot be a Muslim without it. The message he brought — to worship God alone, the same timeless call echoed in the Lord’s Prayer itself: “thy will be done” — is the very definition of Islam, submission to the will of the Creator. The theological difference is not one of hostility, but of understanding: God is Eternal, uncreated, beyond birth and death. Whether you are a new Muslim finding your footing with a Christian family, a curious Christian wanting to understand what Muslims actually believe about Jesus, or someone still searching for spiritual truth and the true purpose of life, the lesson from John’s journey is both simple and powerful — ask God sincerely for guidance, keep your heart open, and trust that He who placed the Shahada on John’s screen without John knowing it is fully capable of guiding you too.
