Signs of Weak Faith/How to Increase Our Faith

 

Signs
of Weak Faith/How to Increase Our Faith

Contributed by: Abu Banan

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Signs of weak Faith: 

 

- Committing sins and not feeling any guilt.

- Having a hard heart and no desire to
read the Quran.

- Feeling too lazy to do good deeds, e.g.
being late for salat

- Neglecting the Sunnah.

- Having mood swings, for instance being
upset about petty things and bothered and irritated most of the time.

- Not feeling anything when hearing verses
from the Quran, for example when Allah warns us of punishments and His
promise of glad tidings.

- Finding difficulty in remembering Allah
and making dhikr.

- Not feeling bad when things are done
against the Shariah.

- Desiring status and wealth.

- Being mean and miserly, i.e. not wanting
to part with wealth.

- Ordering others to do good deeds when
not practising them ourselves.

- Feeling pleased when things are not
progressing for others.

- Being concerned with whether something
is haram or halal only; and not avoiding makroo (not recommended) things.

- Making fun of people who do simple good
deeds, like cleaning the mosque.

- Not feeling concerned about the situation
of Muslims.

- Not feeling the responsibility to do
something to promote Islam.

- Liking to argue just for the sake of
arguing without any proof.

- Becoming engrossed and very involved
with dunya, worldly things, i.e. feeling bad only when losing something
in terms of material wealth.

- Becoming engrossed and obsessive about
ourselves.

  

Okay, how to increase our faith then
?

-Recite and ponder on the meanings of the
Quran. Tranquility then descends and our hearts become soft. To get optimum
benefit, remind yourself that Allah is speaking to you. People are described
in different categories in the Quran; think of which one you find yourself
in.

-Realize the greatness of Allah. Everything
is under His control. There are signs in everything we see that points
us to His greatness. Everything happens according to His permission. Allah
keeps track and looks after everything, even a black ant on a black rock
on a black moonless night.

-Make an effort to gain knowledge, for
at least the basic things in daily life e.g. how to make wudu properly.
Know the meanings behind Allah's names and attributes. People who have
taqwa are those who have knowledge. Attend gatherings where Allah is remembered.
In such gatherings we are surrounded by angels.

-We have to increase our good deeds. One
good deed leads to another good deed. Allah will make the way easy for
someone who gives charity and also make it easy for him or her to do good
deeds. Good deeds must be done continuously, not in spurts.

-We must fear the miserable end to our
lives; the remembrance of death is the destroyer of pleasures.

-Remember the different levels of akhirah,
for instance when we are put in our graves, when we are judged, whether
we will be in paradise or hell.

-Make dua, realize that we need Allah.
Be humble. Don't covet material things in this life.

-Our love for Subhana Wa Ta'Ala must be
shown in actions. We must hope Allah will accept our prayers, and be in
constant fear that we do wrong. At night before going to sleep, we must
think about what good we did during that day.

-Realize the effects of sins and disobedience-
one's faith is increased with good deeds and our faith is decreased by
bad deeds. Everything that happens is because Allah wanted it. When calamity
befalls us- it is also from Allah. It is a direct result of our disobedience
to Allah.