Faith is something which fluctuates between strength and weakness. There are times when we feel strong in our faith and other times, when we may experience weakness. Just as sins and disobedience to God weaken faith, righteous actions and obedience to God strengthen it. In this blog, we will look at five small habits that can have a big impact in strengthening our faith.
The first is the daily litany of praising God and glorifying Him. Each morning and evening there are certain supplications you can say to ask God for His protection and grace for that morning or evening. These can be found in any prayer book. They are relatively short and easy to read, not taking more than 10-15 minutes. However, their impact is great. The Messenger Muhammad informed us of their virtues in many of his teachings.
One example is the Greatest Passage in the Quran, 2:255. The Messenger Muhammad informed us that this passage serves as protection for the person who recites it. Reciting it after each of the five daily prescribed ritual devotions, is rewarded with entry to Paradise. Other statements such as glorifying and praising God result in forgiveness of sins. These prayers of mentioning God are quick and easy to say with great rewards and virtues.
The second habit is a two unit voluntary devotion offered in the morning time post sunrise and before noon. The Messenger Muhammad told us that there is a fee of charity due upon every joint in our bodies that God has blessed us with. Our body and what we can do with it as well as the way it works, is from God’s greatest blessings. God granted our bodies to us for free, but each joint should be used once a day in some act of goodness as an act of gratitude. In one teaching, the Messenger Muhammad numbered these joints in the hundreds and gave examples of all the different good deeds that would qualify as a fee of charity of gratitude for them. He then told us that offering two units of devotion in the morning would suffice in showing gratitude for our bodies. This would only take a few minutes but once again, its reward is great.
The third habit is giving a little bit of financial charity each day. It can be just a few pounds or dollars. It can be to a homeless person, an orphan, a widow, or any person in need. God tells us in the Quran how the example of charity is like a single seed which sprouts a plant with 700 seeds of grain. Each pound or dollar given in charity is multiplied manifold by God. The Messenger Muhammad told us that people will be shaded on the Day of Judgement by the charity they gave.
The fourth habit is to read/listen/recite a portion of the Quran daily. Set aside 15-20 minutes a day, at whatever time suits you, and read/listen/recite some of the Quran. You can alternate between reading, memorising, listening, reciting, learning and studying the Quran. The Quran is full of blessings. God describes the Quran as being a mercy, light, guidance and a cure. The Messenger Muhammad was constantly engaging the Quran through recitation, listening, learning and teaching it.
The fifth habit that helps to strengthen our faith is helping others. Every act of kindness is rewarded as an act of charity. Helping others is extremely rewarding. The Messenger Muhammad informed us that God helps those who help others. If you conceal the faults of others, God will conceal your faults. If you are there for others in need, God will be there in your time of need. To pray for others in their absence, grants you the prayer of the angels in return.
These five small habits are relatively easy to perform but have major rewards and virtues attached to them. They have a big impact on strengthening our faith. God loves actions that are performed consistently, even if they are small.