The Sins Of Youth
In this issue we feature sins and
their harmful effects. Some special mention is needed regarding young Muslims,
especially those in their teenage years. It is often taken for granted that
these are the years of carelessness and not those of serious thought. This is
not an Islamic position. Indeed we find youth in the time of the Prophet
(sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) performing heroic deeds and very serious in
their practice and dedication. Examples such as Ali Ibn Abi Taalib, Ibn Abbaas,
Anas Ibn Malik, Usaamah Ibn Zaid, Mus'ab Ibn 'Umayr, Ammaar Ibn Yaasir and
others (radiallahu 'anhum ajma'een) will be forever remembered for their
sacrifices and willingness to give their lives in the cause of Islam at tender
ages.
This is a character assessment
checklist aimed at the youth to assist them in making their own assessment of
themselves and decide if changes in their character are in order. Parents too
can use it as a gauge. In fact, what is listed are sins certainly not limited
to youth. Each point is an interrelated sin that either weakens eemaan or comes
from weak eemaan. Some stem from others while others lead to something worse.
Possessing any of them makes change necessary because to continue doing them
may lead to worse sin, hypocrisy and disbelief. It may not seem like it, but
even you, as young as you are, could face death at any moment. Do you want to
meet Allah in a sorry moral condition?
One step toward correction is
recognizing one’s faults and setting out to Do the opposite. A second step is
honestly seeking Allah’s help and asking His forgiveness. There have been
people who commit terrible sins and Allah Has guided and forgiven them after
true repentance and struggle with Themselves. Certainly you can too. Look at
yourself and ask yourself if You do any of the following:
Lie to and disobey parents
Raise your voice to or abuse parents or other family
members
Disregard the advice of parents
Disrespect adults
Insult the opposite sex
Freely mix with the opposite sex by flirting or
looking lustfully at them
Backbite and gossip
Look at bad movies and listen to music, especially
sexually explicit types
Or that have a lot of profanity
Use profanity
Lie or steal
Devise ways to avoid anything Islamic
Spend your money on what is haraam
Think mostly of yourself and little of others
Do as little as you can to assist in the home
Put minimum effort into schoolwork
Imitate, respect or love the ways and manners of
kuffaar
Act hard with Muslims and easy with kuffaar
Smoke or do drugs
Mostly keep company with weak and sinful Muslims or
kuffaar
Waste a lot of time and never study the deen
Find it easy to do wrong and difficult to do right
Hate to be reminded of religious duties
Feel little or no sense of shame or modesty
Hate proper hijaab
Do not enjoy listening to the Qur’an
Only try to learn Arabic or how to recite the Qur’an
if pressured
Don’t go to the masjid or consistently go late to
prayer (for males) when
There is no obstacle to doing so regularly and on time
Dislike going to prayers or concentrate little in them
and hurry to get
them over with
Rarely give charity or gifts
Avoid the company of striving Muslims
Rarely or never make extra (sunnah) prayers
Read anything else other than the Qur’an or authentic
hadith that is of
Little or no value or haram
Read the Qur’an or the hadith only if forced to
Attend circles of Islamic knowledge only if forced and
pay little
Attention when you do Never give thanks, seek
forgiveness from Allah nor
Don’t use the faulty logic that
‘I am young so I want to enjoy as much as I can before I get old and I will ask
forgiveness before I die’! Such People almost never change on their own. They
usually get worse because sins become a part of their character that they can
no more rid themselves of than they could the noses on their faces. Being good
or right according to Islam has absolutely no importance in their lives. Almost
anything else is more important than their religion and they couldn’t care less
about how Allah sees them. They may even be ashamed to be Muslim! This is a
sure sign that they are headed for the worst fate if they don’t change.
You are a Muslim and you must not
take a defeated attitude or think that your sins affect you only. When the
Muslims complain of their position or situation it is because there are too
many of them who take the attitude that Islam is not the number one concern in
their lives and it is not important to follow or that it’s for ‘old’ people.
Are you a part of the problem or part of the solution? Practicing Islam to the
fullest is a cause for great inner joy, satisfaction and happiness and totally
eliminates the desire or need for any other means to feel good, better or best.
May Allah help you to be the kind
of youth that all Muslims can be proud of and not ashamed of or whom they
disdain. We pray that you are a boon
and not a burden to Islam and the
Muslims. This can only occur if you are first a youth that Allah ta’aala is pleased
with.
Strengthen Your Faith
Depend On Allah
Make Your Islam Real!