Fortifying and Increasing Your Faith
Chapter 8 of A Guide for the New Muslim: keeping your faith alive after the excitement fades.
“Allah loves those who turn to Him in repentance and those who purify themselves.” (Quran 2:222)
A study-guide summary of a chapter of A Guide for the New Muslim by Jamaal al-Din M. Zarabozo.
Faith rises and falls.
Faith is not fixed. It rises with good deeds and remembrance of Allah, and drops with neglect and sin. Expecting this makes you less likely to give up when your heart feels dry.
Purifying the soul
The book calls this a lifelong process of strengthening what is healthy in the heart and removing what is harmful. The goal is simple: to become a sincere, complete servant of Allah, which is the highest honor a person can have.
Start with the foundations.
- Correct belief in Allah: worship Him alone and do not associate anything with Him.
- The right attitude to the Prophet ﷺ: love him and follow his way, as the Companions did.
- Obligatory deeds first: prayer, fasting, zakat, and avoiding what is forbidden matter most. Add voluntary worship once the basics are steady.
Means that help along the way
Seek beneficial knowledge. Make regular remembrance (dhikr) of Allah. Strive against your own bad inclinations. Keep good company, and make time to reflect and make du’a.
Things that harm the heart
The author warns against sins, heedlessness, innovations in religion, and the whispers of Satan. Protect your heart as you would protect your health.
Repentance: the door always open
Sincere repentance means stopping the sin, regretting it, and resolving not to return, and repairing any wrong done to others where possible. No sin is too great and no person too far gone. Even the pious are always asking forgiveness.
In short: Build slowly: protect the obligations, add small regular acts of worship, stay with good people, and return to Allah quickly whenever you slip.
This page summarizes the chapter in our own words. For the author’s full text, download the complete PDF.