- this is sometimes not so much a crime, not so much the fulfillment of an evil intention, but a mistake ... And sometimes in many ways this is true. We do not want to sin, we are tired of sinning, we are tired of sinning, we have a firm intention not to repeat our previous sins. But then circumstances are selected in a certain way, a situation arises that is tempting for us, and we fall ...

From what? Here, probably, you can always talk about a whole range of reasons. And about sinful habits, easily acquired, but difficult to get rid of. And about weak will, lack of determination "even to the point of blood." And about lack of faith, which deprives us of God's help when we need it most. And about the depravity of our nature, the general inclination towards sin for people.

But there is another reason, which is somewhat apart from the others and is most of all "responsible" for the error. It is so self-evident, so ordinary that it is even somehow inconvenient to talk about it ... And it’s also impossible not to talk: too often we all stumble not on something, but on this. The reason for this is the absence of the most necessary habit: think first and then act. I can definitely and with complete conviction say: if we would always before, and only after, embark on this or that enterprise, then the lion's share of our sins would not be committed.

This, of course, applies primarily to “sins against will”.

The other day we talked with one person, and he told me about such a dramatic episode:

“Let's go,” he says, we are on the river in winter, “and under my friend the ice cracked, and she began to fall through. And I think: we need to run to her, but what if we go under the ice together with her? Thank God, before I had to do anything, she got herself out already. And if not, what then? And how in general in this case to be, how to overcome oneself?

- How to overcome yourself, - I answer, - the question is certainly important, but it seems to me that here we must first ask another question: why did you go for a walk on the ice at all, what was the need for this? ..

How many tragic, absurd and at the same time terrible "accidents" occur precisely because of this - the lack of the habit of asking yourself: what am I doing, why, what can this lead to? One jumped into the water from a steep bank and stuck his head into the rocky bottom, the other - with a parachute at a far from young age and broke his back, the third rushed around the city in a car racing with the same stubborn as himself, and knocked down a man, the fourth drank, despite the opened ulcer, and landed in the hospital. And each later repented: “Why, why did I do it!.. If only I had thought before!”

And in quite everyday and less tragic situations, it happens similarly. You see, for example, that your friend / colleague / boss is irritated, literally out of his mind, but you go to him with some kind of conversation that will predictably lead to an explosion. Only you do not predict - you are too lazy to do it. And in the end - a quarrel, a scandal, because you could not remain silent either: word for word, and they said such things to each other that it was definitely better to remain silent from the very beginning. And again you repent and lament: "If only..."

Or you feel an unbearable desire to speak out on a topic that is slippery, complex, ambiguous. And he spoke out, and slipped, and got confused in the complexity, and condemned, and involuntarily deceived, slandered someone. And again there is only one thing left: to go to confession.

But about the "ordinary", "free" one can say almost the same thing. “Free” is when you understand well that you are going to commit not some neutral act in principle that could turn into a sin, but actually a sin as such.

Your heart has practically bowed to him, you have already completely decided on him ... Here you should stop at least for a moment and think: “How many times has this happened? He sinned, trampled on his conscience for the sake of some momentary, short-term pleasure, some highly dubious joy. And then he suffered! How sickening it was in my soul, how much time I experienced, got out of this painful state, tried to return to myself, sought reconciliation with the Lord and people! Was it worth it?..”

What a useful, what a vital rule: do not do without thinking! And at the same time rational: after all, we very often spend a huge amount of time and effort on correcting what was done through thoughtlessness and indiscretion.

And at the same time, it turns out that there is nothing more difficult than to adhere to this rule. Not that there was anything impossible about it. I just don't want to... I really don't want to! Moreover - what if it blows over, suddenly everything will be fine anyway?

I would like it to be so! But only experience is inexorable: if you didn’t think, you definitely sinned. This is so true that not to think is a sin in itself. And, perhaps, there is only one way to avoid it, to cope with it: to acquire the appropriate skill. So simple, so ordinary, that, again, even talking about it is inconvenient, embarrassing. But it is necessary, it is necessary all the same: it is so rare these days, as if ... As if we had completely forgotten how to think.

People should not psychologically drag the burden of sin behind them. It is enough to repent, correct and intend not to repeat such a thing again.

The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of God be upon him) said: “He who repents of a sin [irrevocably abandoned it, did everything possible not to repeat it in the future] is like one on whom [this] sin is not [as if he never committed this sin ] . If Allah (God, Lord) loves someone [for his good deeds and aspirations, for being obligated to Him and people], then sin [after sincere repentance] will not harm him. Then he quoted an verse from the Qur'an: "Verily, Allah (God, Lord) loves sincerely repentant and loves those who purify [attentive in observing spiritual and physical purity]." The Prophet was asked, "What is the sign of repentance?" He replied, "Regret."

The Creator, the Lord of the worlds, in a hadith-qudsi says: “Whoever does good even for a unit, he will be rewarded tenfold, and possibly more! Whoever commits a sinful one, the same will return to him, or [if the person repented and corrected] I will forgive him. The closer a person is to Me, the more I will be close to him. [Know!] If one who believes in the One and Eternal and worships only Him alone and leaves life in such a state of faith, then, even if it is possible to fill this whole earth with his sins and mistakes, I will forgive him [according to My mercy and as a result what came from him in a worldly abode from good aspirations, intentions, deeds and deeds, and most importantly - repentance, repentance] ” .

“He [the Lord of the worlds, especially] answers those who believe and do good deeds. We give them [unlike others] more [asked] by Our mercy. The atheists [who enjoy the manifestations of Divine mercy on this earth are destined for eternity] severe punishment. If Allah (God, Lord) “spread” [given earthly blessings in incredible abundance] to His servants [people, that is, gave them everything they want], then they would certainly begin to create debauchery on earth [live insatiably and immorally, sin hopelessly] (encroach) [out of boredom or for other reasons on someone else's property or life] (oppress). However, He brings down [provides people with opportunities, earthly gifts and prosperity] in a certain amount, [gives] what He wants. Verily, He is aware of everything regarding His servants [both people and jinn] and sees everything ”().

Imam Ibn Kasir, in his commentary to this verse, cites the words of the well-known commentator of the Qur'an, the theologian Qatadah: "The best life is the life that does not corrupt you, which does not turn you into amused, frivolous, distracted." He also transmitted a hadith, which says: “The only [dangerous and seductive] about which I [says the Prophet Muhammad] fear for you [for my followers] is the worldly beauty that the Almighty will bring out (which will appear in you) [she from age to age will be more and more beautiful and seductive] ". Here we are talking about a situation in which the meaning of the life of a believer is not turning it into something grandiose and majestic, constructive and creative, when with many years of efforts and self-discipline, work and its results, you turn your being into a masterpiece, but - which is very common today - in which the whole meaning limited only to earn money for the next material good (an apartment, house, car, clothes, expensive jewelry or watch, etc.) and be proud of this acquisition until the goal appears in the form of the next more expensive or perfect earthly luxury good. For a reasonable believer who hears the meanings of sacred texts, earthly life should become something more than himself, more than constant insatiable consumption, turning into hyperconsumption with increasing prosperity.

“He [the Lord of the worlds] brings down abundant rain (downpour) [suddenly and in abundance bestows His grace in various forms of success, prosperity, peace of mind, bodily health or material prosperity] after people have already lost hope (despair). [They invested everything and everything in the implementation of their intentions, plans, hopes, but the length of waiting for the result began to deprive them of confidence in a successful outcome and led to despair, hopelessness]. [Bringing them to the critical line of sensations before Him, when the weak in his faith complains: “O Lord, for what?”, And the living in his faith quietly says: “Your mercy is limitless, but I did everything I could and knew”, He sends down abundant rain, downpour, and with a generosity that can only be inherent in the Creator] spreads His mercy. He is the Patron [of everything and everything], praised endlessly ”().

One subtlety: when a person, having done everything in his power, expects a result, but there is no end in sight to difficulties, problems, delays, he overcomes them and hope still glimmers in him, but at some stage of general fatigue and emotional devastation, he is already beginning to despair, although he feels that the result is at arm's length ... and here it is important not to stop, not to turn back or go aside, but to be able to rise higher, to be independent of this, even if it is very high and good, but still worldly , and with even greater ease in the soul, mentally surrender what is happening to the will of the Creator. At the same time, transfer all the invested efforts and costs to your spiritual account in eternity. In thoughts, in your world of emotions and emotional experiences, distance yourself from pain, anxiety and anxiety, but with your body, deeds, make a few more impulsive jerks, taking into account worldly patterns and rules, and here is the result - heavy rain life happiness, a downpour of success, victory, abundance and prosperity, after hope was almost lost, and despair conquered more and more territories of the mind, claiming to violate peace of mind.

Of course, the meaning of the verse is not at all in the fact that God brings down mercy, leading to despair, but in the opportunity given to a person in critical, borderline situations, being at the limit of spiritual and physical strength, to see himself as a real person, to highlight the flaws that have to be worked on. But are we able, in moments of critical tension due to problems piling up one after another, to assess everything calmly, prudently, without losing hope in the mercy of the Creator? Especially if we didn’t get enough sleep for several days, overeat somewhere on our nerves, didn’t go in for sports, and therefore, even from the point of view of physical condition, we are not ready to take a sober look at what is happening?!

Let me remind you that angels “are obedient to Allah (God) in everything and unquestioningly fulfill all His commands,” that is, they never sin. See, for example: Holy Quran, 66:6.

Another verse says: “Whoever commits a sin [in relation to another] or oppresses himself [with his sin will harm only himself], but then repents before God [and does everything necessary to atone for sin], he will see (feel) that the Almighty Forgiving and extraordinarily merciful” (Holy Quran, 4:110).

The Meaning of an Authentic Qudsi Hadith Reported by the Prophet Muhammad and Narrated by Abu Dharr. Given in the collection of hadiths of Imam Muslim and others. See, for example: an-Naisaburi M. Sahih Muslim. S. 1079, Hadith No. 22–(2687); an-Nawawi Ya. Sahih Muslim bi sharh an-nawawi. At 10 t., 18 o'clock [b. G.]. T. 9. Ch. 17. S. 12, Hadith No. 22–(2687).

This hadeeth has several narrations. For more details, see, for example: as-Sabuni M. Mukhtasar tafsir ibn kasir [Abbreviated tafsir of Ibn Kasir]. In 3 volumes. Beirut: al-Kalam, [b. G.]. T. 3. S. 277; al-Nasai A. Sunan [Collection of Hadith]. Riyadh: al-Afkyar al-dawliya, 1999, p. 278, hadith no. 2581, "sahih"; al-Nawawi Ya. Sahih Muslim bi sharh al-Nawawi [Collection of hadiths of Imam Muslim with comments by Imam al-Nawawi]. At 10 vol., 6 pm Beirut: al-Kutub al-‘ilmiya, [b. G.]. T. 4. Ch. 7. S. 141, hadith No. 121 (1052); Zaglul M. Mavsu'a atraf al-hadith an-nabawi ash-sharif [Encyclopedia of the beginnings of noble prophetic sayings]. In 11 volumes. Beirut: al-Fikr, 1994. V. 3. S. 511.

“I am annoyed, I envy, I am offended,” a constant parishioner says to the priest from time to time, from confession to confession. And now a person is already worried that his confession is becoming completely formal. What to do? Archpriest Alexander Ilyashenko, rector of the Church of the All-Merciful Savior of the former Sorrowful Monastery (Moscow) answers.

Nothing new? What happiness!

This is a completely normal situation when a person regularly comes to confession and complains that he is worried because every time, from confession to confession, he names the same sins. I remark on such experiences: “What a blessing that you are not saying something new!”

Another thing is that even such a seemingly repetitive confession cannot be turned into a formality. Every day there should be a repentant prayer feat, we should ask the Lord for help, forgiveness, wisdom and a great saving gift - to see our sins.

After all, repentance implies that you do not want to repeat your sins, and if this is serious and sincere, then you begin to change by the grace of God in the right direction. Repentance is mysterious. It is necessary to constantly repent and pray to the Lord for help in order to cope with what you cannot cope with.

You just have to want

But help will only be in return for our efforts, because the fact of the matter is that church life is very difficult. And at the same time, it is very easy to take wishful thinking here. Therefore, a person must constantly repent before God, not only at confession. And confession is only one of the important aspects of church life.

Yes, quite often a person suffers that nothing works out for him, including truly repenting. But this is a typical quality. “For I do not understand what I am doing: because I do not what I want, but what I hate, I do” (Rom. 7:15) - says the Apostle Paul. The main thing is not to leave efforts and prayers.

It happens that a regular parishioner comes up to me for confession, and I know what he will say now, and at the same time I see that a person is worried that everything is not formal for him. He has a desire to improve. I tell him so: “Well, is number one on your usual“ tormenting list ”?”

Overcoming any sin, even the seemingly “insignificant” one, is more difficult than it seems. For some reason, we take it lightly. We think: "Since I want not to sin, then I will not sin." And when, of course, we do not succeed, we begin to worry and be afraid to say the same thing from confession to confession. In order for you to really stop sinning, you need to really want to.

Want so much that your prayer is fervent, that you break out of your sinful state, that your prayer breaks through, that it reaches the Lord, that it is sincere and from the heart. Because the Lord is ready to give you what you ask for, without delay, only you are not ready to accept. Therefore, it is necessary to pray so intensely and fervently, so that your soul can accept what you ask.

To make the pines chime

When I was studying at the institute, at the end of the fourth year, we, students, were sent to military training camps, they were taken to a military unit in the Pskov region. The place is extraordinarily beautiful. Forest, summer, the sun sets and gilds the pine trunks, and they seem to bathe in the sun's rays.

Here is a training platoon, "soldiers" - students in tunics, who sit on us like a saddle on a cow. A major comes out to us - a real military bone. A uniform without a wrinkle, boots polished, broad shoulders, a chest with a wheel, a badge on the uniform - three or four hundred parachute jumps. Addresses us: “Equal! Attention! Hello fellow cadets! We languidly answer him: “We wish you good health, comrade major!” He says: “Hello! Once again, hello, comrade cadets!” We again respond sluggishly. To which we hear: “Hello bad. Draw full lungs of air. Hello fellow cadets! Somewhere on the sixth time, we barked so that the pines rang.

So you need to repent so that the pines ring. It must be felt. And the person himself must feel. The priest can give some examples, he can joke or give some advice. But if a person himself does not feel, everything will be in vain.

Yes, indeed, there are people who are completely “impenetrable”. You, as a priest, could not get through to him, could not convey to him, although you tried, tried to explain something. But from confession to confession he stubbornly follows the formal, Pharisaic path. What should I do? Just rely on the grace of God. Since the Lord calls him to the sacraments, it means that the Lord Himself leads him. And our job is to support him, to suggest some actions, for example, to read the Psalter, so that there are still spiritual efforts. And, of course, pray for this person.

"Life is a striped thing"

Cooling in faith can come both after a formal attitude towards it, and after “burning”. I had such a parishioner. I came to the temple, everything literally shines. That's what I called her: Your Excellency. He told her: “Look, you are so happy now. This is amazing. But your present joy is a gift from God. It needs to be preserved. It's not that easy at all." She was happy for about a year. And then some young man appeared in her life, and she left the Church. It happens, unfortunately. God grant that she finds her way to God.

And it happens that a person seems to have overcome the cooling after such a “burning”, everything seems to be working out for him, and now he again feels some kind of stagnation in his spiritual life. Life is a striped thing. And spiritual life can be compared to climbing a stepped pyramid. You climb, climb, come out on level ground, like no change. But you are still moving, approaching another slope. And here you are again starting to climb.

That's the way it should be. The main thing is not to give up, not to lose heart, not to put up with sin, with what you can’t put up with, and you don’t need to force something out of yourself. Feel that you do not have - ask. The Lord is the giver of all blessings. If you feel that you cannot repent, pray: “Lord, teach me to repent, give me the opportunity to sincerely worry about the sins I commit, and give me the strength to fight them.” We all the time need to see our sins and not be horrified, but thank God when He reveals them to us.

Same sins, same love

A person who brings the same sins to every confession with unchanging constancy, must also respond with unchanging constancy - with love. That is, peacefully, benevolently, calmly, with warmth. And maybe this warmth will warm his heart and it will melt.

There are wonderful words in the Bible: “I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you; and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh” (Ezekiel 36:26). The soul and heart turn to stone from sin. God grant that we have such warmth that can melt even this spiritual stone. But we must understand that this is a gift from God. He must be prayed for. If you strive for it, the Lord will give you. The Lord is generous and merciful.

Recorded by Oksana Golovko

Denis Podorozhny answers:

Hello,

Sorry for not answering your question right away. It was too busy, so many letters from site visitors remained unanswered for a long time. Now, sitting at the airport, I use a window in time and answer them. I want to answer yours in sufficient detail so that my answer can serve many who find themselves in a similar situation.

There is a good expression: “The one who surrenders loses”, and the Scripture says: “... the righteous man falls seven times, and rises ...” (Pr.24:16). I think that the power of righteousness is revealed not in the fact that a person lives an unerring life, but in the fact that he always strives for holiness, and even if he has fallen, he does everything to rise.

The apostle Paul wrote: “Brethren, I do not consider myself accomplished; but only, forgetting what is behind and stretching forward, do I strive towards the goal, towards the honor of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Therefore, who among us is perfect should think thus; but if you think differently about anything, then God will reveal it to you” (Phil. 3:13-15).

If he did not consider himself to have reached, then even the most pious believer should be able to see heights that have not yet been reached in his life, and begin to strive for them.

Perfection, in the words of Paul, is not revealed in infallibility, but in the relentless striving to move forward to the knowledge of God, without despair, without giving up, and without allowing lulling self-satisfaction.

It would be worse for you if you were not ashamed of your behavior when you did wrong things. The presence of shame and the understanding of one's wrongness before God is already a good sign, but in no case should we stop there.

Both I and the majority of those who believed in Christ, when they came to the Lord, did not immediately break through in all areas of their lives. Sometimes you have to repent and repent for repeating your own stupidities or weaknesses. The ability to overcome the areas in which we are especially weak sometimes comes easily, by the grace of God, and sometimes through the fact that, when it seems that nothing will change, one day, it becomes so disgusting from the mistakes made that, finally, strength appears. resist them.

There are battles that are not easy for us, and the price we pay to win them makes the victory especially valuable.

So what to do in order not to step on "the same rake"? I will give you, and everyone who has a similar situation, a few tips:

1) Admit your weakness in this area. You cannot overcome your sin on your own.

Some Christians think that if they say, “I am strong!” they will become strong. The truth is that it's good to talk about strength, but it's important not to forget that we are strong in CHRIST, and without Him we can do nothing (John 15:5). Even when we read the Apostle Paul and try to apply his words to our lives, we need to place the emphasis correctly: “I can do everything in JESUS ​​CHRIST STRENGTHENING me” (Phil. 4:13).

If I am so strong, then why strengthen me? Truly, victory over sin begins only when we acknowledge our weakness. “The healthy do not need a doctor, but the sick…” (Luke 5:31), Jesus said. It is from the recognition of our own weakness, sinfulness and inability to deal with the problem and sin ourselves that we have a humble readiness to seek help from God, pray, and, if necessary, be ready to seek advice from church ministers.

2) Call a spade a spade. Sin is not just a weakness or a character trait - it is lawlessness!

When we mask our sins with beautiful words, like: “little problem”, “weakness of character”, “bad habit”, etc., then we have neither the desire nor the readiness to meaningfully and contritely repent of them. It is impossible to receive forgiveness of sins by calling them "mistakes" or "problems".

See in your wrongness the iniquity that is contrary to God. We have the power to overcome sin if in our eyes the “problem” is recognized as real lawlessness.

Believe me, it is much easier to deal with enemies (read - sins) that we hate. Hate your sin!

3) Confess your sin and repent

Knowing you're wrong before God is half the battle. There are many people around us who are well aware that they are doing evil, but at the same time, they do not try to change the state of things one iota. Silence is golden only when it is time to be silent. King David, who had sinned, confessed: “When I was silent, my bones became dilapidated from my daily groaning, for Thy hand was heavy over me day and night; my freshness has vanished, as in a summer drought” (Ps. 31:3,4)

The Lord gave us a mouth as a gate for our inner man, they show what we are already filled with and influence what will enter our heart. When we open our mouths to acknowledge ourselves as sinners, we open our hearts to God's justification and sanctification.

That is why David, seeing the perniciousness of seclusion in his sin, admits: “But I revealed to You my sin and did not hide my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord, and You have taken away from me the guilt of my sin” (Ps. 31:5)

Do not suffer in sins and mistakes, open your heart to God, confessing them before Him, and He "being faithful and just, will forgive ... sins ... and cleanse ... from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9)

4) Seek help from a church minister.

All sins are equally vile to God, but their severity, the level of influence on our life or someone else's life, the resulting consequences make them different. If, in an accidentally committed small offense, it is enough for us to repent before God and apologize to the offended person, and we know that we will never do this again, then in the areas of serious lawlessness, or deep dependence, or the impasse of the situation, we alone overcome ourselves very hard.

There are many areas where a person seeking a way out needs confession of sin not only before God, but also before His representative – God's servant. Many times I was convinced that outside support, the willingness of a minister to listen to a person, timely advice, prayer or encouragement, gave a greater result than many months of single battles of a person with himself and his problems.

“Confess your faults to each other and pray for each other to be healed: the fervent prayer of the righteous can do much,” the apostle James (James 5:16) wisely noted the relationship between unconfessed sin and illness, recommending that we not carry everything in ourselves.

On this issue, I will only give advice so that you do not rush to confess your sins to people who are unconfirmed, full of unbelief, gossips or those who are confused in their lives, otherwise, “if the blind lead the blind, then both will fall into the pit” (Matt. .15:14).

5) Eliminate from your life all the things that encourage or provoke this sin.

Believe me, it's not entirely wise to try to beat alcohol addiction and continue to go to drunken parties, maintaining relationships with drinking friends, or trying to defeat lust, but at the same time, with one eye to watch dirty movies on cable TV and "inadvertently" flirt anonymously on Internet sites acquaintances, voluptuously looking at photographs of girls.

The psalmist said this about this: “I will not put things indecent before my eyes; I hate criminal work: it will not cling to me. The corrupted heart will be removed from me; evil I will not know. Secretly slandering his neighbor exile; I will not tolerate a proud eye and a haughty heart” (Ps. 101:3-5). The apostle Paul confirms what was said in a similar way: “Do not be deceived: bad associations corrupt good morals” (1 Cor. 15:33).

The sins of people sometimes resemble some deadly disease-causing bacteria: both of them need a beneficial environment for their rapid development. So eliminate this environment!

6) Pray and be filled with the word of God.

It is unlikely that anyone managed to expel darkness from space, and at the same time, without filling it with light. Darkness goes away exactly to the extent that light comes, and our life is no exception.

Fill your heart with the Word of God, stay in prayer, and you will begin to find that weakness and susceptibility to sin will begin to be replaced by strength and firmness of spirit. The psalter contains the perfect recipe for a holy life: “I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you” (Ps. 119:11).

7) Finally, don't give up if you stumble.

Once Edwin Louis Cole, with whom the Lord gave me the opportunity to be acquainted, said: “Champions are not those who never lose, but those who never give up.” He was right! There is not a single skater who has never fallen, figure skating champions have fallen countless times in their training. How do they differ from those who go to the skating rink on the weekend, once a year, to try their hand at skating? Yes, because, unlike ordinary amateurs who do not bother with training, professional skaters go and go forward to high goals, NOT FEARING that they will stumble.

It is better not to fall and you should make every effort to do so, but if, for some reason, you still stumble, then the worst thing you can do is to consider your fallen state as your own fate. Don't do it!

I will tell you that there was a period in my life when I fell and fell. It wasn't one day or a week. All that time became for me not only a milestone of trials for me, but also for my closest people who were ready to sympathize with me when I fell, and rejoice when I rose.

Falling, every time I had to make an effort to get up, and I can’t say that it was always easy. That period of my life helped shape me as a person…

After that, there were other, no less serious tests: I had to learn how to use a spoon, draw, fasten my clothes myself, but it was in these

difficulties and defeats, those skills came that I had so much later, in adulthood ...

Did you smile? That's right, because this is not only my story, but every person's. Everything that we achieve lies through the path of temporary defeats (of course, not intentional), but they do not make us winners, but the constant desire to get up and move on.

I really like the thought of the apostle Paul, who once said: “Who are you, condemning another's slave? Before his Lord he stands, or he falls. And he will be raised, for God is able to raise him up” (Rom. 14:4). Do you hear? God is POWERFUL to raise him up.

So don't lose faith or hope or love for the Lord, get up and go forward, and only in this way, you can one day write me a testimony of HOW you were able to overcome the problems of your life.

All the best to you! And victories!

You may ask, “If I commit a sin, how can I repent of it immediately? What should I do immediately after sinning?

Answer: After turning away from sin, two deeds should be performed:

1) The act of the soul, which consists in repentance and a firm determination not to return to it, and this is a good consequence of the fear of Allah.

2) The act of organs, and these are various good deeds, for example, a prayer of repentance, the meaning of which is as follows:

Abu Bakr said: “I heard the Messenger of Allah say:“ Allah forgives everyone who, having committed a sin, gets up, cleanses himself and performs a prayer (from two rak’ats - Approx. Per.), And then asks Allah for forgiveness. 21 Then he recited the following verse:

“And those who committed an abomination or were unjust to themselves, and then remembered Allah and asked for forgiveness of their sins - and who forgives sins except Allah? - and did not persist in what they did, being knowledgeable ... ”(Al ‘Imran 3: 135).

Numerous reliable rivayah provide other desirable actions performed in two rak'ahs that atone for sins. Their essence is as follows:

1) The slave must perform ablution correctly, since the sins from the washed parts of the body are washed away with water or the last dripping drops of water.

In order to better perform ablution, the slave must pronounce the words “In the Name of Allah” before it, and after it - dhikr. 22 “I testify that there is no god but Allah alone, who has no partner, and I testify that Muhammad is His servant and messenger. - Oh Allah! Make me among those who repent and make me among those who have been cleansed. Holy are You, O Allah, and praise be to You! I testify that there is no god but You, I ask You for forgiveness and repent before You.” These are the dhikrs recited after ablution, and each of them brings a great reward.

2) He must stand up and perform a prayer of two rak'ats.

3) No mistakes should be made in them.

4) You need to focus on not talking to yourself.

5) In them one should often remember Allah and be humble.

6) After prayer, one should ask Allah for forgiveness.

One of the good results of this is the forgiveness of the committed sin by Allah, and paradise will certainly become the abode of the repentant slave. 23

A slave must do many good deeds and obey Allah. Remember that Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, when he felt his sin in a debate with the Messenger of Allah when going to Hudaybiya, said: “I realized that I must do deeds (good deeds to atone for my sin - Approx. Per.)”.

Meditate on the parable given in the following authentic hadith. The Messenger of Allah said: “A person who does bad deeds and then good deeds is like a person who is wearing chain mail that squeezes him. He does one good deed, and one ring relaxes, then another - and the second one relaxes until it falls to the ground. 24

Good deeds free the sinner from the shackles of his sins and lead him into the vast world of obedience to Allah. O my brother, you can summarize for yourself what is said in this instructive parable.

Ibn Mas'ud said, “A man came to the Messenger of Allah and said: “O Messenger of Allah, I met a woman in the garden and did everything with her except copulation. I kissed and hugged her, but did nothing but that. Do with me as you wish." The Messenger of Allah did not say anything and the man left. Umar said: "Allah would have hidden his deed if he himself had hidden it." The Messenger of Allah looked after him and said: "Bring him back to me." He was brought back to him, and he (the prophet - Approx. per.) read to him (the words of Allah Almighty - Approx. per.):

“Pray at both ends of the day and at close hours of the night. Indeed, good deeds remove bad ones! This is a reminder for those who remember." 25

Mu'az asked (in another riway it is said that it was Umar): “O Messenger of Allah! Is it just for him or for all people?” He replied: "For all people." 26