Scroll. Like. Scroll. Scroll. Comment. Love. Like. Like. Share. Scroll.
Sound familiar? We do it when we’re bored, curious, and frankly, when we have nothing better to do.
Let’s go back to math class for a moment. In a typical day, you may open up your phone to check out 1,2,3, or more different social media platforms. Let’s take an account of our activity:
- 15 likes on Facebook
- 2 witty comments on a friend’s post
- 3 tags on Instagram
- 4 shares on Twitter
- 1 picture posted
- 3 snaps shared
Not too bad in terms of social media presence online.
Now for every like, share, comment, tweet, snap, and post – how much time and thought did you put into each individual action? Have you thought about the fact that clicking ‘Like’ on a post means you are endorsing it? Do you realize that you are putting your personal stamp of approval on that post; that it is something you wish to spread further? Can you grasp the immensity of that simple thumbs up?
Did you really put any thought at all into that action? Likely not. For most of us, these are mindless actions that we deem harmless.
Harmless? Not so much.
“The Day every soul will find what it has done of good present [before it] and what it has done of evil, it will wish that between itself and that [evil] was a great distance. And Allah warns you of Himself, and Allah is Kind to [His] servants” (Qur’an 3:30)
Every. Single. Deed.
I want you to imagine – really imagine – standing before Allah (SWT) and opening up your Facebook page to show your Creator. I want you to imagine showing Him every profile picture you have ever posted, every snap you added to a story. Yes – every single selfie too. Think about standing before Allah (SWT) – the Lord of all that exists – and sharing every single post you have ever liked or commented on, be it from 10 years ago or just today.
How would you feel? Confident or Embarrassed? Elated or Scared? Proud or Ashamed? More importantly, would Allah (SWT) be pleased with you, or would He ‘azza wa jaal be angered?
Are we so naïve to believe that simply because we interact online in a mindless and thoughtless manner that we will not be held to account? Most often, we can barely recall the dozens of posts we liked or shared in the last couple of hours, let alone throughout our social media history. We are – after all – human beings whose nature is to forget.
“Man does not utter any word except that with him is an observer prepared [to record]” (Qur’an, 50:18).
Everything that you put on your social networking pages will be a part of the permanent record that will be a witness for, or against you on the Day of Judgment. We are taught and encouraged to set our privacy settings to limit access for people – as we should – but know that it is impossible to shield your online actions from the angels recording every single small and large deed or from Allah (SWT). We are misled into thinking that since we are sitting in the comfort of our own home, behind the protection of a screen and out of view from the public that our words and actions online do not fall under any divine jurisdiction and are of no consequence.
This could not be farther from the truth – every word or action, including those likes and shares, is recorded, and we will absolutely be held accountable for our actions.
So what will your record show? Will it be a witness for, or against you?
