22:57 I knew what the right…29:46 we already make…33:46 friends that remind us…
Character & conductFrom the masjid's own video, Jul 18, 2026.

Choose friends who strengthen your faith

MCC San Diego · Mohammad Tahmass

“We don't need other people to help us make more mistakes.”

The khateeb, at 29:46

Watch the khutbahFamily kit
In one sentence

The people we choose as friends shape our faith and behavior, so Muslims must seek righteous company and avoid companions who lead them toward sin and regret.

The khutbah in 6 steps

  1. Personal story of childhood peer pressure to smoke marijuana and how the wrong friend created the test
  2. Quranic teaching that Allah made people a test for one another (Surah al-Furqan)
  3. Story of Uqba ibn Abi Mu'ayt, whose friend Ubay ibn Khalaf pushed him from near-conversion to spitting on and humiliating the Prophet
  4. Warning of the Day of Judgment regret: the wrongdoer will wish he had not taken so-and-so as a friend
  5. Story of Abdullah ibn Abbas, whose choice to leave a playful friend and learn from the Companions made him a scholar
  6. Supplication for good company in this life and the next
Try this week
Audit your friendships and limit time with people who pull you toward sin
Be willing to break or distance yourself from harmful relationships for the sake of your faith
Parents should carefully monitor and guide who their children spend time with
Seek friends who remind you of Allah, teach you, and are wiser than you
Sources the khateeb cited
Surah 25Used to argue that people are placed in each other's lives as a test of patience and faithfulness
Surah 25Quoted the regret of the wrongdoer on the Day of Judgment who wishes he had followed the Messenger and not taken an evil companion
Quotes

In the khateeb's words

“I knew what the right thing to do was I absolutely knew what the right thing to do was but I just froze in that moment that peer pressure I just froze”
MCC San Diego · Rancho Bernardo, CA
Play from 22:57
“we already make mistakes as it is we don't need other people to help us make more mistakes”
MCC San Diego · Rancho Bernardo, CA
Play from 29:46
“friends that remind us about good things friends that teach us things friends that are smarter than us even inshallah we'll be in a better place as well”
MCC San Diego · Rancho Bernardo, CA
Play from 33:46
Talk about it at home

For the dinner table

Today's khutbah was about how much the people around us affect our faith and choices. The speaker shared his own story about feeling frozen by peer pressure as a kid, the story of Uqba whose bad friend pushed him to harm the Prophet, and the story of Abdullah ibn Abbas who chose to learn from the companions instead of playing with a friend who didn't care. He also reminded parents to pay attention to who their children spend time with. The big takeaway is that good friends help us become better Muslims, while the wrong friends can pull us away from Allah.

  1. Who is one friend that makes you want to be a better person, and how?
  2. Have you ever felt pressured to do something you knew was wrong? What helped, or what would help next time?
  3. What kind of friend would you want your younger sibling to have?
Where it was given

The masjid

Muslim Community Center of Greater San Diego14698 Via Fiesta, San Diego, CA 92127Jumu'ah 1:00 PM & 2:00 PMArchiveAll khutbahs at MCC San Diego35 khutbahs
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