Taking a loan on interest
Q: I heard a hadith that says the dua of a person is not accepted if the source of money for his food, for his drink and for his clothes is haram even if he says "Ya Rabi" (my lord). Does this haram money include interest-based loans? I know that taking out interst-based loans is haram. But once you have the money, is that money itself haram to use? I use my student loan money to pay for my university tuition and fees. Any money that's leftover from my loan is used to pay for my rent and my food. I try to make tawbah (repentance) for getting involved in this sin, but is my repentance accepted? Or is my salah and dua invalid? Is it haram to fill my gas tank with this money or drive anywhere or buy my groceries? I try to eat home-cooked dinners prepared by my mom (from my dad's halal income - which isn't enough unfortunately to pay for my loan).