All praise is due to Allaah. May peace and blessings of Allaah be upon the Messenger, his household and companions.

Brethren in Faith! Fear Allaah and adhere to the path of the righteous predecessors. Thank Allaah for His Bounties over you and reduce your yearning for the pleasure of this world. Get prepared for suddenness of death, for none has yearning for the pleasures of this world except that he indulges in evil deeds.

“O you who believe! Fear Allaah and keep your duty to Him. And let every person look to what he has sent forth for the morrow, and fear Allaah. Verily, Allaah is All-Aware of what you do.”

(Al-Hashr 59:18)

Fellow Muslims! Know that months and years, days and nights are but periods of work and spans of life that eventually end. Days and nights succeed each other; they bring near that which is far, wear out every new things and bring man to his appointment of the Day of Resurrection.

The wise man does not deceive himself nor does he let himself be deceived by the covetousness over this world. Many a man have started a day but not witnessed its end and many a man have wished to see the morrow but died before his wish would be materialised. Allaah says,

“And Allaah grants respite to none when his appointed time (death) comes. And Allaah is All-Aware of what you do.”

(Al-Munaafiqoon 63:11)

Brethren in Faith! A year has now gone from your lives which gives you a signal that this world is not a permanent home and that there is after it either Paradise or Hell. So, beware of this life and its illusions, for it has deceived many and destroyed many of those who sought it. Ibn ‘Umar narrated: The Messenger of Allaah took hold of my shoulders and said,

“Live in this world as if you are a stranger or a passer-by.”

And Ibn ‘Umar used to say,

“When you are in the evening, do not expect to live till the morning and when you are in the morning, do not expect to live till the evening. Make a provision for the time when you will be sick while you are still healthy and make a provision for the time of your death while you are still living”

(Al-Bukhaaree)

Dear Muslims! A year of yours has now gone as a witness for or against you. So, make enough provision, do a lot of good deeds rectify all your mistakes and zeise the opportunity of time before it becomes too late. Jaabir said:

I heard the Messenger of Allaah while he was admonishing a man, saying, “Zeise the opportunity of five things before five things come to you: your youth before your old age; your health before your illness; your wealth before your poverty; your free time before you are occupied and your life before your death. There is no one to rebuke and correct you after life and there is no other abode after death but Paradise or Hell.”

(Al-Haakim)

O the one who has only a few more moments to live in this world and does not know his departure time! Amend your ways and save yourself from destruction. The Messenger of Allaah said,

“Every one wakes up in the morning while there are among them those who are buying freedom for their selves and those who are enslaving or destroying their own selves”

(Muslim)

As for you who have been weakened by sins, and have wasted many years in pastime and slumber, shunned many sincere advice neglected many prayers, committed many sins and spread many evil. Have you forgotten the dying hour when it would be difficult for you to move your tongue and your hands and when your family and neighbours will be weeping? Have you forgotten what happens to the dying person when his soul is being pulled out, when his hardship becomes severe, his colour changes and his forehead perspires? Even the Prophet who is the most beloved to Allaah of all His slaves, when he was dying dipped his hand in water and wiped his face with that saying, “Laa ilaaha illa Allaah, death indeed, has agony.”

(Al-Bukhaaree)

Fellow Muslims! Where are those whom we have lived with for a long time and loved? How many are our loved ones whom we have closed their eyes and buried! Has death had mercy on a sick relative of us because of his weakness? Has he spared a breadwinner for his children and dependants? Where are those who were with us in the past years? The spoiler of enjoyment and pleasures has taken them away from meeting places and mosques to the graves where they cannot avail themselves of any benefit or protect themselves from any harm. They are now expecting a day that they will be assembled in front of their Lord; a day in which people will be seized with violent fear, their eyes will shed hot tears, and their hearts will shiver because of the severity of reckoning!

O you who spend all his days and nights in heedlessness and sins, tell me; when are you going to repent? Are you delaying your repentance till the next year? You do not know when you will die. So, hasten to repent now and do not hesitate. Correct what has been damaged, expect your death and make use of your lifetime to provide for your Hereafter. Run away from the leper as you would from the lion, for your end is near and your life is a trust which you will account for on the Day of Resurrection. The Messenger of Allaah said,

“A slave will not be allowed to leave on the Day of Resurrection until he is asked of five things: of his life as to how he spent it; of his youth as to how he used it; of his wealth as to how he got it and how he spent it and of his knowledge as to how he made use of it.”

(At-Tirmidhee)

Ibn Masood said, “I have never regretted on anything more than my regret over the day which passed and in which my life is reduced and I do not have increase in good deeds.”

Brethren in Faith! Would you not grieve over the missed good deeds? Would you not weep over your misdeeds? Would you not prepare for the Day of Reckoning? Turn to your Lord in repentance before a day when you will be taken out of this world. Make good use of days and nights and let everyone of you call himself to account for the fortunate is the one who examines himself and rebukes his own soul for its shortcomings. Come unto an abode in which its inhabitants will never die and which never falls. The Messenger of Allaah said,

“Whoever enters Paradise will have everlasting enjoyment, his garments will never wear out and he will be in everlasting youthfulness.”

(Muslim)

Dear Muslim! Make up for what you have missed in your life, leave pastime aside, rise up in the middle of the night to pray and repent to your Lord sincerely. The Messenger of Allaah said,

“Allaah stretches out His Hand in the night, so that the sinner during the day may repent and stretches His Hand in the day in order that the sinner of the night may repent. So He does, until the sun rises from the west.”

(Muslim)

Make good use of the remaining part of your life, you will be forgiven and if you continue sinning, you will be held responsible for your past and present sins. Allaah says,

“O man! Verily, you are returning towards your Lord with your deeds and actions, a sure returning and you will meet (the results of your deeds). Then as for him who will be given his record in his right hand, he surely will receive an easy reckoning and will return to his family in joy! But whoever is given his record behind his back, he will invoke (for his) destruction and he shall enter a blazing fire and made to taste its burning. Verily, he was among his people in joy. Verily, he thought that he would never come back (to Us). Yes! Verily, his Lord has been ever beholding him.”

(Al-Inshiqaaq 84:6-15)

Brethren in Faith! Fear Allaah and be conscious of Him,

“O you who believe! Fear Allaah and be with those who are true (in words and deeds).”

(At-Tawbah 9:119)

Fellow Muslims! Days of this world will come to an end and bodies will become worn out. The fortunate is therefore, the one who lives long and acts righteously and the unfortunate is the one who lives long and acts unrighteously. A man asked the Prophet, “Who are the best of people?”

The Prophet replied, “He who lives long and does righteous deeds.”

He then asked, “Who are the worst people?”

He replied, “He who lives long but does evil deeds.”

(At-Tirmidhee)

Therefore, be among the seekers after the Hereafter and do not be among the seekers of this world, for today is for deeds and tomorrow is for reckoning only; and deeds are judged according to its ends. Man dies on what he lives on and he will be resurrected on what he dies on. The Prophet said, “Man will be resurrected on the act he used to do while he is alive.”

Fellow Muslims! The doors of repentance are now open. So hasten to a sincere repentance before death comes knocking.

“O you who believe! Turn to Allaah with sincere repentance.”

(At-Tahreem 66:8)

“And all of you beg Allaah to forgive you, O believers, that you may be successful.”

(An-Noor 24:31)