Make the Most of the Last 10 days of Ramadan Utilize your time and don't waste it!

Of the well-known Hadiths calling for grabbing the opportunity for investing time is the one related by Ibn-Abbas the Prophet (sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam) said, "Grab five things before five others: your youth before your decrepitude, your health before your illness, your wealth before your poverty, your leisure before your work, and your life before your death." [al-Hakim in al-Mustadrak] This Hadith, like many others, is typically brief, yet comprehensive and loaded with meaning. It points out the importance of time and the initiative to invest it, together with the importance of utilizing the power of the youth stage and leisure time in fruitful good work. It also warns against five obstacles that prevent proper utilization of time.

The Prophet (sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam), used to call on Muslims to take the initiative to do good deeds before any obstacles arise For instance, he said, "Lose no time to do good deeds before you are caught up by one of seven calamities awaiting you: a starvation which may impair your wisdom; a prosperity which may mislead you; an ailment which may damage your health; an old age which may harm your senses; a sudden death; the Dajjal (Antichrist); or Doomsday, which is indeed the hardest and most bitter." [at-Tirmidhi, al-Baihaqi] The above Hadith urges Muslims to take the initiative, and not to delay good deeds; man's life is not free from impediments, such as those calamities, which can prevent him from accomplishing what could have been done earlier. Wise are those who grab available opportunities before being handicapped by obstacles.

In one Hadith, the Prophet (sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam) said "If one becomes worried, he hurries up, and if he hurries up, he sooner reaches his destination." [at-Tirmidhi, al-Hakim] Explaining this Hadith, Attayyibi says: "The Prophet gave this as an example to illustrate man's journey to a safe haven in the afterlife. Satan, supported by man's evil desires and wishful thinking, obstructs his way. If he is fully aware and has kept purity of intention regarding his deeds, he is safe from Satan's conniving." The example can be true in the case of the person who has set himself targets, and is worried lest he should be encountered by obstacles before reaching them. He, therefore, makes a greater effort in order to reach his targets.

The Prophet (sallallahu `alayhe wa sallam) always demanded that work should start early in the morning. On the authority of Sukhr Al-Ghamidi: "The Prophet said, 'O Allah, bless my nation's early rising.' If he dispatched an army or a division, he did that early in the morning." [Abu Dawud, Ibn Hibban] Sukhr was a merchant who used to do his business early in the morning, and he made good profit and became rich. Aisha reported a Hadith with a similar meaning; the Prophet (sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam) said, " Rise early to earn your living and do your affairs, for it brings about blessing and success." [at-Tabarani]

Fatima, the Prophet's daughter, said that when he saw her still lying in bed one morning, he told her "My daughter, get up and witness your Lord's bounty, and do not be among the indifferent; Allah distributes daily bread between the break of dawn and sunrise." [al-Baihaqi] So thus dont waste your day away. Get up and out and earn good deeds!

How Best to Manage our time?

To make better use of our time try the following: Identify your Goals: You must identify your goals in order to spend time on the most important matters in your life. Your goals should be specific, measurable, and documented for frequent review. Also, every goal should have a specific deadline. Your goal should not be 'to memorize some of the Qur'an', for instance; rather it should be something like 'memorize Surat Al-Anfal by December 15, 2000'. Other goals could be losing 20 pounds in three months, or reading an identified list of eight books during the year At the beginning of every year, review your achievements and set yearly goals.

Also, your long-term goals are part of the bigger picture - your mission in life. Your mission is the answer to the questions 'What do I really want in life?' 'What is the purpose of my existence?' 'Why did Allah create me?' As a Muslim, you have a mission in life. Your goals must be focused on this mission.

Another way to manage our time is by planning ahead: Planning offers two elements that bring order to your life. First, it tells you how to get from where you are to where you want to be. Second, it identifies the required tasks and resources to get you there. Planning is the key to controlling events in your life. Through planning, you can be proactive in achieving your goals. Set a course for your future and layout a well-structured plan of action.

We should form the habit of staring each day with a plan: During this time you should set a 'to do list' and focus your attention on it throughout the day. This daily planning should be part of your long-term planning aimed at achieving your goals. Monthly and yearly reviews of your plans are a must to stay on track, modifying your behavior accordingly.

Finally set priorities for yourself Prioritizing is the key to relieve the stress of too little time. Because what we want to do requires more time then we have, we must decide what to leave undone. To do so, you have to identify the 'must-do', 'should-do', and 'nice-to-do' tasks. Then, you have to start with the 'must-do' tasks and complete them before doing any of the other two priority levels. This is because once we choose to make an investment in one task, we automatically delay all others. The process of prioritizing is deciding which task will produce the greatest return on investment for a specific period of time, to justify saying 'No' to all other tasks. Prioritizing is a way to focus your energy on the most important tasks until they are complete.

So thus: To get the most out of the Last 10 days of Ramadan we must take the time to manage our time productively. Doing so keeps us from falling victim to shaytan and thus losing the benefit of these days. We must constantly keep in our remembrace that Shaytaan's job is to dupe us and take us to hell and one of the ways in which he most succeeds is by...

Shaytaan hinders the person from acting by means of Procrastination and Laziness

It is recorded in Sahih al-Bukhari that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "During your sleep, Satan ties three knots at the back of your Decks. He breathes the following into them, 'The night is long so keep on sleeping.' If the person wakes and praises Allah, then one of the knots is unfastened. And if he performs ablution, the second knot is unfastened. When he prays, all of the knots are unfastened. After that he will be energetic and happy in the morning. Otherwise he would get up listless and grouchy."

It is also recorded in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim that he said "When one of you rises from your sleep he should make ablution. He should rinse his nose three times. For Satan stays in the upper part of one's nose during the night." Al-Bukhari also records that the Prophet (peace be upon him) was asked about a man who sleeps until the morning comes, that is, after the time of the dawn prayer. He said, "That is a man whom Satan has urinated into his two ears."

What we have mentioned is from among the ways that Satan hinders the human from doing some actions. He also whispers into the human a love for laziness, postponing or procrastinating actions and thinking about what a long period of time one has for such and such action or work. Ibn al-Jauzi has written on this topic How many of the Jews or Christians have considered in their hearts love for Islam. But Iblees always hinders them. He says to them, "Do not be hasty. Look closer into the matter." And they postpone their conversion until they die as unbelievers. In the same way the one who is disobedient to Allah postpones his repentance. He sets his sights on his desires and he hopes he will repent later. It is necessary for the energetic person to take matters into his own hand and act upon his energy. The energetic finds the time to do things and does not procrastinate and he turns away from just dreaming. The one who has a real fear of Allah does not feel safe of punishment....

We should not allow shaytaan to win in the battle for our soul Make the most of our time and stop putting off the doing of good deeds!

The End Questions