Indeed, all praises and thanks are due to Allāh. We praise Him, we seek His Help and and we seek His Forgiveness. And we take refuge in Allāh from the evils of ourselves and from the bad of our actions. Whomever Allāh guides, none can misguide. And whomever Allāh misguides, none can guide. And I testify that there is no god except Allāh. And I testify that Muḥammad is His slave and messenger, may blessings and peace be upon him and upon his family and companions.
To proceed:
Among the greatest and most precious of favours that Allāh has endowed upon His slaves after the favours of īmān and life is the favour of time. So precious is this favour that al-Haṣan al-Baṣrī (raḥimahu -Llāh) commented about this and said, "O son of Adam! You are nothing but a number of days, whenever each day passes, then a part of you has gone." And the Prophet ﷺ said:
"There are two blessings which many people lose: health and free time." (Narrated by al-Bukhārī)
Our dīn encourages us to regularly take some time out to evaluate how we've been spending this irretrievable asset. Every now and then, we should take ourselves to account and seriously consider how we have been spending our lives. Allāh did not create us without a purpose. He created us for the sole purpose of worshipping Him, dedicating our lives to Him, spending our existence in His Service, obeying His Commands and avoiding His Prohibitions. So we should regularly question ourselves: have we really been doing our best to fulfil this?
Think about it: In this world, you have about 70 years to prepare for the next world, which lasts forever; the Day of Judgement alone is 50,000 years long. So from these 70 years, you spend about 30 of them sleeping, about 15 of them in childhood. That's 45 years gone. 25 years left. And then a huge portion, if not the majority, of that is spent chasing after desires, food and money. So think: from the amount of time I have that can be used in Allāh's service, how much of it am I actually using to fulfil that?
Indeed, this world is only a moment, so make it a moment of obedience.
Remember the statement of ʿUmar (radiya -Llāhu ʿanhu): "Bring yourselves to account before you are taken to account, and weigh your deeds before your deeds are weighed on the Day of Judgement."
And owing to the fact that not too long ago we entered a new year, we can use this opportunity, firstly by thanking Allāh for providing us extra time we can use in His service, and secondly by proving our thankfulness to Him through our actions. Use this opportunity to take yourself to account, reflect on the shortcomings [and achievements] of the past year and think, "What can I do to make this year better than last year?"
Set goals for yourself that you seek to achieve. Ensure each of your goals are SMART, i.e. Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic & Timely. Every now and then, take yourself to account to ensure you're on track to achieving those goals. Make a strong resolve to make this year a better year, both with regards to worldly and religious aspirations. After all, this may your last year on the face of this earth, before your body is made to rest beneath its soil and your soul is made to enter a whole new world.
I will end with a ḥadīth where the Prophet ﷺ said:
"Take advantage of five before five: 1) your youth before your old age, 2) your health before your sickness, 3) your wealth before your poverty, 4) your free-time before your preoccupation, and 5) your life before your death." (Narrated by al-Ḥākim)
To proceed:
Among the greatest and most precious of favours that Allāh has endowed upon His slaves after the favours of īmān and life is the favour of time. So precious is this favour that al-Haṣan al-Baṣrī (raḥimahu -Llāh) commented about this and said, "O son of Adam! You are nothing but a number of days, whenever each day passes, then a part of you has gone." And the Prophet ﷺ said:
نعمتان مغبون فيهما كثير من الناس الصحة والفراغ
Our dīn encourages us to regularly take some time out to evaluate how we've been spending this irretrievable asset. Every now and then, we should take ourselves to account and seriously consider how we have been spending our lives. Allāh did not create us without a purpose. He created us for the sole purpose of worshipping Him, dedicating our lives to Him, spending our existence in His Service, obeying His Commands and avoiding His Prohibitions. So we should regularly question ourselves: have we really been doing our best to fulfil this?
Think about it: In this world, you have about 70 years to prepare for the next world, which lasts forever; the Day of Judgement alone is 50,000 years long. So from these 70 years, you spend about 30 of them sleeping, about 15 of them in childhood. That's 45 years gone. 25 years left. And then a huge portion, if not the majority, of that is spent chasing after desires, food and money. So think: from the amount of time I have that can be used in Allāh's service, how much of it am I actually using to fulfil that?
Indeed, this world is only a moment, so make it a moment of obedience.
Remember the statement of ʿUmar (radiya -Llāhu ʿanhu): "Bring yourselves to account before you are taken to account, and weigh your deeds before your deeds are weighed on the Day of Judgement."
And owing to the fact that not too long ago we entered a new year, we can use this opportunity, firstly by thanking Allāh for providing us extra time we can use in His service, and secondly by proving our thankfulness to Him through our actions. Use this opportunity to take yourself to account, reflect on the shortcomings [and achievements] of the past year and think, "What can I do to make this year better than last year?"
Set goals for yourself that you seek to achieve. Ensure each of your goals are SMART, i.e. Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic & Timely. Every now and then, take yourself to account to ensure you're on track to achieving those goals. Make a strong resolve to make this year a better year, both with regards to worldly and religious aspirations. After all, this may your last year on the face of this earth, before your body is made to rest beneath its soil and your soul is made to enter a whole new world.
I will end with a ḥadīth where the Prophet ﷺ said:
اغتنم خمسًا قبل خمس: شبابك قبل هَرَمك، وغناك قبل فقرك، وفراغك قبل شغلك، وصحتك قبل سقمك، وحياتك قبل موتك
