Have we understood how precious time is? Those who came before us (the Salaf) understood the essence of what it means to appreciate/value time, this is how they achieved their revival with the help of Allah. Their sayings and practices bear testimony to this…
Ibn Mas`ud:
I never regretted anything except a day that passed by without having increased my deeds.
Al-Hasan Al-Basri:
Every day the sun rises it calls upon us, O people! I am a new day; I am an observer of your actions. Take advantage of me for I will not return until the Day of Judgment. O son of Adam, you are nothing but a few breaths. Once one breath goes out, part of you goes with it. In the same way that part of you has gone, soon all of you will go.â€
Ibn ul-Qayyim:
Every gulp of air that goes out in a cause other than the cause of Allah will turn to sorrow and regret on the Day of Judgment.
A sign that Allah despises you is when you find yourself wasting your time with trivial matters; in this way you miss your chance of going to Heaven. And a sign that Allah likes you is when you find yourself fulfilling more duties than you have time for.
The devil makes work for idle thumbs. If you want to know whether Allah is pleased with you, then think: Are you busy or idle?
Al-Muhasiby:
I wish that time could be acquired with money. If so, I would buy time from wasteful and ungrateful people so that I could spend it serving Allah.
You should know where your time goes. You should know when you can go out and when you have some extra time. When you do have extra time, dont waste it watching one soccer game is enough. You needn’t watch six.
Abu-Yusuf, a prominent student of Abu Hanifah, once said, Abu Hanifah was on his deathbed when he asked for a paper and a pencil to solve a problem in jurisprudence, saying, ‘If I have but one instant to live, I would spend it doing something that pleases Allah.’
A man asked Ibn Al-Jawzi to chat with him for a while. The imam replied, Only if you could stop the sun from revolving. That’s how in a very short period of time, a few generations offered humanity many advances. Allah blessed their lives; they were able to accomplish what would take us many years.
When 16 years old, Usamah ibn Zaid was an army commander. Under his command were Abu-Bakr and `Umar (may Allah be pleased with them). Usamah fought the Romans and prevailed.
The Companions said, No army was ever rewarded like Usamaha’s army and the Muslims didn’t suffer any casualties.
Sa`d ibn Mu`adh accepted Islam when he was 30 years old and died when he was 37. Despite living only seven years as a Muslim, the throne of Allah was shaken for his death, and seventy thousand angels came down for his funeral.
Let us ask ourselves, are we ready for change or is it all talk and no commitment? Are we willing to make adjustments to our time? It is said: