The decisive careful person is the one who accustoms himself to striving, and is cautious not to let his lifetime pass by while he is heedless or sinful. Thus, the first lesson to be learnt from this state is to know how quickly a lifetime passes. Having realized this, a person will not postpone the work of today to the coming day, nor will he wait to say: "Allah willing, next year, I will stay in I‘tikaaf (seclusion), and I will begin and I will do such-and-such…"
This is because he has no guarantees about his life when it will end and when he will leave for Allah The Almighty. This clarifies the righteous state in which the believers should be in, as confirmed by the statement of the Messenger of Allah when he said: "‘If Allah The Almighty intends good for a slave, He uses him (in what is good).’ He was asked, ‘How does He use him, O Messenger of Allah?’ He said: ‘He helps him do a righteous deed and then causes him to die while being on it.’" [Ahmad and At-Tirmithi]
This means that one should strive to do righteous deeds in every state, because his life may be about to end while he is in the same state of indulgence in which he is when Ramadan ends. Disappointed and lost is the one who witnesses Ramadan and ends it without being forgiven! Similarly, disappointed and lost is the one whose lifetime has passed away while he is in the same state of procrastination, heedlessness, indulgence, sins and misdeeds, until death attacks him suddenly. However, the pious believers are always engaged in righteous deeds in whichever state they are, until when they pass away to Allah The Almighty, he will face his Lord while engaged in a righteous deed. This is an indication of the extent to which Allah The Almighty loves him, bestows mercy upon him, and intends good for him.
The Messenger of Allah stated in many Hadeeths that it is only a short time before this world will come to an end. The Messenger of Allah said: "Nothing of this world remains, in comparison with what has already passed thereof, more than what remains out of this day of yours, in comparison with what has already passed thereof." At that time, the sun was on the mountain tops. That is, it was about to set. [Ahmad]
The Messenger of Allah said that nothing remained out of this world. Nothing remains more than this short period in comparison with the whole world. Look at your own limited lifetime, which is not equal to a single day or its forenoon in the sight of Allah The Almighty in the Hereafter. When one considers it, he knows how short his stay in this world is. The rational person should avail himself of this short period to obtain eternal happiness with Allah The Almighty, and endure the difficulty of worship in order to attain everlasting comfort with Allah The Almighty. It is said that those who put themselves to hardship and trouble in spending, Jihaad (armed struggle in the cause of Allah The Almighty), Da‘wah (calling to Islam), prayer, fasting and standing (in prayer) are about to have this trouble removed from them by Allah The Almighty. That is, He is about to take them to His mercy.
Life is only a short day, why not endure it with patience for His sake? Why not spend it in devotion, worship and obedience so that it would be a cause of your happiness forever? The Messenger of Allah said: "Nothing of life remains but the residue of water left in the utensil which its owner leaves." [Muslim] On another occasion, the Messenger of Allah came upon a people repairing a broken-down hut of theirs, thereupon he said to them: "The matter (end of this life) is faster than that (and no need to repair it)." [Ahmad].
The rational person knows, for certain, how quickly this short period passes, and how short is the time he stays in this world, which brings him quickly to his end.