Important Guest

Some important guest is coming to my home. I am going to prepare for him. I have to clean up my house. I have to do de junking. I have to plan my days which will be spent with my beloved guest. I have to prepare myself mentally and physically to welcome my guest in the best possible manner. My guest is very generous. He showers me with numerous gifts. I won’t feel like accepting all those beautiful gifts if I do not take care of my guest properly and present to him all that he likes. He is coming after a long time. I must take extra care to welcome and serve my guest. You know who he is. This very important guest of mine is the Month of Ramadan. It is coming after a long one year. It brings all the Blessings of Allah.
              
 It brings the gifts of Forgiveness and Mercy. It showers us with numerous amounts of opportunities to do good. It promises to leave us in a better state spiritually and physically state. We become enriched with Iman, refreshed with the spirit of doing charity, good deeds, sincere worship and focusing on beautifying ourselves with the fear of Allah. It leaves us with renewed Faith and hence a Hope of attaining the Final Abode in Paradise. With so much and more in store with the coming of this blessed guest we must be more than ready to welcome it wholeheartedly. We must leave all other distractions to spend the counted number of days with this special guest. We must give it the purity of attention and enjoy the gifts that it holds for us. We must make sure that we are not among those who find this month yet spend it like their routine lives.

Kaab Ibn Ujrah (RA) relates that Muhammed (SAW) said come near to the pulpit and we came near the pulpit. When He (SAW) climbed the first step of the pulpit, He (SAW) said "Aameen", When He (SAW) ascended the second step, He (SAW) said "Aameen", When He (SAW) climbed the third step, He (SAW) said "Aameen" When He (SAW) came down, We said "O Rasool of Allah (SAW), we have heard from you today something which we never heard before" He (SAW) said When I climbed the first step, the angel Jibraeel (A.S.) appeared before me and said

"Destruction to him who found the blessed month of Ramdhan and let it pass by without gaining forgiveness"

upon that I said 'Aameen'. When I climbed the second step, he said,

"Destruction to him before whom thy name is taken and then he does not make Dua for Allah's blessing on me (by saying, for example SAW)."

I replied 'Aameen'. When I climbed the third step, he said

"Destruction unto him in whose lifetime his parents or either one of them reaches old age, and (through failure to serve them) he is not allowed to enter Jannah".

I said 'Aameen'. (Hakim, Baihaqi)