Archive 2006 Death: When death reaches us, would we be ready?

As salaamu alaikum, Dear brothers and sisters I would like to offer my dua and condolence to the families that just lost their love one and for us who lost our fellow Muslim brother and sisters. I think we should talk a little bit about Death, I'm young I'm twenty five and at this age we dont think to much about visted by the angel of death. Death comes to visit us everyday, several times a day and we ignore him. One day brothers and sisters we would not ignore him because he will not ignore us. Over the past month you have heard about our brothers and sisters getting killed and hurt and all, we say a few words and we go on with our lives, we in fact go faster sometimes, How many of us ever ask ourselves what would be the case if it was me? How many of us think it wouldnt be us. How many of us knows that the angels who come to get your souls will ask you in what state what were you doing when we came for you? How many of us will answer, submitting to Allah. Allah never said to not work for this life, but he said is illusion and it will end, but the next life is forever. How many of us knows that forever is a long time. How many of us even care? In life we have many roads to cross and some will seem unbearable. Allah says he will not give us more than we can bear. We look at our neighbors and friends and they seem to have all the money, nice house and all yet you look at yourself and you work, you live pay check to pay check. You ask yourself why you cant be like your neighbor. How many of us know the stories of all the Prophet and all they went thru? How many people of us who claimed to love the Prophet when they stayed in the desert for 2 or 3 years, hot and hungry and homeless would've stayed with him and endure what he and the companions endure? How many of us would've been like PrphetNuh(saaws) and be patient like he did. How many of us would've been like his friend and wife and told him to curse Allah and die. Alot of us think we will return to Senegal and our home of origin. Some of us think we will reach the age of 40. Some of us think we will build mansions and have nice cars. In actuality we will get neither. Some of us think we will bury our parents and so often today our parents are burying us. Some of our parents didnt teach us the dua to make when one dies, yet they die and we dont read Quran for them. We make dua for them on the anniversity of their death, and that means once a year. Our generation need to correct the mistakes of our parents generation and teach our children Quran and Sunnah. We need to be guided ourselves. Death is suppose to be a time for joy for the muslims, because you will meet your Lord, but how many of us is sad because we know not to be sad but happy. I know you all dont like to talk about death but its a topic that we as Muslims need to start talking about more, so we can better prepare ourselves when it happens. Remember our died in our dua's and remember our mentally and spirtual dead that is living among us. We lost our brother this week and he will not be the last one. It could be me or you or anyone of us. Question is when the angel of death come will we welcome him or not? Ready of not he is coming and we cant excape him?