As we approach the end of Ramadan, we may be thinking about the goals we have or haven’t achieved. So while our busy lives mean we may not be able to dedicate all of our time to our faith or improving our knowledge as much as we do in Ramadan. Inshallah we can all keep a little bit of Ramadan alive with these helpful tips and by dedicating a little bit of time to help keep our Iman strong. Here are some useful ways you can help continue the positives of Ramadan with you for the rest of the year.
Make a plan
The first part of keeping the momentum is by sitting down, taking out a pen or pencil and writing down some realistic goals for you and your lifestyle. Aisha narrated, “the most beloved deed to Allah is the most regular and constant even if it were little.” (Al Bukhari 6464) Whether it’s waking up once a month before Fajr to do night prayers or to fasting once a week. Write down the goals you want to achieve for the rest of the year that are achievable for you.
Take an active role to be part of the community
A huge part of Ramadan is the community and us doing devotional acts together. Having those around us who are encouraging us to be better Muslims is what helps us keep our Deen strong. By continuing to be involved with our local Masjid or Islamic centre, we can help keep those elements of community throughout the entire year. You can also arrange get-togethers with other sisters and arrange events. Spend time getting to know your neighbours or people from work. If you see another sister, don’t be afraid to say “Salam alaikum!â€
Make a commitment
Sign up for a weekly learning course, whether it’s online or at your local Islamic centre. Something that requires your regular attendance and improves your Islamic learning. If it’s something you have to make a regular commitment too, you’re more likely to keep it going. Try making a pact with other sisters. Whether it’s to finish a book together by a certain date or reading a set number of pages of the Quran per week. If you have a husband or older children, all get up together to do night prayers and fast together the day after.
Substitute the little things in your life
Instead of listening to music in the car or when travelling on public transport, instead listen to an Islamic podcast or lecture. Instead of watching a film for an hour and a half, watch an Islamic talk or educational video on YouTube. Instead of reading a fiction book, read the Quran or one of the many Islamic books which helps develop your knowledge. These little changes in our habits, can help keep our learning to continue after Ramadan.
Become a volunteer
Charity doesn’t have to end on the last day of Ramadan. Helping those in need helps us reconnect to what’s important in life and reminds us to not take for granted the blessings we do have in life. Volunteering or doing kind acts for those around us, is an amazing way to keep the spirit of Ramadan alive. If giving your time is more difficult, you can set up a regular donation to a chosen charity. There are so many worthy charities out there!
Mind your bad habits
Often we focus on good habits but we have to make sure we also control our bad habits too. Whether it’s aiming to gossip less or to not get involved in back-biting. We have to be aware of them and Ramadan is a time when we avoid those bad behaviours. However stopping bad habits doesn’t have to end the moment Ramadan does. We can even introduce ways we have to encourage ourselves not to commit them again. For instance, if we commit a bad habit we can make it that we have to pray two extra rakats, donate a set amount to charity or feed a needy person.
I hope you’ve all had a joyous and blessed Ramadan. I hope some of these helpful tips can help you continue the lessons of this blessed month. Sometimes we get too wrapped up in our day to day lives but with a little bit of planning and changing some of our habits. Inshallah we can help keep some of the positives of Ramadan through out the rest of the year.
Salam alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatu.
Author Bio
Originally from the UK, Danni became Muslim after moving to Dubai. She learnt about Islam for two years before making the decision to revert and met her husband from Saudi six months later. She now lives in Mecca with her husband and two cats. She runs a blog about life in the Middle East and founded the store Dhikr Daily (www.dhikrdaily.com), to help with the remembrance of Allah in our daily lives
