Mufti Menk gives the example of someone getting a stroke or faints and is taken to the hospital. There the man is told “you have to give up smoking”. Nine times out of ten they give up smoking. How many of us can give up our bad habits so quickly when Allah gives us the warning? Are we waiting for a heart attack to give up our bad habits?
While we are in good health we need to give up our bad habits. He also gives the example of people who have turned away from Allah, they do not worship him not even in the month of Ramadan. Allah gives these people a favour. He makes them so ill they have no choice but to turn to Him. They are forced to say, for the first time in their lives “Ya Allah”. For the first time in their lives they are praying, even coming to salat early. We are still fortunate we are still alive. We do not have to wait for something to happen to us before we turn to Allah.
Allah tells us to be thankful, be grateful and know the shaytaan – so when he tries to attack us we can recognize it.