This excerpt is taken from Sheikh Abu Hamza Abdul Khaliq Siddiqi's book Sahih Fazail-e-Amaal.
After doing good deeds, it is necessary to protect them; only then can one hope for reward from Allah Almighty. Accordingly, it is stated:
﴿وَمَا يَفْعَلُوا مِنْ خَيْرٍ فَلَن يُكْفَرُوهُ ۗ وَاللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ بِالْمُتَّقِينَ﴾
"And those who do good deeds, their reward will not be denied, and Allah knows well the pious."
Reference: (3-Al Imran:115)
عبد الله بن عمرو بن العاص رضي الله عنهما قال: قال لي رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم : يا عبد الله ! لا تكن مثل فلان، كان يقوم من الليل فترك قيام الليل
Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr bin Al-As (may Allah be pleased with them) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said to me: "O Abdullah! Do not be like so-and-so, he used to pray at night (voluntary prayers, etc.) but then he abandoned night prayer."
Reference: Sahih Bukhari, Book of Tahajjud, Chapter: What is disliked about abandoning night prayer, No: 1152. Sahih Muslim, Book of Fasting, Chapter: Prohibition of continuous fasting for one who harms himself or misses its right, No: 1159/185.
It is very important to protect good deeds; otherwise, if you keep pouring water from one side and it keeps falling through a hole from the other side, the water will not accumulate. Similarly, good deeds will only be protected when actions that nullify good deeds or when there is a risk of bad deeds increasing over good deeds are avoided. Sayyida Aisha Siddiqah (may Allah be pleased with her) states that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:
أحب الأعمال إلى الله تعالى أدومها وإن قل .
"The most beloved deeds to Allah are those that are done consistently, even if they are few."
Reference: Sahih Muslim, Salat al-Musafirin, Chapter: The virtue of consistent deeds from night prayer, No: 783.
