Shahadah of Allah's servant

Question:

Salam alaikum Mufti,

I have recently reverted to islam while facing a terminal disease from which I might die in some months. I believe my terminal disease is a punishment due to my sins.

Is my shahada still accepted despite me knowing I will die?

Answer:

In the name of Allah the most Gracious the most Merciful, 

Wa alaikum Salam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu,

والله يهدي من يشاء الي صراط مستقيم 

"And Allah guides whom he wills to the straight path"

It is by the grace of Allah, the most exalted, that he guided you towards Islam, may he also grant you steadfastness until the very end. 

A person's repentance is accepted in this world as long as he has a single breath of life left in him. Allah is extremely Merciful, he has promised to forgive us despite the severity of our sins. For "There's no sin that is greater than mercy of Allah". 

Prophet of Allah s.a.w.w has said in a authentic hadith that

ان الله يقبل توبة العبد ما لم يغرغر

"Allah accepts the repentance of his slaves until the soul starts to the leave the body" 

So, your Islam, your repentance is perfectly valid, know that Allah has indeed forgiven you and is now pleased with you. 

As for your worry that your sickness is the punishment of your sins, that is also not true. Sometimes Allah puts people through extremely difficult circumstances to test them, so that he could forgive their sins and elevate their rank in Paradise. 

Our Scholars have written that if a person wishes to know that the 'test' he's going through is a mercy from Allah or its a sign of Allah's displeasure, he should only look at how that hardship has affected him, if it has brought him closer to Allah, this hardship was a blessing in disguise. But if that difficulty has turned the person away from Allah and Islam, that was a sign of Allah's anger and punishment. 

Supplicate to Allah day and night, we too, make du'a for you that may Allah grant you a complete recovery, may you be cured of your illness and may health return to you once more. Ameen ya Rabbal Alamin. 

And Allah knows best 

Mufti Umer Farooq Saleem