It is narrated from Hazrat Abu Umamah (may Allah be pleased with him) that when you perform ablution properly, then when you sit down, all your sins will have been forgiven. If after that a person stands up and starts offering prayer, then it becomes a virtue and a source of reward for him. If he sits, he sits having been forgiven. A man asked him, "O Abu Umamah! Tell me, if he stands up and starts offering prayer, will it be considered nafl (supererogatory) for him?" He replied, "No, being nafl was a special characteristic of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him); how can it be for an ordinary person while he is running about in sins and mistakes? For him, it is a source of reward."