Why it's a religious duty here, specifically

In a Muslim-majority country, inheritance law applies automatically. In the West, if you die without a will, intestacy rules distribute your estate with no reference to Islamic shares, and courts, not you, decide who raises your children. The only way your faith governs your estate is a legally valid will that encodes it, which makes writing one, in the scholars' view, the enforceable form of the Prophet's ﷺ command above. It also settles debts and funeral wishes: without documentation, your family may not even know you wanted a Muslim burial.

How Islamic inheritance works, in one card

• First: funeral costs and all debts are paid (debt is so serious the Prophet ﷺ would not pray over an indebted man until it was covered), including any unpaid zakat and mahr.
• Then the bequest (wasiyya): you may freely direct up to one third of the remainder: to charity, to a mosque, to individuals who don't otherwise inherit. "A third, and a third is much," the Prophet ﷺ said.
• The remaining two-thirds or more flows through the fixed Quranic shares (4:11-12): spouse, parents, and children each have defined portions, calculated case by case. You don't choose these; that's the design: nobody can be pressured, guilt-tripped, or flattered out of their share at a deathbed, because God already signed the distribution.

The convert's questions

• "My family isn't Muslim; do they inherit?" Under classical fixed-share rules, inheritance runs between Muslims, which shocks converts who love their parents. But the wasiyya third exists for exactly this: mainstream scholars advise converts to use the discretionary third for non-Muslim parents and siblings. A third of an estate is not a token; it's the tradition's built-in answer to your situation.
• "Who raises my kids?" Your will's guardianship clause is the only voice you get in that decision. Name a Muslim guardian you trust (and a backup), and have the honest conversation with them now.
• "Does a template from the internet work?" A will must be valid under your country's law (signatures, witnesses, formalities) or the Islamic content is decoration. Use a solicitor familiar with Islamic wills or a reputable service (several UK and US Muslim organisations offer them); many national Islamic bodies publish vetted templates as starting points.
• "What about my pension and life insurance?" Often outside the will entirely: they pass by nomination forms held by the provider. Update those separately, and note that scholars treat life-insurance payouts and employer death benefits variously; ask when you do the will.

Do it this month

The whole job: list assets and debts, decide your third, name guardians, choose a Muslim-will service or solicitor, sign with witnesses, tell your executor where it lives, and note your funeral wishes (Muslim burial, no cremation, ideally quickly: what happens and why). An afternoon of admin, and then a decade of not thinking about it: the hadith says two nights, but it will forgive you a fortnight. Pair it with the money guide and your yearly zakat, and your financial religion is complete.