If you want the love of the people, stop running after it. The more you chase it, the more it escapes you. Love doesn’t come from the people. It comes from God.
For a wound to heal, you have to clean it out. Again, and again, and again. And this cleaning process stings. The cleaning of a wound hurts. Yes. Healing takes so much work.
I am always shocked to discover how many people believe that hardships are a punishment from God! When people face tests or see others facing tests, they assume Allah must be angry with them. SubhannAllah! Remember which people were tested the most:
The greatest virtue is not in forgiving those who apologize, or in being kind to those who are kind to you. The biggest virtue is in forgiving even those who never apologize, and in being kind to even those who are not kind to you.
I tell you to keep going, not because it’s easy. Not because it doesn’t hurt. I tell you to keep going because there’s no other way. To stop is to die.
So often it hurts us that we are not able to focus in our prayers. Remember, the more you focus on Allah outside your salah, the easier it will be to focus on Him inside your salah. What occupies you in salah, is what occupies you outside of salah.
If you think you’re too far from Allah to return, and your ‘past’ continues to own you, just remember that Malik ibn Dinar (RA) was an alcoholic, and Omar (RA) was on his way to assassinate the Prophet (pbuh) before they became two of the greatest souls to walk the earth!
