Why me? Why is my life like this? I wish my life was different!
Does this sound like you? We all have moments like this from time to time where we feel dissatisfied with our lives. We become discontent with what we have, and we compare to the lives of other people and wish we had what they have.
We may even reach points where we wish we could change everything: our appearance, our lifestyle, our relationships.
These thoughts are a result of frustration, a lack of patience and most importantly, a lack of insight into the bigger picture of our lives.
As believers, we must have the strongest faith in our hearts that whatever situation we find ourselves in is the perfect situation for us. Allah (swt) is in total control; in His perfect wisdom He designs our lives so that our circumstances shape us and make us stronger. Not only that, but His plans for us are protecting us from difficulties and dangers that we are not even aware of. We may wish for something, not knowing the immense harm it will bring us. In some situations, we may never know why Allah (swt) has decided to put us in the state in which we are in. Other times, however, He will reveal to us why He chose to give us what He has given us, and take away what He has taken away. Only in these moments will we feel an immeasurable sense of gratitude for His perfect plan, but also guilt and shame because we complained and didn’t trust in His plans.
The Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) is narrated to have said:
لا يجد عبد طعم الإيمان حتى يعلم أن ما أصابه لم يكن ليخطئه، وما أخطأه لم يكن ليصيبه، وأنّ الضارّ النافع هو الله عزّ وجل
“No believer will have experienced the taste of iman (faith) until he realises that what he has was never supposed to miss him, and what he doesn’t have was never supposed to be his, and that the giver and taker is only Allah (swt).”
This is the sweet taste of faith; it is the feeling of satisfaction and tranquility, knowing that the All-Wise, the All-Merciful is looking after us. Once you have this belief in your heart, you will never wish for anything other than what you have, and you will thank Allah swt day and night for guiding you and protecting you. This is explained perfectly in the following hadith:
عَجَبًا لأَمْرِ المُؤْمِنِ، إنَّ أمْرَهُ كُلَّهُ خَيْرٌ، وليسَ ذاكَ لأَحَدٍ إلَّا لِلْمُؤْمِنِ، إنْ أصابَتْهُ سَرَّاءُ شَكَرَ، فَكانَ خَيْرًا له، وإنْ أصابَتْهُ ضَرَّاءُ، صَبَرَ فَكانَ خَيْرًا له.
“The state of the believer is fascinating, since he is always at peace, and this is a state that none other than the believers can achieve. If something good happens to him, he is thankful, so it is a good situation to him. And if a difficulty were to befall him, he would be patient and that is a good situation for him.
And this is our advantage as Muslims – our beliefs pull us out of our worries and put us in a state of peace and satisfaction. With Allah swt as the leader and planner, we can never be stressed. It is enough for us that He is our Merciful Creator, and is the only One Who truly knows what’s best for us.
Take a moment to sincerely thank Allah swt for what you have right now. And say with full contentment: Alhamdulillah for everything 
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