Seeing Good in All...

... It may be that you hate something when it is good for you and it may be that you love something when it is bad for you. God knows and you do not know.

(Surat al-Baqara: 216)

Believers live in wholehearted submission to God, aware that everything, in its minutest detail, is created by God and predetermined by Him according to a certain plan. Although believers may encounter all sorts of hardships and trials throughout their lives, they never feel regret and say, "I wished this did not happen to me..." They believe that a divine purpose and good is to be found in every event. Therefore, even in the most distressing circumstances, they live with peace of mind. However, disbelievers, who are unaware of this truth, feel great anxiety whenever they are confronted by an event which to them seems evil. Hopelessness and despair pervades their lives. The fact is, however, due to his nature, man is constantly seeking peace and comfort, because of the physical and spiritual pains that difficulty, stress and sorrow cause him. But, the sorrow, stress and despair, which a person who does not put his trust in God or see the good in whatever befalls him is subjected to, encroaches upon him from all around. He can never manage to free himself from fear of future, fear of death, disease, or fear of poverty.
Man's only salvation is found in remembering that God creates every event for a divine purpose and a certain good. A believer is putting his faith in God in the truest sense only if he remains cognisant of this fact. He comports himself in the manner of a true servant only if he does not merely endure these situations, but is patient through them. Keeping always near to God, by praying and putting one's faith in Him, and expecting that everything comes from Him, is a quality particular to believers.
In this world, in which he waits to attain the gates of Paradise, a believer encounters various sorts of circumstances as part of his trial. During this test, he conducts himself responsibly towards his Creator, and endeavours to earn the pleasure of God and His Paradise. He seeks to avoid hell, fears God, and sees the good in all that occurs to him and around him. Though he fails to see this good, he remembers that it is God Who knows all, no matter what the circumstance. A believer is a being who has descended to the world from paradise through timelessness, that is, in God's sight. Here he is to remain, for a brief period of time, until he is permitted to enter that final abode by God's will. God informs us about an event which is sure to happen to His servants who fear Him and do their duty:
And those who have heeded their Lord will be driven to the Garden in companies and when they arrive there, finding its gates open, its custodians will say to them, "Peace be upon you! You have done well so enter it timelessly, for ever." They will say, "Praise be to God Who has fulfilled His promise to us and made us the inheritors of this land, letting us settle in the Garden wherever we want. How excellent is the wage of those who work!" You will see the angels circling round the Throne, glorifying their Lord with praise. It will be decided between them with truth. And it will be said: "Praise be to God, the Lord of all the worlds."

(Surat az-Zumar: 73-75)