🪴 I Know the Truth, So Why Can’t I Change?
Bismillāh.
This is a reminder first to myself, written in need, not from a place of knowing, but hoping.
If it benefits you too, then All Praise is due to Allah سبحانه وتعالى alone.
There’s a type of heaviness that comes from knowing what is right and still struggling to act on it.
I know what Allah loves.
I know what’s right.
I know what I should leave, what I should start, what I should fix.
And yet, I still feel stuck.
Anas (رضي الله عنه) narrated that Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said:
“All the sons of Adam are sinners, but the best of sinners are those who repent often.”
(Related by At·Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah with a strong chain of narrators)
Change doesn’t start with perfection, it starts with sincerity.
📌 A Letter to Myself
Dear self,
Don’t let shame stop you from striving. The believer’s life is constant return. Constant course-correction. Constant effort.
This was the way of the righteous who came before you.
Ibn al-Qayyim رحمه الله said:
“The sign of happiness is that the good deeds of the servant are behind his back [not focusing on it much], and his bad deeds are between his eyes [focusing on one’s sins so as to repent from it”
Sincere efforts matter. Even the ones you repeat. Even the ones that start and stop and start all over again . If they are for Allah, they are not wasted.
🧭 What I Need To Try When Change Feels Far
🔐 Start with duʿa. Before action, I make du’a: “Yā Muqallib al-qulūb, thabbit qalbī ʿalā dīnik.” (O Turner of the hearts, make my heart firm upon Your religion.)
🎯 Choose one act to commit to for 7 days. Not a full lifestyle overhaul. Just one act done with Ihsaan in sha’ Allah.
🧱 Tie the action to a goal: not “I need to be better,” but “I want to please Allah with this effort.”
🕯 Disconnect from distractions: Sometimes, the noise around me is the only thing holding me back from clarity.
📿 Seek knowledge, even in small doses. One 10-minute reminder. One Ayaah with Tafsir. One story from the Salaf that revives my heart.
📌 Qur’anic Anchor
“And those who strive for Us – We will surely guide them to Our ways. And indeed, Allah is with the doers of good.”
(Sūrah al-ʿAnkabūt 29:69)
Striving precedes ease. Effort brings clarity.
Don’t stop just because you’re moving slowly.
🧵 To the Sister Who Keeps Starting Over
You’re not behind. You’re not fake. You’re not alone.
You’re someone who knows the truth and is trying to honour it in sha’ Allah. Even when it’s hard, even when it’s quiet, even when your heart feels dry.
Guilt is a sign of life. And it’s a sign of Imaan in sha’ Allah.
Keep going. Even if your pace is slow. Even if your progress is invisible. The One you’re doing it for sees every quiet effort and accepts it - if it’s sincere.
Sincerely,
still learning, still trying —
your sister in need of Allah.
