Is Change Really Such a Bad Thing?

Assalaamu’alaykum,

Change can be scary for most of us. It’s often experienced as a loss of comfort or control and that feeling alone can make us resist it, sometimes without even realising.

We settle into familiar rhythms and routines. We get used to how life is, how people are and even how we are. So when something shifts, it can feel deeply unsettling and we instinctively cling on, resisting the change.

Sometimes we don’t want others to change either. That sentence “You’ve changed” is one I’ve heard before and I could see the sadness in the eyes of the person saying it. Maybe it was confusion about who I’d become or maybe it was their own sense of comfort they were trying to hold on to.

But change is not always loss.

Change is growth.

It’s refinement.

It’s Allah stretching us to evolve into the person we’re meant to become.

We’re meant to change.

If we never did, we’d stay stuck. Stuck in outdated beliefs, stuck in unhealthy patterns, stuck in one season when life is inviting us into another.

When we embrace the mindset of a traveller, we understand that nothing in this life is meant to stay fixed. Not our circumstances, not our relationships, not even the version of us we were yesterday.

Travelling through life means walking different terrains, some smooth, some rocky, meeting new travelling companions, letting go of others, changing direction when the path calls for it.

And if we can hold everything lightly, trusting that Allah is guiding our steps, change won’t feel like loss. It’ll feel like movement towards improvement. 

A movement towards our greater purpose, our final destination and ultimately, closeness to Allah 'azza wajal, InshaAllah.

So how do we become more resilient to the changes life brings?

Here are 3 reflections to help:

1. Let go of the need for permanence. Everything in this dunya is temporary. The moment we stop expecting permanence, we allow ourselves to flow with life rather than fight against it.
   
   
2. Anchor yourself in who you’re becoming, not who you were. It’s okay to outgrow things, even parts of yourself. Keep returning to your values and intentions. Ask: Is this change bringing me closer to who I want to be for Allah?
   
   
3. Trust in the unseen goodness. We don’t always understand the ‘why’ of a change when it happens. But trust that Allah does. Trust that there is wisdom, healing and elevation in every redirection, even if it’s wrapped in discomfort.
   
   

PS: Take the Spiritual Confidence Quiz – discover your unique strengths and growth areas when it comes to showing up with faith-led confidence. Take the quiz here .