'If Allah Loves people, He tests them.

'If Allah Loves people, He tests them.'

This hadith is hasan, and was reported by at-Tirmidhi (4/2396). It is
also included in 'Sahih al-Jami'' (275).

In his explanation of 'Kitab at-Tawhid,' Sulayman bin 'Abdillah bin
Muhammad bin 'Abd al-Wahhab mentioned the hadith of the Prophet: 'If
Allah Loves a people, He tests them.'

After explaining some aspects of the hadith, Shaykh Sulayman asked the
question: how is it that Allah can test those who are beloved to Him?

Summarizing the words of Ibn Taymiyyah, he answered:

'...because this forces the servant to repent.

Allah tests the servants with the punishments of this world in order
that they repent from their sins, as He Said: {'...that He may make them
taste a bit of that which they have done, in order that they may
return.'} [ar-Rum; 41] So, for whoever is granted the chance to repent
by Allah as the result of an act of disobedience, this is from the
greatest of blessings of Allah upon him, because this will result in his
invoking and supplicating to Allah with submission and humility. Because
of this, Allah has condemned those who do not lean on their Lord, and do
not invoke Him when crisis occurs: {'And indeed, We seized them with
punishment. But, they did not humble themselves to their Lord, nor did
they invoke Him with submission.' } [al-Mu'minun; 76]

And supplicating and invoking Allah with humility is from the greatest
of blessings, and this blessing is from the greatest paths by which one
can rectify his religious practice, as the rectification of one's
religious practice is in his worshipping Allah, alone, depending on Him,
and not calling upon any deity besides Him - not a du'a' of worship, nor
a du'a' of request.

So, if you are granted the chance to perform repentance, which entails
worshipping Allah, alone, and you obey His Messengers by doing that
which you are commanded, and abandoning that from which you are
forbidden, you are from those who worship Allah. And if you are granted
the chance to supplicate to Allah - which is to ask Allah for whatever
you need, and you ask Him for what will benefit you, and you seek refugewith Him from anything that would harm you - this is from the greatest of Allah's blessings upon you.

This is usually what happens when a disaster strikes, and if such
blessings emerge when crisis strikes, it would only make sense that the
people most deserving of this are those who are beloved to Him, and it
is upon such people to thank Allah.'

['Taysir al-'Aziz al-Hamid'; p. 353-355]