“Allah the Exalted paves the way for those who employ the means of prayer [du‘a]. He does not dismiss supplications. […] However, the Holy Quran mentions two aspects of du‘a:
“One is that Allah desires to make His servant submit to His will, and the second is that He accepts his [prayer]. Hence, the words, وَلَنَبۡلُوَنَّکُمۡ بِشَیۡءٍ مِّنَ الۡخَوۡفِ وَالۡجُوۡعِ [And We will try you with something of fear and hunger. (Surah al-Baqarah, Ch. 2: V. 156)], indicate that He desires to make His will prevail. The emphasis which has been placed through the emphatic nun [nun al-tawkid al-thaqilah] implies that Allah the Almighty wishes to convey that in case an immutable decree [qaza-e-mubram] is manifested, the only cure is اِنَّا لِلّٰہِ وَاِنَّاۤ اِلَیۡہِ رٰجِعُوۡنَ [‘Surely, to Allah we belong and to Him shall we return.’ (Surah al-Baqarah, Ch. 2: V. 157)]
“The second aspect alludes to the passionate manifestation of God Almighty’s grace and mercy, which has been signified by the words, ادۡعُوۡنِیۡۤ اَسۡتَجِبۡ لَکُم [‘Pray unto Me; I will answer your (prayer).’ (Surah al-Mu’min, Ch. 40: V. 61)] […] In short, one must remember this distinction with regard to du‘a that on some occasions, Allah the Exalted desires to make His will prevail, and in other instances, He accepts one’s supplication. In other words, this relationship is based on mutual friendship. Just as our Holy Prophetsa was granted magnificent acceptance to his supplications, he also exhibited the highest level of contentment and submission. For instance, eleven of his children passed away; however, he never questioned ‘why’?” (Al Hakam, 28 February 1902; Malfuzat [1984], Vol. 3, pp. 225-226)