Remember this rule:
Allah will not accept any good deed or righteous action until it is stipulated with two basic conditions which must be fulfilled!
1. Sincerity (must be done for the sake of Allah alone).
2. In accordance to the sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ
Do things for the sake of Allah 100%. For example, if you do something 99.9% for the sake of Allah and 0.1% to show off or to gain fame/wealth etc. ALLAH WILL NOT ACCEPT IT WHATSOEVER! On the day of judgement Allah will tell those people who did something like that in their worship to go and seek their reward from the partner they associated with Him, because it is supposed to be for the sake of Allah alone.
This is sincerity.
In addition, it must be done accordingly. For example, if I offer prayer all night long without wudu it will not be accepted, why? Because I have to follow the Prophet ﷺ. The Prophet ﷺ told us, do not offer prayer without wudu, therefore it will not be accepted.
There is a verse in the Qur'an: So take what the prophet told you/commanded you with and abstain from what he prohibited you with.
So you must follow the prophet in everything you do, you follow the prophet and the message of Allah, the Qur'an and sunnah - if you follow that then you will be successful with the permission of Allah.
- Shaykh Musa Jibril حفظه الله
