Umar bin Al-Khattab reported: “I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) saying, “If you all put your trust in Allah with due reliance, He will certainly give you provisions as He supplies provisions to birds who get up hungry in the morning and return with full belly at dusk.”
(Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah)
This hadīth is one of the basic texts of Islamic literature that deal with putting trust in Allah. The greatest blessing one can be blessed with as a result of his putting trust in Allah is that He will give him provisions of life even from unexpected sources. Allah says in the Holy Qur’ān: “And whosoever fears Allah and keeps his duty to Him, He will make a way for him to get out (from every difficulty). And He will provide him from (sources) he never could imagine.” (65:2-3) Allah is the Master and Sustainer of the Universe; each and every particle on earth is under His perfect command and control. So He can see something happening as He pleases to be.
If people are pious and put their trust in Allah, He will suffice them as far as their worldly benefits and the affairs of the Hereafter are concerned. This was elaborated in another hadīth reported by Ibn Abbas on the authority of Imam Tirmidhi and Imam Ahmad, “Preserve Allah and Allah will preserve you.”
But putting trust in Allah does not contradict taking the required steps, because this was enjoined by Allah and this is the normal course of action.