Consider this hadith:

Although the Prophet (peace be upon him) treated his wives with perfect equity in what he could control, he apologized to Allah the almighty that he could not be equitable in what he could not control; meaning, the feelings in his heart. Lady ‘A’isha (may Allah be pleased with her) reported that the Prophet of Allah (peace be upon him) used to treat his wives equally, and say:

“Oh Allah, this is how I divide what I can control. O Allah, do not blame me for what you control and I cannot control.” Abu Dawoud said: “Prophet Muhammad meant what is in his heart.” And it was said that it is love and cordiality as interpreted by at-Tirmidhi. What is meant, is that Allah the almighty controls our feelings and hearts and made the love of lady ‘A’isha (may Allah be pleased with her) greater in the heart of the Prophet (peace be upon him) than the love of any other woman. Indeed, he could not control that.

Very interesting! This is one of the only instances I know of where the Prophet is qualifying the order of Allah.It is in response to the revelation of the ayat telling men that they have to treat their wives equally.The Prophet saws is making a hugely important point for all mankind,Muslims and non-Muslims alike- one that is often misunderstood.We do not and can not control our feelings! God is the muqallib al qulub(the Controller of Hearts).All we can do is manage our actions that emerge from these feelings.Once we understand this and act accordingly much confusion,guilt and inappropriate actions are eliminated.Alhumdulillah .We thank Allah and His Prophet for this clarification.Salaams,Ibrahim