Yes of course you can decline to answer.
I merely wanted to understand what the process is and what the general public believes to be the process behind doing istikharas.
I totally get it that the Almighty may choose to guide whomever He wishes and however He wishes but I am also inclined to believe that if I wish to be guided through this method, then I am first obligated to fulfil my part of the bargain. Maybe it’s just me and maybe I stand to be corrected (at least I hope that is the case), but I feel horrible asking Allah for something when I have not done His bidding.
Thanks for trying to explain but as you can see from my answer just above this quotation, I don’t think that Allah’s mercy looks to be fair. I’m pretty sure that there have been plenty times when I have not done what I was supposed to do and yet He was kind to me. Allah knows best.
No. Just trying to understand if others feel the same way I do.