Zirr bin Hubaysh (may Allah have mercy on him) says: I went as a delegate during the caliphate of Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him), and the only thing that prompted me to go as a delegate was meeting the Companions of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). He says: So I met Sayyiduna Safwan bin Assal al-Muradi (may Allah be pleased with him) and asked: "Did you meet the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)?" He said: "Yes, and I went on twelve military expeditions with him." I said: "Tell me about wiping over the leather socks." He said: "The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to order us, when we were on a journey or travelling, to wipe over our leather socks for three nights and their days because of urination, defecation or sleep, but not because of major ritual impurity (janabah)." He says: And one night the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) mentioned a door on the side of the west whose width is the distance of a journey of seventy years; it is open for repentance and will not be closed until the sun rises from its direction. He says: And a man came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and called out to him (peace and blessings be upon him) in a loud voice, saying: "O Muhammad! What do you say about a man who loves a people but has not yet joined them?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) answered him in the same manner: "A person is with the one he loves."
Hadith Referenceالمعجم الكبير للطبراني / باب الصاد / 7330