Are actions performed with the intention of gaining God's pleasure and provision considered polytheism (shirk)? And do they entail sin or God's wrath because the intention differs from seeking Paradise and avoiding God's wrath and Hell?

The second category: Performing an act of worship with the intention of drawing closer to Allah and seeking worldly benefit is permissible, and the doer will be rewarded according to his sincerity. This does not contradict complete sincerity, for there is no fault in someone who desires both the good of this world and the Hereafter through their action.

The third category: Performing an act of worship solely for a worldly purpose without the intention of seeking reward in the Hereafter is considered "work for the sake of this world," for which there is no reward for its doer. It is regarded as minor shirk (associating partners with Allah), from which one must repent, based on the Almighty's saying: {Whoever desires the life of this world and its adornments - We fully repay them for their deeds therein, and they therein will not be deprived. Those are the ones for whom there is nothing in the Hereafter but the Fire. And lost is what they did therein, and worthless is what they used to do.}