When God Says No

I remember when I was a child and would ask my parents if I could go somewhere, maybe to a friend's house or to the store and they (especially my mother) would tell me no. I would get so angry at them. Sometimes I would disobey and go anyway, only to suffer the consequences when I was 'found out'. I could not understand why they said no, and my defiance would cost me my freedom for a few days.

My parents knew that drug users, alcoholics or other undesirables hung out at my friends house. They also knew the store I frequented was not somewhere a young girl should go alone, all types of not-so- nice elements called the storefront their hangout. There was no imagining what could possibly happen to me if I were in their company. They were well to tell me no, because it was truly for my own good.

God is our heavenly, eternal parent and sometimes He says no as well, and when He does, I wonder if He loves me. But I just need to just stop and realize how much my earthly parents loved me and had no problem saying no, precisely  because they loved me and knew I needed protection, even if from myself. There is no comparison of God's love for us with that of our earthly parents. When we pray to God, we will sometimes get a no answer. Paul clearly learned that in 2 Corinthians 12:7-12; three times he asked God to remove his thorn in the flesh and each time God told him no, that His gracious favor was all that he needed. Paul thanked the Lord as he discovered in his weakness he learned to fully depend on God's provisions. In his weakness, Paul was able to work mightily for the Lord.

An answer of no intensifies the pain we are already going through whether that pain is physical, mental or a combination of both. If God can say no to Christ (Matthew 26:42), how much more will He say no to us? God, in His most infinite wisdom, knows us better than we know ourselves. He is well aware of what giving us a 'yes' answer will do to us. He loves us and wants to protect us from others and ourselves. The only thing God withholds from us are those things that are not good for us. It is a good thing that He does say no; just think of the messes we'd find ourselves in if He gave us everything that we asked for. Most times what we ask for are things to feed our fleshly desires, not spiritual ones. Desires that would surely lead us down a dark and dangerous path.

We can't despair when God says no, He has something so much better in store for us, but it takes preparation. To give it to us too soon may not be beneficial for us. We have to be patient and know God will provide everything we need; in His own time, as He did with Job (James 5:10-11), and He does answer all our prayers but sometimes the answer has to be no. It doesn't mean He isn't listening or doesn't love us. To the contrary, He loves us so much that He wants to give us all that we need to help us grow. He will never harm us, He will answer us....wait on Him!