What Do You Mean, "No"?
by Arthurine D.
Have you ever asked you parents for something, plead with them for it and they still say no? Doesn’t it just crush your heart? For me, I’d get mad and start mumbling and muttering about how much they don’t love me because I couldn’t have what I wanted. Unbeknownst to me, most times the answer no was meant for my protection even if I couldn’t see it. Although the answer was no, even if I was mad in the moment at my parents, it wouldn’t last forever. At some point, malice would break because I’d either get hungry or just get tired of being upset and forgive them for it.
What happens when God says no? Not everything is going to be yes and amen you know. What do you do when He legitimately says that this isn’t for you at all? How do you react? How long do you hold your malice? Halting communication with God isn’t going to change His mind, nor is it going to get you your way. God doesn’t do manipulation on any front. The thing God is that His ‘no’ isn’t the end of your story, it’s usually a redirection to something far better. I remember in high school and university how I would plead with God for things to go a certain way, especially with guys and every time it was a ‘no’ I was vexed. Sometimes, I’d even step out of obedience just to satisfy myself only to run back to God realizing it was a bad idea. What do we do when God says ‘no’? Do we stop our worship? Kind of, sort of still pray? Or do we trust that somehow He knows far better than we do?
If we’re getting really personal, post-university I moved back home to what I thought was my dream job, it wasn’t. Since February 2019, I’ve probably applied to over 200 jobs and I remember getting more and more frustrated with God as to why I wasn’t getting called back. I knew I wasn’t incompetent, I knew I had value, so why wasn’t He answering me? It’s now July, and to my surprise, I got 2 job interviews last week. Both options are so tailored to my personality and purpose that I’m now seeing why God had me wait. Sometimes God says no just to see if you’ll trust Him like you say you do. Sometimes He says no because He has something better tailored to who you truly are on the inside. So if you’re still longing for that new opportunity, restart, relationship, or whatever else, trust God in it. Trust God especially when He says no. That usually means He’s about to blow your mind. God is not a God of disappointment and He knows the desires of your hearts, He has you covered. No matter what answer God gives you, trust it.
