When we pray for something and God says, ‘No,’ it can be bewildering at times. It can hurt - a lot. Particularly for people who tend to think of God as an ATM machine - stick your Christian card in and get whatever you want out. But I’ve discovered over the past few years that God’s ‘no’s’ are actually blessings, much as they may not seem like it at the time. And it may take a long time for you to understand - you may never understand - but recognize that when you get a ‘no,’ that is actually God’s protection and provision. My own life is chock full of blessings that came as a direct result of God’s ‘no.’ I think about my job. What a blessing it is. I get to work with amazing people, amazing clients, and do what I love every day. Not everyone can say that they’re excited to roll out of bed on Monday morning to go to work - I can honestly make that claim. And that’s after a year!
But when I think back on my 2 1/2 year journey of job hunting, the many rejection letters I received were bewildering. God, don’t you want me to be employed? It would be really nice to start saving up for the future, I prayed. Several times, I had interviews that I felt went well. At least one time, I was pretty sure I had it in the bag. Yet every time, something came up. One job decided to hire someone else. Another closed the position. Some just never got back to me. I tried to stay positive and was diligent about scanning the job websites daily. Day after day, I came up empty. Until one day in late January of last year when I applied for a random job I saw that generally fit my profile. A month later, I walked through the door of that business for my first day of work. Looking back at all those rejection letters, I’m glad for them now. I cried over some of them at the time. But I didn’t understand that every one of those ‘no’s’ was leading to the yes of my dreams. I still stand in awe of the fact that the job God had for me was literally exactly what I always said I wanted, from the size of the company to the field of work. So nowadays, when God gives me a ‘no,’ I try to keep it in perspective. Maybe He’s protecting me or a loved one from something. Maybe it’s because He’s leading me to the yes that’s actually best for me. I may not know all the reasons, but I know I can trust Him. Proverbs 3:5-8 states, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and turn from evil. It will be life to your bones and refreshment to your body.” God is so much bigger than you and me. We not only should trust Him, we CAN trust Him to know what is best for us. When we surrender our worldly wisdom - even our common sense (though stupidity is not a fruit of the Spirit either) - we open ourselves to God’s way for us. And that’s going to include some ‘no’s.’ It’s going to include some disappointments because we had our expectations in the wrong place. In the natural, my choice to remain unemployed when I could have picked up any minimum wage job I could have asked for seemed crazy. Some people thought I was. But I knew God had a perfect job just for me - I just had to wait and trust Him. And if I hadn’t - if I had pushed ahead into something that He wasn’t leading me to - I very likely would have missed His perfect opportunity. So next time you get a ‘no,’ keep the blessing of it in mind. Not that it will always be an easy thing to do. Disappointment has a tendency to be overwhelming, and the confusion of where you thought you were supposed to be and the reality of where you are can be discombobulating. But if you can remember that this ‘no’ will ultimately lead to something better and greater, you may be disappointed, but you will be able to give thanks a lot easier.
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Sarah GraceHi! I'm Sarah Grace, and I'm so glad you stopped by the Wings of Heaven blog! You can find short posts for easy reading or longer, more in-depth musings! I hope you're blessed! Archives
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