Skip to main content

He Said, “No”





It was eight o’clock; two hours left of work.   I was working the closing shift.  It was a retailer’s nightmare. I had about a bazillion things to do and not nearly enough time in which to get the tasks completed.  It felt like Deja vu.  I had been in this situation many times and it had NEVER ended well.  We had lines of customers all wanting service, and equipment needing to be cleaned.  Add to this, the fact that there was only two of us to get everything done.  The stress level was rising and I just knew we were going to finish late.  I have to confess, I was beginning to stomp my feet inside.  I didn’t WANT to stay late to finish cleaning.  So, as I was snatching a few minutes to wash a few dishes between customers, I said, “God, help!  I really don’t want to stay any later than I have to.”  As nine o’clock approached, I realized that, amid all the chaos, we had somehow managed to get caught up and we were pretty close to on schedule.  Our stress began to ease a little and we began to joke and talk realizing that we were “likely” to finish on time and NOT late as we had feared.  Later, as we put the finishing touches on our work, we looked at each other and said, “How did we do that?” I knew as I walked out on time praising God that he had heard and answered my prayer.  We all love those kind of prayers.  The ones where God chooses to answer our prayers with a resounding “YES”.  But what about the times when he says, “No.” Am I as quick to praise God for that answer? I have to admit that I don’t always like being told “no” not even by God.  I have had to ask forgiveness, many times, for my own response to God’s “no’s.” It occurred to me that when God says no, he may indeed be more interested in my response than anything else.  Perhaps God is asking, “Will you still love me if I don’t say yes?”  God wants us to love and praise him regardless of how he answer our prayers.  Sometimes God may testing me to see if I will love him even if he does not do what I want.  If I say I love God, but I get angry when he does not answer a prayer in the way I want, is that really love? God wants me to love him because he is God, not because of anything he does for me.  After all, the greatest thing he can do for me, he did two thousand years ago when he loved me so much that died a sinner’s death so I could have eternal life.  If God never gave me one other thing, it would still be way more than I deserve.  But he does lavish other blessings on me; he does answer my prayers.  So when he says “no”, I will praise him even then.


No Matter What

Anything I don't have You can give it to me
But it's okay if You don't, I'm not here for those things
The touch of Your love is enough on its own
No matter what I still love You and I'm gonna need You

Read more at http://www.songlyrics.com/kerrie-roberts/no-matter-what-lyrics/#c13qXGXqEgwuAFdv.9

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Thank you God for Leading us

Thank you God for how you lead us. Like a shepherd leading his sheep. Sometimes through the words you spoke in the Bible, your written word. at other times, it was the wise words from friends,  coworkers,or neighbors spoken at just the right time. Still other times it was a gentle tug,   a whisper to our heart to move  in one direction or another;  intuition or a sixth sense that one   way or another was right or wrong    Yet, when I listened and obeyed   I found the way was clear, distinct and easy to follow. You never leave us to guess which way to go.                                                                                                      ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Grow Old Gracefully

I’d like to tell you about a lady I visited yesterday.   She is ninety-five years young.  She recently moved into nursing home.  She asked one of the workers how many times she would have to walk around the outside of the building in order to walk a mile.  She said the person told her about ten.   Then she leaned in really close and whispered, “I walked around twelve just to be sure I walked a mile.”  Hahahaha! What a lady!  She loves to keep active, even in a nursing home.  As we talked, I saw no anger or bitterness in her speech or actions. There was only a love for God, a heart of compassion, and a sense of humor. She has befriended the one "prickly pear" at the home because as she said, “I have to love her, so she knows Jesus loves her too.”  Wow!!! I need to live like that!  I want to show that much compassion for those around me that need Jesus.  She loved to talk about God and what he was teaching her. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

What’s That Smell?

To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life. 2Corinthians 2:16 Last break!  The shift was almost over. Then the unthinkable happened, this man appeared out of nowhere wanting to know where the flashlights were kept.  As we were on our way to the flashlights, I noticed that this man had a very strong odor.  I thought perhaps I could get in front of him so that the smell would not be as strong.   That, however, was not to be either since; he insisted on keeping pace and walking right beside me. By the time we got to where the flashlights were; I was practically running just to keep ahead of him.  I showed him the flashlights and made a hasty exit.  If you’re like me, you shower and even put on perfume or cologne so that you will not stink.  We are concerned that the smell coming from our body is not offensive to others.  As I write this, I wonder if we are as concerned with our spiritual aroma as ...
Post a Comment
Read more