When God Says No

"Lord, I have this great idea about what should be going on in my life. It would really make things better for me, for my loved ones, and of course it would allow me to serve you more effectively. Won't you please bless my wonderful plan?"

Let's face it--a good portion of the time, God's answer to our prayers is "no." So what's up? Is He mad at us? Are we being punished? Does He really care about us at all? Some times it can really seem that way. But we're dead wrong to think so. God loves us more than anyone else possibly could, and His love for us never changes, never dims, never is less that all the love He has to give.

So why do so many of our prayers seem to go unanswered, or answered "no." It's precisely because of that love He has for us. This may be a little hard to swallow, but much of the time we are seeking things that really aren't going to be good for us. We have this fleshly nature that can't help but think that it knows best. And a lot of our prayers aren't asking for God's will for us, but rather His approval for what we've already decided is the best thing we need. And believe this, my friends, He's not going to grace us with what isn't good for us.

So the question ought to be not why isn't God going along with what we are asking for, but are we truly praying for the guidance and wisdom of the One who knows All things. He knows far better than we about what we need, and the consequences of allowing us to trust in our limited understanding. Follow Him, dear ones, and in all things we will indeed be more than conquerors.

"This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.
-1John 5:14-15