Circle Maker Series: When God Says No

Do you remember a time in your life when God said No? I do. Most of you who have been following this blog knows our journey with Tyler back in 2006. We prayed hard for his healing for over two months. We fasted and prayed, prayed and fasted. But God said no.

Receiving a No answer can be a test of trust. Do you still trust the Lord even when you did not get what you want? Do you still trust the Lord even when He does not reveal His reasons to you? Do you still trust that His plans are better than yours? The hardest part about receiving a No answer is enduring all the unresolved questions that we have in our hearts. Sometimes, we may not admit it, but deep inside we may even feel betrayed and hurt by the Lord.

But you know what? Someday, when we finally understand God's reasons for saying No, we will start thanking Him for those seemingly unanswered prayers. Maybe the reason will not be clear at first or even a few years later. In fact, maybe it will never be clear in this lifetime! But here's what we need to remember.

Our Heavenly Father is far too wise and loves us far too much to give us everything we ask for

Do you know the story of Balaam and the talking donkey found in the book of Numbers chapter 22? Balaam was tasked by the King of Moab to curse the Israelites. The Lord already told him not to do it. But he was persistent and he went anyway. While on his journey, his donkey saw an angel of the Lord with a sword on his hand.  The donkey suddenly stopped and turned off the road. Balaam started to beat the donkey several times for he did not see what the donkey was seeing. He did not see the angel in front of them. After several beatings to get the donkey back to the right path, the donkey started to talk. Yes, seriously! The donkey said to Balaam "Am I not your own donkey, which you have always ridden, to this day? Have I been in the habit of doing this to you?" Then the Lord opened Balaam's eyes and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in front of them with his sword. And this was what the angel told him "Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? I have come here to oppose you because your path is a reckless one before me.  The donkey saw me and turned away from me these three times. If it had not turned away, I would certainly have killed you by  now, but I would have spared it"

Isn't this a funny story? I can easily see it as a Disney cartoon show. A talking donkey!  But you know what the real miracle is in this story? It wasn't the talking donkey. The real miracle is a God who loves us so much that He will get in the way when we are already going the wrong way.  The angel of the Lord would have killed Balaam had the donkey continued walking. 

Divine Detours often get us to where God wants us to go

Many times, what may seem like a No answer to us only means that God has a better answer for us. He gets in the way to show us the way.

Remember the time when the Egyptian army was chasing the Israelites? They were already at the border of the Red Sea and they can see an angry army charging after them. They cried out to Moses, their leader. But the Lord's instruction to them was to just stand still and stay calm. When you're at a dead end in the midst of charging army, probably the most difficult thing to do is to stand still and stay calm. But that's what the Lord asked of them. And as most of us know, a few minutes before the Egyptians got to them, the Lord parted the Red Sea.

A lot of times we want the Lord to part the Red Sea while the army is still far far away. But sometimes the Lord waits. And then He waits longer. But once again, the God who provided the Israelites with just enough (meat to eat), parts the Red Sea just in time. Yes, God's timing is perfect.

Keep Calm and Be Still

There is no need to panic. Praying hard is trusting that the Lord's got our back. I will end this post with a statement from the author of the Circle Maker. If the Red Sea is a scene from the movie, this can very well be Moses' line to the Israelites as they feared the charging Egyptian army.

"I don't know what we're going to do, but I do know what we are not going to do.  We're not going to be afraid. We're going to stand still.  And we're going to see the deliverance of the Lord"

Wait for it. His deliverance is coming.