Faithful Man: Devotions for Living in Faithless TimesSample

When God Says, “No”

My daughter’s eyes behind her Wonder Woman mask are bright with tears. “The lady over there wouldn’t give me candy,” she says, her voice warmly. “She was mean for no reason!”

“Oh, honey, I’m sorry.” I find myself shooting rather unrighteous angry looks at the stranger across the lawn. We don’t know these people or this neighborhood; we are at a fall festival with friends, all of us new to town. I hug my girl close, hoping her whole night isn’t tainted.

Fast-forward a few weeks. My daughter—today she’s head-to-toe princess for no other reason than it’s Thursday, and why not be royal?—runs up to me.

“Mommy, can I have some candy?” She gives her eyebrows a hopeful wiggle.

 “No, honey, you’ve already had enough sugar today.”

Mild disappointment flicks across her face, but she doesn’t argue—just sighs then sashays back to the playroom, her kingdom.

In both these situations, my daughter’s quest for candy got a no. The first no was hurtful and cast a cloud over her entire evening; the second no was no big deal, a momentary disappointment. What was the difference? The difference was in who said no.

The first no came from a harsh stranger with an unkind spirit; the second came from a trusted family member who had her best interests at heart. The first no felt painful, arbitrary; the second was understandable, even necessary. It was all about who was saying no.

Think about how we read the phrase: When God says, “No.” Our eyes go straight to the no, don’t they? We unconsciously read it like this: When God says, “NO!”  All caps. Bold letters. Angry voice.

But what if we changed the emphasis? What if we read it like this: When GOD Says, “No?" Because who the no comes from makes all the difference. No from a cranky candy hoarder is different than no from a loving parent. No from a stranger is different than no from a friend. Psalm 103 describes our God, our Father and Friend, like this: “The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love” (v. 8).

Compassionate.

Gracious.

Slow to anger.

Abounding in love.

That’s the kind of God who draws us close: a kind God. A God who shows us a Father’s love, a forever love—even when He tells us no.