No, Really No?

No, Really No?

“You cannot go, Essie.” Marie had been through this so many times with her teenage daughter. Wanting to go places that just were not a good idea, especially with questionable characters. She went back to her room to grab the basket of clothes she had to put in the washer.Back in the kitchen, “Mom, please. I can take care of myself. I won’t do anything that you don’t allow.” Once again, Essie was back at it. “She is the persistent one,” Marie thought to herself, “but came by it quite honestly.” She remembered having these same conversations with her mother. Not quite as persistent, though. Or, maybe it just seemed that she wasn’t as persistent.

“I said NO, Essie. This conversation is over. And, if you keep pushing, you’ll lose something like your cell phone. I have my reasons. You may not understand now, but in time you will.” Essie just shook her head vehemently. She didn’t get the problem Mom had with her friends. They were cool. Maybe just little rowdy, but cool nonetheless. And, she didn’t always do everything they did anyway.

Sometimes no prevents you from getting in situations that you cannot handle. God sees the future. As my brother used to say (may he rest in peace), “God sees all of your days.” Having received no several times in the last several months, I now see why they were no. Had I insisted on my way, I would be miserable and way into some situations that would have been too much. When it comes to God’s grace and mercy, it goes without saying that sometimes we have to thank Him for what we don’t have as much as for what we do have.

As I was writing the scene above between mother and daughter, I remember quite a few times having that scene play out with my own children. Though they didn’t always understand at the time of the “no”, I know that it was for their own good. My love for them (which doesn’t even come close to God’s love for us) included protecting them from potential and possibly great harm as best I could.

When does close one door, He opens another. Sometimes that door is not the right one. God wants what is best for us. At any given time, the best for us may be no. Consider that God has your best interest at heart and He sees your future. He knows what we need most and His desire is for us to trust Him with our whole life.