He Might Say No

Hey. Sometimes God says no. Sometimes you can pray your hardest and it doesn’t go your way. And it’s not because you don’t have enough faith. It’s not because you aren’t a “good enough” person. It’s because God’s will isn’t always ours. And if God says no, He will help you learn to accept that eventually. If you allow Him to do so.

Let’s stop teaching people that our faith can bend God’s will. That’s not how it works. That’s not how any of this works.

Doesn’t the Bible say “If two or three agree on anything,  they’ll get it?” Yeah. But that particular scripture is in reference to church discipline, not bending God’s will.

I think of certain prayers as activating or setting in motion things that are already in God’s will.

“Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6:10

Pray without ceasing? Yes. That means don’t ever stop having a prayer life. Don’t ever stop talking to God. Tell Him what worries you. Tell Him your hopes, your dreams, your fears. Ask Him for guidance. Pray for the people you love. Pray for the people you don’t like. Keep the lines of communication wide open. It means never stop praying. It doesn’t mean praying for something fifty times will change God’s mind.

It’s okay if you don’t understand that. But I pray that you will begin to try to wrap your heart and mind around it.

Prayer is beautiful. Prayer is effective in many ways. But when you start teaching people that they aren’t being healed or having “Victory” because of their own lack of faith or their inability to measure up, that’s a problem.

Some things do not line up with God’s long term plan for your life. And God is the ultimate giver and taker of life…figuratively and literally.

If you belong to Jesus…Stop giving the enemy so much power. Satan cannot stop God. He is not an equal match. He is not the scapegoat for every bad thing. He is the antagonist in the story of your life…at times. But it’s because God’s allowing a difficulty for some bigger picture reason.

Now, if you’re not covered by the blood. You’re on your own. And the enemy of your soul might have a free for all or perhaps he’ll leave you alone entirely since you aren’t really a hassle for him. But in the end, you will be eternally separated from God.

Every minor/major issue is not “the devil”. I know it’s hard to accept that God’s plan for your life doesn’t always match your vision.

People, things, and opportunities will all enter and exit your life as God sees fit. And yes, Sometimes we make bad decisions and we suffer the consequences.

But here me clearly and loudly:
Sometimes you will make all the right decisions and do all the right things. Sometimes you will pray all the right prayers, and beg God for the end result you desire…and He will not give you what you want. And that is because He knows best and He is God.

And life will be so much easier if you can embrace this truth.

How do you know this, Cassie?

Because when I was 24 years old, I watched my 27 years old husband code in front of me. And  I sat across the hall begging God, bargaining with God and proclaiming that he was “too young to die”.

And then, I felt God gently and without a word speak into my soul. He’s already gone and everything is going to be okay.

And that definitely did not feel okay. And I didn’t embrace it immediately. But, as life continued to unfold, I saw God’s hand.

And my personal belief is that if He had lived, it would have been because it was God’s plan. It would have been because God still had earthly work for him to accomplish.. It would not have been because I prayed hard enough, had more faith, or was a “better Christian”.

And this thing that’s not okay, it may never feel okay, but once you catch a glimpse of how God works everything out for your eventual good…you’ll be okay, too.

I know you’re prayed out. I know you’re desperately trying to clean out every nook and cranny of your heart and mind. I know you are trying to be a prayer warrior. And I know it’s exhausting.

I prayed for one thing specifically for several years. And eventually it felt like God was over me trying to skip over it “Are you still asking me to just disregard the reason I want you to walk through this and just let you off the hook? You’re not going to dismiss this opportunity to learn something and grow expeditiously because it’s hard. No ma’am. Lean on in girl.”

I know that’s probably not how you hear God. But it’s how I hear him. I believe that God speaks to my spirit and tells it like it is.

So I decided that for this particular life class, there is no out, no detour. And I don’t really like it and I’m pretty sure God knows that. But He’s far less concerned with me not wanting to go through it than He is with me becoming the person He created me to be.

So, I’m not asking God for a detour anymore. I’m just asking Him for open eyes and a clear path.

So lean in. He might say no. And it might pull the rug out from under you. But one day, you’ll understand.

And everything really is going to be okay.

🙏💜 Cassie

“We ask all things in Jesus’ mighty name and submit them to our Father’s Perfect Will in Heaven…Amen.“