I love the privilege of prayer. I confess that I severely lack in my prayer life, and rarely practice diligent asking, seeking, and knocking. (See Matthew chapter 7 verses 7-8). But when I come to my senses, remember the power of prayer and actually partake in divine conversation, there always seems to be a bit of anxiety in the waiting for the answer.
I get anxious because I don’t want God’s answer to my request to be “no”. To my fault, I selfishly desire my will over His. I am often blinded by my sinful prayers masked in spirituality with the hopes that God would not take notice of my evil intent.
In honest prayer and confession unto the Lord, I’ve learned contentment when He shuts the door and answers, “no”.
Why God says, “No”
In the “no”, I’ve learned that God has something wiser, and purer for my life. Because God is All-Knowing, and All-Loving, I can trust Him even when I don’t understand the “no”. If God isn’t approving of a certain request, there must be another alternative that would give God more glory.
Learning Contentment
Through daily bible reading, fellowship, and prayer, God has brought me to deeper level of trust. This trust in Him calms my anxious heart and restores an eternal perspective that God is in control. Though I may never understand the bigger picture until heaven’s gates, I can always trust the heart of God revealed in scripture.
My friend reminded me that when I cannot see God’s hand, that I can always trust God’s heart. I like this piece of advice, because I rarely see God’s hand in my life until time has passed and the fog of uncertainty has dispersed.
Loving the, “No”
God’s, “no”, implies that there is something greater to be grasped. I can fight my bitterness, confusion, and frustration of the “no” with the excitement that God has something eternally better for me. The open doors and unknown adventure of God’s, “no” now inspires me to increase my prayer life and seek His better alternative. I learned to love the “no” because it tells me that there is a better “yes” waiting to be revealed.
Keep on praying
Dear Praying Believer,
Do not lose heart. Keep on asking, seeking, and knocking. God is sovereign, wise, and full of unconditional love. He only gives good gifts to His children.
Praying for you, Aaron Sabio
Aaron serves in Murrieta, CA and is a pastor at Cross Culture Ministries and is also the director of On The Edge.
Aaron Sabio’s previous articles may be viewed at http://www.pressserviceinternational.org/aaron-sabio.html
Aaron Sabio lives in Oceanside LA, is a pastor at Calvary Chapel Vista in Southern California. He enjoys coffee, volleyball, and singing with his worship band, [REVO]Collective.