When God Says "No"

      By Fern Horst

"And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong." (II Corinthians 12:7-10)

Have you found yourself asking God for the same thing over and over again, to no avail? The Apostle Paul tells us that he asked God three times to remove a "thorn in the flesh" from his life, but it didn't happen.

There's much speculation about what Paul's thorn in the flesh was. It's probably best we don't know, as we can more easily apply his testimony to our own lives. As singles we can perhaps speculate that Paul asked God to remove his singleness and give him a wife! Most theologians, though, believe that it was a physical ailment, likely his weak eyes, that Paul was seeking healing for. There's no way of really knowing for sure. It could have been the persecutions he was experiencing, or financial difficulties, or even a difficult relationship or criticism from others.

Whatever it was, Paul didn't get angry and bitter and declare that God doesn't answer prayers when he didn't get what he asked for. In fact, he tells us that God did give him an answer and it was this: "My grace is sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in weakness."

In other words, God had a purpose for not removing the very thing Paul asked to have removed! If He had answered Paul's prayer in the affirmative, God's purpose would not have prevailed in Paul's life in the way He had planned. There are thorns in our lives that either God has placed there or allowed to be there so that in our weakness and lack we rely on Him all the more. It is in that reliance on Him that He is able to be strong through us, and in some cases accomplish so much more than if He had given us what we had asked for.

Amy Carmichael, a single missionary to India where she opened an orphanage and served for over 50 years, asked God as a child to change her brown eyes to blue. God's "no" answer challenged her childish faith. Many years later she realized why God had given her brown eyes. They enabled her to be accepted in a foreign land where blue eyes would have seemed very strange to those she loved and served.

The bottom line is this: do we trust God to give us what He knows is best? When we don't receive the answer to our prayers that we would have liked, do we become angry and bitter? Or is our response like Paul's, realizing that in the "no" answer to our prayers something better than a "yes" answer takes place in our undesireable situation?

The sooner we can rest in God's answer - whatever it is - the sooner that something better can happen. And the sooner our hearts can be full of peace and joy.

"In acceptance lieth peace." - Amy Carmichael (1867-1951)

© 2006 Fern Horst

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