NEWS AND VIEWS

Vicki's Book News and Articles

Don’t Despair When God Says No

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I’ve heard from a lot of you in the past week–many of whom are despairing. When we pray hard for something and it doesn’t turn out as we wish, it’s easy to feel God failed us. It’s easy to despair. It’s easy to feel all is lost and to fall into what I call the abyss, where hope is dead and we wallow in its absence.

I don’t have to tell you that’s a bad place. If you’re in it, you know it, and you know how destructive it is. And you do know that or you wouldn’t be writing to me asking for help out of the abyss.

I wrote an article a while back, When God Says No, that I’m going to share with you. But I’d also like to remind you that even the most keen among us has a very limited perspective. God doesn’t. Even if we think we know it all, we don’t. Even if we believe we have all the answers, the truth is we don’t even know all the questions.

It’s easy to have faith when everything is calm, and things are going our way. But think about it. Exactly how much faith does that require? It is when we don’t see clearly, can’t find the light at the end of the tunnel, are fearful of losing it all that we most need faith. We struggle to find it or hang onto it, and we think we just can’t do it. But we can. A mustard seed’s worth is all it takes. A free-will choice. A leap. That’s it. We muster that, manage that, summon that–and we can–and God will do the rest.

While indeed we are in times that try men’s souls (and women and kids’ souls, for that matter), faith is our weapon. We’re told to shield ourselves with the full armor of God, that if we walk with Him, He will fight our battles for us. He’s ready and waiting only for us to choose.

We walk blindly, in faith, unable to see and without knowing exactly where’ll we’ll be when the music stops. The certainty is in that if walking with Him, regardless of where we are or what happens between now and then, when that music stops, we’ll have a chair.

So read the article below, and do not despair. Courage and fortitude might be required. If so, you’ll have it. What you need, He will provide. It’s time to have faith, believers. Be strong, and trust He who sees all, knows all, is still on His throne and for Him there are no surprises.