Summary

Have you ever received a "no" answer from God that left your head spinning? When you feel like you had the right amount of faith and were praying for a righteous desire, a definite "no" can feel like a devastating personal rejection. If you are looking for "when God says no" quotes to help you hang your faith on something solid while your heart feels like it is breaking, you are in the right place.

In this episode of the Arise, Women of God podcast, host Tamara K. Anderson and licensed clinical social worker Wendi Christensen unpack profound, comforting insights from religious leaders like Timothy Keller, Elisabeth Elliot, and Richard G. Scott. We explore the concept of "severe mercies" and why a refusal from Heaven is often a protective guardrail preventing error. We also discuss the "Manager Trap"—why it is so easy to blame God when things go wrong, and how to navigate the grieving process with Him instead of running away. Tune in to discover why you must never attach your personal worth to a closed door, and learn how to trust that God is protecting your eternal best interests!

Episode Takeaways

• The Manager Trap: It is completely natural to be angry with God when you receive a "no," because He is "the Man in charge." It is okay to grieve, but you must ask yourself: "Do I want to go through this pain with Him or without Him?"
• A Severe Mercy: As Elisabeth Elliot wrote, "God's refusals are always merciful. Severe mercies at times, but mercies all the same." A "no" is often a protective guardrail keeping you from tumbling down a steep incline.
• The Perspective Gap: Timothy Keller profoundly stated, "God will either give us what we ask or give us what we would have asked if we knew everything He knows." God says no because He sees your eternal best interest.
• Don't Tie Your Worth to a "No": The adversary will try to convince you that a "no" means you are unworthy or unloved. Do not attach your personal value to a closed door; a "no" is not a divine rejection.

Quotes from Authors & Leaders Mentioned

• "God's refusals are always merciful. Severe mercies at times, but mercies all the same." — Elisabeth Elliot
• "God gives us what we ask for or something better, not necessarily easier if we trust Him." — John Piper
• "God will either give us what we ask or give us what we would have asked if we knew everything He knows." — Timothy Keller
• "He says no to a few things so He might say yes to many more." — Elizabeth Lang Thompson
• "When He answers yes, it is to give us confidence. When He answers no, it is to prevent error." — Richard G. Scott

Powerful Quotes from Tamara K. Anderson

• "A 'no' is never empty; it is a placeholder for something greater."
• "A 'no' can be like a protective guardrail on the highway of life, preventing you from tumbling down a steep incline. A 'no' is not a divine rejection."
• "God cares deeply about who you and I are becoming through the challenges we face in life. He knows that the absolute sweetest victories only come after a season of struggle."
• "Do not interpret God's 'no' in your timeline as His absence or His lack of love."

Powerful Quotes from Wendi Christensen

• "It's okay to be angry at God for a while... but stop and pause and ask: 'Do I want to go through this with Him or without Him?' And with Him is so much better than without Him."
• "We need to be really careful not to attach our worth and our value to a 'no.' Because God isn't rejecting us... He just sometimes is like, 'That's not in your eternal best interest.'"
• "I'm in it for the long haul, not just for the short one. So if I look at my eternal best interest, He has that perspective way better than I do."
• "Sometimes it's a 'no' because I know something better for them, and if they go through this experience, they're going to be stronger because of it."

Resources

Ready to build the resilience you need when a door closes? Get our free Roadmap to Revelation bundle with a downloadable pdf & an MP3 Meditation to help you calm your mind and prepare to Receive Light & Revelation here: https://www.womenwarriorsoflight.com/Roadmap-to-Revelation

Reflection Questions

• Which of the "when God says no" quotes shared in this episode resonated with your current situation the most?
• Have you ever fallen into the "Manager Trap" and found yourself angry at God because He is the one in charge?
• Can you look back at a past "no" and see how it served as a protective guardrail (a "severe mercy") in your life?

Host & Guest

Tamara K. Anderson @tamarakanderson

Wendi Christensen @wendichristensencounseling

Transcript

https://www.womenwarriorsoflight.com/blog/when-god-says-no-quotes

Have you ever received a no answer from God that left you just spinning? You felt like you had the faith. It was a righteous desire and the answer still came back as a definite no.

Perhaps you're looking for when God says no quotes because you need a hook to hang your faith on when your heart feels like it's breaking. You're trying to understand how a loving father can look at you and your pain and study still say no.

Oh my friends, I have felt that way so many times and you are in the right place today.

By the end of today's episode, you will understand how to separate your personal worth from a closed door and learn the secret to navigating the grieving process with God instead of running away from Him.

We're going to help you solve the feeling of spiritual disappointment by unpacking powerful insights from religious leaders like Timothy Keller, Elizabeth Elliot and Richard G. Scott, along with a good solid look at the manager trap we fall into when we get angry with heaven. We're moving from he rejected me to he is protecting me. Stay tuned. Ordinary Women Extraordinary Faith When God calls, we say yes.

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Arise Women of God podcast. I'm your host Tamara K. Andersen, and joining me today is my wonderful co founder of Women warriors of Light, Wendy Christensen.

Now, the perk to having Wendy with us today is that she has also been a licensed clinical social worker for the last 30 plus years and she has lots of experience of helping people navigate the no's that they get from God in their life. So when we face the brick wall of a no answer, we need to anchor ourselves in the character of God.

As Elizabeth Elliot wrote in her classic book Keep a Quiet Heart quote, God's refusals are always merciful. Severe mercies at times, but mercies all the same. It takes immense spiritual maturity to see a refusal as a mercy.

I like how she described it as a severe mercy because it doesn't feel like a mercy from God when we get a no. And it's something we desperately want, right? Especially when we are in the thick of it.

It becomes easier to swallow when we understand why God refuses. John Piper famously stated, God gives us what we ask for or something better, not necessarily easier if we trust him. That is so profound, right?

A no is never empty, it is a placeholder for something greater. Wendy found a quote by Timothy Keller that perfectly explains the gap between what we see and what God sees.

And he says God will either give us what we ask or give us what we would have asked if we Knew everything he knows. Isn't that a great quote?

It's kind of like, I see it as, you know, if you have kids, your children ask you for something and you might say no, because you know there's something better waiting, or, you know, that's not in their best interest, even though they're begging and pleading, please, please, please, Mommy, can I please have it? I want it, I want it.

And you're thinking, no, we can't have all that sugar before dinner because you need to have your dinner first and then you can have it, right? Sometimes it's a weight as well.

I often look back on inspirations that I've received in my life, Doors that have been shut, nos that I've been given. And 10 years later, I'm like, oh, I can see it now. And so it's a matter of trusting that God can indeed see where this new path is taking us.

The challenge is we can't see down the path as clearly as God can. And sometimes when we get told no, we get. Get angry. Let's just call it what it is, people. And this is what Wende calls the manager trap.

You're gonna go through some grief. You're gonna be sad or maybe angry. Maybe you're gonna resent God for a while and blame him. Like, why?

And I always thought, why is it that God gets the blame for everything? And I thought, well, it's because he's the one in charge, right? If something doesn't go well, you look for the person in charge to blame.

If you're at a restaurant, things don't go well. Let me talk to the manager, right? Or if you're working and things don't go well in your job, you're like, I'm going to talk to my boss about this.

We always go to the man in charge. So I think God. God gets the brunt of a lot of our anger sometimes. Like, he's the man in charge. Why didn't he change this? Why didn't he fix it?

But I think it's something we need to pause and reflect on and go, it's okay to be angry at God for a while, Especially with something like a death. That's okay. Just stop and pause and go, is it in my best interest to stay angry? Do I want to go through this with him or without him?

And with him is so much better than without him. But if you need to step in that space for a moment and go, I'm really angry that you took this person from me.

Be there for a bit acknowledge it, but then walk through it and talk through it and get on the other side of it.

So, my friends, sometimes we have to walk through, through life and the challenges of it to see the purpose on the other end. Elizabeth Lang Thompson wrote, quote, he says no to a few things so he might say yes to many more. End quote.

Isn't that powerful thought that he sometimes says no to give us more options or more opportunities farther down the line? Just that idea gives me hope in my mind. The challenge is the adversary likes to use a no answer to create doubt in our mind.

He whispers, and tell me if you're familiar with any of this. Things like God, if God loved you, he would have said yes. This no means you aren't worthy. And then we spiral because we believe it.

When that happens, you just cast out those doubts and cast out those untruths and replace it with truth. I am a child of God. God loves me.

He forgives me when I make mistakes and I can come to him in prayer and he will lead me and guide me down the best path for me. I love what religious leader Richard G. Scott masterfully taught, quote, when he answers yes, it is to give us confidence.

When he answers no, it is to prevent error, end quote. Isn't that a great way of also looking at a no answer?

That a no can be like a protective guardrail on the highway of life preventing you from tumbling down a steep incline. A no is not a divine rejection. Wendy has seen so many women get caught up in this trap of tying their personal value to the outcome of a prayer.

As she she has some great advice on that.

But it's being able to be resilient. I think in those moments when you're in a pausing, a waiting, or even a no, and to realize that your worth doesn't come from that specific outcome.

Because sometimes I think we associate a no with rejection. God's just rejecting me. He doesn't love me. I'm not important enough to him. So we're attaching it to our worth in that moment.

And we need to be really careful not to attach our worth and our value to a no. Because God isn't rejecting us. He just sometimes is like, that's not in your eternal best interest.

That's how I like to look at is this in my eternal best interest? I'm in it for the long haul, not just for the short one. So if I look at my eternal best interest, he has that, that perspective way better than I do.

And sometimes that's all he's saying is, hey, hold off my sweet daughter. I do have something coming.

If you can just be patient, if you can take your deep breaths, if you can just sit in a moment, I'm bringing you to a better place and a space.

God cares deeply about who you and I are becoming through the challenges we face in life. He knows that the absolute sweetest victories only come after a season of struggle.

So know you're not alone in struggle, and yes, God sees you in it, and he will help you through that struggle as you learn to tip toward Him Even in the no answers I.

Can't tell you how many people, as they're talking through their difficult moments in their lives, will pause and they'll say, but you know what? Even though that was a really hard time for me, I learned so much about myself through that experience. And I think that's what God's wanting.

He's wanting you to grow and to experience and to become just like back to the little kid that's wanting that thing right then and right now. Sometimes it's a no because I know something better for them and if they go through this experience, they're going to be stronger because of it.

Oh my dear friends, if you are standing before a severe mercy today, do not interpret God's no in your timeline as his absence or his lack of love. He could be preventing error. He could be saying yes to more possibilities down the line because he is looking out for your eternal best interest.

To help you build the resilience Wende talked about and find your footing when a door closes, we want to give you our Roadmap to Revelation downloadable PDF. In it you will find six steps to hearing God better in your daily life.

You can also listen to the Receiving Light and Revelation audio meditation done by Wende to help you clear your mind and begin to receive that light and power of God in your mind and in your heart so you can more clearly hear him and feel his love, even if it is a no answer. When the no feels overwhelming, I invite you to open this guide to Step number five, Safety Checks for the Soul.

Use the fruit check to quiet the voice of the adversary that often shames us. That tells you that a no means you are not loved. Then turn to step six, the Evening Review.

Unlog the tiny ways God is comforting you in the dark while you wait for the sunrise. You can download these two free resources free by clicking the link below.

So Mike please friends, when God says no, remember that he loves you, that he has your best interest at heart, and that he will lead you and help you along to a better and brighter yes. At the end of this season of Trial and until next time, may you arise. Do it God's way. God strong.