"When You Can't Say....No!!"

I think you should....
I can't believe you didn't
Its' all your fault, I......
If only you had helped me...or been there, or done that....

The words ring through our minds
Accusing us of all that we should have said 'yes' too..

And then,..
as sure as the light illuminates the darkness ..
we put our hands on our hips..tilt our eyes heavenward
and realize somethings missing...

  
Have you ever gone somewhere..and wish you hadn't??
Agreed to be part...and later...changed your mind, mainly because your heart wasn't in it to begin with??
Suddenly realizing....
that your grasp of your native language..was lacking an essential word???

The word "No" is missing from our language,
often because we are striving to always live up to someones expectations.

While I am a firm believer, that it is essential to give of ourselves, in order to find joy.
I am equally firm that in order for any one's life to be fulfilled to the fullest
we must possess a sense of balance and peace.

Saying no to some things, frees us to fulfill the missions,...(the stuff of life that really matters)
Important things, God has truly called us to, even on a daily basis...

All the while remembering when God calls us to something,
He enables us to see it through to completion with a sense of purpose.

If we unintentionally operate from a place of failure.
Then we become divided and wrestle with the guilt of having said no......
Gaining confidence in our daily choices,
begins within a quiet moment of recognition, before we answer..

Recognizing that it is God alone who brings order to our days.
Recognizing that saying no to someone or something,
is often the very moment He leaves us open
to be fulfilled in ways we never expected...

Listening to His leading and learning to say 'no'....
May take us a lifetime..
But if a lifetime is all we have to complete His purpose..
Then I know,
I am one
who will be willing to say no
...in order to say yes to the things that really matter.

How we tell the difference between the two..begins....
when we find ourselves striving to meet His expectations
instead of those around us, who are sometimes only too willing to invite us
to travel with them on their guilt trips....

With God ..their is no guilt...only love...
and a sense of relief,
when we realize that...
He alone 
has stamped His approval on our hearts...
the day He said yes to the cross...

Proverbs 3:5,6
"Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight."