When God Says No: 4 Lessons from Job's Story

The other day people were sharing stories of miracles at church and I wanted to stand up and say, "And sometimes God says no." Sometimes the miracle doesn't happen. What then?

When God Says No: 4 Lessons From the Book of Job

1. Hard Things Happen to Good People

The very beginning of the book of Job opens with this verse:

“There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright and one that feared God and eschewed evil.” (Job 1:1)

Then Job's life derailed and fell apart. NOTE: Job’s suffering didn’t come because he was bad, but because he was so faithful to God. (Job 1:8)

2. Friends May Fail Us, But God Never Does

Job’s three friends call him a wicked man and a hypocrite. Finally Job confronts them by saying:

“Miserable comforters are you all!”

“My friends scorn me; but mine eye poureth out tears unto God.” (Job 16:2, 20)

Even his wife tells him to “Curse God, and die.” (Job 2:9)

But he answers her wisely:

“Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?” (Job 2:10)

Three of my favorite statements from Job are these:

“Though he slay me, I will hope in him.” (Job 13:15)

“For I know that my Redeemer lives, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth. And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh I shall see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another.” (Job 19:25-27)

3. Trials Can Be for Our Good

“But he knows the way that I take; when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.” (Job 23:10)

4. Hope on--Blessings Come Eventually

In the last chapter of Job, he again humbles himself before God with an increased perspective that he should pray for his friends (even though they were unkind to him). Repentance, humility and forgiveness were a great stepping stone for Job. Job’s prayer then released blessings and opened the windows of heaven!

“The Lord turned the captivity of Job, when he prayed for his friends: also the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before.. . . So the Lord blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning.” (Job 42:10, 12)

Conclusion

What do you do when God says “no” and you don’t get the miracle you are looking for?

When my two sons were diagnosed with autism no matter how hard I begged, pleaded and prayed the answer was no. I learned these same lessons as Job. 1). No matter how good I was, this challenge was part of my life. 2). That God never failed me--in fact because I was so overwhelmed and weak day in and day out I had to lean heavily on Him to survive. 3). This trial and challenge of autism in my family has been for my good. I have learned so much and am a better person because of it. 4). Blessings have come into my life because of this challenge and I feel blessed and honored to have had God bless me with children who struggle.

#tamarakanderson #storiesofhopeinhardtimes #podcast #hope #God #hardtimes #Godsaysno #Job #BibleStory #trustGod #trials #challenges #hard times #faith #testimony #JesusChrist

Transcription

You can find the transcription of today's episode here:

0:03

Have you ever had God tell you No? Maybe it was something that you were really praying for and you really, really wanted. And the answer was no--even though it was something that was good. What do you do then when the miracle you want for you or someone you love just doesn't happen? If you've ever felt that way, you are not alone. We are going to cover this challenging question in a faith filled and hope filled way. Stay tuned.

0:42

Welcome to Stories of Hope in Hard Times, the show that explores how people endure and even thrive in difficult times. All with God's help. I'm your host Tamara K. Anderson. Join me on a journey to find inspiring stories of hope and wisdom learned in life's hardest moments.

1:07

Hello, and welcome to another episode of Tamara's Takeaways in the Stories of Hope and Hard Times podcast. I'm your host, Tamara K. Anderson. And today we are tackling a really, really difficult question. What happens when God says no, and it's something you really want, and you think it's something that's good for you or good for someone you love, and you just are feeling kind of beat up?

1:33

Recently at church, we had an important topic to discuss. And it kind of related around miracles. And one of the challenging things about having people share stories of miracles is that people who have had God tell them no, kind of feel like, well, they are more righteous than I am. And they got their miracle, and I didn't get mine. And so there must be something wrong with me.

2:04

And that's a really hard place to be. I don't know if you've ever felt that way. But sometimes when people get up and share story after story after story of miracles, I almost want to jump up and say, and then there's times God says no. And what do you do then? It's not because you're not faithful. It's not because you're not good. It's not because you're broken, and God doesn't love you.

2:30

And so, to dive into this story, I have personal experience with God telling me No, and we'll cover a little bit of my story at the end. But I wanted to dive into the stories of the scriptures of the Old Testament into the story of Job. Because he was a super awesome guy. And he had some really hard stuff come down on him. And so I think his story relates to each of us that have ever prayed for something, and it didn't work out. And it didn't happen the way we wanted it to.

3:05

Today, we're going to cover four lessons we can learn from the amazing story of Job of what we can do when God tells us No. Okay, so the first thing we're going to do is we're going to dive into the book of Job and we're going to learn that he really is a good person. First verse of the first book of Job, "There was a man in the Land of Uz. (And I don't know if I'm saying that right), whose name was Job. And that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God and eschewed evil." So here we have this awesome guy. He loves God. He's doing everything he can to the best of his ability. God loves him. He loves God. And he had all this property. He had 1000s of sheep, camels, oxen, a great household, he had lots of servants, and he had 10 children.

3:57

And all of the sudden, it's like his life unraveled. All of his children were killed in a windstorm. Marauders, took his animals, killed his servants. And then he was covered in boils. Now you can only imagine that he's grieving the loss of his children. He's grieving the loss of his property. And all of a sudden he is sick and covered in these super painful boils all over his body.

4:27

First of all, I can't imagine this scenario. I can't imagine losing all my children and the grief that that alone would cause me, but then to lose all my to lose my home to lose my money. Basically, that's what happened to Job. And so some people might look at him and say like his friends did. Dude, what did you do wrong?

4:51

But I think the important thing to point out here is the first lesson: hard things happen to the People. And the reason these things happen to Job, we learn in verse eight is not because he was bad, but because he was so good. So, so very good that he was going to be tempted. Well, is he going to stay true and faithful to God, if he doesn't have children if he doesn't have property if he doesn't have all these things? So sometimes when God says, No, we're being tested or tempted, or perhaps God is teaching us what He already knows about us--that we're faithful, and that we will stay faithful no matter what. I know that if I give Tamara or Susan or James or Brad, this test, that they will stay faithful no matter what. And so God knows that about us. The question is, do we know that about us?

5:56

So sometimes I think, God gives us these challenges, because we need to learn something. And it's because we are good, and we're doing our best. And He knows that we can be just a little bit better. So the first lesson to learn is hard things happen to good people. And just because you don't get the miracle you prayed for doesn't mean that God doesn't love you and that you aren't good. It probably means He loves you a whole bunch. And He has complete confidence in you that you can get through this, maybe not alone, but with His help.

6:29

The second lesson is building off of that last comment that we can get through things with God's help. And that is the lesson that friends can sometimes fail us. But God never does. And bless job, he lost all these things, and then he has these friends come and they're kind of hanging with them. And they were not very kind. They're like, Dude, what did you do? You must be wicked and, and they just start criticizing him and call them a wicked man and a hypocrite. And Job finally confronts them and he says, "Miserable comforters Are you all." You guys are not doing a very good job comforting me. Basically, is what he is saying. And then he continues, "My friends scorn me, but mine eye poureth out tears unto God." So here Job knows he's doing the best he can. His friends are not being very kind. But he knows that God sees his tears, that God is with him.

7:36

Even his wife says, "Curse God and die," which Holy cow--That's pretty awful. But he wisely answer serve, "Shall we receive good at the hand of God? And Shall we not receive evil?" He's saying, we happily receive good gifts from God. What about when hard things come? And boy, I don't know about you. But when Job-- when I read that statement from job, it kind of pricked me a little bit, because, yeah, it's great to receive blessings from God. But when hard things come into our lives, kind of we're mad. I don't know about you. Maybe it's just me. I'm like, What the heck, God? But Job has a really great perspective on it. He's like, hey, sometimes bad things are gonna happen. Are we going to shake our fist at God? We received the good things with gratitude. Shouldn't we also receive these hard things with gratitude? And it pains me a little bit to even say that, but it's a really good lesson from a very wise man.

8:40

He goes on to talk through in the next several chapters, his testimony of God and in staying with him in and comforting him. And these are some of my favorite statements from the book of Job first in chapter 13, verse 15, he says, "Though he slay me, I will hope and him." Isn't that beautiful, even though I die, even though I die from these boils, I'm going to hope in Him still. So just remember that no one, no act, no illness, no anything can steal your peace or your faith or your hope in God. So don't give up. Stay true to Him and never lose your hope in God.

9:25

Another great verse that he says, his testimony in chapter 19, verses 25 through 27. And this is beautiful. He says, "For I know that my Redeemer lives and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth. And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh, I shall see God. Whom I shall see for myself and mine I shall behold and not another." So what he's saying here is he's saying, I know that my Redeemer lives. I know that Jesus lives. I know he's going to come to Earth. I know that even though my body is going to be laying in the grave, and worms are going to eat it that yet I will be resurrected. And I will see God with these, this very body in this very eyes, in a perfect resurrected state. And so even though he was suffering with boils he was probably anguishing with grief inside his soul. He knew he had faith in and hoped for that day, when all would be made right. When the resurrection would come in, his body would be perfect, he would be healed from his boils. He would be healed inside from his grief. That he would see his children again, that he had just lost. That that is a powerful thing to hope in, when we're feeling like God's telling us No. And so that is, that is a great perspective to keep. And to remember that even though others may fail us, God never will. And we just keep hoping in him. That is huge, huge second lesson from Job.

11:15

The third lesson we can learn from Job is that trials can be for our good. And I know that at the time we're going through them, kind of we're thinking, I don't see the good in this God. This isn't the miracle I wanted. Um, can we reverse this whole situation and just go back to when things we're happy and dandy? But one of the beautiful statements of Job is in chapter 23, verse 10, where he says, "But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come forth as gold." And I love this because it shows that God knows and Job knew that God knew the path, the way he was on, he knew he was on this detoured path that he wasn't happy about. He saw him on that path. And he knew that when his trial was over, he was going to come forth as gold.

12:13

And it's interesting that he refers to this refining process of gold. Because as I did a little bit of research on the internet, about the refining of gold, I learned that one of the ways that gold is purified is is heating it till it's super high and melted. And then a chemical is added, which separates the impurities and they float to the surface of the, the, the liquefied gold, and you're able to scrape those impurities off. And so, Job knew that this refining process that gold goes through being heated to a melting point was so that God could scrape off perhaps a few extra impurities, and he could be even more pure. And I love that, quote, I love that, when he has tried me, I'm going to come forth as gold. This refining process can be for my good, even though I might not see it now.

13:18

There's a great verse that a friend shared with me when I was going through some difficult trials in my early adulthood. And, and it's in Romans 8:28. And it says, "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God." And it's just that concept that these hard things that you may be going through right now, God can turn them for your good Eventually. So you've just kind of hope on. These trials, something goods gonna come from them, even though I may not see it now. Even though I don't like it when God tells me No, something good will come from this.

13:53

Now, the fourth and final blessing is to hope on because blessings come eventually. And so it is that hope of just keep going one more step, just keep putting one foot in front of the other, taking the next moment, moving forward, little bit by little bit. In the very last chapter of job and there's 42 chapters there. So it's a long book in the Old Testament, there's this really great part where Job humbles himself again before God with an increased perspective, and even though he's been angry with his friends, because they were not very kind to him, that that he should pray for his friends and forgive them. What a hard thing to do. Here he's been had so many hard things. His friends have been so unkind and called him wicked and hypocritical. And, and Job realizes that he needs to be humble and forgive them.

14:57

And so he prays and offers burn offerings to God for them. And as he does that, God, it's like God opens the windows of heaven. Job learned the lesson he needed to learn. And I love these verses in chapter 42 in verses 10 and 12, which talks about what happens here it says, "The Lord turned the captivity of Job when he prayed for his friends. And also the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before. So the Lord blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning." So even though Job was awesome, and totally set up in the beginning of his life, that the end of his life was double blessed. He had 10 more children, he had many more sheep and oxen, and camels. And it's just incredible to see that God can take someone so humble and broken, and bless them so immensely.

15:56

Now, some of you out there may be thinking, yeah, Tamara, but what if, what if what if somebody dies? What can I hope for then? Hope that those blessings will come eventually in the eternities? Because they will. Jesus Christ Himself talks about going to prepare us a mansion on high. And would it be heaven if we didn't have our loved ones with us?

16:25

So those are the four lessons that I've really take from the story of Job. First, that hard things happen to good people. Second, that although friends may fail us, God never dies. So keep hoping in Him. Third, trials can be for our good. And four, that we can hope on because blessings eventually come.

16:49

And so if you've ever felt a little frustrated, when people share their story of miracles, and wonder why miracles never happened in your life, know that you're not alone. There's many of us out there who have had situations happen in our lives where God told us no to. And I will share my quick story of, of when this happened to me, and it was when my cute little boys were diagnosed with autism, and I knew God could heal them. But he His answer was no. And that was hard to stomach. I'd seen God's miracles in my life before I'd been healed by him after a really, really bad car accident. I'd had impressions and thoughts and witnesses that God was there and that he heard my prayers. And I knew he answered them. I had, I'd had too many instances where I knew he was there.

17:46

And so I just didn't understand why he was telling me No, this time around. Wouldn't it be better and easier if, if, if they were healed? And the answer is, yeah, it probably would have been. But hard things happen to good people. Friends may fail us. And perhaps even me, I know, people have looked at me and perhaps avoided me because, you know, me and my family were different. But God never has failed me. And He's actually blessed me with some amazing and wonderful friends because of my kiddos. And I've seen this third lesson that trials have been for my good. As much as I cried and wept and vented to God and begged for my son's to be healed. Through the days and weeks and months and years of dealing with kiddos with special needs--long days and extra long nights. These is a cleaning poop up off the walls and that had been smashed into the carpet; having to leave events because they're tantruming or having a hard time. I can say that my life and the lessons I've learned that I'm a better person now than I used to be. And I've had to walk this road because it's been so hard. relying more on God. I've had to lean on Him as I never would have had to if He would have simply held them. Because I have not had the answers and they haven't been ones you can find on the internet. There's been lots of great suggestions but I've had to lean on Him. And by leaning on Him I've learned to love Him and trust Him more than I would have if He would have held them.

19:56

So I can honestly say now looking back two decades now of dealing with this challenge, that this trial has been for my good. And I'm thankful for it. I'm thankful that God didn't answer that prayer or I wouldn't be doing this podcast right now. Because I know what it's like to feel broken. I know what it's like when He says no, and I hope that I can be a voice of the questions you're asking and the challenges that you are dealing with. And just and share a little bit added perspective, perhaps, that maybe you hadn't considered before.

20:43

Anyway, that leads to the fourth thing that I learned in that is hope on because blessings come eventually. And they have, and they do. And every challenge that's presenting itself, even now with Nathan, graduated from high school, and from his post secondary program, and we're entering the job force. And we've had some challenges and, and things haven't worked out super easy. I've had to lean on God again, and we and so we've got this new idea that God's kind of placed in our brain, and we're starting to work on it. But these little answers and miracles and blessings come in such little tiny bites and increments that sometimes you don't recognize them until you're maybe a mile or two down the road. And you look back and go, Oh my gosh, we've come a long ways. So those blessings come.

21:35

And so for all of you out there, who are struggling and who feel like God is not answering your prayer that way you'd like. He's not sending you the miracles you want. He's telling you No. Can I invite you to apply the lessons learned from Job? Lessons I've learned in my own life, and through my own hardships? First, that hard things do happen to good people. You're a good person, and hard things are going to happen. 2. That other people may fail you but God never does. 3. That trials and challenges will work out for your good and 4. that you need to just hope on and hang in there until those blessings come--because they do eventually. Sometimes they come in this life. And sometimes we have to wait for the next for the resurrected, perfected body, or to see a loved one who has passed on.

22:37

But I'd like to add my witness to that of Job that I know that my Redeemer lives. I love Him. I'm thankful that my detoured journey has brought me closer to Him. And that has made me rely on Him because I'm better because of it. And my testimony is that you will be better because of your trial as you lean on Him, because He will never fail you.

23:08

Hope on my friend.

23:10

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24:35

Hey, thanks so much for listening to today's show. If you like what you heard, subscribe so you can get your weekly dose of powerful stories of hope. I know there are many of you out there who are going through a hard time and I hope you found useful things that you can apply to your own life in today's podcast. If you'd like to access the show notes of today's show, please visit my website storiesofhopepodcast.com. There you will find a summary of today's show, the transcript and one of my favorite takeaways. You know, if someone kept coming to mind during today's episode, perhaps that means that you should share this episode with them. Maybe there was a story shared or quote, or a scripture verse that they really, really need to hear. So go ahead and share this podcast. May God bless you, especially if you are struggling with hope to carry on and with the strength. Keep going. When things get tough. Remember to walk with Christ and He will help you bear the burden. And above all else, remember God loves you.