Even if He doesn’t, I trust Him.
Even if He doesn’t, I am blessed.
I am blessed because He loves me, and many times a part of being a loving Father is saying no.
When my six-year-old wants to get a 20 ounce Coke from the store, my husband says no.
When my eight-year-old wants to spend the night at the friend’s house who she met ten minutes prior, her father says no.
When my three-year-old wants to play with a cell phone instead of using her imagination outside, her dad says no.
None of these things would kill the kids if he said yes (unless those new friend’s parents were psychopaths), but it was, in the very least, much better for them if he said no.
God loves when we ask because He loves talking with us, and He always answers. It’s just that His answer isn’t always yes. Many times it’s no, because more than anything He loves us and desires His best for us, not our best for us.
When we can face the fiery furnace of this life and say, “but even if He doesn’t,” then we are truly blessed. We’re blessed because we understand that the hot pits of this world mean nothing when held in comparison to eternity in His presence and love. It may get uncomfortable for a little while, it may even be painful, but it doesn’t last. Even if He doesn’t save you from your present fire, He promises to deliver you forever to a lasting afterlife of no more pain. Sometimes fire is just meant to purify us, to burn out the places that don’t belong. Sometimes you gotta smell like smoke a little to remind you of the truth.
And the truth is…
Even if He doesn’t,
He still loves you. He still has plans to prosper you. He still has plans to work out all things for your good.
Even if He doesn’t,
He’s still God, and we won’t bow down to anything less just to avoid a little fire.
