For as heaven is higher than earth,
so my ways are higher than your ways,
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
Isaiah 55:9

Often God says no to a prayer request in order to grant something greater than what we had asked of Him. Amy Carmichael prayed as a child that God would replace her brown eyes with blue eyes. She was Irish. The other little Irish girls didn’t have brown eyes. She thought perhaps the boys didn’t like girls with brown eyes. Amy wanted blue eyes, so she prayed in childlike faith to her loving Lord Jesus.

Amy had studied God’s word and He said, “Ask whatever you want, and it will be done for you.” (John 15:7) She didn’t understand the need for context as she studied Scripture, so she went to the Lord in earnest prayer for a change in eye color. With the faith of a child, she went to bed believing God for blue eyes, got up in the morning, ran over to the mirror, and found to her dismay that her eyes were still brown.

Amy struggled with God’s denial of her simple prayer request. She remembered her disappointment years later when God was using her to rescue children from a life of prostitution in the temples of India. She was able to get in and out of the temples because, with a veil covering much of her face, she could pass as Indian; all they saw were her brown eyes.

God had a ministry plan for Amy that she could not envision as a little child. God knew before the foundation of the world that Amy Carmichael was to be His and that Amy Carmichael was going to be used to bring many Indian children into His family.

The apostle Paul knew what he wanted. Yet God had something better for the apostle Paul. He wanted His power to be made perfect in Paul’s weakness.

Paul says, “So I take pleasure in weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and in difficulties, for the sake of Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Cor 12:10

When God says no to our requests, we are being given an opportunity to trust Him. Hebrews 11:6 says: “Now without faith it is impossible to please God, since the one who draws near to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.”  We must really believe that God will reward us if we diligently seek Him. This is the essence of faith. Even when circumstances are difficult, God is good. Even when pain is intense, God is good.

 

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