Not What I Had Hoped You'd Say

My 8 year old asked for a Bowie knife.  Perfectly good request in her eyes. I mean, to her this would be both practical and fun, right?

How surprised she was to receive the answer my husband and I gave her -- Clearly, NO. (Lol)

She counteracted our answer by reassuring us that she is getting to be a big girl now. We could trust her if we just gave her a chance.  

Obviously, no amount of pleading was going to persuade us. We love our child enough to make 'No' our final answer. We only want what's best for her.  Even if she doesn't understand why, she has to trust that our decision is for her own good. 

My requests go up to God in the same child/parent way. I tell Him what I'd like and He can respond yes, no, or wait (yes, but not now.)  In the same way my child has to trust my answers, I have to trust my Daddy's Answers. Only He sees it all and will answer in a way that is best for me (and anyone else affected by the decision). 

Here's an example... My husband, Bryan, is 9 years older than me.  Can you imagine if he asked God to bring him his wife when he was 20 years old?  If God answered the way Bryan prayed it, he'd be looking down at an 11 year old!  

See, He is God, we are not. When we keep that perspective and combine it with the fact that He is head over heals for us and loves us enough to leave heaven and sacrifice His life for us, we realize that no matter how He answers --especially when the answer is confusing and not our preference -- we can trust that it is the Perfect Answer, even if it leaves us scratching our heads.