When life doesn’t go the way we planned, it rarely feels like protection. It feels like loss. It feels like confusion. Sometimes… it even feels like silence.
But I want to sit with you in this today, and walk gently beside you.
I was 20, living in Colombia, attending college with a major in Psychology, serving on the radio at my church, surrounded by friends. Life felt aligned, organized, full of purpose.
My parents had just relocated from Bucaramanga to Medellín. The transition wasn’t easy, but I still had a place, a rhythm, a calling. I could continue studying, serving, building.
Then, just a few months later, everything shifted.
My parents received a call with a new mission: to move to the United States and help serve a Hispanic church in Medford, Massachusetts.
And suddenly, I was standing at a crossroads:
- Stay alone in Colombia?
- Go back and live alone in Brazil?
- Or follow my family into the unknown?
You guessed it… I moved.
And just like that, everything I thought my life would look like at 20 changed.
At the time, I didn’t understand what God was doing.
If I’m honest, I questioned Him.
I wrestled internally, much like the Israelites in the wilderness, wondering, “Why this way? Why now? Why not what I had planned?”
Fast forward 25 years later…
I can now clearly see what I couldn’t back then:
God’s plans were better than mine.
Not easier, but better.
Not what I expected, but exactly what I needed.
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.” — Jeremiah 29:11
At 20, I didn’t feel that promise.
At 44, I can testify of it.
Isn’t that often the case?
We think we know exactly what we need.
We hold tightly to what makes sense.
We pray for open doors, and when God lovingly closes one, it can feel like rejection instead of protection.
But Scripture gently reminds us:
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. — Isaiah 55:8
There are “no’s” in our lives that carry unseen mercy.
There are closed doors that quietly shield us from pain we never knew was ahead.
There are detours that lead us to people, healing, purpose, and growth we could not have found otherwise.
And I want to pause here, because I know for some reading this, the “no” you experienced wasn’t small.
It may have been the loss of a loved one.
A broken relationship.
A dream that never came to pass.
A prayer that still feels unanswered.
This is not about minimizing pain or wrapping grief in easy words.
God’s “no” does not always feel like protection in the moment.
Sometimes it feels like heartbreak.
And if that’s where you are today… your feelings are valid.
Your tears matter.
Your questions are not too much for God.
Even Jesus, in the garden, prayed, “If it is possible… let this cup pass from me.”
And still, He entrusted Himself to the Father’s will.
What if…
what feels like a “no” is actually God holding you with a deeper “yes”?
A yes to your future.
A yes to your healing.
A yes to a story that will one day make sense… even if it doesn’t today.
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him…” — Romans 8:28
Not some things.
Not easy things.
All things.
Pause to Reflect
Take a quiet moment and ask yourself:
- Where in my life have I experienced a “no” that I’m still trying to understand?
- Can I look back and see any moments where a closed door was actually protection?
- What would it look like to trust God, even without having all the answers?
- Am I holding onto something God may be gently asking me to release?
Write your answers down if you can. Be honest. There’s no judgment here.
A Prayer
Lord,
You see every heart reading this. You see the places where we feel confused, disappointed, or even hurt by what didn’t happen.
Help us trust You, not just when things go our way, but when they don’t.
Give us peace in the waiting, comfort in the grieving, and faith in the unknown.
Remind us that Your “no” is never careless.
That Your plans are never random.
And that even when we cannot see it, You are working for our good.
Hold us close, especially in the places that still ache.
And teach us to rest in Your wisdom and love.
Amen.
A Word of Encouragement
If today feels heavy… if something didn’t turn out the way you hoped… if you’re quietly carrying a “why” in your heart.
You are not forgotten.
You are not being punished.
You are not off track.
Sometimes the most loving thing God can do…
is not to give us what we asked for.
And one day, maybe slowly, maybe unexpectedly, you will begin to see it:
His “no” was never the end of your story.
It was the beginning of a better one. 🤍
If this encouraged your heart, share it with a friend who may need gentle reassurance today.
With Love,
Priscila