Oasis community church - Pastor Brent Gibson - God am I the only one you say no to

The claim, “not my will, but God’s will,” brings the series to the hard place of receiving an answer that is not the answer somebody wanted. Isaiah 55:8-9 says God’s thoughts are nothing like human thoughts, and God’s ways are far beyond anything people can imagine. God sees the whole picture while people often see only the little piece right in front of them.

The image of a child in the back seat makes that plain. The child sees a playground and wants to stop right now, but the parent knows the destination is Disneyland. The child thinks the parent is only saying no because the parent does not care about what brings pleasure in that moment. God sometimes says no to a relationship, an opportunity, or a job because God sees the brokenness, pain, and stolen peace that cannot yet be seen.

The contrast between a no and a no for now also matters. The child who wants to drive at ten years old receives a no, but that no does not mean driving will never happen. God may say, “Wait, not right now,” because timing matters and because God has something better prepared. Hezekiah’s story in 2 Kings 20 shows that God can speak life after death seemed certain, giving the king fifteen more years.

God is not a vending machine where somebody inserts a prayer, presses a button, and expects a bag of Doritos to fall out. God is Father, and Father knows what his children need. First John 5:14 anchors that confidence: God hears requests that are according to his will, not merely according to human desire.

Christ in Gethsemane shows that prayers and tears are never wasted. Paul’s thorn shows that a no does not mean God does not love somebody, because God’s grace remains sufficient even while the thorn remains. The enemy wants people to look around and believe everybody else gets a yes while they alone get rejected. God calls the person carrying an unanswered prayer to run closer, pray deeper, trust his character, and remember the miracles of yesterday when today’s answer still feels like no or wait.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. God sees beyond the present moment [23:30] God sees what cannot be seen from the child’s seat in the car. The desired opportunity may hold brokenness, anxiety, or a loss of peace that only becomes clear later. God’s refusal can be protection, not punishment. [23:30]
• 2. A no can mean wait [26:55] God’s timing does not work like human urgency. The child who cannot drive today may still receive permission and ability later. Waiting requires trust that God is not withholding goodness just because the answer has not come yet. [26:55]
• 3. God is not a vending machine [29:30] God cannot be manipulated by the right words, enough tears, or a demand for immediate results. Fatherhood means God gives what is needed according to his wisdom, not according to a person’s preferred outcome. Prayer becomes deeper when it seeks God’s will instead of trying to control God. [29:30]
• 4. Grace remains with the thorn [34:02] Paul’s unanswered request did not mean abandonment. God’s sufficient grace met Paul in the place where the thorn remained. Faith does not depend on every burden disappearing, but on God proving faithful within the burden. [34:02]
• 5. Run closer when God says no [34:29] The enemy uses delay and disappointment to make people feel rejected by God. God calls wounded hearts to come nearer instead of walking away. Trust grows when God’s character and past faithfulness become stronger evidence than present confusion.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [11:16] - Not My Will, But God’s Will
• [11:56] - Praying for God’s Will
• [13:42] - His Truth Over Personal Truth
• [15:23] - Learning to Hear God’s Voice
• [18:08] - God’s Thoughts Are Higher
• [19:39] - Am I the Only One God Says No To?
• [20:32] - The Playground and Disneyland
• [22:36] - God Sees What People Cannot See
• [25:59] - When No Means Wait
• [27:37] - Hezekiah Receives More Time
• [29:30] - God Is Not a Vending Machine
• [30:43] - Asking According to God’s Will
• [32:25] - Unanswered Prayers Are Not Wasted
• [34:02] - Paul’s Thorn and Sufficient Grace
• [35:56] - Trust God Through No and Wait

Bible Reading

Isaiah 55:8-9
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
[18:08]

1 John 5:14
“And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.”
[30:43]

2 Kings 20:1-6
“In those days Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came to him and said to him, ‘Thus says the Lord, Set your house in order, for you shall die; you shall not recover.’ Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, saying, ‘Now, O Lord, please remember how I have walked before you in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in your sight.’ And Hezekiah wept bitterly. And before Isaiah had gone out of the middle court, the word of the Lord came to him: ‘Turn back, and say to Hezekiah the leader of my people, Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Behold, I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the Lord, and I will add fifteen years to your life.’”
[27:37]

2 Corinthians 12:7-9
“So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
[34:02]

Observation questions

1. According to Isaiah 55:8-9, how are God’s thoughts and ways compared with human thoughts and ways?
2. In the picture of the child in the back seat, what does the child see, and what does the parent know that the child does not see? [20:32]
3. What does Hezekiah do after Isaiah tells him that he will die, and what does God say he has seen and heard? [27:51]
4. In 2 Corinthians 12:7-9, how many times does Paul ask for the thorn to leave, and what answer does he receive from the Lord?

Interpretation questions

1. What might it mean that God’s “higher ways” are not simply different from human desires, but are also wiser and more complete than what a person can see in one moment? [23:22]
2. First John 5:14 says God hears requests made according to his will. How does this shape the difference between praying with honest desire and trying to demand a certain outcome from God? [30:43]
3. Hezekiah received healing and fifteen more years, while Paul’s thorn remained. What does this contrast show about why believers should avoid assuming that every faithful prayer receives the same kind of answer? [29:21]
4. God’s answer to Paul was, “My grace is sufficient for you.” What could sufficient grace look like in the life of someone whose painful situation has not changed yet? [33:46]

Application questions

1. Is there a relationship, job, opportunity, healing, or family situation for which you have been asking God for a clear yes? What would it look like to honestly bring that desire to God while also saying, “Not my will, but yours”? [22:48]
2. When an answer feels like no, is it possible that God is protecting you from brokenness, stolen peace, or something you cannot yet see? What helps you trust God when you do not understand his protection? [23:39]
3. Is there an area of life where God may be saying “not now” rather than “never”? How can you wait faithfully without becoming discouraged, bitter, or trying to force the outcome? [26:04]
4. Have you ever treated prayer like a vending machine—expecting that the right words, enough tears, or enough faith should produce exactly what you requested? How can your prayers become more focused on God’s will and character? [29:44]
5. What unanswered prayer have you been tempted to stop praying about? How might you keep praying deeply while trusting that your prayers and tears are not wasted? [31:58]
6. What “thorn” or ongoing weakness are you carrying right now? Where do you need to ask God to show you that his grace is sufficient, even if the thorn does not leave immediately? [34:17]
7. When disappointment makes you feel like everyone else is receiving a yes from God, what past evidence of God’s faithfulness can you remember? How can remembering those moments help you run closer to God instead of away from him? [34:29]