NO-ing is half the battle

It was, of course, one of the first words that both of our kids learned. As much as we tried to not sound like a broken record repeatedly chanting…

• • “NO – Elijah don’t touch the hot stove”
• • “NO – Gigi do not pull on the doggy’s tail”
• • “NO – Don’t stand up in your highchair”
• • “NO – Don’t put the dead bug in your mouth”

No ended up coming out of our mouths – mostly with a good desire to protect and guide our children towards what was best for them in any given moment. Most of the moments when NO was used it was essentially used for good reason. As I find myself regularly saying “NO” to our children – I am actually learning that the person I need to say NO to more is myself.

Saying NO to good things is helping me to say YES to the best. My humanity has such an adverse response to saying NO because I hate disappointing people. I hate looking like I have human limits. I hate having to miss out on something that is fun, exciting, energizing, and where everyone else will be. I hate that NO usually doesn’t come with a smile. I hate that NO often disappoints. I hate that NO doesn’t always meet expectations. I hate that NO might cause me to be left out on something in the future. But I am beginning to rejoice over the greater things that NO is bringing to my life.

• NO is actually causing me to live with more peace.
• NO is helping me to be more intentional in my relationships instead of always spreading myself too thin.
• NO is helping me to embrace my limits and give away more ministry to others.
• NO is a regular reminder of what I value most.
• NO is a reminder that I can’t do it all – and any moment when I thought I could was a movement towards becoming more narcissistic instead of a servant.
• NO helps me remain on mission to what only I can do.
• NO now essentially allows me to be able to say YES later.

So here is to hoping you give a BIG FAT NO to some good things today – so that you can say YES to the best.

So how about it?  What are some good things you need to say NO to doing that will help you say YES to the best?

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