Just Say No
The Struggle to Juggle Series PART FOUR
You should not feel the need to apologize, feel guilty, or give an explanation when you say no to someone or something that infringes on your family time. The only way we are ever going to be able to make our family our priority in this crazy busy world is to learn to say “No”.
My motto has always been, “No is not a cuss word!” Yet for some reason, I still find it a struggle when I have to say “No”.
Our desire to comply comes from a desire to please, a desire to be validated, to feel worthy, and to feel included. All those desires are completely natural, yet what we don’t realize is that for every “Yes” we say to the outside world, it usually equivalates to a “No” to our families.
How many times have you had to say “No” to someone in your home because you said “Yes” to someone or something else? It can happen before we even realize what we have done. And most of the time, we don’t want to go back on our word because that wouldn’t look good, right?
We can get so concerned about “looking good” to others, that we forget how we look to our own family. “No” doesn’t always have to be the answer. Using wisdom and discernment is choosing when to say “yes” and when to say “no” and requires direct communication with the Lord and with our families.
She opens her mouth with wisdom, and on her tongue is the law of kindness. ~ Proverbs 31:26
Use wisdom in your decision making. And be honest with yourself.
“Am I saying “Yes” because I really want to do this, or is it for another reason?”
Do you have a hard time with a straight out “no”? Then start with postponing your “yes” with a statement like “I’ll think about it and get back to you.” We must learn that it is okay to say “no”. We should realize that saying “no” sometimes doesn’t minimize who we are or how valuable we are. God will honor our efforts to prioritize.
Pray and seek God about what He would have you say “yes” to, and then feel free to say “no” to the rest.
