Welcome No

Good morning, Five Minute Families. Do you have grit? No, we don’t mean gritty floors or grit in your eye. We mean the character trait of perseverance, effort, and passion for a particular goal in life. Grit is the buzzword right now. It was once “stick-to-it-ness” or even simply resilience. Whatever you call it, one way that you and your family can cultivate grit is to ‘welcome no.’ n. o. What does ‘welcome no’ really mean for a biblical family? First, let’s read Matthew 5:37, “But let your ‘yes’ mean ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ mean ‘no.’ Anything more than this is from the evil one.” The Bible tells us that our no should mean no, which means that no is not an evil word. Hear us, parents. No is not an evil word. Your kids might think it is, but it is not. If you want your kids to be able to accomplish their goals in life, you are going to have to use the backbone God gave you. Likewise, you have to seek God’s perspective in applying an attitude of ‘welcoming no’ in your home. Philippians 4:6 tells us, “Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Just as when we pray, we can hear one of three answers back from the Lord - yes, no, or not right now, as Christ-followers, we must be in His word so that we can rightly discern the ‘no’ from the ‘not right now.’ As a five-minute family, we can honor the Lord by ‘welcoming no’ so that we stay within God’s will always. To cultivate grit, parents, you must give yourself permission to say no. Many parents can be persuaded to change their minds, which means that the kiddos keep coming back and pushing until you change your mind. You are not teaching them perseverance by giving in. Yes, when a young lady entered the Miss USA contest seven years in a row, she was told no six times, but she came back only within the guidelines of the rules and next year’s competition. Teach your children when they may ask about something again. Talk with them at non-stressful times about how and when they should app