Numbers 24:25  Then Balaam left and returned home, and Balak also went on his way. (NLT)

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Sometimes, we reach an impasse. Stephen Covey says in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People that we are wise to work toward Win-Win outcomes. In this scenario, each person or party in a transaction wins. For example, I give you twenty dollars, and you give me a ticket to a Major League Baseball game. 

Covey also says that sometimes such an arrangement is impossible. It is perfectly acceptable to walk away. For example, I offer you twenty dollars for a ticket to a Major League Baseball game, and since this game will decide who goes to the playoffs, you raise the price to two hundred dollars. I decline because my bride would likely express a significant measure of displeasure. 

Instead of Win-Win, we arrive at the opposite end of the spectrum: No Deal.

Chapters 22 through 24 in Numbers tell a story about a boatload of money being offered to Balaam son of Beor to come and curse Israel. This great story involves prayer, answered prayer, a talking donkey, and blessings instead of curses. It is a highly entertaining episode. 

It also demonstrates the No Deal option in negotiations. 

Sometimes, the best deal is No Deal. 

Sometimes, the best baseball trade is no trade. 

Sometimes, God’s No is superior to an anticipated Yes.

Looking back over the years, I am so glad God said No on some key decisions and opportunities. I am so glad I waited for God’s Greater Yes. There are also a few regrets for those times when I forced a Yes or a No when I knew I should have agreed with God in the first place. 

The good news is that God’s grace is bigger than my ill-timed and disobedient Yes and No. The bad news is that I suffered some unnecessary consequences. 

Today, you and I stand on the precipice of major decisions. Will we seek God wholeheartedly? Will we obey him completely? Will we choose the pathway of blessing or burden? 

Since God is never in a hurry and always on time, waiting becomes a discipline of expectancy rather than irritation. 

Since God’s No is better than the best human Yes, I can thank him for delivering me from unnecessary problems and misdirections.

God’s No is a gift of grace. It leads to a Greater Yes. A Greater Yes is always worth the wait. 

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I will wait for God’s Greater Yes.

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Our Father, whatever you want, that’s what I want, too. As I walk before you, keep me from getting too far ahead. As I walk with you, give me a heart of agreement with your plans for me. As I walk through this day, empower me to hear you with increasing clarity and receive your instructions with perfect harmony. Amen.