There is a word in my vocabulary that is gaining greater power in my life. This word has the power to change my course at any time of the day, and any day of the week. It is a word that no child wants to hear from his or her parents. It is a word that has often hurt the feelings of others when spoken from us to them, or from them to us. Yet it is a word that is like slow time-released medicine having its greatest impact later rather than now. It is a word that when I spoke it to myself, and meant it, caused me to change my diet, my health, my finances, my relationships, and my life. You may have figured out that I am speaking about that two-letter word, “No.”
Whatever changes you desire in your life must first begin with the word “No.” When I learned that my health was negatively affected by what I was eating I had to exercise the power of my “No.” When the foods, drinks, and sweets that I loved caused high blood pressure, acid reflux, obesity, and other health problems, I had to speak a resounding “No” to them whenever they called my name, luring me to ‘eat and enjoy.’ As I became more and more successful, I realized the power of such a small word.
Whatever is eating away at your life can be combated with an unwavering “No.” Is your marriage in danger because your lust is pulling you away from your spouse? Does your desire to please and not disappoint others cause you to say “Yes” when “No” would be the wise and loving thing to do? The more I exercised the power of “No” in my life, the stronger my “Yes” became. The surprising twist to exercising my “No” was that it wasn’t the discipline to say no to others that strengthened me, but it was the discipline of saying no to myself. Our ability to control ourselves increases our power in situations and circumstances in greater ways than our ability to control others or external circumstances.
When I think of my future success, I now look more to the things, feelings, thoughts, etc., that prevent me from achieving my goals and I simple say, “No, not today.”