I am convinced that much of Jesus' teachings had to do with clarity. He instructed women and men that followed Him to be clear and decisive in what they think, speak, and do. Apparently, He realized that every individual has a tremendous amount of creative energy, which is scattered and misused when people fail to provide a proper channel for its expression.

"Let your word be, Yes, yes; No, no. For whatever is more than these comes from evil".
Matthew 5:37

By saying this, Jesus not only disproved an ancient habit of swearing by places and things to reinforce a statement. He pointed to the value of affirmations and denials.

When it comes to "no" statements, there are two aspects we need to consider. We need to learn to hear "no" and to say "no".

Ability to hear "no" from others without feeling pain and resentment is critically important - for our emotional well-being, and for our success as well. Many salesmen consider it to be one of the greatest secrets of their career. Before they can make a sufficient number of sales, they have to face many rejections. Those who cannot stand being rejected, eventually go out of business. However, this principle works on many levels, not just in business negotiations.

What do we do when life seemingly says "no" to our plans and dreams? What do we do when it looks like the way ahead is blocked, our resources are exhausted, and all opportunities are gone? Are we able to face obstacles without loosing confidence in ourselves - and in God?

The fundamental question is, how do we perceive ourselves - as victims of circumstances, determined and conditioned by what the outside world has to offer, or as masters of our lives, endowed with divine power to create our destiny and success? When we start moving forward with an assumption that we are important, that we have within unique gifts to bless the world, that no person or no event can ever undermine our value, that all things ultimately work together for good, we will be immune to resistance. It will neither distract us from our goals nor make us quit. On the contrary, it will stimulate to think and work better than before - to rise up to the challenge we need to deal with.

And here comes our need of being able to say "no".

I once read someone who said that ability to say "no" is of more importance than ability to speak in another language, and I agreed wholeheartedly. The problem with some people is that they want to be nice with others - and by this they could become opened to manipulations. Sometimes, they think that saying "no" would mean that they are loving enough. Of course, this cannot be true.

We are loving when we are obedient to promptings of love within our heart, being directed in our actions by the Spirit within. Divine love, expressing through people, can be generous, but it can never be unreasonable. Above all, it cannot be manipulated.

People often consider Jesus to be the perfect expression of God's love - and yet, many of His actions, recorded in the Bible, do not look "nice" from a human point of view. Apparently, He did not care.

We are encouraged to say "no" not only to other people's intrusions, but also to their negative suggestions. Some individuals think that they can be sympathetic with us by voicing their concerns about our health, our finances, our relationships, and so on.

If someone says things like, "what's wrong with you, you look so bad", it would be the best for us not to agree with statements that imply limitations, weaknesses, and powerlessness. It is not a matter of how we may feel at a moment. Feelings are temporary. But the words of our mouth make imprints upon our lives, either for good or for ill. We are able to talk ourselves either into sickness or to health, either into failure or to success. There is great power in spoken words, so it is profitable to use only positive and affirming words regarding all aspects of our being.

Let every time we encounter apparent things or conditions we do not want to see in our lives, our words be, No, no. We have the power to dissolve and to let them go - if we only awakened to the reality of this power.