In this article, you will find Bible verses that relate to not getting what you want. Learning what God wants for your life and accepting it can be difficult. God’s plans may include something different than you had in mind, but they are always better. The world can seem unfair when we don’t get our way, especially when it comes to things that happen in our relationships. Instead of focusing on what you can change yourself, turn your eyes toward Jesus Christ—who is faithful and who loves us beyond measure.
There are many things in life that we may not get or achieve. If you think about it, there really is nothing you need to be upset about. The Bible contains many scriptures about knowing yourself, trusting and surrendering yourself to God, and letting go of the little things. Not getting what you want is not the same as not deserving it. This blog post shares Bible verses and quotes that will help you find success in life.
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Bible Verses About Not Getting What You Want
1. James 4:3
“You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.”
2. Psalm 37:4-5
“Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.”
3. Proverbs 16:9
“The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.”
4. Matthew 6:33
“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
5. Romans 8:28
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
6. Philippians 4:6-7
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
7. Jeremiah 29:11
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
8. 1 John 5:14
“And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.”
9. Proverbs 3:5-6
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”
10. Ephesians 3:20
“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us.”
These Bible verses remind us that God has a plan for each of us, and sometimes not receiving what we want is a part of His greater purpose. Trust in His plan and seek His will above all else.
Bible Verses About Not Getting What You Want
- In life, we often find ourselves yearning for things that we desire. However, the Bible reminds us that sometimes we may not get what we want, but that it is all part of God’s plan for us. Here are some verses that speak to this truth.List of Bible Verses:
- Proverbs 19:21 – “Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.”
- Psalm 37:4 – “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
- James 4:3 – “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.”
- Isaiah 55:8-9 – “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
- Proverbs 3:5-6 – “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”
Lord, why are you standing aloof and far away? Why do you hide when I need you the most?
Psalm 10:1 TLB
Not getting what we want may be one of the biggest challenges to our faith. When God doesn’t seem to give us what we want, we often feel like the psalmist in Psalm 10 – that God is standing far away, aloof, and hiding when we need him most.
While we can’t possibly have all the answers for why God does what he does, we can look at some Scriptures to help us understand how God parents us, and how to work through our emotions when we don’t get what we want.
Let God change your value system
How much better to get wisdom than gold, to get insight rather than silver!
Proverbs 16:16 NIV
My religious self agrees with this verse right away, but my flesh doesn’t. There are things I think will better my life in the “silver and gold” category. Money, for example, can seem to promise prosperity, freedom from stress, and the ability to do whatever I want to do whenever I want to do it.
Other things in the “silver and gold” category for me include success, the admiration of people around me, a comfortable life, and getting what I want when I want it.
What’s your “silver and gold”? What do you tend to desire on a daily basis to make you happy and meet your needs – God’s wisdom, or something else?
Having a “quiet time” where we spend time reading God’s Word and talking to him in prayer is supposed to be something of a wrestling match with God, who is trying to change our value system. Our value system (what we think is important) is influenced by our desires and wants.
Anyone who has parented a toddler understands what I mean by a wrestling match: Parents try to teach their kids to value things like sharing, being safe, and accepting the word “No,” … and kids don’t always like submitting to their parents’ judgment. But the wrestling match can actually be a good thing because it teaches children valuable lessons they’ll need throughout their lives.
Questions:
- What are some things you tend to value that might be different from what God wants you to value?
- How do you think God has been trying to change your value system?
God teaches us to value humility
Better poor and humble than proud and rich.
Proverbs 16:19 TLB
One of the things God tries to change in our value system is that it’s actually better to be poor and humble than proud and rich. This is hard to buy into because I have my own desires that are in conflict with God’s.
Humility is a greatly valued characteristic to God. Humble people have room for God in their lives (Psalm 10:4). They ask God for help and are happy because they see him working, instead of being consumed with themselves (Psalm 69:32). Humble people are able to be close to God, while the proud he can only know from a distance (Psalm 138:6).
I think God knows that if we are more humble, we will be happier, and allows things to happen to help us become humble when we aren’t getting it on our own. This is not punishment; it’s God leading us toward a much better destiny and a closer relationship with him.
God may be working through a situation in which you are not getting what you want to help you change something in your relationship with him. Maybe he wants you to learn to trust him, to pour out your heart to him, and rely on him emotionally. Learning to be truly humble toward God is a lesson that may be more valuable than the thing we were initially searching for:
The reward of humility [that is, having a realistic view of one’s importance] and the [reverent, worshipful] fear of the LORD Is riches, honor, and life.
Proverbs 22:4 AMP
I don’t know what God knows
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. [9] “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
Isaiah 55:8-9 NIV
One of the hardest things about telling my toddler daughter “No” is that I know she won’t understand my reasons for saying it. When I make her hold my hand in a parking lot, for example, all she sees is me limiting her freedom, and she usually gets upset. But I see the bigger dangers of walking around amongst moving cars. My thoughts go beyond what I know she can understand, and I know it will be frustrating for her. But for her own best interest I have to do it anyway.
Similarly, God’s thoughts go beyond ours. I think he tries to work to expand our minds about what’s really important. Maturity means having the wisdom and humility to admit I don’t know what I don’t know. I can’t see everything, and I don’t know everything God knows.
Questions:
- Can you think of any areas of your life in which God is trying to teach you to trust him and to think bigger?
- Or to trust that he has bigger plans when he says “No” to what you want right now?
God is a parent to us
What is causing the quarrels and fights among you? Don’t they come from the evil desires at war within you? [2] You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it. [3] And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong-you want only what will give you pleasure.
James 4:1-3 NLT
One of the most difficult battles of parenthood is watching our children fight for things we know won’t be good for them. Our children don’t have the experience yet to know that things will hurt them, so they think they can do more than they can. The battle to help our children value what we know is good for them is a constant one that only intensifies as they become teenagers.
Like a good parent, God fights this battle for us. When we are not on the same page with God about what’s good for us, we will fight against him. Do you have your own ideas about what you think will make you happy? Are your ideas of what will make you happy driven by feeling good, feeling important, or other things that God says won’t lead to lasting happiness or security (1 John 2:15-17)?
When we are driven by pleasure or envy, we tend to desire the wrong things for our lives and we begin to battle with God and anyone else who stands in our way.
Will I agree with God?
Do two walk together unless they have agreed to do so?
Amos 3:3 NIV
One of the most important things we can do when we spend time with God is to get our hearts in a place where we agree with him and how he wants us to live.
Questions:
- Do you trust God over your own experiences and desires?
- Do you fight to agree with him and what he says in the Scriptures over your own emotions?
Understand what’s happening to you
Keep trusting in the Lord and do what is right in his eyes. Fix your heart on the promises of God and you will be secure, feasting on his faithfulness. [4] Make God the utmost delight and pleasure of your life, and he will provide for you what you desire the most. [5] Give God the right to direct your life, and as you trust him along the way you’ll find he pulled it off perfectly!
Psalm 37:3-5 TPT
Do you give God the right to direct your life? In this passage, God promises that he will provide what you desire most and he’ll pull off your life perfectly. He can pull off your life even better than you could.
One thing that helps a lot with trusting God is making a decision each morning to become aware of what’s happening to your heart. For example, you can ask yourself questions like:
- Where am I wanting to turn for happiness today?
- What emotions or situations are tempting me to turn away from God and take control of my own life?
- What sins are starting to turn my heart away from trusting God?
Once you are aware of what’s happening to your heart, you can talk to God and read Scriptures that build your faith in his plans for you and his care for your life.
Helpful Bible Verses about Overflowing Blessings
God wants you to be blessed abundantly! What are your expectations, specifically? What is your genuine faith in the Gospel? Have you placed limitations on God’s ability to help you? Do you find yourself being held back by dread or doubt?
Bible verses about overflowing blessings
The following Bible verses will help you study and clear your doubt about these limitations.
Proverbs 3:10 – God is a generous provider
So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.
~ Proverbs 3:10
In this verse, the Lord promises to reward faithful Christians. This is similar to Deuteronomy 28:11–12, where Israel is promised heavenly blessings.
However, Solomon makes us understand that those who reverence God have a better chance of succeeding than those who live in disobedience.
God has pledged to provide for all of our needs according to His riches in glory till it overflows. God is a generous provider, yet a closed hand is unlikely to receive benefits.
Isaiah 43:2 – God’s blessing of protection is overwhelming
“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they will not overflow you When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, Nor will the flame burn you.
~ Isaiah 43:2
We as Christians have been assured that God’s promises of protection and assistance are available to all who put their faith in His name.
The children of Israel went through the Red Sea on dry land, but the Lord’s enemies were drowned in the same waters.
No matter what life throws at us, the Lord has promised never to leave us or forsake us. The precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ has redeemed us, and His blessings will overflow in our lives.
Psalm 23:5 – More than our heart desires
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; My cup overflows.
~ Psalm 23:5
This Bible portion is how David sees himself as the Lord’s honored guest, with David’s foes as captive observers.
David compares the Lord’s kindness to a shepherd who makes a feast for his sheep and spreads the food out on a table or trough.
The overflowing cup David shows could be the filled cup offered by the host. This concludes that God provides for us more abundantly than our heart’s desire.
John 7:38 – Beliving in God is a crucial factor
He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
~ John 7:38
The urgent invitation to come and drink the living water is still extended today to whosoever would believe in Him and come, for life and light are found only in Him.
Christ is the Rock from whom rivers of live water flow, eventually becoming a well of water gushing up into everlasting life.
This live water is provided to those who trust in the Person of Christ and His atoning work on the cross, for, as the Scripture says, “he who believes on ME shall flow rivers of living water from his innermost being.”
1 Thessalonians 3:12 – A prayer for overflowing blessing
And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you.
~ 1 Thessalonians 3:12
In this verse, Paul outlined the guidelines for living a decent and godly Christian life to be blessed by God. He wrote to reassure them that Christ would reward them.
Paul’s epistles are full of sound advice on living a sanctified life as a regular Christian, and they frequently include the names of other believers who worked along with him.
When we do God’s will, He will bless us, and our blessings will be overflowing.
Joel 3:18 – Christ is the foundation.
And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth of the house of the LORD, and shall water the valley of Shittim.
~ Joel 3:18
We are told that the source of this abundance overflow is God, from whence the streams flow.
This Fountain is Christ; his sufferings, merits, and grace cleanse, refresh, and produce blessings for all who believe in Him.
From the house of the Lord above, from his heavenly temple, flows all the good we taste every day and hope to enjoy eternally. To enjoy all these, we must go to Him.
Psalm 78:20 – God promises to overflow blessing
Behold, he smote the rock, that the waters gushed out, and the streams overflowed; can he give bread also? can he provide flesh for his people?
~ Psalm 78:20
We have seen in this verse how the children of Israel were complaining. Their clamors and murmurings were accompanied by an evil heart of unbelief.
Despite all the evidence of God’s omnipotence they’ve experienced on their journey, they denied his ability to provide for them bread and meat.
God has promised to bless us with overflowing blessings and abundant riches when we trust Him.
What is the biblical meaning of overflow?
In the Bible, the word ‘Overflow‘ is used about God and his blessings; there is always more than enough for everyone who wants it.
The word overflow can also refer to an abundance of wealth. The Bible tells us that God has blessed us with good things (Psalm 1:3). There is enough for everyone to have plenty if they choose to share their blessings with others (1 Timothy 6:17).
We are blessed with the ability to give and share our gifts with others. By doing so, we can help them experience the joy of giving and receiving love from others. This is what Jesus did during his time on earth; he gave freely of himself so that others could experience his unconditional love (John 15:12).
Scriptures on abundance and overflow
Abundance and overflow are two crucial ideas in Christian theology, taught by many classes of Christians. God is said to be more than enough to give us everything we need. It expresses the spiritual law that states that our giving will bring back to us, sometimes in ways we might not expect.
This section looks at scriptures on prosperity and how to reach that place of wealth in Christ.
Jeremiah 33:3 – Abundant blessings
Call to Me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’
~ Jeremiah 33:3
Peace, prosperity, comfort, and hope are prophesied for the kingdoms of Israel and Judah right in the middle of Jeremiah and extension for those that believe in God.
God has vowed to restore Israel to its ancestral homeland. He’s promised to return their property and repopulate the country with happy men and women singing.
When we call upon Him in times of problem, He will bless us with an abundance of blessing and goodness.
Psalms 45:1 –
My heart is inditing a good matter: I speak of the things which I have made touching the king: my tongue is the pen of a ready writer.
~ Psalms 45:1
Like the pen of a good poet, the psalmist was guided by the Spirit of God and wrote in this verse about Jesus, his kingdom, and his government.
There is more in Christ than there is or can be in any other creature.
Because the world and its allures are poised to pull our hearts away from Christ, we are concerned to comprehend how much more deserving he is of our love.
The goodwill of God is revealed to us through his word, promise, and Gospel, and the excellent work of God begins and continues in us. And we are assured that he will bless us with the abundance of blessing till it overflows.
2 Peter 1:2
Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord.
~ 2 Peter 1:2
Peter greets his readers, and his wish is for the readers to enjoy an excess of grace and tranquility from God, which he defines as more than enough.
Peter prays for those things in and thorough the knowledge of God and the Lord Jesus Christ for his readers.
In other words, Peter’s welcome is a prayer for his readers to experience abundant grace and peace as they come to know God and Jesus the Lord.
Psalm 65:11
Thou crownest the year with thy goodness; and thy paths drop fatness.
~ Psalm 65:11
Christians may encounter storms and hardships while passing through this sinful world, but God has assured us to be with us and help us through anything.
As He assisted us in crossing the finish line of the past years, He saw our suffering and watched our perseverance.
He rejoiced in our triumphs and consoled us through our trials. He delights in seeing His children grow into the image of Jesus Christ. And he has promised to bestow on us abundant blessings and overflow joy.
Psalm 86:5
There is none like you among the gods, O Lord, nor are there any works like yours.
~ Psalm 86:5
David has experienced God’s overflowing grace and blessings, made known to all the nations that The Lord our God is Almighty, unmatched in knowledge and eternal in grace.
Let us join our hearts and voices with those who have gone before us and confess quickly, “No one among the gods can compare to You, O Lord our God.
Who else compares to You, glorious in holiness, awesome in praises, and capable of miracles? No one can complete Your task since only You are worthy of our appreciation.
Ephesians 3:20
Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us.
~ Ephesians 3:20
With a doxology of thanksgiving extolling God’s mercy and grace, Paul brings this uplifting section of His epistle to the Ephesians to a close.
Paul wants us to KNOW that God is capable of exceeding all that we may ask from him or think.
Paul wants us to KNOW that God can supply us with overflowing riches and blessings only if we accept Him as our Lord and personal savior.
Psalm 145:8
The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.
~ Psalm 145:8
David makes us know that our God is good and merciful. These are the true definition of our Lord Jesus Christ, and these may be said of him genuinely and with great propriety.
He is gracious, kind, and good in all instances. He is full of grace and freely distributes it; his words are words of grace; his Gospel, and its doctrines, are doctrines of grace.
His works are of grace and goodness, all flowing from his wondrous grace and mercy, in abundance for us all.
Where in the Bible does it talk about blessings?
The Bible says there is no greater joy than to serve the Lord with all your heart, soul, and mind. The apostle Paul wrote that he had learned to be content in whatever state he was (Philippians 4:11). It’s possible to have joy while you’re being persecuted, sick, and going through financial hardship — it’s possible to have pleasure because of those things. But there are times when we will not be able to experience the fullness of joy unless we’re filled with the Spirit.
What does the Bible say about exceedingly abundantly?
The Bible says that God wants us to be exceedingly abundant in every area of our lives.
The word “exceedingly” is translated from the Greek word perissos, which means “superabundant.” When we are exceedingly abundantly blessed, we have more than enough of everything we need. Our abundance far exceeds what we could ever need or want.
This is what Jesus meant when He said, “I have come that they may have life and have it to the full” (John 10:10). He wants us to experience life fully — not just a part of it.
We can experience this abundant life because Jesus said it was for everyone who believes in Him (John 3:16). If you have accepted Christ as your Savior and Lord, then God has given you everything you need for life and godliness through His Son (2 Peter 1:3).