Grace That Teaches: How Will Learned to Say No and Live with Purpose

Frank Wible
Jul 11
2 min read

Will always lived for the next party. At 28, he was known as the life of every Friday night, arriving at the bar with a loud laugh and a round of shots for his friends. But Monday mornings told the truth. He woke up alone, his room smelling of stale alcohol and broken promises.

Frank Wible - Young man in a dimly lit bar leans on a counter, expression neutral. Three empty shot glasses and neon signs visible in the background. — *Will lived for pleasure but woke up empty every time.*

He tried to clean himself up after a DUI. Started attending church again, sat quietly in the back pew with arms crossed and mind wandering. Grace is for good people, he thought. People who don’t mess up like me.

One Sunday, half-listening, his ears caught the pastor reading Titus 2:12: “It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.” Will sat up straighter. Grace teaches us? He’d always thought grace just erased guilt. No one ever told him grace could change him.

That week, he woke up before work and opened his Bible. Every verse about grace seemed to confirm it—it wasn’t permission to keep failing; it was power to start standing. The next Friday, when his friends texted to meet at the bar, Will sat on his bed staring at his phone. His chest tightened with panic at the thought of being alone on a Friday night. He whispered, “God, I want to say no, but I’m scared.”

He stayed home. Ordered pizza, watched an old sermon online, and cried when the preacher said, “Real men don’t live by what feels good. They live by what is good.” That night, he slept with a clear mind for the first time in years.

Over the months, Friday nights became Bible study nights. He joined a men’s group, learned how to cook actual meals instead of drive-thru burgers, and started volunteering on Saturdays to repair homes for elderly church members. Each time temptation whispered, he repeated Titus 2:12 under his breath: Grace teaches me to say no.

Frank Wible - Five people sit in a circle, one holding an open book, engaged in discussion. A cross and flowers are visible in the warm-lit room. — *Grace isn’t permission to fail. It’s power to stand.*

Today, Will still fights temptation, but he fights from victory, not for it. He mentors young men in his church battling addiction and identity confusion. His message is simple: “Grace isn’t just forgiveness. It’s strength. It’s grace that teaches us to say no so we can finally live yes to God’s purpose.”

What area do you most need God’s grace to teach you right now?