September 9, 2008
“For at least when we express our anger to God, our wrestling keeps us our skin pressing into His. God is still present. When we honestly expose our inflammation, express our soreness, we are still staking our commitment to our relationship with Him.” Ann Voscamp from her blog post, Even if He doesn’t: Learn to Lament
I love the fact that we have a God we can talk to. Share our fears, failures, and feelings with even the sentiment of being angry. Sometimes it may be anger directed towards God while other times it’s towards ourselves, other people, or situations. But thanks to an established relationship with the Lord we can sit down with Him to unload and talk things out.
As Proverbs 3:5,6 tells us, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” We need to go to the Lord to acknowledge Him seeking proper direction for our paths in order to find our way out of whatever it is that has us angered.
Our task is not to go to the Lord to dump and run but to find and seek the proper way through. Expressing anger to God is a good way of clearing the way to better thinking. It can open the necessary door to find its true source. It’s important that we don’t go to vent but to talk it out with God one issue at a time, sorting through the mire, wading through the muck of the source. There’s nothing that beats the feeling of the loving arms of God wrapped around us while we pour out our hurting heart to the One who can heal it.
Frequently we think that being angry is a way of dealing with issues when it’s really not. We don’t have to “get angry” to show that we are handling a situation. If you think about it lack of communication can be a source of anger. We hold inside things we should be talking about or releasing until the pressure inside us builds up and it seems to pop like a ripen zit. Sorry about the illustration but it fits. J
Anger directed towards God is often common. Without even knowing this is going on deep down inside of us we find ourselves angry at God that life wasn’t going as we had planned. Situations were not turning out as we figured they should. A love one died before we were ready to let them go. Unnecessary suffering, not getting what we prayed for, feeling cheated out of what others have. All of which contribute to the fuel that sparks this fire called “anger.”
I remember being angry with God once. He probably remembers it too because it was for a ridiculous reason. But isn’t that the way anger is. We get all worked up over something that isn’t as big as we like to make it out to be. In my case I was mad at God for not letting me “snap” like I wanted to. The pressures of life were greater than I could handle or so I thought. Snapping, going over the edge, losing it or whatever you want to call it was my way out.
However, God wasn’t about to take me “out” He was taking me through the current situation. In order to do it I needed to be able to travel. Therefore He kept slipping in those little bits and pieces of strength, encouragement, and love that I needed to keep me strong and able to make the journey life had given me. I could be mad at Him all I wanted but He wasn’t about to let me go and for this I’ll always be thankful.
Anger expressed is not necessarily anger resolved. We need to deal with it and going to God helps. Cuddling up to Him to share our feelings knowing He is listening is awesome. However He expects us to listen as well and learn and mature from these times. Learning how to release it instead of hold it in. To share it with Him without pointing all five fingers of our hand towards Him in blame.
Remember Mary and Martha and their anger toward Jesus about their brother. “If you had only been here our brother would be alive today!” They said. End of anger, they expressed how they felt and left it there in the trusting hands of Jesus. “Yeah but He at least raised their brother from the dead.” Ah ah ah there we go again getting off track. Our source of anger is not to be used as a hammer to pound over God’s head but as tool to get to the source to gain control before it controls us.
God cares. He’s more than a sounding block to shout at. He’s a Father who is there, who understands, who will love us through anything if we are willing to get ourselves into the kind of balance that will accept that love, that won’t reject His loving arms. One that is open to His guidance, faithful to His will, anchored in trusting His judgment.
Cuddle up to Jesus not to dump and run but to stop, seek and find. The extent of our relationship with Jesus depends on what we are willing to invest in it. It’s not a backup system for life’s problems. Put Jesus in the lead where He belongs, acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths. That’s a promise we have from God himself. Take it, live off of it, watch for it to happen. Praise the Lord.
Goodness gracious sakes alive I rattled on today. Why not go on over to Loni’s place at Writing Canvas and see who else is rattling on about today’s quote. Stop and share with others as you practice how stop, seek and find God in your life.
“For at least when we express our anger to God, our wrestling keeps us our skin pressing into His. God is still present. When we honestly expose our inflammation, express our soreness, we are still staking our commitment to our relationship with Him.” Ann Voscamp from her blog post, Even if He doesn’t: Learn to Lament
I love the fact that we have a God we can talk to. Share our fears, failures, and feelings with even the sentiment of being angry. Sometimes it may be anger directed towards God while other times it’s towards ourselves, other people, or situations. But thanks to an established relationship with the Lord we can sit down with Him to unload and talk things out.
As Proverbs 3:5,6 tells us, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” We need to go to the Lord to acknowledge Him seeking proper direction for our paths in order to find our way out of whatever it is that has us angered.
Our task is not to go to the Lord to dump and run but to find and seek the proper way through. Expressing anger to God is a good way of clearing the way to better thinking. It can open the necessary door to find its true source. It’s important that we don’t go to vent but to talk it out with God one issue at a time, sorting through the mire, wading through the muck of the source. There’s nothing that beats the feeling of the loving arms of God wrapped around us while we pour out our hurting heart to the One who can heal it.
Frequently we think that being angry is a way of dealing with issues when it’s really not. We don’t have to “get angry” to show that we are handling a situation. If you think about it lack of communication can be a source of anger. We hold inside things we should be talking about or releasing until the pressure inside us builds up and it seems to pop like a ripen zit. Sorry about the illustration but it fits. J
Anger directed towards God is often common. Without even knowing this is going on deep down inside of us we find ourselves angry at God that life wasn’t going as we had planned. Situations were not turning out as we figured they should. A love one died before we were ready to let them go. Unnecessary suffering, not getting what we prayed for, feeling cheated out of what others have. All of which contribute to the fuel that sparks this fire called “anger.”
I remember being angry with God once. He probably remembers it too because it was for a ridiculous reason. But isn’t that the way anger is. We get all worked up over something that isn’t as big as we like to make it out to be. In my case I was mad at God for not letting me “snap” like I wanted to. The pressures of life were greater than I could handle or so I thought. Snapping, going over the edge, losing it or whatever you want to call it was my way out.
However, God wasn’t about to take me “out” He was taking me through the current situation. In order to do it I needed to be able to travel. Therefore He kept slipping in those little bits and pieces of strength, encouragement, and love that I needed to keep me strong and able to make the journey life had given me. I could be mad at Him all I wanted but He wasn’t about to let me go and for this I’ll always be thankful.
Anger expressed is not necessarily anger resolved. We need to deal with it and going to God helps. Cuddling up to Him to share our feelings knowing He is listening is awesome. However He expects us to listen as well and learn and mature from these times. Learning how to release it instead of hold it in. To share it with Him without pointing all five fingers of our hand towards Him in blame.
Remember Mary and Martha and their anger toward Jesus about their brother. “If you had only been here our brother would be alive today!” They said. End of anger, they expressed how they felt and left it there in the trusting hands of Jesus. “Yeah but He at least raised their brother from the dead.” Ah ah ah there we go again getting off track. Our source of anger is not to be used as a hammer to pound over God’s head but as tool to get to the source to gain control before it controls us.
God cares. He’s more than a sounding block to shout at. He’s a Father who is there, who understands, who will love us through anything if we are willing to get ourselves into the kind of balance that will accept that love, that won’t reject His loving arms. One that is open to His guidance, faithful to His will, anchored in trusting His judgment.
Cuddle up to Jesus not to dump and run but to stop, seek and find. The extent of our relationship with Jesus depends on what we are willing to invest in it. It’s not a backup system for life’s problems. Put Jesus in the lead where He belongs, acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths. That’s a promise we have from God himself. Take it, live off of it, watch for it to happen. Praise the Lord.
Goodness gracious sakes alive I rattled on today. Why not go on over to Loni’s place at Writing Canvas and see who else is rattling on about today’s quote. Stop and share with others as you practice how stop, seek and find God in your life.
6 comments:
"God cares."
Couldn't have said it better myself. We only find out about that care when we let Him walk us through the pain and the struggles of our lives.
Blessings.
I enjoyed your "rattling..."
Great thoughts emerge when great minds rattle. The Bible is full of godly people who got angry. It's how we deal with the anger that determines sin/no sin.
Great post!
This has to be my favorite thing you wrote, "Cuddle up to Jesus not to dump and run but to stop, seek and find." I love the imagery of cuddling up to Jesus when I am hurting or frustrated and talking things out with him to seek answers and find out what he has to say. Thank you for sharing this :)
Very nice post dear.
"The extent of our relationship with Jesus depends on what we are willing to invest in it."
So true! And if we aren't completely open in that most important relationship...how can we ever think we can be a good partner in any other relationship.
Thanks for your post!
Wonderful post. Thanks so much for reminding me not to dump and run but to sit it out and get to the bottom of things.
Ava
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