Jesus, The King of Understanding. Part 2

I ended Part 1 by saying I was going to focus on what to do if anger or bitterness is keeping you from experiencing the peace and rest that Christ offers freely to every Christian. Let's hit that one head on.

What if you are angry at God because of something you or a friend/family member has been through? I'm there with you brother or sister. I've been angry at God so many times that I can't count them. In fact, I was once so bitter towards God for so long that I stopped going to church and hardly ever prayed for several years. That was the wrong thing to do. But I will tell you something that I have known even before that several year stint. God knows when we're angry at Him. So tell Him for goodness sakes. Tell Him! Yell at Him if you have to! I dare say that if you feel you have to then cuss at Him! He knows what is in your mind so vocalize it. Seriously, say it outloud to God. Scream it if it helps. Let the tears flow. Don't hold anything back. When you're done, He will be standing right there with open arms ready to wrap them around you and give you a great big God hug and to point you in the right direction to continue rebuilding your relationship with Christ.

There's a couple of key things I want you to remember about having anger or bitterness towards God. First, It is O'k to be angry towards God. I repeat, it is O'k. Second, it is O'k to tell God that you're angry at Him. Third, it often helps to find one or two Christians you can trust and confide in them about your struggle with anger or bitterness towards God. Ask them to pray with you and for you as you work out your problems with God. It might sound funny to repeat that last phrase in your head "work out your problems with God" but that's what you are doing. Your relationship with God is not unlike your relationship with your spouse or your parents or friends in many respects. Sure, it is on a much higher level than human relationships but the relationship model is still the same. You have to communicate with God. You have to spend time with Him. You do things that you think will please God. And finally, when your relationship gets out of snyc with God for whatever reason, you have to work your problems out with Him.

Finally, it is o'k to question God. I use Jesus as my role model for questioning God. He questioned the Father twice under two different circumstances. First, He asked the Father if there was anyway to avoid the crucifiction that would still be within the Father's will. Second on the Cross, He asked "My God, My God, Why Have You Forsaken Me?" One was "take this burden from me but not my will but yours be done" and the other was "why have you abandoned me, I'm in so much pain and feel so burdened." Both were the cries of an anguished God/man and both can be used as models in our lives. If we want to ask God to remove some burden from our lives, we must always remember that God's will has to be given priority. He may have a reason that burden is in our life and, instead of removing the burden, He may give you more strength to handle it or something like that. Secondly, when we feel abandoned by God and everyone else, we must remember that He is the same Yesterday, Today, and Forever and that He will never leave us nor Forsake Us. He is there. We just have to reach out to Him and let Him into our cluttered lives.

I hope this two parter has blessed at least one reader. Feel free to post comments. May God bless everyone who takes the time to read my blog.

In Christ,
James Hart