MAD…
NOT CRAZY
BUT MAD…AS IN…
ANGRY…TICKED OFF…FIT-TO-BE-TIED…END OF THE ROPE, VEINS BULGING TYPE-OF-MAD
Been there, done that, bought the T shirt, wore it out, now use it as a rag. And that’s just for starters! 🙂 AND I’m not even talking about how I have felt toward people. No…this “mad” was how I have felt toward God a time or two or three or …..
I read a story recently about a guy who was going camping in the mountains. He ran out of gas about a mile from the cabin he was going to stay in, so he piled all his gear on his back and started to hike the rest of the way in. About that time it started to rain, and just as he was almost there, a bolt of lightning struck the cabin and burned it down. The disappointed camper leaned his head against a tree and cried out to God, “Why me, Lord?” The clouds parted, thunder clapped, and a loud voice replied from heaven, “Because some people just tick me off.”
I won’t lie. I will show my heathen side. I laughed out loud. I know God would never do that, but I cannot even begin to tell you how many times I have felt like that. “Surely, God has it in for me. He must not like me very well, or at all. If He does love me He sure has a funny way of showing it. ”
AND. YES. I. HAVE. BEEN. MAD. TICKED. OFF. AT. GOD.
Too bad that during those times I didn’t remember that God was for me. He was not my enemy. He was not looking to “take me down” until I cried, “Uncle!” He wasn’t rubbing His hands together in glee as He watched me squirm. What really turned the tide for me was when I realized that God isn’t holding a grudge against something I did 3, 13, or 30 years ago. It is done. Over. Kaput. The consequences I will have to pay for, but His forgiveness is eternal.
“IF GOD IS FOR ME, WHO CAN BE AGAINST ME?”
Paul said that in Romans 8:31. But he didn’t stop there, because there is so much more! Read the whole passage here. God is on my team. Don’t underestimate the power of a team. While one cyclist may be crowned Tour de France champion, make no mistake it took a team to get him there.
DON’T QUIT. DON’T GIVE UP. DON’T STAY ANGRY. GOD DOESN’T QUIT. GOD DOESN’T GIVE UP ON YOU. GOD DOESN’T GET ANGRY AT YOU.
How about you? Are you feeling like this is “one of those times?” How do you handle the feelings of anger that you might do feel from time to time? What would you say to someone struggling with anger right now?
There are things which make me mad. God never makes me mad. I don’t blame God for the bad things or the good things that happen. I don’t believe he pulls those kind of strings.
I do get mad about things I can’t really do anything about. Bullies make me mad. Corporations that take advantage of people make me mad. Politicians make me mad. News shows make me mad. Liars make me mad. Injustice makes me mad. Fanatical religious terrorists make me mad. There are lots of things that make me mad.
I don’t really let it affect me. I may not vote for someone, do business with someone, watch or listen to some TV or radio shows, or socialize with certain people.
I am not a love my enemies kind of guy. And I would prefer no one else loves my enemies. But I don’t mind if someone loves their enemies.
I think I can go along with you on what makes me mad. It is the things we often have no control over that get to us. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
I wasn’t raised in a home where anger was expressed much and I have had to learn to deal with my anger. Honestly, for years I crammed it down and didn’t deal with it. But I’m learning to surrender those angry moments over to God. for me it is all about surrender. And I find that God does walk me through it with more peace than I can handle. But I have to trust Him to get me through it instead of reacting to my roller coaster emotions. If I don’t surrender I’ll end up shooting a laptop or something 🙂 I couldn’t resist.
Many are raised that way Craig. “Good Christians don’t get angry.” What garbage! But glad you are learning to deal with it. Oh, and thanks for the chuckle this morning. 🙂
wanted to let you know that the following quote by Eldredge is on page 28 of “walking with God”
Thanks Craig. I will go make a note of that.
Pretty much – Jeff said everything I wanted to say. It is eerie how close he is to what I was gonna type.
Thanks Bill!
Is there some channeling going on? 🙂
I should also mention that today is Jim’s 500th post. Why not visit his blog and tell him Congrats?
Thanks Bill.
You bet my friend.
wow…that is a great challenge Bill…
i don’t get angry very much…that much…
maybe because i was born with congenital heart disease…and i’ve learned to trust God in every situation…for the most part…
Just trust God and what he is doing…
even if he is silent…that means he is working…
Love your perspective Arny. It is the best one to have. Thanks for sharing it.
Ok, I’ll admit that I get mad at God sometimes for my circumstances. Maybe its immature but I do.
But, my kids get mad at me when I tell them its time to get off the Xbox, do chores, clean their room, do things they don’t want to do, etc… They even get mad at me when things happen outside of my control – like I can’t afford to send them to Harvard.
If God is my heavenly father, maybe its normal to get mad. Eventually, I remember His promises, love, forgiveness and grace. Hopefully my kids do too.
Have a good day Bill!
Loving fathers keep their promises, love, forgiven and show grace. Love it! Thanks Jim. Hope you have a good day also.
I meet regularly with an older, godly man who is my mentor. It’s always interesting to see how God is working in his life. One of the biggest revelations in the past year was that God is for him. It’s one of those things we can say so often, but truly understanding it in the core of our being is different. My mentor had tears in his eyes as he was relating to me how he was beginning to really get that God is for him. It made me think pretty deeply about whether I truly understood it.
That is so cool that even at an older age he is learning some new, life-changing stuff. Glad you are willing to learn also Loren. Thanks for your spirit.
Nice analogy of the team!
I’ve definitely had these moments of wondering if God had it out for me. Actually, today I was throwing myself a pity party and feeling like this because, after having to take my wife to work, I then had to pick up cat food, and the car was on empty so I had to fill it up. Stupid?? I know, right? Really trivial stuff that I shouldn’t have let get to me. Sometimes when I THINK God is out to get me I just have to remember that I’m overreacting to normal, facts of life. Because you’re right, He’s for us, in the trivial stuff, and in the serious issues that we’ll endure.
I get upset sometimes over the smallest things also. Then I realize “how stupid is that?” But I also know God is with me through big and small. Thanks Stephen.
I feel like God welcomes our anger. It always feels better to unload doesn’t it? He made me, He understands me better than I. Go ahead give it to Him…He will make you feel better!
I don’t think He is intimidated by it either Tom. Thanks.
When I read this “Because some people just tick me off.” I couldn’t help but think of God saying it in his best Clint Eastwood voice in between puffs on his cigarette. Who’s the heathen now? 😉
I can top you Eileen. I thought of that scene in Spiderman when the Green Goblin is fighting Spidy and says, “That just p****s me off.” Since I don’t like that word, i reckon that really makes me a heathen. 🙂 thanks for coming by.
oh, man, we’re in trouble! 😉
Jeff hit the nail on the head, except I try to love my enemies, but its tough. I don’t get mad at God. I don’t necessarily like the way He does things sometimes, but I have to remember what the facts are. He is operating from an eternal perspective, we operate from a temporal perspective. When we get through this life, its clear sailin’.
Loving my enemies is something I also try to do John. Even well-intentioned dragons require that. And yes, God does operate from that eternal perspective that sure changes things. Thanks.
I have found in the over 40 years of journeying with Christ that those “why me” moments can wreck me or direct me..depending how soon I remember His great love for me. The trial/test/hardship that I am enduring now does not change the depths of His love for me…it just leaves more for me to discover.
Great point jay: wreck me or direct me. Love that thought. Thanks for a wise comment.
Oh, I’ve been really mad before. I would wave my fist up in the air and waved it like I just didn’t care. I have since realized how stupid this was. God is not safe and he doesn’t (and shouldn’t) apologize for what He does and what he allows. So to me it’s useless trying to get all angry and crazy on him. I rather put on the gloves and hit the bag. That releases some tension. 🙂
Good picture Moe. Useless trying to shake a fist and get angry. Hit the bag instead. Thanks.
I expressed in a Sunday School class a couple of weeks ago how I struggle to find the guts to show anger at God. I might somehow bury it inside, I don’t know.
There was a couple at our table that had just lost their 18 year old daughter within the last year. I had no idea… What I do know is they are hurting and maybe angry at God, maybe not. All I know is I’m really trying to seek His will in not judging others for the seasons and trials of their lives.
I have to admit, most of the difficulties in my life are self induced, not all, but most. The other difficulties I’ve found have prepared me and the wisdom gained has saved me from utter destruction.
“His ways are higher than our ways.”
You hit on something really important in this discussion: don’t judge others for the seasons and trials of their lives. So true! Gives a whole new perspective. Thanks Floyd.
As you know, Bill, I’ve been there recently. Life has been like this plaque my dad had hanging on his study wall: “One day I sat thinking, almost in despair; a hand fell on my shoulder and a voice said reassuringly; ‘Cheer up, things could be worse’ So I cheered up, and sure enough, things got worse”
Harry is still unemployed, and I lost my job recently. I was mad awhile ago, but I have a circle of friends on Facebook that love God and love their neighbors, including me. They pray and they post funny stuff that make me laugh out loud. Sunday, one of my friends and I went back and forth typing all of the names of God/Jesus/Holy Spirit we could remember. We found some YouTube videos that went with some of the songs. By the time we finished, I was grateful again for what I do have instead of angry about what I don’t have.
I don’t know what God has for us, but He has sent food, kept the roof over our head, and clean clothes to wear. I’m trying to learn to live now, and not worry about next month – easier said than done.
Man Susan. I was so hoping Harry had another job by now. But it is so cool to hear about your friends and your virtual friends helping you praise Him even in the dark times. I will keep praying for you both.
I only get angry when someone chooses to point their fingers at others, yet don’t take into consideration that no one is perfect, including themselves.
That is a point of anger for me also Ed.
Hi Bill,
I think a rule about anger is to deal with it. To ‘not let the sun go down while you are still angry’, (with your brothers in the Lord) ‘and do not give the devil a foothold’. Ephesians 4:26
We know that God gets angry. He is slow to get angry.
I was angry with my friend a day ago. She said she would help me serve a legal document on my former husband, then backed out? She called me the next day saying she was sick. We do get hurt. We ask for help and we are refused.
Then I started thinking about times that I have not been there for her either. She calls for coffee and I come up with excuses about why I can’t go or don’t want to go for coffee. She also has a disability. I have to factor that in. She has an emotional disability. She was probably afraid to serve the document on my husband personally. So, the more I thought about it, I decided that I could and should forgive her.
I do get angry but the anger doesn’t seem to last too long. I like it that way. Who wants to be angry alot anyway? Not me. I don’t like being angry.
Hi Bill,
I haven’t watched the father/daughter tirade on youtube, I don’t think that I will. I do think though from reading other’s comments and from reading Tami’s link to what the dad had to say further… that the dad should get rid of his gun. He’s not a responsible gun owner. The next time he might shoot someone (maybe his own daughter)instead of just a laptop.
I have tried to figure out what to say to this Linda. I think it is a very poor assumption to make that he might shoot his daughter. There is no basis for saying that. Shooting a computer does not make him a liability as a gun owner.
Hi Bill,
Mine was a quick analysis of the situation without having all the facts and without viewing the video. However, it seems his reaction is to pull out the ‘big guns’. He is the adult, she is the fifteen year old. He wrecked her property. It shows his disregard for her and what belongs to her. This man has some problems in my opinion.
i am not excusing the man’s actions. Especially its public nature. I do think it should have and could have been handled differently. i reckon since he bought the computer he felt he had the “right” to destroy it. Only time will tell the impact it has on her (and him).
My issue is not the anger or frustration that I feel often from “dealing” with a God who I find waaaaay too subtle at times, it is that anger and frustration can lead to doubt. Sometimes doubt can lead to a stronger faith when it is worked through. Other times, it can lead to darker thoughts ….
You have stated in different words a little of what Jay said. Stronger faith or darker thoughts. Thanks Daniel.
I’ve definitely had my moments with God. It’s interesting…I’ve been reading Jeremiah…and boy, he sure keeps it real with God. I don’t think getting angry at God does anything, but I think a lot of times we sugarcoat things. Correction-a lot of times I do.
I don’t know if this makes any sense, but yeah.
Makes perfect sense. What does say about me? 😀 Seriously, getting angry and spouting off and sugarcoating it are not always the best way to handle things.
Bill, boy have I ever experienced that kind of anger. Several years ago, I went through (what I thought was) my “Job” moment. I felt like the wool had been pulled over my eyes, and I was hurt. I was scared and alone. I wasn’t as much angry at God as I was disappointed in Him. I was certain God had abandoned me in a desperate time and could see no POSSIBILITY of anything to learn from it.
For YEARS I didn’t see any possibility of learning. And sometimes, it’s true, there is nothing to learn from an experience if we look at it that way. Sometimes the world is just cruel.
But NOW? I do see that where I am is because of where I’ve been. Why did God allow that learning curve to happen that slowly? I don’t know. But I do know this: God can deal with our anger. And doesn’t (thankfully) hold it against us when we question. Or when we’re ticked off. 🙂
Thanks for sharing your Job moment Bryan. I sure can relate to the “waiting and holding” pattern we often find ourselves in. It is maddening. It is when we finally come out of it, see where we are now, that we understand. It is also then that we realize God is not angry with us-never was. I deeply appreciate what you have shared here of your story. Thanks for taking the time to come by.