Are You Angry with God?
I was thinking about how we can become angry with God when God doesn’t miraculously remove something hard from our lives, or perhaps He doesn’t answer our prayers exactly as we want, or maybe we've had too many 'bad' things happen in our lives.
God is looking for our hearts to be surrendered in our problems rather than our relief from our problems. It occurred to me that if God removes the problems, we may replace them with something other than God, perhaps even something more destructive. However, in the midst of our problems, we have the opportunity to overcome them with God; thus deepening our relationship and our faith.
I am reminded of Paul's thorn. God didn't answer his prayers as he had hoped; God didn't remove it. Right after we read about his thorn in 2 Corinthians 12:7-8, we read verse 9 about the grace of God. It tells us that God is inclining and reaching to us to bless us even in our weakness... that’s what His grace is.(A) In fact, His power is made perfect in our weakness. It is truly our response toward God that will determine our outcome. We have the power although we see ourselves as powerless.
Though my list of heartache and pain is long, so is my list of blessings; not the least of which is my salvation... because the penalty for MY sin is death. But for Jesus!
Colossians 1:13-14
"For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."
Ephesians 1:3
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.”
Jesus warns us we will have trouble in this world, but clinging to Him is our way through it.
John 16:33
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
I know that without God my list of unthinkable events would be much greater than it is; including an eternity separated from Him due to my own sin.
How can I stay angry at The One who brings me through? "In Him, I live and move and have my being" (Acts 17:28). I wouldn’t take my next breath if He didn’t give it to me.
Will you stay angry with God or will you accept the grace He so freely gives? The choice is yours.
My prayer for you today is that you will find joy in Christ even in the midst of your struggles. In that joy, that sweetness of communion with Jesus, I pray you will find His grace... and that it gives you the strength and the courage to overcome your struggles each and every day.
2 Corinthians 12:8-10
“Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
(Underlining added by me for emphasis.)
Many Blessings!
— Robyn Alsip Arce, © 2021
Footnote (A): The original Greek word translated “grace” in 2 Corinthians 12:9 is “charis.” Strong’s Concordance defines it as “...God freely extending Himself (His favor, grace), reaching (inclining) to people because He is disposed to bless (be near) them.” (https://biblehub.com/greek/5485.htm)
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