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| Does God Care If We Get Mad at Him? |
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Sometimes I get really mad at God. I keep praying my little prayers, and expecting Him to answer them, and nothing happens. Or maybe He answers in some way that I don't agree with or like. I get in a little bit of a snit when I don't get my way. After all, can't God do anything? If He wanted to answer my prayers the way I want them answered, He could do it, no problem. So why doesn't He?
I sound as though I am spoiled, and I think that is how we as Christians (or even non-Christians) can get sometimes. We think that God is there to please us, and do for us, and give us everything we want, as long as we ask. After all, doesn't the bible tell us to "ask and it will be given to you"? (Matthew 7:7)
I have struggled with my prayer life. I pray a lot, but I wonder sometimes if it is doing any good. I guess you could say my faith has doubts. But then I have had classes, and bible study, and counseling by wise people who have all given me different ways of looking at prayer and its results.
First of all, there are different types of prayer. We should not concentrate on the "please give me" prayers, but we should also express our love for God, confess our sins, and thank God for all the blessings He has given us. One thing I have learned, our requests of Him need to be within His will.
Second, God really does hear us. Even though there are times it feels like He does not. Like our prayers are going up and hitting the ceiling and flying back down in our faces.
34:15 \34:14\Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it. 34:16 \34:15\The eyes of the LORD [are] upon the righteous, and his ears [are open] unto their cry. 34:17 \34:16\The face of the LORD [is] against them that do evil, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.
He does hear us, but He may choose not to answer right away. This is when Faith comes in...
Third, faith is vital in prayer. This is where I fall into trouble. I have faith that God can do anything, but my faith is lacking when I have the attitude that shows I have no confidence in God wanting to answer my prayers. I think to myself that I am not important enough, or my requests are too silly, and that God won't answer me. I have to keep reminding myself that God wants me to believe in Him, and that He can and will do what is best for me, even if what He does is not necessarily what I asked of Him.
Fourth, God answers our prayers in four ways...Yes, No, Wait, and If. Look back on all the prayers you have ever prayed, and you will see that He answered, but maybe not the way you wanted Him to.
Fifth, persistance is a must. I used to think that once I prayed for something, that was it, I didn't need to pray again. Although, sometimes I repeated the prayers that didn't get answers. I guess I didn't want God to forget about them! But if you read Luke 11, 5-13, it tells us of persistance in prayer.
Sixth, if there is unrepented sin in our lives, then God will not listen to us. God wants us to confess our sins, and until we do, He will not answer our prayers. He is trying to get our attention, so he won't listen until we do...
And that leads to the seventh thing that I have learned about prayer, and that is that we need to listen! We can't hear God if all we do is complain and whine about the lack of answers. Prayer answers can come in a variety of ways, something we read, something we hear either through song or through a sermon or a friend, or perhaps a nagging feeling or thought that presses on us. We need to be still and know that He is God.
Prayer is such an important part of the Christian's life. We need to approach it with faith, and persistance, a clear and pure conscience, and hope. We need to not grow discouraged just because the thing we are praying for doesn't happen right away, and maybe never will! The most important reason that we need to pray is that God wants to commune with us. He wants to be our friend, and wants us to talk to Him about everything. We need to remember that when we struggle and wonder "why isn't God answering my prayers?" And we need to remember that just because God doesn't answer us the way WE think He should, it does not mean that He doesn't love us. It is because He knows what is best for us, just like a father knows what is best for his child, even though the child may not agree.
So to answer the question I set forth in the title, God does care if we get mad at Him, but I don't think he gets upset with us, unless we stop speaking to Him altogether. He wants us to share what is on our hearts, and I believe that includes when we don't agree with Him, and get a little upset! What do you think?
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I believe that even in this flawed creation, God has given us things that help us understand Him, things that help us quantify or get a feel for what He is like. I think that's why we have children - to experience a little bit of what God's love for us must be like. And, in that parent-child relationship, we often deal with kids who throw a tantrum, and stomp away, and get MAD. Do we stop loving the kids? No. Does it hurt us? Yep. If we have to punish them, does it hurt us too? Yes, it does. Imagine how God feels with us! |
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Deb, great post.
My thoughts...I have pretty much stopped the "please give me" prayers with the exception of one. I offer prayers of thanks all the time. I ask for God to protect my family while I am gone. The only "please give me prayer" that I pray now is "please give me Your understanding of this situation and lead me through it as You want me to." I wrestled with this for years when I didn't have enough macroni and cheese to make it through the week. I finally said, God, if this is where you want me, give me Your understanding and lead me through it. Well, it changed me forever. My prayers for me are always the same now - good times and bad. I am not saying this is right or wrong. I am just sharing where I am in my walk.
I still intercede for others, for my family, and when God puts someone on my heart, I pray for them, too. I guess those qualify as "give them" prayers. I guess if we really believe that He is sovereign, then we have to believe He is walking us through the life He wants us to walk.
...like I said, this is probably half-baked, but it is where I am right now.
Once again, thanks for the post. |
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Sue |
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August 07, 2007 at 9:38pm |
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| Well first of all, I think this is the best Deb post ever! Great thoughts here Sister! I think that we should be honest with God. He knows our thoughts and hearts anyway. He also understands our humanity. Since He Himself came to be one of us. Although I wouldn't suggest arguing with God, because we always know who the looser will be :) |
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Deb |
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August 08, 2007 at 9:52am |
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GrowingInFaith, I don't have kids, but I can't imagine punishing them without it bothering me, yet knowing it is for their good, they have to be punished. I think sometimes it might hurt the parent more than the child! So I can just imagine how God must feel when He has to discipline us. Thanks for the comments!
DC, The only "please give me prayer" that I pray now is "please give me Your understanding of this situation and lead me through it as You want me to." This is a good thing to pray. I too have intercessory prayer, and I think that God wants us to come to Him with things like that. I don't think your ideas are half baked, I think they are good!
Sue, thanks for the compliment! Sometimes when we argue with God, I think maybe He will give us what we want, even though it might not be the best thing for us, just to teach us a lesson! The old adage "Be careful of what you wish for" would come in here. lol |
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Steve |
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August 08, 2007 at 10:10am |
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I know this is a serious blog and all but I can't help but ask . . .
A "snit" ??? What exactly is a snit? Is it anything like a "funk"?
I understand what a good "mad" is and I can comprehend angry, disappointed, frustrated, hurt, and upset. But where does this "snit" thing fit.
If I am sitting at your kitchen table and you are in a "snit" what exactly does it look like? How do you get in one? And how do you get out of one? And how long do they last and are they contagious?
Here is my balderdash definition: snit = when an insect flies up your nose and causes a coughing, sneezing, eye watering episode.
Smile God loves you even when you are inhaling insects!!!!! ;) |
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snit
"state of agitation, fit of temper," 1939, Amer.Eng., of unknown origin. I LOVE dictionaries! Deb, thank you for taking the time to post this. One of the things I love most about God is he hears us when we call; whether we're happy, sad, angry or even in a snit. I wrote about one of my most difficult times, when God listened when I wasn't feeling very loving towards him, here. Thanks again. |
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Deb |
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August 08, 2007 at 10:49am |
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Steve, you have me laughing :) I can't believe you have never heard the word "snit" before. Soozanne gave one definition, but here is one I found online...
Online Etymology Dictionary
snit
"state of agitation, fit of temper," 1939, Amer.Eng., of unknown origin.
| Online Etymology Dictonary © 2001 Douglas Harper |
I would say that you probably won't see me in a snit too often, because I reserve that for those closest to me, unfortunately for them. God gets to see all my snits, and He knows that sometimes they can last a while. I wonder how often I try his patience? :)
Soozanne, I just read your post, and thought it was really good. I am so glad that God has so much patience with us, to wait until we understand better how much we need Him in our lives, and we cannot make it without Him. Thanks for your comments. |
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Steve |
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August 08, 2007 at 11:38am |
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| I like my definition better =) |
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Deb |
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August 08, 2007 at 12:09pm |
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| Steve, it is a funnier definition, that is for sure! |
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Deb, great post! Did I miss it first time around? I guess so.
Regarding faith in prayer, I believe the faith necessary isn't the faith that God will do, I think we need the faith that says God can do.
Regarding unrepentant works which displease God, we become so focused on ourselves that we aren't listening to God. So our prayers are more like talking to hear ourselves speak. No wonder they aren't answered!
~mike |
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Deb |
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August 08, 2007 at 6:07pm |
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| Mike, that is so true...we are so focused on ourselves that we aren't listening to God. God knows when our hearts are in the right place, and He will answer us at the right time. Thanks for your comments. |
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Gene |
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August 08, 2007 at 6:36pm |
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Deb, we can't have an honest relationsip with anybody if we're not willing to be ourselves. And that includes getting angry. If we hold back because we think we're not supposed to be angry with Him, then we are, by definition, limiting our relationship with Him. A real, "personal relationship" only happens if we let God see us for who we really are. |
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Deb |
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August 08, 2007 at 6:46pm |
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| Gene, so true! I guess if we look at God as our Friend, not only as our Heavenly Father, we should treat him as we would a friend. Of course, God can see our ugly sides anyway, we can't hide from Him. I think we can only have a true relationship with Him when we share it all...including the anger. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. |
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Yep, I agree... Great post.
I'm a daddy of three and if I've had a dollar for everytime I've had to say no or not comply with my kids direct wishes, I'd own this trailer park by now!
Yeah, they get mad but they don't see the outcome as I see it. They don't yet understand things the way I do. Same with God; He care if we are upset but He's got our best interest at heart.
Rich |
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Deb |
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August 10, 2007 at 11:07am |
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| Rich, God does have our best interest at heart, even though we may not see it or agree with Him at the time. It always works out in the end though. Thanks for your comments! |
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God expects you to get mad at Him. He made you and He knows you! Anything other than your true feelings would be fraudulent. What you do while angry is another story...
"Youre making me angry and you wouldnt like me when I'm angry"
-Dr Bruce Banner /the hulk |
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Deb |
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August 10, 2007 at 11:29am |
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| King, thanks for your comments...and indeed, if I really let my anger get the best of me, God and I would probably not be on speaking terms! :) I take a lot of comfort in the bible and the times it tells us of God getting angry. I know that it is not only a human emotion, it is a God emotion too. |
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