Guest Post written by Amanda Huffman from Airman to Mom*

Do you ever have moments when you are angry at God? Moments where you are quick to point out what you think He should have done to help you in different life situations?

What do you do?

I tell Him why I’m angry. I used to think this was a bad trait, but I noticed when I tell God how I feel, I also find myself drawn closer to him and reminded of all the good I have to be thankful for. I learned these moments of anger change everything.

So, I wanted to share this experience to remind you that it’s not always sinful to be mad at God; you can tell Him you’re angry and allow Him to grow you and change your attitude.

Anger towards God

Not too long ago, I was having a rough week. It felt like things were spinning out of control. We had been praying for renters to move in or someone to buy our now-vacant house, and all we heard was crickets. I was okay with that. I trusted God and knew it was a process. But then life happened.

One Sunday, right as we were about to leave for church, I ran to the basement to grab something. Instead of finding what I was looking for, I found a basement soaked. The sump pump had failed overnight, and water was everywhere.

We spent the morning taking everything out of the basement and up to the main level and garage. During the lifting and moving, my husband tweaked his back and could no longer help and was in a lot of pain.

I felt like things were falling apart. I started to throw a pity party for myself. I even argued with God. Here we are trying to be faithful by giving money to the church even when we are draining funds in a vacant home. Yet, instead of finding financial blessings, we were hit with extra stressors.

I was beginning to panic. It didn’t feel fair.

The next day things didn’t get any better as my husband drove over a piece of metal on his way home from work and had to get a new tire.

Despite the circumstances and what felt like blow after blow, one thing changed in that 24-hour period---my attitude. My pity party had ended, and I began to trust and lean into God. I realized I was holding on too tight to the things of the world. And even on to the money I had already given to God. It was like I was giving a gift and then asking for it back.

It wasn’t my finest moment.

What Does God Say About Being Mad?

In the Psalms, David regularly calls out to God with the emotion he is feeling. In Psalms 22: 1, David says, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from the words of my groaning?”

David doesn’t hold back his emotion. He confronts God and tells him how he feels about the situations he is in. The way David tells God the truth he feels is an excellent reminder to us. God wants to hear our pain. God wants to know how we feel. Sometimes our anger can lead to withdrawing from God or feeling guilty for being angry. But that is the opposite of what God wants. Instead, we should pour our hearts to God.

How to Deal with Anger Towards God

Be open and honest with Him. Initially, anger was how I responded to God. Through honest prayers of stating how I felt. Telling God how I felt hurt and betrayed.
Consistent Prayer. Instead of feeling distant from God, I felt a closeness and peace from the situation and had a heart that turned my anger into prayers for peace.
I wish I could say I said one prayer and felt God’s peace, but my attitude shift took time and lots of prayer. So I continued to pray throughout the day. Every time I started to worry or felt my anxiety rise. I prayed for peace. I prayed for a new heart and attitude.
Praise God for the good He’s done. As the day went on, I found myself spending less time praying and more time praising God for the good things in my life. An attitude shift. A change of perspective.

Unworthy Of His Grace

God answered a prayer I didn’t feel worthy to receive, but he freely gave. He didn’t take away the situation, but still, things were different. Unworthy of His grace, He took away my frustration. He gave me peace that changed me even though my life situation was still the same.

Sometimes, it is easy to get into the mindset that God’s blessings are tied to what we give as if we give to get. I believed we gave in order to receive protection from life’s realities, but this couldn’t be farther from the truth.

I previously lived as though we pray to receive God’s blessing, and then that protects us from the world, but that isn’t how life works. We don’t give to receive anything. We give because it is what God requires us to do. And we should give because we are so fortunate.

For many Americans, giving is a matter of giving away money we would use on wants, not requirements.

In Mark 12:41-44, Jesus observes a woman giving two small copper coins worth very little in monetary value, but Jesus saw that she gave all she had. The heart of giving isn’t about how much we offer, and it certainly is not about giving what is comfortable or what is left over. Instead, we are to give in those in need and give back to God as a way to thank Him for all we have been given.

As the week continued, God kept showing up in unexpected ways. And I could only see the blessings that were cropping out of a challenging situation.

My husband’s injured his back, but he was able to go to the chiropractor and felt almost back to normal by the end of the week.

The basement was flooded, but with insurance and doing some work ourselves, it could be updated and remodeled for a minor out-of-pocket cost. We could have had family scheduled to visit us, but they had just left two weeks prior, and the timing worked great for a basement remodel.

And then a prayer request outside of the current circumstances was miraculous answered in a way I never expected.

God continues to show me that even when things seem to be going wrong everywhere, He is still there. He is there to listen, to comfort, and to provide peace.

Why Is God giving me a Hard Time?

I recently heard a sermon that God didn’t provide the American dream in His promises. As Americans, we can get wrapped into a culture that we can forget what is important and what God requires and what he gives.

“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.” - John 16:33 NIV.

Life isn’t going to be easy. Look at the story of Job, and you will see all the devastation he experienced. We may not ever know why God allows us to go through hard times, but we can trust that he will use it all. With God’s peace and the right perspective, even the more challenging parts of life can be something we can learn from and grow closer to God.

And that house that was empty now has a family living it—another unexpected answer to prayers.

Praise Jesus!

Amanda is a military spouse and veteran who served in the Air Force for six years as a Civil Engineer, including a deployment to Afghanistan. She traded in her combat boots for a diaper bag to stay home with her two boys and follow her husband’s military career. She published her first book in 2019 titled Women of the Military, sharing the stories of 28 military women. In 2019 she also launched her podcast also titled Women of the Military. You can learn more about Amanda at her blog Airman to Mom.