How Do You Deal with Frustration?

Think about how frustration appears in your life.

Do you feel jealous?

Like you’ve been robbed of certain experiences?

Cynical about your future?

Ungrateful for the little things around you?

There’s often a myriad of feelings that surface from deep within us when life doesn’t seem to go the way we imagine.  Over the next couple of weeks, we are going to unearth some of them.  Expose them.  Acknowledge them.  And think about what we can do despite their presence in our lives.  What’s odd about these emotions is that it can seem innocuous, barely visible.  But they are not.  We know they are there.  The first one is frustration.

Think about how it appears in your life.

Do you feel jealous?

Like you’ve been robbed of certain experiences?

Cynical about your future?

Ungrateful for the little things around you?

The thing is, the emotion of frustration can quickly turn into resentment that imperceptibly and quite rapidly morphs into anger.

Then what?  What do we do?  Who are we becoming with these emotions?

Maybe the disciple Thomas was like this.  All the others had seen the resurrected Jesus.  He’s the only one who hadn’t.  His frustration led him to doubt God’s very existence.  Not surprising, really.

One of the twelve disciples, Thomas (nicknamed the Twin), was not with the others when Jesus came. They told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he replied, “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side.” Eight days later the disciples were together again, and this time Thomas was with them. The doors were locked; but suddenly, as before, Jesus was standing among them. “Peace be with you,” he said. Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and look at my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!” (John 20:24-27, NLT).

Is Jesus put off by what Thomas says out loud?

Does He reject him?

In turn, do you think Jesus will reject you if you audibly express your true thoughts and feelings?

Reflective Response: Right now, share your interior thoughts with God.  Express the emotions you are sensing inside.  Include any specific frustrations.  Like Thomas, don’t hold back. Then,

Wait….

Listen…..

Even if it doesn’t feel true, Jesus is with you, like Thomas, in His tender, loving Presence as you express everything you are thinking and feeling.