Giving Anger to God

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Tomswife

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Aug 22, 2022
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Lost a loved one
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08/2022
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US
State
NJ
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Livingston
I am often cursing during the day. The f word comes flying out of my mouth. The dog was counter surfing and ate a package of cherry turnovers. I can't move Tom Forward to get the sling all the way down his back. The wheels on the evil hoyer lift are going hither and thither. And on.
I pray for trust. Trust in the Lord. His mercy endures forever. God is my father. I will place my trust in him whose love is perfect.

Some say the book of Job tells us a great deal about our suffering in life....I am the Lord. It is beyond your comprehension. I am with you always.

Sharing from Cataclesia Institute​

Giving Anger to God​

"We first turn to a group of psalms that the prolific and insightful biblical scholar Walter Brueggemann called psalms of disorientation.2 Laments are psalms that we pray when life is confused, crazy, troubled. There are different types of laments, but some of the most powerful are those that express anger. The psalmists clearly are angry with those who have harmed them as well as God himself.

Take Psalm 69 as an example. The psalmist starts by crying out in pain, “Save me, O God, for the waters have come up to my neck” (v. 1). He goes on to speak about those who are bringing suffering into his life: “Many are my enemies without cause, those who seek to destroy me” (v. 4). Indeed, the psalmist believes he suffers at their hands because of his devotion to God: “For I endure scorn for your sake” (v. 7).

While he expresses his desire for God to rescue him, he also tells God he wants him to harm his enemies. He wants God to punish them for what they have done to him:

May the table set before them become a snare;
may it become a retribution and trap.
May their eyes be darkened so they cannot see,
and their backs be bent forever.
Pour out your wrath on them;
let there be no one to dwell in their tents.
For they persecute those you wound
and talk about the pain of those you hurt.
Charge them with crime upon crime;
do not let them share in your salvation.
May they be blotted out of the book of life
and not be listed with the righteous. (69:22-28)

Many Christians balk at this kind of imprecatory language in the psalms, but if we are honest, we ourselves have felt this passion toward others—the person who let us go, the person who may have infected us with the virus (or the country from which it came), the secularist who wants to remove our religious freedom, the politician who instituted a policy with which we disagree.

But notice what the psalmist is doing here (and there are a number of laments which contain these types of imprecations). He is not saying, “God, give me the resources and the opportunity to hurt my enemies!” No, he is rather saying, “God you hurt them!” And there is a world of difference here. The psalmist is turning his anger over to God. God will do what he will do in response to the harm done to us. In essence, what the psalmist does is in keeping with Paul’s later admonition to those who are angry: “Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says the Lord” (Rom 12:19).

Interestingly, as is well known, almost all of the laments, including those with these hard-hitting imprecations, end with statements of confidence or joy. This generalization includes Psalm 69, which concludes with a section of praise that begins, “I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving” (v. 30). Though this transformation certainly took place over a period of time and not in a second, the psalmist was able to work through his anger to a place of joy in the midst of suffering."
 
My thoughts on religion...

Too much religion can make one psychotic, fanatical, a religious zealot,
delusional to reality and believe their God is the only God. Anyone who
believes otherwise will not see the heaven they have been supposedly
promised no matter how good of life others may have lived. Would a
loving God do that to a good person born and raised in Tibet 500 years
ago or today?

Who is to say God could not come to others, different races, different
languages, different times, different parts of the world. Just Jesus born
in Bethlehem? I believe he/she has more insight than that. God created
our universe at the moment of the big bang (?), not 6,000 years ago which
some religions still believe regardless of science. As Albert Einstein said,

“Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind.”
 
Agree. Religion is doctrine. Faith is love and hope and trust.

CS Lewis Quotes On Faith. “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.

I have Faith in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
 
I am happy for you but... I also think of others and other possibilities.

I was raised in a very religious family, two aunts who were nuns and a cousin who was a priest.
Life experiences, a tour in Viet Nam, learning to embrace science, believing in evolution,
learning the bible was created 300 years after Christ died so Constantine could unify his
empire, Christ was born a Jew, lived his life as a Jew and died a Jew, So, God sent his son to
this earth as a Jew, one little place on the whole earth?. Somehow time has almost made him
a Christian. Made me reflect and think for myself.

I guess we'll all find out what's true when we leave this world.

If anyone finds comfort in their belief... fine. All I wrote is that it can be overdone causing
psychological harm to some... as I wrote above. I'd really like to say many but...
 
My belief has evolved, especially during the past 10 years. I was raised Roman Catholic before Vatican II. It was a very confusing and oppressive religion. We were threatened with hell often.

Then I attended a Baptist church for a few years followed by a string of protestant churches of different denominations. They all had different theology.

I decided to take some courses in world religion and the origin of the Bible (taught by Catholics.). I also had two fine Jewish doctors who were religious scholars and taught at the same college as me.

My conclusion is that God is so compartmentalized because we don't have the mental capacity to understand God (I try not to use a gender to describe a spirit.). Anyway, I believe in an afterlife but I doubt it'll be what anyone can imagine.

I also believe God is present in everything and everyone. Jesus told us to love. Other religions tell us to love. I think Jesus' mission was to teach us how to live here on earth. The ones he rebuked were the religious leaders.

Actually, the word "Christian" was coined by the Romans and it was an irreverent referral to those who followed the teaching of Jesus. Jesus and his followers never used the word "Christian."

The one thing I know, for sure, is I'm not God and the one thing I believe is one day I will live in love and of God.

Read Richard Rohr's books or YouTube videos.
 
Sigmund Freud said religion is an illusion. I believe organized religion for profit is an illusion.
Evangelicals with mega churches, living in mansions, private jets, preaching with expensive
suits and jewelry and do not pay taxes on very little of it all.

Christ rode on a mule, not a horse/mule drawn chariot ( if you believe the stories told).
And the followers just keep pouring the money every Sunday and make big donations through
the year. Just to almost be just entertained Sunday morning or at home on TV.

That's illusion.

("Roman Catholic" is the one that really gets me... what a twist of history that worked out to be. )

PS. We have a huge church near us, Sundays the big parking lot is slam full and they're parked
along the street both ways. And.... we've heard at another location they have their own
restaurant which is only open Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 4PM till 9PM. How does
a restaurant make it only being open 3 days for 15 hours a week. More donations I guess.

Again, if someone is comfortable and finds joy and happiness in their belief... fine. For me...
keep it out of politics, (like the Founding Fathers wrote so clearly) and respect others who
believe something different.

Last note. My mother was blind but able to live by herself. My sister handled her finances.
She realized Mom's account was running shorter than it should be. Long story short...
we had to threaten Jerry Falwell's money begging operation to stop calling my mother
begging for another donation with a law suit. We couldn't stop her from listening to
that sickening show but we did convince her not to donate another dime. And they
knew she was blind living alone. We had a good lawyer who was willing to take it
Pro Bono.
 
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Kim. I like Richard Rohr also.
 
Rohr helped me get through all that Catholic guilt.....and there was a lot of it. I also learned contemplative prayer and that really works for me, especially when my mind is racing.
 
Kim. Thanks for reminding me of Rohr and the CAC. Rohr's thoughts and teachings on suffering may be difficult for some people to understand, because his theology is contemplative and poetic. I will see if I can find something accessible and not too abstract to share.
I signed up for his daily meditation.

We are referring to the Center for Action and Contemplation, and the work of Richard Rohr. Cac dot org
In new mexico. Usa.
 
I get his newsletter and belong to his FB group. Thomas Keating (died in 2018) has some great Youtube videos on contemplative (centering) prayer. There is one of a conversation between Keating and Rohr that is a good watch.
 
"The Center for Action and Contemplation" and the work of
Father Richard Rohr. (You have do a little looking to find
“Father’ Richard Rohr.)

If anyone is interested they do have a platform for donations.
He has several ways you can donate. You can send a check, you
can donate/gift stocks, you can give a tax free “gift” from your
IRA or a gift from your Will.

(As I wrote above about Jerry Falwell’s grifting operation they
too ask my Mother to be considered in her Will. Not saying
Father Rohr is a grifting operation.)

Again, if you find Father Rohr brings you understanding, good
thoughts and peace of mind… that’s fine with me. And… do
donate so he can continue.
 
Clearwater. Sorry to hear that your mother was taken advantage of and harrassed by people who should be serving her. There is a lot of corruption in churches. I think it is due to unchecked power. And due to screwed up theology where individuals dont put others first.
Sorry your family went through that.
 
I think that anything which helps us to pray is a good thing.

Al, I agree that some media preachers are frauds, enriching themselves at the expense of the vulnerable. There are bad people all around but it seems extra bad to use someone's faith in God to harm them.

It also ties in with @Tomswife's topic. Seeing someone take advantage of the weak may well make us feel angry. So can having to endure a difficult season of life. How we deal with those feelings is important. I believe that God understands our anger (Christ did live in human form) and he can handle it. We are not the first people to feel angry at him.

What really matters is that we are talking to him about it. Speaking to the Jewish captives in Babylon, God said, "If you look for me wholeheartedly you will find me." (Jer. 29:13) I believe that promise is for everyone.

@Al quoted Freud as saying religion is an illusion. Marx said religion is the opiate of the masses. Nietzsche proclaimed that God is dead.
@Tomswife said, "I have Faith in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." That miracle of faith! How wonderful!

Paul asks in Romans 10:14, "But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him?" In 1Cor. 1:23, Paul says, "but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God." ("Gentiles" and "Greeks" = non-Jews.) Why does @Tomswife have faith - puts her hope and trust in God - while to Freud he is an illusion? I suppose that everyone must decide in their own heart whether or not God is real and go from there.

Whatever flaws and failures exist in religious leaders, it is (IMO) a mistake to condemn all religion and faith-based giving. For those who believe the Bible, we are called to give to support the church, and to help those in need. I have personally seen much good result from money given to the church. We would not stop using banks because some bank manager embezzled money from the bank.
 
Wmilo. Well said. I invite Jesus to abide with me every day. When i get up at 3am or 4am or 5am for a bedpan visit; when PALS says he does not think he is able to eat by mouth; when its been months since my husband has been strong enough to give me a hug....
Dear Lord Jesus. Abide with me.
 
@Tomswife, I'm so sorry you are going through such a rough stretch. I am also very glad that you can call on the Lord for his strength and power. There is no substitute.

For the Hoyer, my wife has found that stuff gets wrapped around the axles which makes it difficult to steer. If you have a hemostat or needle nose pliers or tweezers you may be able to remove it.

You mentioned difficulty getting the sling on. I don't know what sling you are using but I and some others have found the Liko Hygiene Sling to be great for toileting and also for general use. Fairly easy to put on and remove. If you search the forum for "Liko hygiene" you will see many posts.

Best,
 
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