Breathe Again: A 7-Day Planናሙና

I recently asked friends if they’ve ever felt disappointed by God. Unanimously they said, “Yes. But we feel wrong for it.” 

Me too.

Here are some reasons why: 

There is shame: “I shouldn’t feel this way. It’s unchristian.”

There is fear: “Won’t God be mad at me?”

There is isolation: “I’m the only one feeling this way.”

There is denial: “If I don’t admit it, my perfect picture of God

will stay intact.”

It’s hard to admit, let alone deal, with our disappointment. Shame, fear, isolation, and denial, all tactics of the enemy to convince us to hide rather than doing the brave work of becoming vulnerable with God when we feel let down by Him. 

Some of us have hidden for so long we don’t know who we authentically are. Like Terah settled down in Harran, we’ve settled down with our disappointment. In some ways, we’ve married it and taken its name as our identity: loss, infertility, divorce. 

We’ve perfected our pretty facades, but behind them our faces are so creased with pain and disappointment that no amount of Botox could erase it. We’ve believed the lie that perfection is required in our relationship with God.  

But when did He say to stop being human when you become a Christ follower? Hiding our true self only gives further opportunity for the pain in our hearts to become toxic. Taking off our mask is the first step to freedom and breaking the negative identities we’ve accepted. “What if instead of hiding our disappointment from God, we let it be our offering to Him?” It’s then that He can do the work of healing and restoration in our heart. 

Today, get real with yourself and God. He’ll never shame or condemn, but always heal.