New Reminders: Frustration
by Ardith Hoff
Frustration is a common emotion in our busy world. We call and get an automatic answering system that tells us to push one number for this and a different number for that. All we want is to ask a simple question, and none of the choices seem to get us to a person who might be able to answer it. Then, when we finally get a message, it informs us that we can easily answer our own question by going to a certain website that has all the information.
The worst of it is, that we have already visited that web site only to be frustrated with a whole set of categories to choose from, where the answer might be found, none of which have the information we need. Technology is wonderful, but its limitations can leave us more annoyed and frustrated than ever. Spending hours on hold, or cycling through the numbers, leaves us irritated and feeling upset the rest of the day. Most of us would like to be able to pick up the phone and make a direct contact with a friendly person who can actually answer our question on the spot.
Some people feel a similar frustration when they try to communicate with God. It is always a one-sided conversation. We talk, and we are assured that “God is listening”, yet we do not hear his voice clearly like those in the Old Testament were able to do, and some contemporary Christians claim they do.
We are left to try to imagine what God might say or to wait for a sign or opportunity that might give us a clue. We don’t understand why God expects us to find the answers by faith. We might wonder why God doesn’t at least give us a few choices of numbers to punch to get our question answered. Consulting the Bible might help but opening it at random is not a reliable way to get the answer, and the Bible is not always set up to make it easy to find a specific answer. The internet has helped on that score, but it too is not always a reliable source of information and search engines are programmed to send us to the wherever advertisers want us to go.
The Bible sometimes says the “Spirit of Christ” lives inside believers (Romans 8:10). More often, it says the “Spirit of God” (Romans 8:9) or just the “Holy Spirit” is in us (1 Corinthians 6:19).
The answer seems to be that if we believe in Christ, the Holy Spirit is in us, and we can look inward for the answers, and they will come to us. Practice and patience are helpful.