Just between us: do you ever complain about the way God is treating you? During a tornado, a mother was crying for help. It seems that her son was taken up into the tornado and blown away. The mother turned to heaven and shouted a prayer: “Please, Lord, bring back my son! He’s all I have. I’ll do anything to get him back.”--- Suddenly, her son fell from the sky right at her feet. He was a little shaken, but safe and sound. As the mother joyfully embraced her son, she noticed something was missing. She glared up at the heavens and said, “He had a hat, Lord.” This sounds ungrateful, doesn’t it?
Pashhur put Jeremiah in stocks to punish him for preaching. When he was released, Jeremiah let Pashhur know what he thought about this mistreatment. Then he let God know what he thought: “You have deceived me . . .” The prophet resented being treated badly for doing good. I suppose Jeremiah wanted to resign on several occasions. Thinking out loud, he said, “I want to be quiet and not preach anymore.” When he tried, the message from God burned within him like a fire in his bones.
Thankfully, God does not incinerate us for questioning him. The people of our world will not automatically stand and applaud when we obey God, especially when it inconveniences them. Still, God speaks to us and through us. We may tell God our concerns, but at the end of the day, we obey and trust him to take care of our needs. Say what God tells you to say and trust him to handle the rest.
