Overcoming Bitterness Through Meditating on God's Goodness

I want to write this for anyone who has, at some point in their life, not understood what is happening in their life or the life of someone they love. Life is a mystery, full of ups and downs and situations that we don't fully understand or comprehend. Though we try to control details of our lives that are both big and small, we soon find out that we simply can't. I'm not saying we are not responsible for certain things, because we are. There is certainly an accountablity we must live by, but my point is that we truly don't know what's going to happen from one day to another.

If you are like me, it's very difficult to not be in control. Whether it's having the freedom of choosing simple things such as what I will eat for dinner or what I will wear, to more important issues like what my life will look like in ten years, I really like the feeling that I am in charge. It's when we can't see, when we can't explain, and when we didn't plan on "that" happening is when the ugliness of bitterness seems to try and hook us. It is when disappointment seems to cloud our understanding and we seem to give up or lose hope that we give place for bitterness to take root. If you have not experienced this, just live a bit longer and I can assure you that this experience will be a part of your journey. If you have experienced, know that you are not alone.

So what is the answer to this battle we all fight against? It's a battle between having a heart of tenderness and trust towards God and having a heart that is untrusting, angry, resentful, and full of blame towards others and possibly God. I think everyone, at some point, will have the latter because we are simply human. We can't see the big picture and our perception of what God is doing in our lives is often twisted by our own ignorance of who He is and His heart towards us.

For example, take Job. This story is just painful. He loses everything he has including family and possessions. He has never done a thing wrong. As a matter of fact, God calls him "blameless." You can imagine what was going on in his mind when he tried to comprehend what was happening around him. He even began to question God and wondered if He had become his enemy. At this point, God speaks to Job and asks, "Who is this that darkens my counsel with words without knowledge?" I believe darkening here represents a lack of true knowledge. In the bitterness of his pain and discomfort, Job had expressed rage over the injustice he was experiencing. He claimed that God was angry with him and that He was his enemy. From the events throughout the story that are unseen by Job, the reader knows this isn't true. I think I can safely say that Job's biggest problem was ignorance about God's heart and what His motives were in allowing certain things to happen. If he knew the things that we know as we read the story, his attitude would probably be very different.

The fact is, the more we meditate on the goodness of God to us and His love for us, bitterness will not have root in us. The moment we begin to accuse God or anyone else for that matter, we are in a very dangerous place. I've been there before and though I have crawled out of that pit a few times, I have to set my mind upon the Word and fill my thoughts with His love for me. Otherwise, that pit will be a familiar place for any of us. We can know, even though we don't understand what's happening, that God is good and God is fair and God is just. It will also do good for us when we can know in our hearts that there are things we don't know, things we can't see, and a plan that is unfolding more awesome than we realize. Our temporary problems, quesitons, and concerns are nothing in comparison to what will come about one day!