Advent Devotion

December 17, 2009

Are You Angry With Me?

Excerpt from Psalm 80: 1-7

"O Lord God of hosts, how long will you be angry with your people's prayers . . . Restore us, O God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved."

Reflection by Lillian Daniel

Some people are very sensitive to other's moods. They constantly check in, asking, "Are you angry with me? Did I do something to offend you?"

Usually the response is, "Of course not. Why do you ask?'

They then confess some misstep they worried had hurt you, when to you it was no big deal. You talk and work it out.

Sometimes those same people get mad themselves and never tell you, expecting you to be as sensitive as they are. They are waiting for you to ask them, "Are you angry with me? Did I do something to offend you?" They want you to ask so that you can clear the air, and they can finally say "No big deal." But you don't ask, because it hadn't occurred to you that they were angry, and finally, months later, they tell you they've been mad all this time.

I seldom ask people if they are angry with me. Why hunt for bad news? I figure they'll tell me, but of course I know that's not always true.

Have you ever found out long after the fact that someone was angry with you? It's a miserable feeling.

In this psalm, the person praying asks, "God, are you angry at me? Did I do something wrong?" People whose prayers don't get answered often wonder if God is mad at them. And I always picture God responding, "No, of course not. Why do you ask?" For God doesn't punish us like that.

Prayer

God, thank you for being more patient with us than we deserve. I thank you that you are not a punishing God, but a God of love and mercy. Could it be that the answer to my prayers is coming in another form than I imagined? If so, I thank you in advance. Amen.