Stomping My Feet at God

Toddler Stomping feet

While dress shopping with my daughter, a child’s temper tantrum prompted me to share that I was stomping my feet at God.

“I am frustrated with God. He keeps pushing me to write more, but He won’t give me places to speak. I love talking about the names of God, His faithfulness, Advent, or about the spiritual disciplines.”

“Aren’t those your books? All except the spiritual disciplines.” She asked.

Pausing for a moment, I had to agree. “Call Signs” and “He Is Jehovah” are my first two books on the names of God. “Hearts of Devotion” and “Come Lord Jesus” are in production. I realize that I am stomping my feet at God because He wants me to write “Spiritual Disciplines for Busy Women.” Writing is more challenging for me than speaking, so I want to take the easy path.

As she filled her arms with dresses to try on, my heart pondered Am I acting like Jonah? Stomping my feet at God is similar to the story of the prophet Jonah.

In the book of Jonah, the prophet is a proud, selfish, shortsighted man. He stomped his feet, then tried to run away from God. When that didn’t work, he prayed. God listened and had the fish vomit Jonah on the shore. While walking to Nineveh, Jonah probably stomped some more while he shortened God’s message into eight words. He did not proclaim God, nor did he call for repentance. He simply said, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” (Jonah 3:4b)

Strangely, the people of Nineveh believed in God, fasted, and put on sackcloth, even the king. Because of their repentance, God relented and did not destroy them. Let’s pick up the story in Jonah 4.

But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry. And he prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster. Jonah 4:1-2

Can you see him stomping his feet at God’s decision? Even though Jonah prayed, he was stomping his feet, mad at God. This proud, selfish, shortsighted prophet can teach me something about how to respond when I am angry. He was angry at God, but he turned to prayer. But that’s not usually my first inclination. Lashing out or bottling it up are my two favorite ways to respond when I'm angry. How do you show you are angry?

Jonah did not want God to relent; he wanted Nineveh destroyed. His proud, selfish heart wanted thousands of people to die because he believed their evil actions rendered them beyond redemption. He knew what God would do, but it was not what he wanted. God chose to be merciful, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disasters. Just what Jonah had listed as His attributes.

The attributes of God are:

1. Gracious: He gives undeserved blessings. We don’t deserve anything from our holy God, but He blesses us more than we can imagine.

‘...but God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.’ Romans 5:8

2. Merciful: He withholds the punishment we deserve. We are sinners. Our punishment should be death and separation from God. He withholds that conviction.

‘But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ–by grace you have saved’ Ephesians 2:4-5

3. Slow to anger: He is patient, wanting us to learn to stop sinning. He gives us more time to share the Gospel to the ends of the earth.

‘Whoever is low to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.’  Proverbs 16:32

4. Abounding in steadfast love: His faithfulness and love overflows into our lives.

“Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13

5. Relenting from disaster: His heart’s desire is for everyone to repent and accept salvation.

‘Nevertheless, He looked upon their distress, when He heard their cry. For their sake He remembered His covenant, and relented according to the abundance of His steadfast love.’ Psalm 106:44-45

Jonah showed us what not to do when we are angry. We are not to try to run away or avoid God. Instead of becoming judgmental or selfish, we are to follow God’s example.

●      Be gracious: Show grace and control your tongue. Instead of lashing out at those who’ve done wrong in our eyes, bless and pray for them.

‘Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.’ Ephesians 4:32

●      Be merciful: Try to see it from God’s point of view. Instead of focusing on how to get back at the person who has wronged you, consider what God might be trying to teach you through this circumstance. Remember, everyone is a sinner saved by grace. No one is without sin, except Jesus.

‘For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.’James 2:13

●      Be slow to anger:  Count to ten before deciding on any action or showing any reaction.

‘Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil.’ Ephesians 4:26-27

●      Abound in love: Show love in all situations. This is not as easy as it sounds. We have to trust God to look at the heart of the other person. We must look at our own hearts, allow God to show us where the evil lurks, and lead us toward loving others.

‘Search me, O God, and know my heart!

Try me and know my thoughts!

And see if there be any grievous way in me,

And lead me in the way everlasting!’

Psalm 139:23-24

What other verses do you know to show these attributes or to help us remember to follow God’s example? Leave me a comment with your favorite ones.

Prayer:

Dear Lord, please forgive me for stomping my feet when I don’t get my way. Teach me to show grace and mercy to everyone I interact with. Instruct me on how to be slow to anger and abounding in love.  Lord, remind me of your love, grace, and mercy towards me every day. Amen.

Photo by Zachary Kadolph on Unsplash