It is … sometimes. Tell me you have never been angry, upset, or demanding to God. You most likely cannot. I know I have. As in any parent-child relationship, this behavior is a part of the maturing process for children. They pout, sneak, demand, whine, and have tantrums.

Have you? Sure you have. We all have … to God, no less! And like any good parent, He considers our maturity level in His response and either excuses the behavior until we learn better ways of responding or He corrects our behavior if we should know better but do not act accordingly. Again, this is no different than any good parent.

• When we think something is unfair (shallow perspective), we blame God (deflection).
• When we fail to get our way (control) or what we want (selfishness), we pout (passive-aggressive).
• When we think we are special (entitlement) or know better (arrogance), we demand (disrespect) of God.
• When we think God is angry with us (rejection), we hide from Him (we reject God) in work, relationships, conditions, beliefs, etc.

All these are immature behaviors. Of course, these are only a few.

We may stomp our little spiritual feet, cross our little spiritual arms, and give Him our back or the “stink eye” (as a friend of mine calls it)–a lot like the girl in the image above. We may hide from Him or reject Him before He can reject us, as we fear He may because we have been so bad or failed so much or greatly (but He won’t).

And then, one day, we grow up.

We realize how foolish we have been. We see how God’s way was so much better than ours. We see how our demands would have ended unpleasantly (to put it mildly). It is in that moment that we realize how great is His love for us to not let us have our way but do what is best for us.

And in that moment, the relationship goes to a whole new level of respect, appreciation, trust, and love.

I have made that transition. I hope you have as well. Do not, however, hear me as saying I think I have “arrived.” Quite the contrary. The more I learn, the more I realize how little I know, and the deeper I go in God, the more I realize how shallow and immature I am. This transition/realization is, at best, a beginning place. Perhaps it is only preparation for the beginning.

If you have not reached this place, know this: I am praying that “dangerous” prayer for you that God will do whatever He needs to do to cause you to be what He has for you to be–which includes a deeper, more mature relationship of surrender, humility, and trust.

In today’s Scripture passage, David describes God’s love in ways that reveal he knew God’s love in that humble, mature way. David is one of my role models for this kind of relationship with God, a relationship of honesty, transparency, humility, and unconditional trust.

Where are you in your relationship with God? Do you have one? Is it maturing, or are you still pouting, demanding, and whining? Not flattering questions, I know, but they are vital to ask nonetheless. Be mindful: You are answering these questions to yourself. Be brutally and uncomfortably honest because God already knows.

Regardless of the state of your relationship with Him, ask God to do whatever He needs to do to bring you into a relationship with Him as He desires to be with you. Make it your constant prayer. I have been praying this daily since 1989. I discovered that the more I prayed it, the more I understood how much I NEED to pray it.

OK. Enough said. Time to pray. Ready?

From ministry friend Randall Vaughn
(c) 2023 Randall Vaughn • All Rights Reserved • http://www.e-min.org