Frustration is a difficult emotion. It is one I contend with as a pastor very often. I become frustrated when I think I know what is best for a particular situation in the church but church leaders feel otherwise. I am frustrated when I spend hours preparing a sermon and the number of people who come to hear are fewer than I would hope. In my more lucid moments, however, I realize that many people have goals of regular church attendance and participation but when it comes down to actually spending the time, energy, and resources to participate, people fall short and the regular routine of apathy wins the day. People genuinely have the best interest of the church at heart even when we differ about how to get there. In fact, sometimes I find the very people I am frustrated with are actually frustrated with themselves for not living up to their own goals for what their life should look like. In these cases and with God’s help, my frustration becomes compassion as I realize that people are genuinely struggling with these matters in their life.
Our frustration with the political realities of the day is also felt very personally. Most people I know have hopes and dreams for an America that are different than our current reality. People of all political persuasions feel we have not achieved the America we deeply desire. I am often amazed at how my friends who are so politically diverse actually have very similar visions and dreams for what America should actually be.
Rather than letting our frustration get the best of us, we should remember that frustration is always the side effect of genuine care and concern. If we are not frustrated, then we no longer care. The Bible tells us Jesus looked out upon the multitudes and saw them “as sheep without a shepherd.” When he overturned the tables of the moneychangers in the temple, his frustration with the brokenness and corruption of his beloved house of worship motivated his action. Sometimes, when I look around our town, our state, and our nation, I can begin to imagine how Jesus might have felt. It can be frustrating when we observe how much difference there really is between the world we WISH we had and the world we REALLY have. Consequently, almost as if we are in denial, many of us live as if the world really were better than it is. We imagine that things aren’t so bad. In doing so, we ignore the realities of poverty, injustice, and suffering. We drive past neighborhoods or even entire ZIP codes that remind us of all the stuff we wish didn’t exist but still does.
Frustration can become fruitful when it motivates action. Church attendance alone isn’t the solution to living the Christian faith, but it is difficult to envision faithful disciples of Jesus Christ who are not a part of his church. Voting on election day isn’t the solution to all the ills of our city, state, and country, but it is hard to imagine a citizenry dedicated to improving our world that doesn’t participate in the process.
If you are frustrated with yourself or your world, then do something! Go to church on Sunday and get your spiritual house in order. Go to the polls and vote to help us get our collective worldly house in order. Don’t be deceived, however, that either of these actions will be enough. We need to live out our faith every day in order to be authentic disciples of Jesus Christ. It will take loving, serving, and caring for our neighbor every day for us to really become the citizens that Alma, Georgia, and the United States of America really need.
When it is all said and done, perhaps country singer Toby Keith has given us the real solution to what ails us most in our spiritual and earthly lives – we need a little less talk and a lot more action. Then, maybe we’ll all feel a little less frustrated.
When it is all said and done, perhaps country singer Toby Keith has given us the real solution to what ails us most in our spiritual and earthly lives – we need a little less talk and a lot more action. Then, maybe we’ll all feel a little less frustrated.
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