“Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior.” Ephesians 4:31 NLT

You’d think after sharing last week’s devotion I would’ve broken up with frustration.

Thrown it away.

Sent it back to where it came from.

But that wouldn’t be entirely accurate. You see, I realized an important truth about frustration this week. Like anything I practice over and over, frustration can become a habit.

And habits are hard to break.

“Get rid of all bitterness…” Eph. 4:31 NLT

Even when we pray, read Scripture, and allow God to change our hearts, frustration will continue if we don’t make a daily commitment to replace old habits with new ones. Paul tells the believers at Ephesus in today’s verse to get rid of bitterness. Throw it away. Send it back where it came from. But why is it so hard to get rid of it? How can we fall back into feelings of frustration so easily?

Frustration feeds on an overworked soul.

Time and time again I’ve given into frustration. Just two short days after beginning this month’s conversation here on the blog, I allowed an unexpected twist in my plans to spark a gripe session. This was a busy weekend for us, filled with fun family activities. But with those good times can come lots of late nights, traveling, and tiredness.

Busy days are not necessarily bad, but we need to be alert during those times when our schedules are unusually full. Frustration loves an overworked soul, and it has this pesky way of creeping in and causing disruption. And the more attention I give it, the stronger it gets.

Frustration gives me a temporary feeling of satisfaction. I can vent to my husband about my day, gripe about this and that on social media, or let life’s little annoyances get under my skin. These quick fixes may help me breathe a sigh of relief that lasts a minute or two, but they don’t give my heart what it longs for, which brings us to the Truth about frustration…

When I tell God about my frustration, His peace wipes away its power.

There’s something miraculous that happens when I begin sharing those frustrating moments with God. Instead of the anger growing bigger and bigger, His precious Spirit begins to soothe the tension I feel inside. God puts everything in perspective, and frustration’s power fades.

“Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:7 NLT

Now that we’ve uncovered the truth, we can make that daily commitment. Instead of falling back into the habit of feeling frustrated, let’s be aware when frustration tries to take control again. Let’s allow the Holy Spirit to replace our #feelingfrustrated with #feelingcalm.

Blessings,

Kristine