Don’t Stuff Your Pain; Tell God About It

[Don’t Stuff Your Pain; Tell God About It]( Current Teaching Series [Uncommon Courage]( [Listen to Today's Broadcast]( [Don’t Stuff Your Pain; Tell God About It]( By Rick Warren — 11/15/2021 [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Pinterest]( [Email]( “Get up, cry out in the night, even as the night begins. Pour out your heart like water in prayer to the Lord." Lamentations 2:19 (NCV) Think you’ve had a bad day? Job would understand; he practically had a PhD in pain and loss. In the very first chapter of Job, everything in his life fell apart. His response? “Job stood up, tore his robe in grief, and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground and worshiped” (Job 1:20 GW). Notice that Job openly expressed his pain to God. When you experience pain, do you tell God exactly how you feel? It should be the first thing you do. This may surprise you, but God can handle your anger and frustration. He can handle your emotions. Why? Because he gave them to you. You were made in his image, and he is an emotional God. When your 2-year-old has a temper tantrum and pulls on your legs, you can handle that. In the same way, God is bigger than your emotions, and it’s okay to tell him exactly how you feel. When you pray for a promotion but don’t get it, when a loved one walks out of your life, or when you get the dreaded call saying, “It’s cancer,” you can tell God how you feel. You can say, “I’m mad. I’m upset. I’m frustrated.” God can handle your complaints, questions, fear, and grief. God’s love for you is bigger than all your emotions. My kids know I love them. They know I have more experience than they have because I’ve been on this planet longer. But my children sometimes question my judgment. Still, I’d rather have an honest, gut-level conversation with them than have them stuff their frustration and disappointment inside. God is the same way! He would rather you wrestle with him in anger than walk away in detached apathy. When tragedy strikes, you don’t have to grin and bear it. Instead, go to your heavenly Father with your pain. “Get up, cry out in the night, even as the night begins. Pour out your heart like water in prayer to the Lord” (Lamentations 2:19 NCV). [PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >>]( Talk It Over - Who is the first person you usually talk to about your troubles? Why do you trust that person? In what ways would it make a difference to go to God first? - When have you kept anger to yourself? What were the physical and emotional effects of that? - What will you do to be more honest with God in your prayers? The post [Don’t Stuff Your Pain; Tell God About It]( appeared first on [Pastor Rick's Daily Hope](. [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Pinterest]( [Email]( [Get the God's Big Plans For Me Storybook Bible when you give a gift to support Daily Hope]( Whether you have kids, grandkids, nieces, nephews, or kids in your neighborhood, every child needs to know God loves them and has a good plan for their lives. Help them draw closer to God, by encouraging them to read His Word with the God’s Big Plans for Me Storybook Bible! This 223-page, hardcover children’s book includes 40 beloved Bible stories to help kids engage with God’s Word, along with practical steps kids can take to embrace God’s plans. [LEARN MORE]( [Complete Audio Series (Purchase)]( Includes 3 full-length messages from Pastor Rick's series Uncommon Courage. [LEARN MORE]( [Series Summary]( Message 1: Standing Courageously for the Truth Message 2: The Courage to Keep Going Message 3: The Courage to Follow Your Calling [PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST]( Pastor Rick Warren [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Linkedin]( Enjoy today's devotional? Listen to Pastor Rick’s daily audio teaching at [PastorRick.com]( Did someone forward this devotional to you? [Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional.]( As the founding pastor of Saddleback Church with his wife Kay, Dr. Rick Warren leads a 30,000-member congregation in California with campuses in major cities around the world. As an author, his book [The Purpose Driven Life]( is one of the best-selling nonfiction books in publishing history. It has been translated into 74 languages and sold more than 50 million copies in all formats. His book [The Purpose Driven Church]( was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the century. Rick also founded [The PEACE Plan]( to address five global issues—spiritual emptiness, self-serving leadership, poverty, disease, and illiteracy—through the power of ordinary people in the local church. You can listen to Pastor Rick’s Daily Hope, his daily 25-minute audio teaching, and sign up for his free daily devotionals at [PastorRick.com](. © 2021 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission. You can unsubscribe by clicking the link below. Sent to: {EMAIL} [Unsubscribe]( Pastor Rick's Daily Hope, 23182 Arroyo Vista, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688, United States