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We Can Deal With Frustration by Refocusing Our Perspective

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Southeast Christian Church
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It is an important question to ask ourselves: how do we deal with frustration in a God-honoring way? The answer is surprisingly simple. Rather than acting out in frustration, or suppressing our anger and acting like it doesn’t exist (this may be the greater temptation for those wanting to appear holy), we deal with frustration by refocusing our perspective. By shifting our perspective we focus on good things, not bad.

If we have eyes to see, there are so many good things, blessings provided by God, for us to point our attention toward in life. As followers of Christ, we have the greatest blessing, the ultimate perspective-shift, in the person of Jesus Christ. In Ephesians 1:3, the apostle Paul writes “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” Over and above the things of this world, we have EVERY spiritual blessing in Jesus!

Paul is wise in drawing our attention to the abundant spiritual blessings in Christ. Frustration, at its core, is caused by the feeling of helplessness, inability to change, or prevention from moving forward. Ultimately, frustration makes us feel hopeless and blinds us to the many blessings found in Jesus. In order to combat frustration, then, we must cling to Jesus as our true and perfect hope.

Paul reminds the Church of this later on in Ephesians chapter one. “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened,” he writes, “in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in His holy people, and His incomparably great power for us who believe.” Jesus Christ is the ultimate answer to our frustration, providing the power to work change in and through us, and an eternal perspective to reorient our focus.

DISCUSSION/REFLECTION QUESTIONS: What is the greatest cause for frustration in your life today? Take some time to prayerfully consider where the feeling is coming from. Is it a sense of injustice – something wrong that should be made right? Is it a desire for change that seems impossible? Is it a feeling of being stuck in the same thing over and over? As you identify these things, invite Jesus into them. Read Ephesians 1 and consider all the things the Father accomplished through the person of Jesus.

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  • Todd Seales

    Todd Seales

    What I am most frustrated with is the divisiveness of this country. One side bashing another side. Throwing rocks while living in glass houses (as the saying goes). But I need to be thankful that we live in a country where we can say what we feel and not get thrown in prison or even killed (even though some still do, but not by the government like in other countries).

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We can all recall a time that we acted in a way that we later regretted due to our frustration. But we can take comfort in the fact that heroes of the faith struggled with this as well. We read in the Old Testament how Moses hit a rock with his staff to draw water from it in his frustrations with the Israelites, even though God specifically told him to speak to the rock in order to achieve this. Moses later comes to regret this decision to not listen and obey God's commands. This week, we want to overcome bad habits and memories by replacing them with good habits and memories. Our poor decisions can linger and influence us in unhealthy and painful ways. The best way to replace these habits and memories is by doing something kind or thoughtful for a friend, family member, or coworker. This will action will help you create a new pattern in your life! 

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