BLINDED BY FRUSTRATION (4 OF 5)
by Jeff Strite
Scripture: Numbers 20:1-12
This content is part of a series.
Title: Blinded By Frustration (4 of 5)
Series: Blind Spots
Author: Jeff Strite
Text: Numbers 20:1-12
Have you ever played one of those arcade games where you operate a claw that can pick up a toy inside? I've never played those games (too frustrating for me). But years ago, there was a story out of Wisconsin about a 6-year-old who attempted to get the toy of his dreams out of that machine... and he was not being successful. This 6-year-old got so frustrated with his failure that he finally gave up using the claw and decided on a more direct approach. He climbed inside the machine to get the toy he wanted. He managed to get almost completely inside before he got stuck. The Fire Department arrived and unlocked the game and got the boy out unharmed... but there was no report about whether he got the toy he wanted.
That boy was frustrated (that's why he acted the way he did) because he wasn't able to achieve his goal. He got so frustrated he ended up doing something he shouldn't have done. And, of course, he got stuck.
Our sermon today deals with frustration. One dictionary defined frustration as: "The feeling of being upset or annoyed, especially because of inability to change or achieve something. And they put the word in a sentence: 'I sometimes feel like screaming with frustration.'"
Another source compared frustration with anger. Anger is like setting off an explosion of emotion, but frustration is more like a slow burn. And of course, if your frustration lasts long enough, an explosion of anger isn't far behind.
And that's what we see in our text this morning. Moses had been leading the Israelites through the wilderness for nearly 40 years, and it seems like every time he turned around they were quarreling and complaining and grumbling.
- When they reached the Red Sea -- with Egypt's chariots close behind them the people said to Moses, "Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have ...
Series: Blind Spots
Author: Jeff Strite
Text: Numbers 20:1-12
Have you ever played one of those arcade games where you operate a claw that can pick up a toy inside? I've never played those games (too frustrating for me). But years ago, there was a story out of Wisconsin about a 6-year-old who attempted to get the toy of his dreams out of that machine... and he was not being successful. This 6-year-old got so frustrated with his failure that he finally gave up using the claw and decided on a more direct approach. He climbed inside the machine to get the toy he wanted. He managed to get almost completely inside before he got stuck. The Fire Department arrived and unlocked the game and got the boy out unharmed... but there was no report about whether he got the toy he wanted.
That boy was frustrated (that's why he acted the way he did) because he wasn't able to achieve his goal. He got so frustrated he ended up doing something he shouldn't have done. And, of course, he got stuck.
Our sermon today deals with frustration. One dictionary defined frustration as: "The feeling of being upset or annoyed, especially because of inability to change or achieve something. And they put the word in a sentence: 'I sometimes feel like screaming with frustration.'"
Another source compared frustration with anger. Anger is like setting off an explosion of emotion, but frustration is more like a slow burn. And of course, if your frustration lasts long enough, an explosion of anger isn't far behind.
And that's what we see in our text this morning. Moses had been leading the Israelites through the wilderness for nearly 40 years, and it seems like every time he turned around they were quarreling and complaining and grumbling.
- When they reached the Red Sea -- with Egypt's chariots close behind them the people said to Moses, "Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have ...
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