Some of my friends have been mentioning their anger towards God lately. It’s something I understand, having been through a few episodes myself. For me those moments have ultimately been healthy and instructive, giving way to a deeper, more endearing revelation of the Father of Jesus. It invariably turns out the “God” I was angry at wasn’t the True God at all, but rather a twisted, ill-informed version of Him shaped by past experiences, shoddy teaching, and rigid legalism.

Jesus said “…no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” (Matt. 11:27) And when Jesus chooses to reveal the Father to us, he does so by telling a story about an amazing Father and his delinquent son. The same Father who generously hands over the family inheritance and allows him to spend it at will is also the same Father who waits broken-hearted on the front porch for his son to return. And all in the hope of showering him once again with extravagant love. What’s a squandered inheritance worth compared to the treasure of a loving relationship between Father and son?

That’s not the sort of Father who invites my anger and fear. And when I find myself getting frustrated with “God” it’s a reminder that I need to step back and see if I’m not believing lies about who the true Father of Jesus is.