HALTT

As a child, I was taught in moments of frustration to HALTT and ask myself five questions:

- am I hungry?
-am I angry?
-am I lonely
-am I tired?
-am  I the wrong temperature?

I was thinking about that last night before bed and again this morning. I came to the conclusion that these five questions also apply to spiritual frustration.

1. Hunger- Am I spiritually hungry and not being fed? Matthew 6:5, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied." John 5:35, "Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst." The moments when I am most frustrated by religious stuff is when I am the farthest from God. My soul knows that it is hungry and it is reaching out in frustration to hopefully find food.

2. Angry- Am I angry or blaming God for my current circumstances? It is better to express anger with God than bottle it up. Job expressed his anger about his situation and circumstances, and God restored him. Jonah was mad and through his obedience an entire people group was saved.
Ecclesiastes 7:9 "Do not be eager in your heart to be angry, For anger resides in the bosom of fools." I am often eager to be angry and throw in the towel. This, however, is not the prudent route.

3. Lonely- Do I feel like God is far away or absent completely? Deuteronomy 31:6, "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you." God's promises never fail and they are always present to the believer. Psalm 46:1 reminds me "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble."

4. Tired- Am I tired of the daily toil? Am I worn out at trying to be good? It is hard to be good. It is hard to care about doing what is right instead of just doing what is easy. Paul writes in several places reminding, And let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we shall reap if we do not grow weary.

5. Temperature- Is the temperature of my spiritual life where it needs to be? Revelation says that God prefers that I were hot or cold over lukewarm. Am I frustrated by my own lukewarm life?