How to Market God When You're Mad at Him
God and I have not gotten off to a great 2020 thus far.
I'm blessed that I am able to "hear" God's voice pretty often in my life, but for some reason, He's been pretty silent the past few weeks. Everything I've tried to achieve thus far for the year has fallen apart or just plain old failed. In one particular area, I BEGGED Him, on my knees, in Adoration and church, for weeks for a clear direction on a decision I was trying to make. He was absolutely silent all that time, and so I had just decided on Friday to let the decision go because trying to take on that project was going to be too much right now when BOOM, yesterday, He gave me a super clear sign to keep moving forward with it, and now I'm back to square one with the decision. So we're not exactly in sync.
What's more is that 2020 looks like it's shaping up to be a challenging year for me personally, and I'm just plain old mad at God about that. I know rationally that all of this is simply Satan trying to thwart my work, but it still feels like He's abandoned me when I need Him most, and I've found myself often repeating after St. Teresa of Avila: "If this is how you treat your friends, no wonder you have so few."
Despite all this, I work in Catholic marketing, and I have to continue to promote this God who I'm not the biggest personal fan of right now. I love Him tons, but He's also making me a little mad.
That's the thing about being a Catholic marketer, though: We're called to evangelize in the good times and the bad, not just when we feel like it or when God is on our "good side."
If you're walking through a difficult situation, it can be tempting to let that get in the way of spreading the Good News, because it frankly doesn't feel like good news right about then. So here are some ways to spread the faith when you're not really feeling it:
Remember the times of joy, the times that make you the Catholic you are today. I've been through the hills and the valleys in the past, and I know that singing Joyful, Joyful won't always feel like a contradiction of how I'm feeling right now. If someone asked me about becoming Catholic today, despite the honest feelings of betrayal I'm battling, I'd still tell them how much Jesus loves them and that He is there for them. Because I know deep down that that's true, both for that person and myself, and my own drama shouldn't keep someone from the truth of knowing His love. The only reason I'm struggling in my own relationship with Him right now is because I have one with Him to begin with. I'd rather have a rocky, natural, highs and lows relationship with Him than none at all, and that seems reason enough to keep talking about Him.
Use your time of hardship as a way to connect. I don't know about you, but the thing that is most convincing to me about Paul as an evangelist is his complete 180 from murderer of the Christians to the most vocal Christian there was. There's something about change that makes an argument compelling. Without turning it into a therapy or complaint session, it can be helpful sometimes in evangelization to explain that faith isn't always easy or that you sometimes question things. I'd be much more convinced by someone who remained faithful through the obvious struggles of life than by someone who pretends life is perfect once you find Jesus. The best thing about being in a relationship with Jesus is that it's real, and just like earthly relationships, not everything is always sunshine and roses. In the end, it's the struggles that actually make it more authentic.
Go back to the basics. I've found that 99% of the time when I am mad at God, it is because I don't fully understand His ways. So perhaps yo