Does God get mad?

Here in Brazil, no one talks about this subject. But I've observed that some churches in the US worry about this. Because it seems that many people there think that God is an angry God ready to punish us.

So, many American pastors work to prove them wrong. To prove that God is a loving Father who doesn't punish.

I have been meditating in all that for some time and decided to write my view on this.

When God is telling me to do a certain thing and I insist on disobeying Him, He rebukes me. But sometimes His rebuke is not light! He gets mad at me. But not mad in an angry, carnal way, willing to punish me. 

He gets upset because my disobedience makes me weak and I get distant from Him. I lose my connection with Him. So He gets mad because He wants me to be strong, powerful, full of peace and very close to Him.

When I insist on disobeying, I feel powerless, I lose my peace and I get disconnected from Him.

How many times did He use thunders to rebuke me? Many... I could feel He was mad. Psalm 104: 7
And His rebukes always work. I always get back to the path He wants me.

But those times He got mad at me, I felt loved. I felt protected. Because He wanted my best and I didn't. He was loving me more than I was loving myself.

Saying that God does not get upset with His children is like saying that He does not love them.

Because He is our Shepherd and when we start going to a dangerous area or doing something that damages us, His love for us urges Him to correct us.

When we make choices that are contrary to what He has been counseling us to do, He gets upset because He loves us, and He wants us to remember that He is our God and knows better than us. He wants us to trust Him. That makes His heart happy.

Last night, when He rebuked me with thunders, I opened in Isaiah 9: 6, and when I saw the words: Wonderful, Counselor. He said: "I have been counseling you and you have been ignoring Me, and I am the Wonderful One."

He was saying that He was upset with me because I didn't give Him the importance that He deserves, He is God, He is Wonderful, so I should respect Him, I should trust Him, I should know that He knows what He is doing when He is telling me what I should do.

So, according to my experience with my relationship with Him, I can say that God is a very loving Father, He does not punish, but He disciplines me, and sometimes that discipline can even last some years because I disobeyed Him for too long going completely astray. I ignored Him willingly, following my heart and emotions and not His guidance.

So His discipline is to bring me back to the path of wisdom, to the path where I will listen to Him again, to a path where I will value Him again. A path where I will be protected by Him again, where I will have the humility to listen and obey Him again.

But for most of the time, I have deep communion with Him. He uses birds to cherish me, to celebrate me and to remind me of His presence next to me every day.

God does not get angry willing to harm us. Never. Because He is Good. He is always good and wanting our best. He is good even to evil people says the Bible. (Luke 6: 35b)

But He does correct those He loves. 

"And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons:

"My son, do not despise the chastening of the LORD,

Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him;

For whom the LORD loves He chastens,

And scourges every son whom He receives."

Hebrews 12: 5-6

And in my opinion, He doesn't get angry, He gets mad at us. (Upset) when we don't trust Him and ignore Him. Also when we give room to an idol in our hearts. (which makes us blind and deaf)

But He never stops loving us deeply. And as soon as we give credit to His rebuke and repent, He rejoices and celebrates!!!

"Teach me Your way, O LORD;

I will walk in Your truth;

Unite my heart to fear Your name."

Psalm 86: 11