Angry With God by Brad Hambrick

About the Book:

No one gets mad at God for something small. When we’re angry with God, it is because we’ve faced something immensely hard. Anger is an often-overlooked part of grieving, and as such, is an appropriate response to profoundly painful events. Counselor Brad Hambrick provides a guided process to being honest with God about your pain to restore and deepen your relationship with him. While we are often prone to interpret our anger about intense suffering as being at God, this book is an invitation to process these intense emotions with God as a source of comfort who is sturdy enough to support these turbulent emotions. 

If you are struggling with deep grief that is accompanied with anger and confusion, Angry with God will be profoundly helpful in your journey.  Hambrick will patiently walk you through the process of being honest with God (and others) about your pain. You will learn how to articulate your pain, alleviate the effects of this pain, contextualize your experience in light of the gospel, and begin to hope again. God is a good shepherd who is patient and willing to move at the pace of his sheep. God can be trusted in places that merit the name “the valley of the shadow of death.”

Angry with God is part of the Ask the Christian Counselor series. This series walks readers through their deepest and most profound questions. Each question is unpacked by an experienced counselor that gives readers the tools to understand their struggle and how the gospel brings hope and healing to the problem they are facing. 

My Review:

I think this is the most comprehensive book I have ever seen to help a Christian work through hurt, pain and anger. Hambrick's aim is not to offer any answers for why one has suffered but rather to invite readers to be honest in exploring their hurt, pain and anger at God. The book provides an opportunity for the reader to express the anger and process the pain. Hambrick looks at pain and anger from more aspects than I knew existed. Ultimately, he desires we come to the realization God is alongside us as a trusted friend.

This is not a book one just reads. The book requires work. There are scores of questions Hambrick wants us to think through and write our responses. In that sense, this is a workbook. I almost felt like I was sitting in front of a psychologist, following his instructions on processing my pain and anger. At times, the text sounded a little like a psychologist too, my having to work to understand some of the terminology. But the end result is having some good strategies for healing pain and anger.

This book might be hard for some to work their way through. It will take time and determination. I would suggest reading it with a trusted friend for support and discussion. This would also be a good book for a lay counselor as a template for helping others work through issues.

My rating: 4/5 stars.

About the Author:

Brad Hambrick, ThM, EdD, serves as the Pastor of Counseling at The Summit Church in Durham, NC. He also serves as Assistant Professor of Biblical Counseling at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and a council member of the Biblical Counseling Coalition

He has authored several books including God's Attributes: Rest for Life Struggles, Making Sense of Forgiveness and Angry with God. Hambrick also served as general editor for the Becoming a Church that Cares Well for the Abused curriculum.

Hambrick, his wife, Sallie, and two sons live in Raleigh, NC.

Learn more about Brad Hambrick and follow his blog and podcasts at bradhambrick.com. He can also be found on Facebook (brad.hambrick.5), Twitter (@bradhambrick) and Instagram (@bradhambrick).

New Growth Press, 160 pages.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

(My star ratings: 5-I love it, 4-I like it, 3-It's OK, 2-I don't like it, 1-I hate it.)