Anger Day 2

Day 2

Anger: Our human response

As a mom, there have been many reasons to enjoy life. I have also encountered many reasons to be angry. This is not the only relationship that I have found myself in an angry fit over something. Does this mean I have an anger problem? Looking at all the meanings of the word, I believe that it is an emotion that we share right along with our God. I am praising him that he has enough self-control not to administer his wrath upon us each time we provoke him to anger (which I am sure is millions of times more than I have ever been provoked). I would, however, prefer to have fewer instances where my tolerance meter is redlined.

I remember after I had my second daughter, a friend of mine gave me a book called She's Gonna Blow. I loved the book and felt it was exactly what I needed at the time to help me with the realities of life and parenting. Books, however are not always the best answer to our emotions. I picked up a book that I have on my shelf about anger. The authors thoughts on what is the best thing to do with it, believe it or not, made me angry! No where did it say anything about how to recognize it when it happens, the book dealt with anger as a disease, something that we need to cure. It was full of opinion. I understand that I am writing my opinion as well and many times others do not agree with me, so I will try to be sensitive. There is only one book that we can trust completely on this subject, God's Word, the Bible.

Anger is an emotion, plain and simple. I believe God gave us emotions for a reason. They can be warning signs that something is not right or ways to help us grieve, celebrate. They are there for a reason and if we treat them like a disease, we will not know how to care for and nurture our feelings and emotions. There are so many suggestions of how to get anger under control: count to ten, breathe really deep through your nose ten times, think of something happy, are just a few. the problem is that I usually end up counting dow from 10 to 1 and blow up, breathing really deep like an angry bull and think of how happy I will be when I have had my revenge. It is all in the way you perceive the advice in which you are given. That is why when we read the Bible, it is clear enough for us to understand.

In the definitions of anger, there were many types of anger. Two of them relate to how we as human beings tend to treat anger. There is the Orge, which is the one that we bottle up and let fester into a full blown attack, it is active and it looks for revenge. Then there is the thumos, which is the instant outburst and then subsides. Neither of these is more healthy than the other. They both pull us away from God. They both cause us to be physically and spiritually sick.

Proverbs 14:29 Anyone who is patient has great understanding. But anyone who gets angry quickly shows how foolish he is.

Ecclesiastes 7:9 Don't become angry quickly. Anger lives in the hearts of foolish people.

Proverbs 15:18 A hot-tempered person starts fights; a cool-tempered person stops them.

Proverbs 29:22 An angry person starts fights; a hot-tempered person commits all kinds of sin.

Proverbs 19:11 Sensible people control their temper; they earn respect by overlooking wrongs.

Psalm 37:8 Stop being angry! Turn from your rage! Do not lose your temper— it only leads to harm.

So what can we do in our flesh to ward off the bottle it up anger and the 3-2-1 anger? We can recognize the anger, then hit our knees. We can pray for patience to be able to understand the situation better, look for ways you could have misunderstood. Is there even a reason to respond to what has angered you? Is it better to overlook it? What will your witness look like? Maybe even running it by a third person will help you to see it from another perspective. It is always best to look for resolution instead of more reasons to be angry. You will need good judgement to do that and in times when we are angry, we don't tend to have good judgement. If you are one who likes to right a wrong, then try to bathe your attitude and thoughts in love (fully emerse them if you have too) and then take care of it as soon as possible, not allowing the sun to set on your anger. (Eph. 4:26). This is also a good way for you to build perserverance, grow tolerance and develop a gentle spirit. Remember that in our anger, we can grow in our relationship with God. We just have to be open to learning how to respond and not allowing the anger to hinder our relationship with God.

Dear Lord, thank you for teaching me that today, I can trust your word, I can take steps to ward off anger and I can come to you, on my knees, and you will help me to grow stronger and closer to you. Help me get this today, so that I can stop visiting the same lesson over and over again. Help those who are reading to be able to respond as you would have them. As you respond when we anger you. Amen.

Please pray for Kelly M. this week.