Yesterday we were driving to Walmart to get some last minute things for our trip to Haiti. We were at a yellow light and the car behind us started honking – mad that we weren’t running the soon to be red light. After the light turns green the car zooms around us and flips us off. A few lights later and the car is in another lane – back behind us. So what was all of that about?
I AM REALLY ANGRY!
By Lillian B. Wolff
Have you ever felt that way? Anger is something we all experience from time to time. Even the tiniest baby often feels anger. But uncontrolled anger is very destructive and can have very devastating results.
The U.S. Department of Transportation estimates that over half the fatalities are caused by someone not controlling their anger. Angry drivers, with lost tempers can cause the loss of life. It might be even their very own. Have you ever heard of “road rage”? It is estimated that 80% of all homicide victims are killed because of someone being angry and not being able to settle a quarrel in a civil manner. It often starts with nagging hostility, sarcasm, resentfulness, slamming doors, shouting at the spouse and children. Even the dog and cat can be victims.
Is it wrong to be angry? No, not when it is controlled and doesn’t linger on. The Bible says, “Be ye angry and sin not.” So there is room for getting angry or upset. The really good news is that God has a powerful plan for our managing our anger and not allowing it to get out of control.
It is certainly possible to learn to harness anger and use it for good. A few pointers I would offer. First of all, recognize the power of anger and also those things that fire up your indignation. Perhaps you may meet some folks who are upset and angry with you. Learn to respond to them in a right way. The Bible also says “a soft answer turns away wrath”. Sometimes it just helps to postpone or dismiss the anger. Have you ever heard of counting to ten? How about counting to fifty? Laugh! God’s Word is a handbook for all situations and it says, “Don’t let the sun go down on your wrath.”
Dr. Tim Clinton says, “Resentment is anger with a history.” Isn’t that the truth? The longer we mull over something usually the bigger it becomes until our whole outlook on life is filled with anger, resentment and bitterness
Someone has said that quite often we think of what people should have done and how our situation would be better. We think of what they owe us. It is like a stack of IOUs. The only way to get free of them is to, one by one, tear them up.
If you are waiting for someone to pay up for what they have done, you might be waiting a very long, long time, with no effort on their part. We need to let go of it. God’s Word says in Hebrews 12:15NASB- “See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled”
ANGER CAN BREED BITTERNESS AND BITTERNESS IS LIKE TAKING A POISON WHICH IS VERY SLOW ACTING.