Anger

Good Morning,

James 1:19-20 (NIV)
My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.

I read these words and they caused me to bow my head and begin to ask forgiveness for the many ways and many times that I've not been obedient to what James so clearly tells us in these verses. Quick to listen? Not me so much in my life. Slow to speak? Well, those of you who know me fairly well can attest that I don't have a problem with letting people know my opinion on things. Slow to become angry? I wish! But, I'm one of those "hot heads" who sees what I consider a wrong and my anger flairs immediately...if not sooner! All right, I've confessed. How about you?

God is telling us clearly, through James' pen, advice that every one of us needs to take to heart and begin to work on. There's a saying that goes something like, "God gave us two ears and one mouth. I would guess that means He wants us to listen twice as much as talk." I think that pretty much says what James writes, don't you? Quick to listen is pretty difficult sometime when we're not agreeing with what's being said. Sometimes it's tough even when we DO agree, if, perhaps, we don't care for the way it's being said. I thought about this and wondered how one is "quick to listen." I think it's simply going on to the next thing we read...slow to speak. We all know, I'm sure, that we cannot listen as long as our mouths are talking. So, if we are slow to speak then I guess it stands to reason that we'll be quick to listen. Makes sense, doesn't it?

The last part of these verses is for many of us the most difficult. Yes, we can...with some effort...keep our ears open and our mouths shut, so as to be obedient to God's command in these verses. But, slow to anger? When we see all of the things that we observe as we go about our daily business? I get angry too easily, I'm sure, and I know that I'm not alone in this. I read the newspaper and see things that I get angry about. I hear something on the radio and I get angry at that. Lord forbid I should watch television because then I pretty much stay angry at so much of what's being broadcast about the goings on in the world. And that's when I watch ESPN!!! Imagine if I were to put on CNN or Fox News!!!

Yes, it's difficult for us to get a handle on our anger. We justify by saying that it's a "righteous" anger. But, um, let's read verse 20 here. "For a man's anger does NOT bring about the RIGHTEOUS LIFE that God desires." Uh, oh. There goes my "righteous anger" argument. Our anger simply does not please God. It's as straight forward as that. Now, one might ask, "Okay, David, then how, exactly, do I get a handle on my anger?" You know, if I had an easy answer to that, I'd use it myself! No, there is no easy answer to that one, I'm afraid. I believe that it's only by God's grace in our lives, the help of the Holy Spirit, and the assistance of our Christian brothers and sisters that many of us will be able to rid ourselves of the anger we often feel. I certainly know that I can't do it on my own.

Of course, there are times when we SHOULD be angry at something. Certainly there are things that happen where our anger is justified. Even Jesus got angry from time to time as we read in various places in the Gospels. Those kinds of things aren't what we're speaking to this day. It's that anger which means very little, and often nothing at all, that we really need to get a handle on and, simply put, stop.

If you are among those...like me...who have a problem with getting angry easily at things you can do nothing about and really don't amount to much, please, go to the Lord in prayer and ask Him to help. Ask your accountability partner, good friends, pastors, spouses, even children, to gently remind you when your anger is inappropriate and not under control. We can't do it alone, I know. Let us help one another.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David