Anger

Good Morning,

Ephesians 4:26-27 (NIV)
"In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.

Many of us are afflicted with the disease of anger. There are those of us for whom anger has almost become a way of life and we are angry at almost everything and anything that doesn't fit our idea of right and good. This isn't a good thing. Anger is an emotion that needs to be controlled and when it isn't then it becomes as a disease within us and begins to control us.

The devil looks for anger, I think, and attacks those who harbor anger within them. Anger allows other destructive emotions to arise within us and totally hides any of the goodness that we might have within.

This verse of Scripture that we read today is extremely powerful and it's something that we all need to ponder deeply. We need to see if anger has become a regular and ongoing part of our lives. Because, if it has, then we are open to attack and open to the enemy and his temptations in other areas, as well.

Those who suffer from an overabundance of anger in their lives cannot be effective in their witness to non believers. Anger hides the love we ought to show. Anger leads to sin. Anger can simply cover the good we might otherwise accomplish.

Now, I cannot tell those who are overly angry at almost everything how to change that. What I mean is, I don't know of any "formula" that we can use so that there are certain steps to alleviate our anger. The only way that I know of to have the anger we hold to abate in our lives is to begin to replace it with love and caring and compassion and understanding...and a great deal of time in prayer. Easy? No, not at all. Because anger is such a very powerful and forceful emotion.

Think about those things that bring about anger in your life. For you those things won't be the same as for me, of course, for we all have different areas that sort of push our buttons when it comes to anger and then lashing out in that anger. When we see something or hear something that angers us we need to replace that anger. The only way that I can think of to do that is to accept that I'm angry, see the true cause of my anger, and then to pray for that which has angered me. Whether it be a person or some idea or other, some action that seems to have been against me, whatever it might be, I need to pray and think about the why's of my anger, then let God show me how to love that which has made me angry and, hopefully, reach out to help, to have compassion for, the source of my anger. No, it certainly isn't easy. More often than not, we'll probably fail at the beginning...most especially for those who are overburdened with anger and have been for a long time. But, if we are persistent in asking God to help us replace anger with love and other positive emotions, eventually we can be successful.

Yes, I firmly believe that anger often leads to sin and that in our anger we DO sin. This is something we really have to get a handle on in our lives.

Living a life filled with anger is self destructive.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David