Anger: a strong feeling of being upset or annoyed because of something wrong or bad : the feeling that makes someone want to hurt other people, to shout, etc. : the feeling of being angry.
Growing up I had a lot of anger.. Why you ask? a lot of it came from me not accepting responsibility for the mistakes I made, and placing the blame on others, like my siblings, parents, and even my biological mom Barbara for all my anger. When in reality it was me putting up barriers and walls because of my own pride and selfishness. Girls when you let anger control you, it tears apart relationships that God has placed in your life to grow you, challenge you, and support you in this crazy life. Lets dig deeper into this. Anger motivated by pride is a sin and this is what I personally struggled with. This is unproductive and blinds us from God's purpose. Also lingering anger is not good to hold on too.
And “don’t sin by letting anger control you.” Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, for anger gives a foothold to the devil
The longer you hold on to anger your giving the devil a stronghold in your heart. Yeeekk!! that's crazy!! but so true, building those walls. :(
So before you blow your top at someone I encourage you to ask yourself these 2 questions. And look these verses up. ( Don't have a Bible? go to https://www.biblegateway.com)
- Why am I so Angry? (this is your heart check, this emotion is trying to tell you something)
- Is my attitude towards this person pleasing to God, is it bringing Him glory?
- Proverbs 28:13
- 1 John 1:9
By the time you go through these questions you will hopefully defuse your anger, if not you may need to seriously check your heart and realign with your Heavenly Father by asking Him to open your eyes and heart to the deeper issues you may or may not know you are holding on too. Repent and ask forgiveness. Girls I don't know how many times I have had to do this, and sometimes it is extremely hard to humbly admit these to Him, but the funny thing is.... He already knows, but he wants us to come to Him with humility and repent on our own. Isn't our God amazing!!! He loves us SO MUCH that He wants a relationship with us!!!
We can to also handle anger biblically by viewing it as a trial or testing of our faith. This is very important when someone has wronged or offended you.
We can to also handle anger biblically by viewing it as a trial or testing of our faith. This is very important when someone has wronged or offended you.
- James 1:2-4
- Romans 8:28-29
- Genesis 5 0:20
In Closing, I would like to finish off with http://www.gotquestions.org/anger.html answer, it sums everything up quite nicely.
We can handle anger biblically by returning good for evil. This is key to converting our anger into love. As our actions flow from our hearts, so also our hearts can be altered by our actions. That is, we can change our feelings toward another by changing how we choose to act toward that person.
- Genesis 50:21
- Romans12:21
- Matthew 5:43-48
We can handle anger biblically by communicating to solve the problem. There are four basic rules of communication shared in Ephesians 4:15, 25-32:
1) Be honest and speak (Ephesians 4:15, 25). People cannot read our minds. We must speak the truth in love.
2) Stay current (Ephesians 4:26-27). We must not allow what is bothering us to build up until we lose control. It is important to deal with what is bothering us before it reaches critical mass.
3) Attack the problem, not the person (Ephesians 4:29, 31). Along this line, we must remember the importance of keeping the volume of our voices low (Proverbs 15:1).
4) Act, don’t react (Ephesians 4:31-32). Because of our fallen nature, our first impulse is often a sinful one (v. 31). The time spent in “counting to ten” should be used to reflect upon the godly way to respond (v. 32) and to remind ourselves how the energy anger provides should be used to solve problems and not create bigger ones.
1) Be honest and speak (Ephesians 4:15, 25). People cannot read our minds. We must speak the truth in love.
2) Stay current (Ephesians 4:26-27). We must not allow what is bothering us to build up until we lose control. It is important to deal with what is bothering us before it reaches critical mass.
3) Attack the problem, not the person (Ephesians 4:29, 31). Along this line, we must remember the importance of keeping the volume of our voices low (Proverbs 15:1).
4) Act, don’t react (Ephesians 4:31-32). Because of our fallen nature, our first impulse is often a sinful one (v. 31). The time spent in “counting to ten” should be used to reflect upon the godly way to respond (v. 32) and to remind ourselves how the energy anger provides should be used to solve problems and not create bigger ones.
Finally, we must act to solve our part of the problem (Romans 12:18). We cannot control how others act or respond, but we can make the changes that need to be made on our part. Overcoming a temper is not accomplished overnight. But through prayer, Bible study, and reliance upon God’s Holy Spirit, ungodly anger can be overcome. We may have allowed anger to become entrenched in our lives by habitual practice, but we can also practice responding correctly until that, too, becomes a habit and God is glorified in our response.
