Leave Anger In Bed

"The greatest remedy for anger is delay." -Thomas Paine

            There is perhaps no more passionate an emotion in the whole spectrum of human emotions than anger. It can be a powerful motivator and it can be a wrath of terror, it can inspire me to do great things and it can also cause me to do terrible things by making rash decisions. While at first glance anger may appear to be sinful, it is not actually a sin in of itself; for even Jesus, God’s perfect Son, got angry at the sites he beheld on the steps of the Tabernacle. But His anger was a righteous one from heaven roused by the sin that He saw, and that is the key point. Are my angry thoughts centered on sin, or are they centered on my own selfish desires? If it is the latter, then I need to be mindful, for while being upset may not be a sin in of itself, it can easily lead me to do things which are not right. “Your anger can never make things right in God’s sight.” (James 1:20) “…for anger gives a mighty foothold to the Devil.” (Ephesians 5:27)

            This is why I have found that the greatest solution for those times that I am feeling angry is to take a step back from the situation and to ask God to fill the void. Oftentimes all that is needed is a little time and a little perspective. I can supply the time and if I only ask, God can provide the perspective. By going to Him in prayer when I am upset, He quiets my mind and puts my heart at ease. Sometimes I realize that what made me angry in the first place was foolish. Other times my temper was stirred for legitimate reasons, but regardless of whether I am wrong or I am right in my anger, God calls me to react in the same way: first with patience, then with love, and lastly with cheerful obedience. If I have patience before responding to my emotions and use that time to focus on God’s love, then I will be open and willing to obey what He calls me to do. For over and over again, the Bible praises those who can control (notice it does not say to live without) their anger, “Don’t sin by letting anger gain control over you. Think about it overnight and remain silent.” (Psalms 4:4) And this is what God typically leads me to do: When I am upset with someone, I try not to confront them right then and there about it: for how many times does the Bible warn me of my tongue? No doubt I am bound to make things far worse by saying something foolish and hurtful out of hate. Rather, it is best to request time away from that person in a friendly manner, and then spend it contemplating my qualms and praying for guidance. In this way, when it is time to make peace, I am in a spirit of forgiveness and understanding rather than one of anger and spite. I cannot say how many times I have gone to bed upset and angry, only to wake up with love and forgiveness in my heart after a night of prayerful meditation. God truly does provide the perspective if only I give Him the time.

            Dear Father, please work in my heart today. You know the things that upset me and that have upset me in the past. Please do not let me to act quickly in my anger, but rather to offer it up to you. Calm my spirit and help me to think straight. Tell me what to do through your word and through my thoughts. Give me a spirit of peace and a heart so full of love that I cannot hold any bitterness towards those who have wronged me. Help me to love them Lord as you have called me to love all. Help me to forgive or to ask for forgiveness. Help me to humble myself as you have called all to humble themselves before you. Please work in my life Father so that I am slow to anger and quicker to turn to you. In your heavenly name I pray, Amen.

Deceiving Myself From God's Vision

"The trite saying that honesty is the best policy has met with the just criticism that honesty is not policy. The real honest man is honest from conviction of what is right, not from policy." -General Robert E. Lee

            The other night I was lying in bed thinking about things in my life that ‘hang me up’ in my relationship with God. To be frank, I was trying to justify my sinful nature in His eyes, or rather my own. What I was really doing however, was deceiving myself into believing that what I was doing was ok. Since there are so many things that aren’t specifically mentioned in the Bible, it’s often easy for me to do this by thinking things like, ‘oh, I don’t know if God really thinks this is bad’ and ‘it may not be good, but it’s not bad either, it’s just neutral’. It seems that I can never quite convince myself that something questionable is completely right in God’s eyes: it’s impossible to cover up a deep stain on a white shirt. However, it’s not very difficult to just accept whatever sin it is as something in between, not good or bad, but neutral. I tell myself things like ‘God doesn’t really care one way or another about this’ and if all else fails, I chalk it up to my own naïvety of His true feelings on the matter. What I am really doing though, is lying to myself.

            I was running through this routine of self-deception that other night when all of a sudden a thought not of my own, came into my head: ‘If it is not good in God’s eyes, then it is bad.’ I know it sounds like a very simple thought, and it is really, but it was a revelation to my mind and at once, all my thoughts, all my rationalizations, all my self-deceptions came to a halt. Perhaps I truly cannot convince myself that it is sin in God’s eyes, but at the same time, I know that I cannot convince myself that He sees it as good, and if that is the case, then it is not good. God deals in absolutes; we’re the ones who muddy things up by pretending they’re grey. If we would only remove the filters of our deception, we would see that in reality, there is only black and white. It is either pleasing to God or it is not. And if it is not pleasing to God, then why would I want to do it? “Remember, it is a sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.” (James 4:17) It is time that I put down the blinds and accept the truth, for I should not just do right because God tells me to. This is not true to the Spirit and will always lead me back down the same path. Instead, I should be honest with God and honest with myself because it is my own desire to be after God. Only then will I be able to put aside the rationalizations and the lies, and instead focus on Him.

            Dear Father, I am in sin. I try to tell myself that I am doing right. I try to tell myself that I am doing no wrong. But it’s all lies. It’s all a clever deception wrapped around my eyes and keeping me from seeing the truth. Lord, please let me see your truth today. Speak it to my heart and be with me to keep this from happening again in the future. Give me your strength to overcome my temptations and fix my sight on the one true vision of your love and your mercy and your grace. Let that eternal light be my vision and not the darkness that surrounds me. I pray all these things in your name. Amen.