What to Do with Anger

Tags

anger, old testament, sin, sinning like a christian

Thanks to so many of you (here and on Facebook) for your feedback on what makes you really angry. I don’t want to be too teacher-y, but I’d like to offer a few suggestions about what to do with our anger. I hope you’ll add your own thoughts or stories…

Pray it out. This was initially the only one I was going to offer. We see lots of disturbing prayers in Scripture, and while they may pose a problem for some people, there are some things we need to keep in mind. Simply put, it’s better to ask God to dash babies against rocks than to do it yourself (Psalm 137). By praying in this way, perhaps we protect ourselves from being more likely to do these things on our own (of course I also mean things much nicer than dashing babies against rocks). In the end, we are entrusting judgment to God who judges justly, which is exactly one way in which we are to be like Jesus (see 1 Peter 2). So when you’re angry, talk to God about it first.

Write it out. I’ve talked with numerous people over the last few weeks about this issue (we’re doing a thing on anger in our church) and many have said that what helped them was to journal their thoughts.

What Makes Your Blood Boil?

Tags

anger, family, n.t. wright, sinning like a christian

Here’s the question – What really (I mean really) makes you angry? Like not just a little angry. (Let’s leave out people who commit violent crimes, especially against children, off our list. They’re too easy.) I’ll throw out three.

1. Fathers who do not show love and affection to their daughters (or cherish their sons too, but especially the daughter one).

2. People who assume I am incompetent at something. (I’ll admit it, I have some dad issues of my own ).

3. People who try to keep others from reading or listening to people who have made a huge positive impact in my life (like N. T. Wright), especially when they don’t really understand them.

I’m sure if people disrespected or hurt my wife I’d be incensed, but I’ve not really been in a position like that to any serious degree. For me the first far outweighs all the rest.

Anger – A Question for You

Tags

anger, sin, sinning like a christian

Sinning Like a Christian // 05

It’s generally accepted that anger can both be good and bad, productive and destructive. As Willimon points out, “Much of the greatest good worked in the world is through Anger. You can’t say that about any of the other Seven” (69). But as obvious as this paradox may be, it’s pretty difficult to determine precisely when anger crosses the line from laudable to lethal. Tomorrow I’ll post five types of anger that I see as “bad.” But first I want to hear what you think.

So in your opinion, when is anger bad and when is anger good?

(Note to Facebook friends – feel free to comment there on Facebook or here in the comments section. Thanks for coming over!)