Anger

Anger can never heal a relationship. Wrath is almost always confronted with more wrath. And the old cliche, "Sticks and stones may hurt my bones, but words will never harm me," is a lie. Angry words wound the soul, crush the spirit, break the unmendable heart. Usually, anger comes from a hurt heart and is an attempt to hurt the offender as deeply as I have been hurt. Thus, it is the renunciation of our Savior's love: "Father forgive them." It is a violation of the principle of relationships found in Philippians: "Let each esteem others better than themselves." In every relationship the prayer of the saint is always, "if anyone is going to be hurt in this relationship, let it be me." We are called to do as our Savior did, pour ourselves out for others. Anger leads to bitterness. Bitterness leads us to a hard-hearted, stone-cold, point of no return. We may, like Esau, weep tears, but they will be tears of self-pity not restoration. It will be too late for restoration. It is a soft answer that turns away wrath, it is a forgiving spirit that enriches love, it is a pouring out of oneself for another that saturates the world with Calvary's love. The spiritual weapons of a Christian soldier, the weapons that tear down every idea opposed to the knowledge of God and take captive every thought into obedience to Christ, are gentleness and mercy--not a sharp tongue and an angry word. May we be unafraid to be the wounded so that the glory--the presence--of God will be evident to those around us--to those we claim to love the most.