Biblical Posts

The truth about anger.

Anger is seen as a toxic emotion. When people have "anger issues" a lot of times they're condemned, avoided and they don't get the kind of help that they really need. People get angry about things other people perceive as "trivial" and end up being told to suck it up or are ignored just because they aren't aggressive. But if we deal with anger from its source, we might be able to understand it better.

The truth is anger usually comes from hurt. A friend of mine once described me as weak and I found it hard to forgive her because i hate it when people say that. I got so angry because she hurt my feelings. People usually describe sensitive people as weak or cry babies and I find it really annoying. This is definitely a story for another post but the question you should ask yourself is "why do i actually feel this way?"

I once read somewhere that your anger is the part of you that cares about you and I actually agree. No one gets angry for no reason after all. Feeling angry is normal but its what we do in our anger that could lead us to sin. We need to be really careful about the things we say and the decisions make when we're livid.

Cain was angry about what happened to his offering (Genesis 4:5-6) God didn't accept but accepted the sacrifice of his brother Abel. Instead of trying to find out what he had done wrong, he killed his brother. It was obviously a wrong move and he paid dearly for it.

Moses killed an Egyptian who he had seen beating an Israelite. He deserved to be angry about this situations for what the Egyptian was doing was wrong. But killing the Egyptian turned Moses to a wanted criminal and he had to flee from Egypt.

The Bible says in proverbs 14:29 - whoever is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly. If someone upsets you try to understand things from their perspective. For example, your mum calls you useless because you didn't get something right. She only insulted you because she was exhausted from a long day of work. She probably doesn't mean it and doesn't know how to take it back. By being more understanding and empathetic towards others, even in difficult situations we begin to feel less angry and more sympathetic towards others.

One thing you need to remember to do in heated situations is pause. There's always that itty bitty time window in which you could choose to hesitate or react. I'm not sure if you've noticed it. You're free to take a break if needed and when you cant just take deep breaths, I've heard counting in your mind helps too.

You can also listen to music and pray to God about whatever it is. He's always there to listen and you'll feel better after speaking to him. If you do get irrational or violent when angry consider talking about it with a friend or counselor. Actually, this is advice for anyone who is annoyed about something, talking to someone who sees the situation from another perspective might help.

You can also try to take yourself away from anything that might trigger your anger. If reading about certain news makes you angry (this happens to me most of the time) then consider taking a break from it. If what makes you angry is constantly on your mind or cant be avoided e.g a parent or teacher, then try writing about it. These are all healthy ways to release your anger and I promise they work. You just have to find the one that works for you.

Remember that its important to pray in every situation you face. Talk to God like you would a trusted friend, very if you must just be your authentic self. Jesus didn't die on the cross so that you could pretend to have it all together, he died to pay for our sins thereby allowing us to have a deeper relationship with him. He wants you to be yourself around him. God can only bless the real you, not the you who hide her pain from others.

And whatever you do, don't invalidate your own anger. Don't shrug it off saying that other people wouldn't let something like this affect them. If it hurts you then, it hurts you. Its not like you chose to be angry, its a reaction to something that isn't fair. Accept your emotions, pray about whatever is upsetting you and let it go. You can release them through art or one of the options I've mentioned before. I usually write poetry or write a post about it (as I'm doing right now)

I pray God helps you in any situation where its tempting to lose your cool. I know it can be hard, you want to hurt the other person the way they hurt you and when you can't you just find yourself feeling really hurt. It'll be ok. God sees everything and is glad you decided to take the high road.

~ Anne :)
Truewriter2020