Be angry but sin not

If we are patient in one moment of anger, we will escape a hundred days of sorrow.

Last evening, I spoke with someone who was meant to deliver a document for me and unfortunately the person did not go through with it despite telling me otherwise. I was so angry. The delay would cost me so my immediate reaction was to lash out and say exactly how I felt.

While I was gearing up with all the words I had in my head to send as sms, I felt a sudden need to put it off till later on. Maybe in a couple more hours , I will address it. Then I decided to take a stroll, Surprisingly, when I returned home, I didn’t feel so angry anymore.

It had completely deflated. I still needed to speak to the person but I am now level headed and calm to pass my message across without animosity.

I would have destroyed a good working relationship if I went ahead to react in my annoyance. And sadly, words when said cannot be taken back.

At that point, I learnt a valuable lesson; that it is all up to us. To tame our reactions when angry. We can do this. And how can we control our anger? By practising mindfulness. Yes, imbibing this simple but practical step will help us OWN our anger and manage it.

How many times have we let anger rule us and control our actions? Some of us might have destroyed potentially or existing great relationships, ruined opportunities because we could not think before reacting. It is possible to register our displeasure or dissatisfaction with a situation or person without irritation. How ? Before you speak, Breathe! For real. It is better not to respond at all than to react destructively.

The after effect of unrestrained anger is disastrous. The havoc cannot be reversed.

Is anger a sin? No. Anger in itself is not a sin. We all experience it from time to time. God put the emotion in us to use when necessary especially against injistice. It is okay to feel angry but what happens after is what matters most. Before we let a situation drive us to rage, we need to find out why we got offended and though there may be a justification to be angry, we can choose not to.

Sensible people control their temper; they earn respect by overlooking wrongs.

Proverbs 19:11 NLT

In some cases though, anger can spur us to a positive action in a situation. It is positive when we fixing or building up and negative when we tearing down someone or destroying things.

It is very important for us to pull the purse strings on our reactions. We communicate better and achieve good results when we are calm.

Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.

James 1:19 NLT

There are times we cannot control situations that can aggravate us but we can manage our psychological and emotional response to the situation.

We also have to empathise with the other person as this reduces the velocity and weight of your rage.

Frequent outbursts of anger weakens our immune system overtime. You begin to experience symptoms like persistent headache, insomnia, high blood pressure, heart problems amongst many other illnesses. Howbeit we ravage our bodies by our own hands?

Sometimes, we use anger as a secondary emotion to mask feelings of fear, helplessness and vulnerability. We feel it would give us an edge rather than to show what we really feel. Showing anger makes us feel in control rather than weak. It is more convenient to be mad than cry.

The point is, it is pertinent to pinpoint the root cause of our explosive anger so we can effectively deal with it. Uncontrolled Outburst of anger is a fruit from a bad tree so we need to uproot it in order to take charge of our lives.

The scripture says we give room to the devil to operate when we are angry.

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.

Ephesians 4:26‭-‬27 NLT

Lashing out or holding in your anger are both destructive. The best way is to find a healthy way to release. Know a method that works for you and practise it. It will get better with time. Do yourself a favour; Forgive offences , struggling to forgive? Here is why you must forgive .

Let go of grudges and you will be free.

I leave you with this scripture;

People with understanding control their anger; a hot temper shows great foolishness.

Proverbs 14:29 NLT

In what ways have anger impacted your life and what changes do you know need to be made?

You are loved💕💕💕

Angel