Are You Angry?

I recently heard a pastor speaking on the topic of anger.  He stated that there are four reasons we generally feel annoyed.  And, sadly, I could relate to all four.

If you've spent much time reading the Bible, anger pops right to the top of the list of no-no's.  Love, we're told, is not easily angered.  The Lord, in fact, is slow to anger.  The anger of our enemy is kept from us by the hand of the Lord.  From Exodus all the way to Revelation we are counseled on the subject. 

Yet, it seems that we humans have a really hard time keeping our tempers in check.  In fact, we are, as a whole, a nation that is quick to anger and slow to forgive.

So, what drives human anger?  Hurt is one thing.  Whether it is physical pain or emotional, when we hurt, we tend to take it out on others.  Our enmity flares and we do unreasonable things.

This week, we saw perceived injustice causing anger around the country.  It was impossible to escape the news headlines about Casey Anthony's acquittal.  I don't think there has been this much public outrage about a verdict since the OJ Simpson trial ended in "not guilty" many years ago.

Fear also drives anger.  When our backs are against the wall or we are afraid for someone we love, we tend to act like badgers and attack whatever has us cornered.

But, for me, by far, frustration is the most difficult of all these feelings not to allow to bloom into anger.

There are moments, as a parent, that are infuriating.  When my kids ignore instructions, back-talk, or whine until I need a glass of wine, I am not always the most composed parent.

As a woman, when other women decide to use their sexuality to sell products to my kids or my husband or expect me to look like them if I use the goods they are hawking, I have a hard time keeping my cool.

As a wife, when I don't see eye-to-eye with Mike, I run the risk of saying what I actually think, and unleashing a good tongue-lashing against my unsuspecting husband.

If you really stop and think about all the ways anger can get started, it isn't hard to see why it happens so frequently.

But, if we turn that around, and think about all the ways that joy can manifest itself, it is equally difficult to understand why humanity isn't just brimming with happiness.

How can you resist a baby's smile?
Have you watched a colorful sunset lately?
Did you listen to the birds singing a song for you this morning?
When was your last piece of chocolate?
Have you received a hug so powerful that you KNEW you were loved?
 
We choose our responses on a minute-by-minute basis.  We can either be angered by that driver who cut us off or feel blessed that we weren't hit.  We can choose to butt heads with our spouse or back down and let him/her be right.  We can let a glass of spilled milk cause us to scream at our child or calmly help him/her clean it up.

We have that power.  We can choose our responses.  But, we have to be conscious about how we normally respond so we can avoid the pitfall of anger and change our perspective to joy.

Today's is a fresh, new day.  What will you choose?