Antidote For The Poison Of Anger
Thursday September 25, 2014
The only antidote for hurt, frustration, and anger is love and plenty of it. Jesus offers to fill our lives with love that runs deeper than any wound. Will we receive it? Many of us reject Jesus’ offer of love. We want love from the people we want love from – whether they are healthy enough to give it to us or not. We’d rather live in anger and frustration at their lack of loving us than open our hearts to the rich and freely given love God offers. Anger can only truly be dealt with by receiving love and forgiveness from God. All other actions of making amends and reconciling with family and friends are a result of that first love.
And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. (Ephesians 4:30-32 NLT)
We love because God first loves us. We can dare to forgive others because we know we’ve been forgiven and accepted by God. The foundational issue in anger management is entering into an active loving relationship with God and surrendering all our interactions with others to His instructions. Anything less will result in fear or frustration and we’ll find ourselves back in the anger cycle. Do I want to deal with anger today?
When we actually experience God’s love, we’ll want to pass it on to others. Often the barrier to our letting go of a grudge is an unwillingness to let God heal us and to actually receive healing from God. We forgive as God forgives us. Jesus died for all the wrongs done to us and by us. Our violence of heart, attitude, or action only creates more hurt. The violence Jesus took for us on the cross heals us as we put our pain and resentment on Him and receive forgiveness and healing in exchange. Hanging on to our bitterness and seeking revenge only sickens our soul. The resulting anger acts as a poison that destroys us on the inside, and then spreads the disease to others, resulting in them getting sick as well. So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now! This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! (2 Corinthians 5:16-17 NLT)
©2014 Partners in Hope
More information on this and other related topics @ www.partnersinhope.ca resources
Audio for Antidote For The Poison Of Anger
Recent Meditations
Giving Hope
Partners in Hope is supported wholly by our friends and community. We are thankful to everyone who partners with us to help bring hope to the discouraged, hurting, and hopeless.