Dealing With Anger and Wrath

 “Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret—it leads only to evil” Psalm 37:8

    For a while now God has been dealing with me and my constant anger. When my illness was taking me close to death I was literally too sick and weak to be angry, but as I recovered from that near-death period of my life, my anger and my wrath came back with intensity.

    Anger is not a Christian virtue. Yes, sometimes we must choose our fights and stand our ground, but living with constant anger and wrath clouds the judgment. And anger can cause serious mistakes and sin. We should give place to anger, and put it where it belongs–in God’s hands.

A gentle answer turns away wrath,

    but a harsh word stirs up anger. Proverbs 15:1

    Mental and emotional liabilities are part of living with affliction. I know that my illness affects my emotions, and I try to keep that in mind when I feel myself getting into a rage or generally upset about things. We don’t always see clearly because of our illnesses.

    Nowhere in the Bible does it tell me to share everything I am feeling all the time. If we accept the fact that some of our emotions are arising directly from our illness, it would be a grave mistake to let those feelings loose on everyone around us, especially regarding anger.

    There is one very safe place to take all of our feelings, and that is to the Lord. We can ask Him to help us sort through our emotions to discover what is legitimate and what is not. Ask Him to clear our vision about the offenses we merely perceive or those we actually receive, and then deal with them in His grace. But in many cases we simply give those feelings and outcomes over to Him.

    Maybe your illness has left you with feelings of anger and wrath. I would encourage you to acknowledge that you are angry and upset, and then take it to the Lord and let Him help you sort it out.

    Prayer: Dear Lord, calm our tempers and deliver us from wrath. Help us to sort out our feelings and to give our anger over to You. Amen.