Another emotion born out of fear is anger. Anger often rears its ugly head when we are trying to control a person, place, or thing we have no control over.
The devil loves it when we get angry and stay angry.
Anger is not only devastating to our relationships with others, but if left unattended, it will destroy our body, mind and soul. There are studies correlating anger with various diseases.
Anger is an emotion that must be dealt with immediately.
An exercise that has always helped me is a process I learned in 12 Step meetings called, “name it, claim it, and dump it.”
“Name it,” means admitting you are angry and have a desire for the anger to go away.
“Claim it,” means identifying what person, place or thing has taken your serenity from you and accepting the fact you have no control over the situation.
“Dump it,” means writing about the situation and sharing your struggles with a trusted accountability partner while prayerfully turning the entire situation over to God.
Keep in mind that dealing with anger is usually not a “one and done” event, it’s a process.
The opposite of anger is serenity. God wants us to live in serenity by accepting the things we cannot change (other people, places, things), changing the things we can (ourselves), and having the wisdom to know the difference (experience).
The Serenity Prayer is a handy tool for dealing with anger.
The Serenity Prayer
God grant me the serenity
To accept the things I cannot change;
Courage to change the things I can;
And wisdom to know the difference.
Living one day at a time,
Enjoying one moment at a time,
Accepting hardship as the pathway to peace.
Taking, as He did, this sinful world as it is,
Not as I would have it.
Trusting that He will make all things right
If I surrender to His will.
That I may reasonably be happy in this life,
And supremely happy with Him forever in the next.
Amen.
~Reinhold Niebuhr
Proverbs 29:11 (NIV), “Fools give full vent to their rage, but the wise bring calm in the end.”
Reflection:
What beliefs, thoughts and actions cause you to lose your serenity?
Additional Scripture to read and reflect on: Psalm 37:8, Proverbs 14:29, James 1:20, Galatians 5:22-23
P.E.A.C.E.
Jay@EagleLaunch.com
P.S. If you know of someone who may benefit from walking with us on this Lenten journey, please forward to them.
