Anger
So I have been thinking for a while, what would the world be like if we actually followed the message of Jesus? You see we really think we are, we’re convinced that we are, yet for the most part we’re so far off mark I’m not sure we’d hit it if it were as big as God is. See, we’re convinced that we are perfectly fine following in Christ’s footsteps yet still holding onto our angry ways.
I write this with a semi-smirk, If there was anyone who has had anger issues it’s me. I spent over half of my life angry at my real father. He abandoned us as kids, never tried contacting us or any other thing’s you’d expect of a father. So I held that anger and resentment for a while, I couldn’t let it go. I’d even joke about it. Sad really. It’s gone now, over the past few months I’ve began to lose the ability to really remain angry. Sure I still get angry at times, but the anger passes. What would happen if we, not just Christians but all of us were to let go?
Really, just let go. Does have the ability to truly guess the impact of such a thing? What would happen if we could forgive those asking for it? What would happen if we forgave those who aren’t asking for it. This anger that we hold, it really does nothing beneficial for us, yet we retain it, we lash out with it, we embrace it and cherish it like it is the last thing we have to hold on to.
Somewhere along the lines the anger that we hold became an acceptable part of the Christian tradition. It became acceptable to “Kill those towel heads” because they attacked us. I’m not saying that we shouldn’t defend our country, I think we have a need to do so, but if we move past “defense” to “it’s ok, let’s just nuke the mideast and let ‘them‘ have what they deserve,” then something has gone terribly wrong.
I may sound like I’m coming out of left field with that last sentence, but I have heard similar such statements made from leadership before. Scary, right?
One wonders how many parables would have ended if the anger that was undoubtedly there within the characters lives had not dissipated. The good samaritan? He was vilified and hated by the Jews. Hated. He was to the Jews what Al Qaida is to Baptists. The hated enemy. Did he have reason to be angry with the Jews? Yes. Was anger represented in his caring for the Jew on the side of the road? No.
What do we do with this? How does one let go of their anger? If I had a nickel for every time I heard one of my baptist preachers say “Give it to God” I’d have my college tuition paid for, but I think in this case they have it right. Let it go.
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