Tuesday: Keep away from angry, short-tempered people, or you will learn to be like them. Proverbs 22:24-25 (NLT) Dont be quick to fly off the handle. Anger boomerangs. You can spot a fool by the lumps on his head. Ecclesiastes 7:9 (MES) Reflection: What is patience? Well, I guess there are a lot of answers to that question but this week we’re going to focus on 2 definitions of patience. We’ll start today with the most common understanding of patience: the ability to push the pause button when other people (or circumstances) repeatedly push yours (your buttons that is for those of you who thought that sentence was vague and befogging ;0) The Bible has A LOT to say about keeping a lid on your anger... but what exactly does that mean? Well... I guess there are a few different ways people lash out when their patience comes to an end. The first way we can lash out is physically. We can strike out at the object of our anger with our hands or feet. This is probably the most immature response to anger. It’s the way children naturally react when things don’t go their way. We have to teach them to, “use their words”. But what that’s done in many cases is create a segment of our society that lashes out with their words when people or events wear their patience thin. We’ve all heard the phrase, “Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me,” but that’s not true, is it? That saying sounds a lot like someone trying to convince themselves not to be affected by cutting words. In fact words can be just as damaging as sticks and stones in the long run. I guess that if you’re way of handling stress is to hit me than I’m glad you stifle that impulse and instead verbally lash out at me but God’s plan for you and me is that we would use our patience not just to keep ourselves from hitting others but also to keep us from verbally assaulting each other. But there’s a third way we lash out when our patience runs out. With our will. Many of us have gotten quite accomplished at controlling our tempers outwardly. We don’t hit anyone... we rarely snap at people... But inwardly we seethe... we pout... we throw an internal hissy fit. When we do that we are lashing out at God. Now don’t get me wrong... God can handle it. He’d much rather you internalize your anger than express it with physical or verbal abuse. But His ultimate plan for you and me is for us to be able to control even our inward emotions. It’s not easy... but training yourself to be patient inwardly as well as outwardly will do yourself a world of good. It will be better for your blood pressure, your heart, your brain... and it will be better for your spirit. It will make you more like Jesus... and that can be nothing but good for you and those you love. Prayer: Father, open my eyes to how I handle stress. Help me to take the next step in my journey towards patience. In Jesus’ Name, amen.
Posted on: Tue, 11 Nov 2014 14:47:00 +0000
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