How to Get Angry
Eph. 4:26, 27
http://gbcdecatur.org/sermons/HowToGetAngry.html
-Andy came to work one day, limping something awful. One of his co-workers, Josh, noticed and asked Andy what happened.
Andy replied, "Oh, nothing. It’s just an old hockey injury that acts up once in a while."
Josh, "Wow, I never knew you played hockey."
Andy, "No, I don’t. I hurt it last year when I lost $100 on the Stanley Cup Play-Offs. I put my foot through the television."
-After spending 3-1/2 hours enduring long lines, rude clerks and insane regulations at the Department of Motor Vehicles, Glenn Vaughan stopped at a toy store to pick up a gift for his son. “I brought my selection - a baseball bat - to the cash register,” he said. "Cash or charge?" the clerk asked. "Cash," He snapped. Then apologizing for his rudeness, he explained, "I’ve spent the entire afternoon at the motor vehicle bureau." The woman sweetly replied, "shall I gift-wrap the bat…or are you going back there?"
-At one point during a game, the baseball coach said to one of his young players, "Do you understand what cooperation is? What a team is?"
The little boy nodded in the affirmative.
"Do you understand that what matters is whether we win together as a team?"
The little boy nodded yes.
"So," the coach continued, "when a strike is called, or you’re out at first, you don’t argue or curse or attack the umpire. Do you understand all that?"
Again the little boy nodded.
"Good," said the coach.
"Now go over there and explain it to your mother!"
-Have you ever heard this expression, "It’s enough to make a
preacher cuss." It reminds me of the story about little boy trying to
sell a lawn mower. The local pastor walked up and he was able to
persuade him to buy the worn out lawn mower. The pastor pulled on the rope several times to make sure the mower would start, but
nothing happen. Not even a spit or a sputter.
The boy told the preacher that he would have to kick the
mower and say a few cuss words before the mower would crank. The preacher said, "Son, I can’t do that. It’s been years since I
said a cuss word." The little boy replied, "Just keep pulling and
it will come back to you."
What does it take to set you off? Do you have a temper? Believe it or not, the Bible says it’s possible to be angry, but not be a sin. So, how can we tame our temper?
Road rage is common today, and dangerous, because what we’re driving is a deadly weapon. Ever heard of air rage?...
-As a passenger boarded the Los Angeles-to-New York plane, he told the flight attendant to wake him and make sure he got off when they set down at the mid point in Dallas. The passenger awoke just as the plane was landing in New York. Furious, he called the flight attendant and demanded an explanation. She mumbled an apology and, in a rage, the passenger stomped off the plane. "Boy, was he ever mad!" another crew member observed to her errant colleague. "If you think he was mad," replied the flight attendant, "you should have seen the guy I put off the plane in Dallas!"
An estimated 1 in 5 Americans has issues w/ uncontrolled anger. 28% of homicides start w/ a domestic dispute in the home, only 7% were gang related!
How Do You Keep Anger From Exploding Into Sin?
1. Do not let the sun go down on your anger.
- Ephesians 4:26
2. Do not give the devil an opportunity.
- Ephesians 4:27
How to Tame Your Temper:
1. Learn to be patient and ignore petty disagreements.
Proverbs 19:11
The discretion of a man deferreth his anger; and it is his glory to pass over a transgression.
You must be saved to have access to this power:
A woman testified to the transformation in her life that had resulted through her experience in conversion. She declared, "I’m so glad I got religion. I have an uncle I used to hate so much I vowed I’d never go to his funeral. But now, why, I’d be happy to go to it any time."
Patience [it’s all about stepping back, breathing, and praying!]
Psalm 37:7-8
Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself … [8] Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.
Proverbs 15:18
A wrathful man stirreth up strife: but he that is slow to anger appeaseth strife.
Eccles. 7:8
Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.
Eccles. 7:9
Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools.
Romans 15:5
Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus:
1 Cor. 13:4
Charity suffereth long, and is kind;
Ephes. 4:1-2
I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, with all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;
2 Tim. 2:24
And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient,
James 1:4
But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
James 1:19
Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:
What about when you’ve been wronged?
1 Peter 2:19-20
For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully. [20] For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God.
2. Avoid close associations with people prone to anger.
Proverbs 22:24-25
Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go: [25] Lest thou learn his ways, and get a snare to thy soul.
Charles De Gaulle once said: "When I am right, I get angry. Churchill gets angry when he is wrong. So we were very often angry at each other."
-Like the woman who was bitten by a rabid dog, and it looked like she was going to die from rabies. The doctor told her to put her final affairs in order. So the woman took pen and paper, and began writing furiously. In fact she wrote and wrote and wrote. Finally the doctor said, "That sure is a long will you’re making." She snorted, "Will, nothing! I’m making a list of all the people I’m going to bite!"
Respond with an appropriate answer.
Proverbs 15:1
A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.
-Whatever is begun in anger ends in shame.
B. Franklin.
-It takes 2 to make marriage work and it takes 2 to make it fail…don’t be a willing accomplice [discuss the “snowball effect”]
3. Communicate truthfully and honestly so anger doesn’t build up.
Proverbs 27:6
Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.
How to turn a disagreement into a feud:
1. Be sure to develop and maintain a healthy fear of conflict, letting your own feelings build up so you are in an explosive frame of mind.
2. If you must state your concerns, be as vague and general as possible. Then the other person cannot do anything practical to fix or change the situation.
3. Assume you know all the facts and you are totally right. The use of a clinching Bible verse is helpful. Speak prophetically for truth and justice; do most of the talking.
4. With a touch of defiance, announce your willingness to talk with anyone who wishes to discuss the problem with you. But do not take steps to initiate such conversation.
Real advice: Some seem to want a problem / thrive on confrontation, debate. Don’t take the bait!
-A young girl who was writing a paper for school came to her father and asked, "Dad, what is the difference between anger and exasperation?" The father replied, "It is mostly a matter of degree. Let me show you what I mean."
With that the father went to the telephone and dialed a number at random. To the man who answered the phone, he said, "Hello, is Melvin there?" The man answered, "There is no one living here named Melvin. Why don’t you learn to look up numbers before you dial?"
"See," said the father to his daughter. "That man was not a bit happy with our call. He was probably very busy with something and we annoyed him. Now watch...." The father dialed the number again. "Hello, is Melvin there?" asked the father. "Now look here!" came the heated reply. "You just called this number and I told you that there is no Melvin here! You’ve got lot of guts calling again!" The receiver slammed down hard.
The father turned to his daughter and said, "You see, that was anger. Now I’ll show you what exasperation means. "He dialed the same number, and when a violent voice roared, "Hello!" The father calmly said, "Hi, this is Melvin. Have there been any calls for me?"
-When your spouse goes fishing for a fight, don’t take the bait…respond w/ the opposite! [soft answer!]
4. Control your anger or it will destroy you.
Proverbs 16:32
He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.
Getting angry can sometimes be like leaping into a fast sports car, gunning the motor, taking off at high speed and then discovering the brakes are out of order.
Angry, cynical people die young. Men who score high for hostility on standard tests are four times more likely to die prematurely than men whose scores are low. How’s that for motivational?!
Doctors from Coral Gables, Fla., compared the efficiency of the heart’s pumping action in 27 men. Each of the study participants underwent one physical stress test (riding an exercise bicycle) and three mental stress tests (doing math problems in their heads, recalling a recent incident that had made them very angry, and giving a short speech to defend themselves against a hypothetical charge of shoplifting). Using sophisticated X-ray techniques, the doctors took pictures of the subjects’ hearts in action during these tests. For all the subjects, anger reduced the amount of blood that the heart pumped to body tissues more than the other tests.
-Sins are like circles in the water when a stone is thrown into it; one produces another. When anger was in Cain’s heart, murder was not far off. It’s the ripple effect.
-A lady once came to Billy Sunday and tried to rationalize her angry outbursts. "There’s nothing wrong with losing my temper," she said. "I blow up, and then it’s all over."
"So does a shotgun," Sunday replied, "and look at the damage it leaves behind!"
• Temperance:Webster’s def. of “Temper”= 1 : to dilute, qualify, or soften by the addition or influence of something else : MODERATE
1 Cor. 9:25
And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.
1 Cor. 9:27
But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.
http://gbcdecatur.org/sermons/HowToGetAngry.html
