Anger: Good or Bad?
It's amazing how many conversations I have had over the past few weeks revolving around the emotion of anger. It seems as though I am surrounded by people who are struggling with the validity of allowing themselves to feel this strong emotion. I think the Church has taught us that to feel anger is wrong. Anger and love, peace, joy cannot coexist with oneanother. It is the exact opposite of the fruit of the Spirit. So, with that in mind, what are we to do with this very real emotion of anger? I think many Christians, including myself, tend to bury this emotion, denying it's reality and believe that there must be something seriously wrong because "good" Christians don't get angry. I have been very relieved to find out that I am not alone. Dan Allender has a very interesting thought on this subject:
Love is not an absence of anger. Unfortunately, Christians have often neutered love by putting it at odds with anger. Love is not inconsistent with a holy hatred; in fact, an absence of righteous anger makes love anemic and devoid of passion.I know that the Bible is very clear in its imperative not to sin in our anger, but that doesn't make feeling anger invalid. He who disagrees obviously has not read through the Psalms very thoroughly. Many times I've questioned why such depressing Psalms charged with negative emotion are in the Bible. I guess if anything, God is saying that He will meet us in whatever state we are in. We don't have to be happy-go-lucky all the time in order to be spiritual. God is not afraid of our anger, and I believe that He welcomes the raw honesty of our hearts before Him, anger and all.
posted by Amy at 9:44 PM
2 Comments:
I too have been thinking A LOT on this topic. Your post has given me a reason to write out some of my thoughts that have come from dealing with my own anger as well as the anger of others.
As one who DETESTS passive aggressivity above all negative behaviors, I completely agree that we shouldn't "stuff" our emotions. Stuffing anger down leads to a myriad of spiritual and psychological dysfunctions. The healthy expression or processing of anger is the crux of the issue and the challenge of those struggling with a problem with anger.
I think we need to look at anger at its root. Anger is a secondary response to an assault on one's PRIDE or the result of FEAR. Anger is a highly unpredictable, volatile and deceptive because it powerfully influences and motivates one's cognitive actions from a raw emotional response. Thus many rash and illogical behaviors can arise from the overriding power that anger has. Suppressed anger acts as 'soul rust', slowly eroding one's peace and joy through caustic bitterness and unforgiveness, often causing both physical and mental illness. Anger is also strangely addictive. We become accustomed to its presence and after a while we quickly find a way to get it back should we find times of resolution. See the song, "Send the Pain Below" by Chevelle. Here we have great example of the result of stuffed pain: addicted misery.
Anger can lead us to believe that we are justified in our offensive and retaliatory feelings and or actions towards others. Anger's danger is that it often brings a desire for vindication. What do we do with this desire for revenge and retribution?
I think we do need to be true to ourselves and give our emotions the freedom to breathe and be processed in a healthy productive way, especially expressing our feeling before God. You are right that God is not afraid of our anger...but we should be.
Psalm 37:7-9, Proverbs 27:4, Proverbs 29:11
1:45 PM
David's ability to be so overwhelmingly honest about his anger and other emotions is a reflection of his confidence in God's unconditional love for Him, and his knowledge that only God can heal him and understand exactly what he is feeling and why. He trusts that if there has been a wrong committed, God will surely vindicate him. We are born with these emotions partially so that we can go to the Lord with them and let Him be our Father figure, let Him show us the way to deal, the truth behind it, and let Him hold us and show us that it's okay. I think that many times anger is a reflection of the hurting deep inside of us, the things that are wrong that need to be made right. For me, the first admittance of a problem or a need to be healed was anger, and so in some light this is a good thing, this emotion we call anger. I agree that it is how we handle it that can be detrimental if we are negligent. We shouldn't be afraid of our anger if we can trust God to show us the truth and if we know and are confident in His unconditional love for us. It is not ANGER that can lead us to believe that we are justified in our offensive and retaliatory feelings or outbursts, but rather the enemy in his deceit, the one who comes to steal kill and destroy. And so bring the lies into the light of the Lord and He will show us the truth. And if the Lord is who will vidicate, then so be it. Sometimes this is necessary and right, it is only when we take measures into our own hands that we sin by not trusting God to take care of His children. He always will.
4:34 PM
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