Redirecting Anger — Psalm 35:1-3, 13-18
By Bobby McKay
Stop right now and recall the last time you were angry. Was it the result of something someone did to you, or said about you? Could it be you had a bad experience with a coworker or a client? Maybe the restaurant messed up your order and you had to settle for something you did not want or even enjoy.
It could have been something as trivial as a ball game or the weather that struck a wrong chord with you. The point is, almost any scenario can have the potential to entice a person to respond in anger. What someone deems important or where their passion resides is fertile ground for heated emotions to come into play.
What if I told you your anger is not primarily about anger? The anger you and I feel is the result of something else, something deeper. By the time I feel or express anger it is because I have not appropriately dealt with one of three key areas. If I give wise attention to these three key areas, I can better and more wisely process my anger.
The three areas to which I’m referring are: fear, frustration, and hurt. I can almost guarantee you the last time you were angry was because initially you were either afraid, frustrated, or hurt. Anger is a secondary emotion, and is manifest after one of the three previously mentioned scenarios is not dealt with properly.
Anger is a symptom of a more penetrating problem. If I learn by faith to turn my fear, frustration, or hurt over to God, I will discover anger is not something with which I will wrestle in my life. We will also notice how most of the things about which we choose to be angry are petty and not eternally significant.
Psalm 35 is one of the imprecatory psalms. An imprecatory psalm is when the writer calls on God to bring misfortune and disaster upon his enemies. However, the purpose of an imprecatory prayer is not to dispense revenge but rather to display the righteousness of God.
No one loves to preach about the mercy and grace of God more than I do, but those attributes of God only tell part of the story. A day will come when the righteousness and holiness of God will demand judgment. There has never been a sin in the history of the world that will not be paid for. The question you and I must ask is, “Have I trusted in Jesus to pay for my sins, or will I pay the penalty for them in hell for all eternity?”
King David is angry as he writes these words. However, note the source of his anger. His anger doesn’t stem from some personal inconvenience; it is provoked by those that seek to do him harm and as result hinder the Word and Name of the Lord.
When was the last time someone was angry with you because of your closeness to God? In those moments, God will protect you and appropriately deal with your adversaries. The injustices caused by evil people in the world today should cause us to be angry in our spirit. We cannot underestimate the love the Father has for us and His ability to protect us and intervene on our behalf.
The inclination many of us have when hurt is to respond in anger or a desire to “get back” at someone. As we grow in maturity, we will relax our white-knuckled fists and trust God to fight our battles for us. Romans 12:19-21 reveals the old familiar words, “Vengeance is mine, says the Lord.” However, we need to keep reading to see what our role as believers should be.
Romans 12:21 says, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Is this hard? Absolutely! Is it possible? Yes, if we trust God in each area of our life. If we are honest, we will admit some of us would rather stew in our anger more than do good and love one another. It should not be this way for the Christian.
Is anger your idol? Is it something you use as an excuse to hurt people? Do you claim it runs in your family and you cannot control it? Stop succumbing to the flesh and pinpoint the source: fear, frustration, or hurt.
While you and I are watching our temper, let us also watch our tongues. It has been said if you speak while you are angry, you will give the greatest speech you will ever regret. Learn to leave every situation in the hands of Jesus. His hands are bigger, His ways are holy, and the imprint of the nails reminds us that anger will not have the final word.
McKay is pastor of Pleasant Grove Church, Brookhaven.
