Anger Management

For many Christians, anger management means to suppress any feelings of anger, to strive toward a state of equilibrium where there are no moments of heightened emotional response. The idea seems to be that a follower of Jesus would always exhibit self control and be at peace.

The only problem with that theory is "it ain't so!"  Jesus was loving and kind to the degree that he is called "The Lamb of God" (Jn 1:36).  But, on the other hand, he had the ability to so aggressively stand against wrong-doing that he would also be referred to as "The Lion of Judah" (Rev 5:5).  You may recall the time in the Temple when Jesus fashioned a whip out of cords and drove the greedy money changers out (see Jn 2:15).

So, what is anger management to look like for the disciple of Jesus Christ?  Paul put it this way, “In your anger do not sin” : Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold" (Eph 4:26-27).  In other words, when you get angry, as you surely will when you are  wrongly injured or witness injustice, don't allow your anger to morph into sin by becoming hatred or doing wrong yourself.

We should be angry when evil rises it's ugly head, only "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (Rom 12:21).  We need to seek to bring good out of a bad situation. By that may mean facing down the evil doer so that justice can prevail. So, allow yourself to be angry but do not let the anger manage you - choose to do good. Jus' Say'n.