An Angry Person

It's funny, I'm beginning to realize more and more that i am an angry person. I am angry at society. I am angry at the world. I'm even angry at myself! I think i have every right to be angry considering the trash i see our society feeding us, teaching us, and doing whatever it can to instill in us so we can pass that same trash down to our families, kids, etc. Anger seems reasonable doesn't it? I have every right to be angry. After all God gets angry. The Bible is full of examples of God's wrath and anger. The destruction of Sodom & Gamorah; The great flood; The Israelites coming out of Egypt and the whole "Let My people go!" routine. It's all there. It's all pretty clear. We have been created in the image of God and God is angry. So that makes it alright.... right?

That's the funny thing about anger. The more i see anger, and the more i work with people that have anger, the more i recognize and agree that anger usually has a source. Oftentimes the root of anger seems to be fear and hurt. People become angry because someone or something has hurt them and that hurt, or the fear that that hurt may occur again, expresses itself in anger. It is a defense mechanism that we use to protect ourselves. I am hurt so i will attack whoever or whatever could make me feel pain to prevent myself from having to go through it again.

Anger is helpful, and it's even healthy at times. However, if we let anger and bitterness build up inside of us it makes us angry and bitter people. Our lives begin to revolve around it. Which leads to... "the dark side of the force"... a life mentality of anger and bitterness. And, that is not a good thing.

Off hand, it's interesting to note that anger and pride seem to go hand in hand... but that's another post for another time.