STEPS OUT OF ANGER

We all have to deal with anger. So, how can we resolve anger?

Here are five important steps to get out of the anger trap:

Step 1: SORT IT OUT

Try to understand why you are angry. Remember, there is a difference between the normal irritations in life and a persistent state of anger.


Step 2: COUNT THE COST

One of the predominant causes of divorce today is negative behavior such as unkind words, abuse and constant fighting. One psychologist says that an
angry confrontation can erase 20 acts of kindness. The point is, anger can cost us dearly if we do not keep it in check.


Step 3: LET IT OUT

Release your anger to God in prayer. Tell God how you feel. He can handle it. Then go talk about it with a friend. Or, even the person you're angry at, if you can do it constructively. Whatever you do, don't keep your anger
locked up in your heart. Repressed anger visits in a host of emotional and relational problems.


Step 4: SET LIMITS

That means to control your words and behavior. God tells us to get a grip on our tongues: "When words are many, sin is not absent. But he who keeps a tight rein on his tongue is wise" (Proverbs 10:19). Don't cross the line of
verbal or physical abuse no matter how frustrated you get. Don't justify or excuse such abusive behaviors.


Step 5: GIVE IT UP

As Christians, we do not have the right to remain angry. In Christ, we have given up that right. We surrender our anger to Him and forgive others as He has forgiven us. When we forgive, we are free indeed. Free from resentment, bitterness, and anger.


So, as we walk today through the mine field of relationships replete with misunderstandings, remember the word of God: "Be angry and sin not. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry" (Ephesians 4:26).

by Dr. David C. Cooper

EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP

"And when the Israelites saw the great power the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in Him and in Moses His servant." Exodus 14:31

What makes an effective Christian leader today?

Is it charisma? Is it ability? Is it communication and oratory skills?

God's view of an effective leader has nothing to do with these qualities. They may be a part of an effective leader.

However, the core attribute of a Christian leader is his integrity with God and his obedience to follow Him. When this happens, God manifests His power in and through that leader.

Moses was effective because he was willing to obey the commands God gave him. When Moses did this, God manifested His presence in him. The result was that people followed. They followed because they saw God working in and through the man. They saw that this man was worthy of following because God's anointing was on him.

When people see the Lord's power manifested in your life, they will have a healthy fear of the Lord.

They will look at you and say, "This person has something I don't have that is worthy of more investigation."

Your challenge is to seek the Lord with a whole heart, resulting in God's power being manifested in the daily activities of your life. When this happens, you can expect others to be drawn to what they see in you.

The problem with many Christians today is that non-Christians see nothing different about the way they live to motivate the unsaved to desire their faith.

What makes you different from your neighbor?

Is your experience with God noticeably different from that of the man next door?

If you're not experiencing regular encounters with God, it's time to ask why not.

We don't live day-to-day for the next spiritual experience, but we should see by-products of a life centered in God that is reflected in fruit from His presence in our lives.

WHEN GOD SEEMS FAR AWAY

"Why, O Lord, do You stand far off? Why do You hide Yourself in times of trouble?" Psalm 10:1

One of the great mysteries of God is His ways.

Some of His ways almost appear to bring us into the most difficult places, as if He were indifferent to our circumstances. It would appear that He is turning His head from our sorrows.

These events in our lives have a particular objective to perform for us. That objective is to bring us to the end of ourselves that we might discover the treasure of darkness.

"Yet when I hoped for good, evil came; when I looked for light, then came darkness" (Job 30:26).

When we are taken into these dark periods, we begin to see light that we never knew existed. Our sensitivities become heightened and our ability to see through spiritual eyes is illuminated.

Unless we are taken into these times, our souls never develop any depth of character. We do not gain wisdom, only knowledge.

Knowledge is gained through understanding; wisdom is gained through the experience of darkness.

After we go through these periods, we discover that God was, in fact, with us throughout the entire time. It does not feel or appear that He is there when we are in the midst of the dark periods.

However, He is there walking with us. He has told us countless times that He will never leave us.

When we are in those dark periods, it does not feel like He is there because He does not rescue us from the circumstances.

He does this for our benefit in order that we might become more like Jesus.

Jesus learned obedience from the things He suffered (see Heb. 5:8). What does that say about how you and I will learn obedience?

Embrace the dark times and gain the wisdom that God intends for you from these times.

LIFE'S BOOK

No matter what else you are doing,
From cradle days through to the end,
You are writing your life's secret story
Each day sees another page penned.

Each month ends a thirty-page chapter,
Each year means the end of a part.
And never an act is misstated
Not even one wish of the heart.

Each day when you wake, the book opens,
Revealing a page clean and white.
What thoughts and what words and what doings
Will cover its pages by night?

God leaves that to you, you're the writer
And never a word shall grow dim,
Till the day you write the word "Finish"
And give your Life's Book back to Him.

-- Sherwin