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LEGIT ANGER, OR FEAR IN DISGUISE?

Let me tell you something you may not have heard before: anger is not inherently bad. Yes, anger can lead people to do some pretty awful things but the emotion on its own isn’t evil…it’s neutral. Even Jesus got angry a few times, and he was completely without sin…so anger can't be sinful all on its own. The problem comes in what we choose to do with our anger. Anger is a basic human emotion…you can’t avoid getting angry every single day of your life. In fact, if you try, you’ll just find yourself emotionally repressed and all messed up inside. So, what do we do?

Well, anger is often a secondary emotion, meaning that our subconscious uses anger as a way of covering up something much more difficult to wrestle with. Often, that root issue is actually fear. We’re afraid, we’re helpless, and when we suddenly face a situation that reminds us of those facts, our brains can choose to flip the anger switch as a way of protecting us from the more real and frightening emotion of fear. Now, there are certainly situations where we are simply angry because we have witnessed something that's worth being angry about (that’s the kind of anger we see Jesus experience in the Bible), so I’m not saying anger is always a mask for fear. But, if you’re the type of person that regularly deals with anger, you might take an honest look in the mirror and try to determine if it’s really just fear driving you towards anger. 

Fear of what? I don’t know…it’s different for everyone. Maybe you’re afraid of being rejected, so you lash out in anger to drive people away first. Maybe you’re afraid of seeming weak, so you act out in anger so no one will question how tough you are. I realize this is pretty deep stuff, and maybe you’ve never given much thought to why you struggle with anger. But, Jesus doesn’t want you to live in this semi-constant, uncontrolled state of anger. God gave you that emotion so you could respond appropriately to make changes in the world around you when injustice shows its ugly face. Anger can lead to good things, but never when it’s out of control. And the best way to get control of your anger is to figure out where it’s coming from. 

So, what makes you angry? Is it something that would also make God angry? If so, is there something you can do to be part of the solution to whatever is causing you so much anger? If the answer to either of those questions is “no,” then your brain is probably using anger to mask something deeper. Spend some time talking to God about what that might be, and let him begin to start healing that within you.