RAGE!

  Lately, my biggest personal demon, Rage, has re-surfaced. It came out from the grave I thought I had buried it in long ago. But here is the strange part, it came out at church. It is the only part of me that I fear. Because as egotistical as this must sound, there is nothing else I fear. 

Just writing about it now, I can feel it dissipate slowly, I can feel myself calming, and still wary that it lies now just under the surface. I must return rage to its cage, because nothing good has ever happened to me when rage was in control. The politics of the day annoy me, and I do get angry like you or anyone else at certain things. But it never comes near the limitless destructive power of full throated rage. So, as I'm still shaking in my type fingers a bit, lets take a deeper look at rage together. I mean you've read me this far, Why not go on? somewhere there should be a drum tap and small cymbal crash sounding. Anyway,

  Confusion is one of the big factors in rage. Most fights are needless, as more often then not, a mountain was made of a mole hill, and a simple calm conversation will kill the beast. I try to keep my life as simple as I can, and so for one thing, I don't insert myself into other people's business, and that includes on spiritual matters. That for me is more annoying than maddening, as someone has decided that it is their job to keep you on the straight and narrow. The arguments among God's people always seems to occur when someone in the group insists in dragging everyone into the weeds of men's doctrines. 

  In a more general sense, if you take a moment to collect yourself and think about what it is you are about to say to someone, before you look to accuse, this is the way to beginning to get a hold on it. Rage is best described as an emotion out of control. But anger, extreme anger, angry anger, are not only allowed if the matter at hand is righteous anger but the Lord understands. See the whip of cords Jesus used in the market place that day. Whether caused by an attack upon your honor by being wrongfully accused, or any other matter that can arise when people interact in a group setting, once you allow that anger to rise to rage, danger is close at hand. In short: Righteous anger=Good, wrongful anger=Bad.  Thank you for your kind consideration in the matter.