ANGER: The Animal's Fury

Ever wonder why you can't control your anger? It's because there is a deadly animal inside you, tearing you apart. It's that part of you that says things that deeply hurt the people you love even though you don't really want to hurt them.

It's whatever produces the dark side of you - the bitterness, self-destructive thoughts, adulterous inclinations, and the anger. This is the side of you that you hate. The people you love hate it and God hates it, but you seem powerless to fight it off.

Jesus describes exactly who this animal is. He said in John 8:34 , "Everyone who sins is a slave to sin." Sin is this untamable monster inside of us and the Bible is very blunt when it describes what this animal will ultimately do to us. "Sin when it is full grown gives birth to death." The wild animal of sin is a killer. It can kill your relationships, self-respect, reputation, future, and ultimately it can take you to hell.

You're helplessly at the mercy of this killer animal except that someone intervened - someone who loves you like no one has ever loved you. In God's own words in 1 John 4:10 , "This is love, not that we loved God but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sin."

God knew that you could not survive the fury of this animal called sin, so Jesus turned all the fury of the animal on Himself when He died on the cross. The death He took on Himself wasn't just physical; it was the agony of an eternal hell. The amazing part is that He lives today and He has won the fight!

This incredible rescue could reach you this very day at the moment you put all your trust in this Savior to be your Savior. You know the power and the fury of the animal of sin. It's time you experienced the rescue of the One who loved you so much that He willingly turned the fury of sin on Himself.

ANGER: Volcano Scars

When you're angry, you're probably a lot like a volcano. You erupt, spew out your lava, and often blow away a piece of the other person, if not yourself.

Every one of us carries around parts of us that have been mortally wounded by something someone said to us in anger. They may have forgotten it, but we can't ever forget it because those create volcano scars. Why do we do this to other people and usually the people we love the most?

Proverbs 12:18 says, "Reckless words pierce like a sword." That's the awesome power of our angry, irresponsible words. Proverbs 18:21 says that "The tongue has the power of life and death." We can say things that make a person feel more alive or that make them feel dead inside. You've had it happen to you, haven't you?

The Bible pays a high tribute to a person who's under control. Proverbs 16:32 says, "Better a patient man than a warrior, a man who controls his temper than one who takes a city." That's real manhood.

If you're tired of erupting and leaving volcano scars on people, maybe it's time to follow the steps to becoming an extinct volcano:

1. Confess your anger and your reckless words as the sin that they really are. Bring it to Jesus' cross and treat it as some of the ugly sin that literally killed our Savior. Then confess it to the victims of your anger.
2. Don't let the lava build up; deal with issues right away.
3. Make yourself listen and ask questions before you speak. James 1:19 says, "Be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry." If you listen, you'll be slower to have anger.
4. Don't say anything at all until you're under control.
5. Make Jesus Christ the Lord of the raging animal inside you. We've all got one. That's the uncontrollable parts of us that are constant reminders that we need a Savior.

Give it to Him for this new day. If volcanoes could think, maybe they'd think twice about blowing their top. The volcano might reason, "You know, maybe I'll feel better for a while, but is it worth blowing away a part of myself? Is it worth blowing away a part of a person I love?" Well, when we think about it, we know it's not worth it. The tongue has the power of life and death and "reckless words pierce like a sword." Haven't we left enough volcano scars?

ANGER: Human Volcanoes

It's tough living with a volcano that could go off any minute. Could that be how the people around you feel?

When the stress, pressure, and aggravation build up, maybe you become a human volcano - blowing up and doing some serious damage, especially to people you love. Like a volcano, the eruption is over fairly quickly, but the damage it does can last a lifetime.

Maybe your temper is part of your "dark side" and it is out of control all too often. It may be the devastating things that you say and do when you're angry, your selfishness that continually wounds and crushes people, or a sour negativity and bitterness that poisons your life and the lives of people around you. It's all deadly molten lava that keeps spewing out of your life - often hurting most the people you love most.

The battle you fight with your explosive dark side is not a new battle; it's at least 2,000 years old. Romans 7:15 says, "I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do." That's a struggle we all understand too well, isn't it? The way we treat our mate, our children, our co-workers, and maybe our friends. We don't want to be that way, but we just can't seem to stop. The passage goes on to say in Romans 7:18-19 , "I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do - this I keep on doing." How many times have we resolved to do better and failed?

There is good news, because the Bible shows us how to move from despair to deliverance. Romans 7:24-25 says, "What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God - through Jesus Christ our Lord!" That's just what we need. We need a rescuer, someone who can lift us out of the trap of this sin-mess. That's where the hope is! Jesus Christ came here to deal once and for all with this sin monster that's so powerful inside us, sin that cuts us off from God now and forever. Jesus went to a cross where He died to absorb all the power and all the death penalty of our sin. Then He declared total victory three days later when He walked out of His grave under His own power!

He wants to bring that victory into your life to forgive every sinful, hurtful thing you've ever done and give you a new beginning. He stands ready to actually move into your heart, to control what you have never been able to control, and to beat what has always beaten you. He's the Rescuer reaching for you. Now it's up to you to reach back and grab His hand and tell Him, "Jesus, You are my only hope. I don't want to be like this anymore. I'm placing all my trust in you to be my Savior from my sin." With Him in your life, you don't have to be what you've always been. You can be what the Bible calls "a new creation" (2 Corinthians 5:17 ).

When Jesus was on earth, He was with His disciples in a violent storm that threatened to destroy them until He stepped to the helm and said three words: "Peace, be still!" The storm was gone. Today, He wants to do that for the storm that rages inside you.

ANGER: The Longer It Waits, The Harder It Gets

Maybe there's a strained relationship in your life right now, and there have been too many sunsets and bad feelings toward someone. The problem is probably bigger than it used to be, but right now is the smallest it will ever be. This issue will never be easier to address than right now, no matter how hard that might seem to you. It's only going to get harder. It's only going to get more costly, and you'll only turn darker inside.



There's a good reason for this. It's like food remnants on dirty dishes. If you deal with them right away, they're soft and easy to remove. Just rinse the plate, and the food falls right off. If you wait, it turns hard so you have to scrape and work, and it's tough to remove it because it's stuck tight. Maybe that's why we call unresolved anger "hard feelings."

Anger turns hard very quickly, and that gives the devil an opportunity to enter a marriage, a parent-child relationship, a friendship, or a church. At the core of every marriage break-up there has probably been an issue that was once a small one, but it was not dealt with immediately. At the core of a broken parent-child relationship, a hurting friendship, or a divided church, there are people who didn't clean up their anger when it first appeared, when it was still small and relatively soft, so it's led to a terrible outcome. The devil got his foot in the door.







Ephesians 4:26-27 says, "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." Here's the Biblical clock on strained relationships. That clock runs out at sundown every day. Remember those old westerns where the marshal might say, "You better be out of here by sundown." Well, that's what we're supposed to be saying to any anger, resentment, or conflict that comes up. "Get out of here by sundown."


Today is always your best opportunity to go to that person and do whatever it takes to repair things. Be willing to confront them to apologize and receive or give forgiveness if needed. Talk it through with them and pray together. You say, "Well, that's going to be tough." It won't be as tough as not doing it. You just cannot afford that hard spot in your heart that develops from the anger that you stuff inside. Don't let it grow instead of letting it go.

Anger and bitterness never stays the same size; they always grow. Remember the dirty dish. There is nothing to gain in waiting to resolve the problem, because the longer you wait, the harder it gets.

ANGELS: Fascinated with Angels

Are there really angels out there? In today's climate of curiosity about spiritual things we're fascinated with angels. There are all kinds of books about angels, T.V. programs, pictures, decorations, and toys.


We've started to look beyond earth stuff for some answers, for some hope. For many, this spiritual quest has taken them to the realm of the angels.


The truth can be found in the Word of God. God tells us where angels fit into the whole scheme of things. The Word of God says in Hebrews 1:6 , "And again, when God brings His first born into the world He says, 'Let all God's angels worship Him.'" It tells us here that there definitely are angels, and He commands all of them to worship His Son.


What's their job? We read in Hebrews 1:14 , "Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?" Angels are ministering spirits sent to serve. Other places in the Bible show that they're God's delivery people or messengers. What's important is who sent them. He's the One to pursue. He's the One to study. He's the One who should fascinate us.


You just learned something incredible about the One angels came to the earth to announce - God's one and only Son, Jesus. Later in Hebrews 2:9 it says, "But we see Jesus who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because He suffered death, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone."


Beyond the angelic messengers is a life or death message. Jesus left the glory of heaven to "suffer death." The one person in history who could not have His life taken from Him is the Son of God. He gave His life on a cross tasting "death for everyone."


The bad news from the Bible is that we are under an eternal death penalty for our sin - for running our own lives instead of letting God run them. The good news is that Jesus loved us so much He did what only He could do. He died the death penalty we deserve to give us the eternal life we don't deserve.


If you've been looking for spiritual peace and spiritual reality, it's been waiting for you all along, in Jesus. It becomes yours when you commit yourself to this awesome Savior. No angel, no prophet, no religion could die for your sins, only God's Son could do that, and He did. Your search could be over today. It can end at the nail-pierced feet of Jesus.

ANGELS: Whatever Happened to Peace on Earth?

Every time you sing the Christmas carol, "Hark the Herald Angels Sing," you sing the words, "Peace on earth and mercy mild." If you ever watch the news or read a newspaper, you may well be asking, "Whatever happened to peace on earth?" That's a very good question. The terrorism danger for Americans is high. One national correspondent expressed on television what a whole lot of people are feeling. He said, "I have never in my lifetime seen such a high degree of threat to our personal security." Throw in dangers that you may be facing personally, such as medical or financial dangers, and you might wonder where the peace is that Christmas is supposed to be about.

The phrase "peace on earth" wasn't invented by a greeting card company. It was part of the birth announcement of the first Christmas, delivered by angels from heaven to shepherds in the field watching over their sheep. Luke 2:13-14 from the Word of God says, "Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom His favor rests.'"


In today's dangerous and unpredictable world, where is that peace? It's in the hearts of those who are ready for eternity, whenever it comes. They understand why the angel said that first Christmas, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord" (Luke 2:10-11 ). The announcement from heaven said that peace would be for those "on whom God's favor rests." The Bible makes it very clear that God's favor rests on those who's sins have been forgiven and totally erased from God's Book. No religion can do that because no amount of doing good can erase the bad in your life. It took a Savior...a rescuer.


If it could have been done without the death of the Son of God, you can be sure it would have been. Only a man could die for the sins of man, and only a man who was God could be the perfect sacrifice. He could barely find a place to be born as He came into the world He created. Many of us have kept the door of our heart closed to Him as surely as that innkeeper did centuries ago.


The peace we need most is peace with the God who made us, who we will meet when we die. Romans 5:1 says, "We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." When Jesus enters your life, the wall between you and God comes down forever and the war in your soul is over. Then there will be peace; peace that is recession-proof, divorce-proof, terror-proof, and death-proof.


You must first surrender the running of your own life because you were never supposed to and you were never made to. When you grab Jesus in total trust as your personal Rescuer from the guilt and penalty of your sin, the storm inside is replaced with His incredible peace. You will know you're ready for eternity, whenever and however it comes.


There's not a better time to begin your relationship with Jesus Christ than today. Just tell Him, "Jesus, You died for me. I'm going to live for You." At Christmastime, we are celebrating when Jesus came to earth. Today, you can be celebrating the day He came into your life - the day the peace came!

ANGELS: A Party in Your Honor

This may come as a surprise to you, but someone would love to have a party in your honor - the angels in heaven. It would be hard to say "No" to a party!



Jesus said in Luke 15:4-7 of God's Word, "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.' I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent."


Rejoicing in heaven when one person comes home spiritually is a great picture! It seems that the angels break into a celebration - a welcome home party—when someone turns from their sin to Jesus. Some of us stumble over that word "sinner"; we don't like to think that applies to us. That's somebody else, right? The Bible clearly says, "All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23 ). Every one of us has missed the way that we were created to live.


We were supposed to live centered around the One who gave us our life. Instead, we've lived with ourselves in the center. Sin is deadly and the Bible says it literally carries an eternal death penalty.


Jesus is our only hope! He is that loving Shepherd who came after us lost sheep. "Lost" may be a good word to describe how you feel - confused about why you're here, wondering why there's a deep loneliness that never really goes away, wondering where peace and fulfillment are really found. All that is because you're away from the One who made you, who is the One who loves you most. Jesus came after you and went all the way to a cross where He died to pay the sin-penalty that you could only pay with an eternity in hell.

The day that you finally put your trust in Jesus to be your own Savior, the angels begin the party in your honor. They know how much it cost to rescue you. They saw the Son of God return to heaven with something He didn't have when He left for earth - nail prints in His hands and feet and a spear wound in His side. They also know what's at stake in your decision about Jesus. They know this is life-or-death; this is heaven or hell.


Maybe with all you know about Jesus and with all your religion, you've never actually been born into God's family. Maybe you've never told Jesus that you're turning from running your own life and totally trusting Him to forgive your sin and get you to heaven. Don't risk another day without Jesus.


This could be the day the angels have been waiting for in heaven for a long time—the day they have a party in your honor because you have finally come home!

ABUSE: Hurt and Hiding

Do you feel alone and have been too hurt to trust anyone? Somewhere along the way you've been hurt, abandoned, betrayed, or mistreated.


You're afraid to let anyone get close. In fact, you may have built up some pretty elaborate defenses to make sure no one does. You're really just afraid that they'll hurt you like someone else did.


Do you feel like no one else knows or understands what you're going through? There is someone today who does understand. He is waiting for you with His arms wide open, and He's the healing that your heart has always wanted. His name is Jesus.


Jesus is seeking you and wants to win your trust. He only wants to love and help you. His love will break through all of your fear and hurt. You've probably been looking and longing for this real love for a long time. It can be yours.


Jesus is waiting for you. He wants to comfort you and be your healer. Read these words from the Word of God that describe Him in Isaiah 61:1-2 , "The Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom to the captives, and release from darkness for the prisoners." You see, Jesus is the healer of broken hearts and broken lives, the liberator from the darkness.


You might wonder if He can be trusted. The answer is found in Romans 8:32 , "He who did not spare His own son but gave him up for us all - how will He not also graciously give us all things." Later in that chapter it says, "Nothing can ever separate us from His love."


So, can Jesus be trusted? If you walk up that hill and stand in the pouring rain at the foot of His cross, you will see the agony Jesus suffered there. The nails in His hands and feet, the thorns pressed on His brow, the spear wound in His side, but most of all the total separation from God. You will then realize that He died to pay the death penalty for your sin.


Yes, you can trust this one who loved you enough to die for you. He's been waiting for you to turn your life over to Him so He can start the healing process that only He can bring. First you have to tell Him that you're putting your total trust in Him to be your Savior. That word "trust" is a hard one after what you've been through, but you can't just go on hurting, hiding, and feeling alone.


This one who loves you so much that He gave everything He had for you; He's the one person you can finally trust!

ABUSE: Hope for Banged-Up Lives

Have you been treated poorly, made to feel that you will never measure up, treated like a loser, or undervalued? Maybe you've ended up pretty hard and angry inside, but there is hope.


While you may not be excited about horse racing, the story set against the backdrop of the Great Depression, illustrates some pretty inspiring things. It was #1 on the New York Times bestseller list and then a major motion picture - the story of one of the most famous race horses of all time, Seabiscuit. Seabiscuit was the son of a champion but was definitely not like his father. He had been forced to run with better horses so they would gain confidence by beating him. When he raced, he did what he was trained to do - lose. Because of the poor treatment Seabiscuit received, he became an angry, almost uncontrollable horse until he was given a chance by a trainer who many considered to be too old and a young man most thought was too big to be a jockey.


Seabiscuit thrived in the care of people who believed in him and became one of the greatest horses of all time. The trainer saw in him something that others had missed. When Seabiscuit's eventual owner was deciding whether to buy this apparent loser, he said, You don't throw a life away just because it's been banged up a little.


There is someone who has never thrown away a banged up life, who sees beyond what's on the outside to the wounds on the inside and the potential He built into you when He made you. Jesus is your hope of a new beginning where the future doesn't have to be just an extension of a broken past.

In Isaiah 61:1 , the Bible says of Jesus, He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives. Jesus has done that for millions of banged up people for over two thousand years. He can do it for you because He died on the cross for every sin ever done by you or against you. Isaiah 53:4-5 says of His death on the cross: Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.


With someone who loves you so unconditionally and so completely, you don't have to ever again trash yourself, trash other people, or trash your future. When you surrender the steering wheel of your life and put the rest of your life in the hands of the Man who died for you, you can tear up that name tag that identifies you as victim and replace it with the new identity Jesus gives you, Child of the King.


If you've never done that and you want to begin your own personal relationship with Jesus, tell Him that right now with all your heart. Jesus, who's God's one and only Son, sacrificed Himself to become the ultimate banged-up life for you. Even though you have been betrayed, you've been hurt and rejected, you can trust Him and count on Him to never alone. Your new beginning can start this very moment. 

ABUSE: Stepped On but Still Precious

There are many people today who have been treated poorly. They feel beaten up, mishandled, treated badly, crushed, and trampled on. When someone's been treated like that, they begin to believe that they aren't worth much. If they were, why would anyone treat them like that?



Most people, if they were offered a $20 bill, would take it. What if that nice $20 bill was crumpled up, crushed into a little wad, beaten up, and then stomped on? Would you still want the $20 bill if it was offered to you? Well, of course you would. That's the point. No matter how abused and beaten up that $20 is, it's still worth just as much, and so are you.


When you think you're worthless, you start making choices based on that—throwing yourself away, settling for junk, doing anything for a little love. The truth is, you're just like that mistreated $20 bill. No matter how you've been treated, you're still just as valuable. You're still precious because God gave you your worth, and no one on earth can take it away.


We can go to God's Book to get the real truth about your value and find three worth-givers that cannot be taken from you.

• First, your worth is based on your being made in God's image. In Genesis 1:27 , the Bible says, "God created man in His own image." God made you as a reflection of Himself, so don't think you're not worth much!

Secondly, your worth is based on your being God's one-of-a-kind masterpiece. In Psalm 139:13 , David says to God, "You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful." When you believe you're not worth much, you're insulting the One who designed you. From the moment the egg and the sperm came together to start your life, you have been God's unique creation. If you don't believe it, look at your fingerprints. There's no one else like you.

• Most importantly, you are infinitely valuable because God paid for your sin with the life of His Son! Galatians 2:20 says, "I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." Imagine the blood-stained cross at the top of Skull Hill near Jerusalem. That's where God's one and only Son thought you were so precious that He poured out His life for every wrong thing you have ever done or will ever do. He did that for you because that's the only way you could ever be forgiven of your sins, the only way you could ever have the love relationship with Him you were made for, and the only way you could be with Him in heaven forever.

The children are so right when they sing the song "Jesus loves me, this I know." He really does love you, and you can never experience how much you're worth until you experience the One who gave you your worth. That's what Jesus has come to give you today. He stands ready to enter your life upon your invitation and begin that love relationship He gave His life to give you. The life you were made for and the love you were made for, begins when you let Jesus into your life. No one loves you like he does!

ABUSE: Where Trust is Born

Maybe you've been betrayed, abused, abandoned, or deeply hurt by people you should have been able to trust and it's hard for you to trust anyone. You've been hurt too often. That's Gal's story, too.


Most dogs are pretty aggressive in meeting strangers by coming right up to you, maybe even on you, but not Gal. She retreats when she sees people. She cowers and she trembles because she had been severely abused by several previous owners before she came to a safe home. She has a hard time even trusting people who want to treat her right, but she's missing a lot of loving that way. Wounded, afraid to trust, and missing a lot of love - that's not just the life story of abused dogs, it's the life story of millions of people.



It might be hard for you to trust someone who wants to treat you right, maybe even the Person who wants to give you the deepest love a human being can ever experience — God. You're not even sure how you feel about Him. There have been tragedies you don't understand and questions unanswered.


Even though the children sing, "Jesus loves me, this I know," you can't join their song because you haven't really trusted Him with everything you have. You've never really experienced this one "never leave you" love. That is, in fact, the promise Jesus makes to those who belong to Him. "Never will I leave you; Never will I forsake you" (Hebrews 13:5).


If you struggle to trust even the God who has the love and healing you need, consider Romans 8:31-32 , "If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all—how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?"

God says if you want to know that you can trust Him, go to His Son's cross. The only way for you to belong to God is to have the death penalty for your sin paid, and God gave up His Son to pay it. God doesn't want to lose you, because He really does love you. Just look at His Son, hanging on that bloody cross, pouring out His life in exchange for yours. Stand at the foot of that cross. You have finally found the one person you can totally trust. This Savior who loves you enough to die for you will never betray your trust. He will never do you wrong!


Trust is born at the cross of Jesus when you let the walls around your wounded heart finally come down and you say, "Jesus, I need a Savior. I need to be forgiven. I need Your love. Jesus, I'm Yours." If you've never done that, let today be the day the healing begins.


There's more love waiting for you than you ever imagined you could have. The arms of Jesus are wide open, extending to you hands with nail scars in them—proof of how much He loves you. Now, it's your move.

LIFE ISSUES

Are you looking for answers to life's deepest questions or real life issues? Do you feel that no one cares? Does your life feel out of control? Are you facing something big right now in your life? Sometimes life and its troubles seem overwhelming. You are not alone. There is hope in the issues that come your way.

Abuse Angels Anger Broken-hearted Cleansing Commitment Death Depression Emptiness End Times Eternity Faith Fear Forgiveness God Hell Hope Integrity Jesus Life After Death Life's Storms Loneliness Manliness Money Out-of-Control Parenting Peace Pride Priorities Relationships Religion Restlessness Searching Security Self-Worth Sex Sin Spiritual Direction Starting Over Trust Uncertainty Weariness