Anger, it's your choice

I often times like to walk into a room full of kids or teenagers and start things off by asking them if they remember the last time they got mad. Maybe, have them share it with the group and see what kinds of things go on. Then, I like to ask them who it was that made them mad. It is always, always blamed on someone else. My sibling did this, or my parents said that, or whatever the case may be. My thing right now is that I want people to start taking responsibility for their actions and their anger. We have a lot of outside forces acting on us at all times. Especially in public places, there are other people and other things going on in our lives that can make or break our days. But, we need to understand that we are in control of our own bodies, and that is all we can control.
People do things that we dislike, maybe even things we hate or dislike very strongly. People constantly do things that I don't like, at softball practice, at work and even at church. The moment it happens I make a choice. Sometimes we are so hot-headed that we don't realize the choice is even made. But it happens, we get mad. WHy? Because we chose to get mad, that is all there is to it.
James 1:19-20 My dear brothers take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry
So we should first listen, listen to the forces outside of our bodies, then quickly listen to our minds. Our conscience should be telling us what to do, and how to react. Then, we need to assess the situation through God's eyes and make sure we don't do anything to ruin our future chances at witnessing to that person or group of people.
So quick to listen and slow to react that is the key to allowing the Holy Spirit to empower you to avoid anger. Remember, you make a choice to get mad. You can just as easily make it a habit to make the choice to not get mad.
Have a great day and thanks for reading!