Anger: Mangry Sinners in the Hands of a Redemptive God

I have days when I'm angry. Have you ever been angry? I mean, so angry you mix up the words "angry" and "mad" to invent a new word-- "mangry?"

I've had days where I'm THAT mangry-- and I know a few others who've felt that way too.

However... how often do we hear this play in our heads when we start to feel the normal human emotion of anger?: "Good Christians (especially good ordained elders) should not get angry. Seriously- what would people think?" And-- "God, what would God think? We can't be mangry."

Well, today I'm throwing those thoughts out the window. Chuck it out with me-- everyone just go ahead and shout "Whoop-dee-doo."

(I'm listening).

Yeah, "Whoop-dee-do." That's what we're saying today. Because today, we're going to feel some normal human anger.

Horrid things happen to us. Mean people screw us into the wall and then laugh when we hang crooked. We get humliated, mortified, embarassed. People in power shouldn't be in power. Other people's sin limits us. That's a lot to be angry about, wouldn't you say?

So there's days I'm mangry. You've been mangry. Maybe you're mangry now. And that's okay. We have lots of reasons to be mangry.

So-- together, let's be those "mangry sinners in the hands of a loving, redemptive God," who's divine, powerful, and strong enough to deal with us-- even when we're angry. Let's, together, tell God why we're angry. Let's just spew out what makes us mad.

Go ahead, God is listening-- and I really can't hear what you're saying.

And then-- when our verbal vomit of anger is complete and we silence our spirits-- let us listen carefully to what God says.

Because I know, if we are committed to making pure, holy, and choices of LOVE even in our human anger, God will redeem... even the things we are angry about today. FAITH in God to redeem even the things that make us angry... makes all the difference in the world. So, let's together feel normal human anger-- but with the HOPE that God will use, even our anger and the sinful things we get angry about, towards the redemption of creation.

I believe in a God who can redeem ALL things. Nothing is beyond God's redemption. Not even anger or things that make us mad.

(The picture from this post is my own photography-- from a hike I took during sabbatical. This picture reminds me of creation's redemption-- even in anger).