Anger #3

Colossians is full of advice to combat anger. Chapter 3:8 "But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth." We are commanded to put our anger away. To kill this sin. Joe said in one of his messages, "Be killing sin lest it be killing you." That is so true. But when we are trying to get rid of this sin we need to put on something in it's place. Col 3:12-17 "Put on then, as God's chosen ones. holy and beloved, compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another....and above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts...and be thankful... And whatever you do in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus..." Man, if we are applying these verses to our time with our children, there is no room for anger! I am so grateful that God shows us what character traits to work on to combat our anger.
As I write this, I am aware of my own temptation to be prideful and self-reliant, thinking I can do these things on my own. No way. I need the Holy Spirit to guide me. The Lord must change my heart. Prov 3:6 says "In all your ways acknowledge Him" God loves to be asked for help. Yes, even with the mundane things us moms do day in and day out. Anger is certainly worth his time. Every morning when I awake I try to remember to ask God to help me with my anger. I pray for that too when I ask the blessing for our food and when the girls need discipline. It is an ongoing temptation for me, every minute of the day.
Another temptation is to be legalistic. To think that by working on my anger I will achieve acceptance from God. Absolutely not true! I have already been justified by Christ dying on the cross for me. There is nothing I can do to add to his finished work. The reason I even want to work on anger, or any other sin is because I have been created to glorify God. That is why we exist people! God wants us to become more like him everyday, sanctification. I can't believe he even gives piddley ole me the opportunity to glorify him. What a privilege. So that is why I will continue to work to rid myself of this anger. So God can receive the glory.
Richard Sibbes said "There is more mercy in Christ, than sin is us."