I don’t get mad often. But, alas, I am human!

Yesterday, my day went pretty smoothly until late afternoon when someone said something kind of rude to me after I made a simple mistake. Had I known it was a mistake, I wouldn’t have done it… obviously!

I tried to shake it off, but it took me a while to get over it since I was trying to do the right thing. I was a little offended! E.V.E.N.T.U.A.L.L.Y., I decided it wasn’t that big of a deal and the apparent problem I created will be resolved fairly easily. The person was just responding out of their own frustration with the problem I inadvertently created.

I apologized and will do what I can to make it right as soon as I can.

It was humbling when I was considered that both my mistake and the anger directed at me for it were included in the SINS piled on Jesus at the Cross. We tend to blame others when situations are out of our control, but Jesus took it all upon Himself.

Nonetheless, that incident left me a little short-tempered when writing my Wednesday blog post! Okay, so now you know this is real life!

My blog hosting site was having trouble loading my usual dashboard where I create my weekly content. I have had a couple of random issues before, though thankfully, they have been few and far between.

I tried working on my phone and another laptop, but they were slow, too. Frustrated, I finally called customer support and forty-five minutes later, the problem was resolved. Basically, some sort of updates needed to happen behind the scenes.

It’s still not great, but I hope it works well enough until I can spend more time on it!!

In other news, I finished up the book of Job this week! My favorite part of the book is when God speaks in Chapters 38-42, and when Job apologizes for how he assumed God wasn’t there for him or listening to him. Basically, he questioned God’s character and ability because He did not act how Job thought He should.

Can you relate to these moments when God puts you in your place? I can and wrote about my experiences with dramatic emotions in my book. But, occasionally these misguided emotions still occur!

Job’s mea culpa took the humble approach in Job 40:3-5,

“Then Job replied to the Lord,

⁴ “I am nothing—how could I ever find the answers?
I will cover my mouth with my hand.
⁵ I have said too much already.
I have nothing more to say.”

And also in Job 42:1-6,

“Then Job replied to the Lord:

² “I know that you can do anything,
and no one can stop you.
³ You asked, ‘Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorance?’
It is I—and I was talking about things I knew nothing about,
things far too wonderful for me.
⁴ You said, ‘Listen and I will speak!
I have some questions for you,
and you must answer them.’
⁵ I had only heard about you before,
but now I have seen you with my own eyes.
⁶ I take back everything I said,
and I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance.”

Interestingly, God never answered all of Job’s questions. In His grace and mercy, He didn’t punish Job but turned the questions back to him so Job could see it was a “Job problem” not a “God problem.”

Any error is on my end, not God’s. He doesn’t owe me an explanation.

Well, after these instances, I calmed down and checked my heart. It is ironic how God uses the most simple things sometimes to show me I still have things to work on. I thanked God for not giving up on me. I am grateful He is God and I am not!

Anger, grief, and other heavy emotions can make us second-guess God’s presence and love, and later, His purpose and plan for us. So it is important to stay on top of them and deal with them early on.

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God, thanks for forgiving me when I have a bad attitude! Help me see things from Your perspective. Help me extend grace and forgiveness to others, as You have been so generous to do the same for me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen

Questions: Have you dealt with emotions gone wild lately? What are you going to do about them now?

Tasks: Take a few minutes and check your heart. Confess any offenses so they can be dealt with right away!