Emotional Outbursts

I'd like to tell you that I have this reigning in my emotions thing worked out.  But I don't.  Frank will attest to that, if you prod and nag at him long enough. And even then, he won't paint me as an emotional rollercoaster. Frank's not a dirt thrower.  He'll never rat me out to you, or you, or you, or even you. 

On Friday, I did a really good job of hearing someone out.  I REALLY practiced the following verse, "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger."  Proverbs 15:1

Oh goody for me!

 

Aren't I wonderful!?

 

Let's pat me on the back.  Woo hoo!

 

Sheesh....

 

Well, not more than 30 minutes later, I blew it with Frank.  I was VERY annoyed and everyone in the car was the receipient of my annoyance!!!  Frank and I talked about it later and he kindly, patiently, and lovingly said, "I understand."  This really took the wind out of my annoyance sails and we were able to have a civil, open discussion on what had happened earlier in the day.

 

The following PW Devotional talks about this very thing: letting our emotions rule our actions, responses.

 

When you are insulted, do you do the internal stall before responding, reacting?

 

Read on.

 

PlanetWisdom.com Devotionals

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Fool Week: Hey, I'm Annoyed! Posted: 12 Mar 2010 01:39 PM PST "A fool shows his annoyance at once, but a prudent man overlooks an insult." (Proverbs 12:16) Fool Week marches on. It's a kind of madness, really. A marching madness. There may be a bracket to fill out. Anyway, today's fool believes that he has a biological need -- a human right, even -- to express whatever he's feeling whenever he's feeling it. So if you bother me, offend me -- and especially if you insult me -- I'm not going to wait around to let you know I am not okay with that. This fool really likes saying, "I am NOT okay with that." Sometimes really loud. The prudent guy, on the other hand, has developed the life skill of telling his emotions when they can come out and when they have to stay home. He decides, "Making a deal out of this insult isn't going to help anyone; it's only going to lead to less interesting trouble." That doesn't mean he's a chump; he doesn't let every insult pass. He talks about how he feels sometimes -- just not every time. He's a cool cat, that prudent guy. Think: How often do you keep from showing those around you that you are annoyed? How often do you let an insult pass without responding to it? Pray: Ask God to help you not to show your annoyance at once, but to be able to overlook an insult when it's the wisest choice. Do: Notice this week who in your life can't seem to keep from showing everything they're feeling -- and who chooses to let an insult slide without responding to it. If you're curious, ask them how they do that.

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Mary E.Hickcox
www.CalvaryBaptistSM.org
http://mary-neotes.blogspot.com/