anger

Crush the Pain

/ The WheatandTares / 7 Comments

I absolutely love crushed ice. I love it so much that it makes me drink water when I need it. We don’t have an ice crushing machine at home, and I don’t really want to take up the counter space to get one; so, I crush my own. I have found that if I will just take the few extra minutes to crush the ice, I will drink almost a whole quart of water in one sitting.

I have also found that crushing ice, often times, releases tension and even frustration within me as I take the spoon firmly within my grasp and “pop” each ice cube into nice little slivers of crunch. It will usually bust holes in the ziplock bag I use, but that’s ok. I just consider it the vessel that’s “suffering for a good cause.” There have been moments when I’ve looked at each cube of ice and taken true “vengeance” out. It is truly a refreshing moment. 😂

It’s a great little lesson in “proper venting methods” that maybe someone reading this might find helpful.

This may sound silly to some, but for a moment, just think about it. I’m not screaming at my kids because of my frustrations. I’m not fussing with my husband, because I’m angry or feeling tension, and I’m not kicking a wall or driving erratic, because I’m struggling with trying to find some sort of ever evasive ‘inner peace.’ (not that I necessarily would do the latter, but just stay with me here…)

Maybe someone out there has been down this road of reactionary discontent, and you need to find a different outlet to release your stress. Now, this simple exercise might not work for everyone. You may truly need to go to the gym and run or hit a punching bag, but if you’re a “steam kettle,” like me, and you just need to release a little steam from time to time, you might want to try it.

Once, all the ice is crushed, pour it in your glass, fill it with water, and Enjoy! You’ve succeeded in refreshing your mind and your emotions, and you’ve done something beneficial and healthy for your body as well, without some medical application, crazy substance abuse, alcohol consumption or erratic behaviors.

Welcome to the world of emotional self control! 😉💕

The Weight of the Broken

/ The WheatandTares

So many broken hearts all around me today. The weight of it all tugs on my own to weigh me down. My mind swirls with the endless possibilities, the various scenarios, circumstances, and outcomes.

One heart is trampled after years of devotion, self-sacrifice and provision. Deceit and lies run rampant. Another is captivated by mistrust and fear, threatening to become the self-fulfilling prophecy through the tears. Still another is full of anger, bitterness and rage while pretending to love and adore a fantasy fabricated within the mind.

Oh dear Lord, how do we help them? How do we stop the bleeding? Can we even intervene? The pain is so great. The brokenness seems beyond repair. Is there any glimpse of hope to be found?

The questions thrash about like tornadoes through my head. Twisting and turning without end. We look to a book, a counsel, a song or a situation to correlate, to somehow make sense of this unfathomable reality.

Yet, no answer can be found in the carnal. No solution can be brought forth in mere words. No ears have the capacity to hear the true heartbeat of the broken.

The only answer is Jesus. The only shred of hope is Him. There is no guarantee of tomorrow. There is no promise of reconciliation, or even redemption, without His mercy and grace.

It may sound too cliche. It may sound like just another punchline, but I have found He is the only source of Truth. He is the only anchor that holds. He is the only Rock that stands when the whole world falls apart, and you’re wondering if you can even take the very next breath.

I can’t even walk without holding onto His hand.

He is all I need. ❤️

Freedom of Forgiveness

/ The WheatandTares / 3 Comments

I saw this post on FB today, and I thought it an awesome subject upon which to post. This is so very hard, sometimes, but it is so very true. The quicker we learn this lesson, the better, and the key to unlocking its truth is in the freedom of forgiveness.

I have found the quicker you can truly forgive someone who has hurt you, the less like them you will become. Over the years, I have watched family members, friends and acquaintances who have “claimed” forgiveness was in their hearts, but as you listened to them talk about the certain person or circumstances, all you heard was bitterness flowing from their souls. As I’ve watched these year after year, I have seen how, slowly over time, they have become more and more like the person who hurt them, the one whom they haven’t forgiven.

You see, the unforgiveness you harbor within your heart will fester and soak in anger and disgust. Eventually, that unforgiveness takes hold of your soul and buries a root of bitterness deep beneath the surface. Once the root of bitterness takes up space, it will consume and override rational thought, peace and even at times, your own sanity.

Learn to let go. Learn to forgive. Learn to show mercy and grace. It doesn’t mean all is well at the snap of a finger, and it surely doesn’t necessarily mean reconciliation is on the heels of the forgiveness. Some things just get lost in the pain, brokenness and years.

Yet, it does mean your heart can heal. It does mean you can grow and learn and dream once again. It does mean you can grasp hope, embrace love and be consumed by an inner peace that will no longer be easily shaken.

Paving Their Path

/ The WheatandTares / 1 Comment

 

Once a child reaches the age of accountability, every child must make his or her own choices, and every child is responsible for what he or she does. However, I have found that we, as parents, do have a part to play in helping to pave the path they choose in life. We can’t make their choices, and we can’t be accountable for their decisions. However, we do have the ability to make those choices easy or hard to find.

You see, our children walk down their own paths into the destiny of their own choosing. They will be faced with the good and bad consequences of their actions and with the fruit from the seeds they choose to sow. However, we can pave that path with the “asphalt” of faith, the guard rails of love and the road signs toward joy and fulfillment, or we can lay down layer upon layer of rock, rubble, nails and thorns from the bitterness, foolishness, enablement and even pain of our own lives, layers through which our children will have to fight and claw just to find those good decisions they long to choose.

 

When we live as good examples for our little ones, make good decisions for our own lives as we try to raise them the best way we know how, and strive to correct in front of them the mistakes we are sure to make along the way, their paths will be lined with the good substance they need to not only survive this life, but it also will build the foundation upon which they can thrive through this life!

If you realize your children may have a rocky road ahead, I have good news for you! You can begin TODAY picking up the stones of hatred and anger that have been thrown along their path. The rocks and rubble of foolishness and enablement can be pushed aside. The nails of spite which have been dropped and the thorns of pain which have been sown can be picked up, cut back and removed as you reach out with repentance, forgiveness, truth and love.

This process can only begin with a right relationship with God, a daily seeking of His Word and a continual reaching out to your child with loving kindness. It may not be an instant reconciliation, but with Christ, it can be an instant healing within your own heart and mind. He can help you to clear the path and to make things right again. He can guide you and your child to a better way.

Can You Not See?

/ The WheatandTares / 10 Comments

You lash out against the one you call opponent

Thinking your anger and words of ill will can turn others away

What you don’t realize is the hate you spew simply returns to you

For curses return to the one who cursed. You will reap what you have sown.

You bite and claw to get ahead

Your lips bring lies and deceit believing this will bring you high

What you don’t see is they seek truth and authenticity not another position

For truth will always bring freedom even if it comes with a sacrifice.

We don’t desire your popularity or control. We don’t long for your position or ruling.

Your anger will not bring you justice. It will only bring you shame.

Your slanderous words will not bring you happiness and freedom. It will only bring you brokenness in bondage.

Your vicious actions will not bring you power. It will only bring you a prison of pain.

We long for Truth. We long for Freedom. We long for Life.

He is your only answer. He is your only Hope. He is standing there waiting for you.

He is The Way.  He is the Truth. He is The Light. He is all you need.

Will you turn to see Him today?

Will you turn before it’s too late?

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Penned – MG – 7/26/16

Slippery Slope

/ The WheatandTares / 2 Comments

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We all get angry. Being angry is an emotion. It is a natural emotion that happens when something goes not as planned. It is a part of human nature. Yet, when it becomes a part of your life, a holding which you will not release, and a habit that you simply expect everyone to accept and tolerate, you have entered the slippery slope of failure and eventual disaster.

Anger can be a natural reaction, just as joy, fear and sadness are natural reactions and emotions with which we all live. We can’t truly shut these off, just as we can’t shut off our own breath, without a part of us dying inside. Yet, we can learn to control our anger. We can learn to compress it into submission, and we can choose to embrace joy and life in its place.

Now, let me clarify one thing. There is such a thing as righteous anger, or indignation, and sometimes, you just need to get ill! The Bible tells us in Ephesians 4:26, “Be angry, and do not sin…” There will be moments in our lives when we must get angry against things that are just wrong, people who are bringing harm, or just plain stupidity that has brought about danger. For instance, if a child has been intentionally harmed by an adult, and you simply stand around proclaiming peace and prosperity, you’re the one who needs to wake up. If there are people dying at the hands of another, by all means, get upset. Take the action needed to stop the injustice. The proclamation of peace in war times is foolish and nonsensical! Let’s use some common sense here. I am not talking about anger against injustice, violence and hatred against the innocent. These things should never be tolerated! However, I am talking about unbridled anger that brings about rage and unnecessary harm.

You see, unbridled anger will eventually lead to death, either in ourselves or in someone else. Uncontrolled anger leads to resentment, bitterness and even rage. When you allow anger to rule your life, you are allowing all of these things to follow, not only within you, but around you. It will infiltrate the lives of those around you to the point they must choose to leave you or confront you.

Unbridled Anger is a slippery slope we all must avoid. Choose life. Speak life. Be life to those you encounter. Let that anger slip away to give room for more joy, more love, more forgiveness and hope. If you need help, ask for it. If you need hope, search for it. If you ask the right people, and you seek the right places, you will find it.

“So the Lord said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.'” Genesis 4:6-7

Daily Prompt: Angry

The Storm

/ The WheatandTares

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The storm rages within my heart.

The anger is building. I only want to scream.

Lord, please do not let this become sin.

These clouds of pain threaten to overcome.

My heart is broken in two. Despair only wants to fill.

Lord, please do not let this fail to mend.

The winds of distance blow all over me.

The grief is suffocating. I only want to die.

Lord, please do not let this hate to contend.

The light of grace shines down to me.

The love is blinding. I only want to change.

Lord, please do not let this peace to grow dim.

The skies of joy are now all I see.

My heart is mended. Faith only wants to grow.

Lord, please do not let this happiness to ever end.

Penned – MG – 8/1/99