About anger

Anger is a strong emotion that emerges when we feel a gap between what is, and what should be. Anger is worth examining. It's very common in family relationships, and usually destructive. Our culture frequently rewards and even celebrates anger.

Not all anger is unrighteous. We've slaughtered over 40 million children in the US since 1973 under a ludicrous "privacy" finding in the Constitution. Forty million souls. That's the combined current population of Illinois, Florida, and Texas.

But let's not kid ourselves. A large fraction of the anger we have is not righteous. The gap that drives this anger is between what is and what we think we deserve -- standards set up through idols of comfort, success, and control.

Here is a useful test: Does my anger cause me to act to save lives and lead me to pray, inviting God's power to save and transform lives?

The best book on helping children with anger is The Heart of Anger, by Lou Priolo.