My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.
Joel and i didn't have the best conversation or evening on Wednesday night. I have several scriptures written on notecards that i read through daily (that's the idea, anyway) and landed on this one. I could have easily been self righteous and applied it to Joel alone and thought- WELL! that verse sure showed him!- but i decided to worry about fixing my own fault in the situation and saw that this certainly also applied to me.
After reading these verses and the subsequent ones i took a look at James himself.
He is presumed to be James the oldest 'biological' brother of Christ not James the apostle. His book is characterized by concern that faith in Christ be expressed in action. You may remember that Christ's family thought he was crazy there for a while and wrote Him off- James had a big change of heart and with it became a new man- he intros the chapter not by drawing attention to his relationship with Jesus but by humbly introducing himself as a servant of God and Jesus Christ.
This passage shows us how and why to avoid anger, so that we won't sabotage ourselves and the gospel message.
This is how i broke it down while reading & meditating :
- Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry
-can you imagine what this would look like in our families, churches and the world?
It doesn't say everyone except for those with really good points in an argument, OR except for those who are very intelligent, OR except for those who are very passionate and outspoken, OR those who really deserve to be heard and have a right to be angry.
-for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.
- pretty plainly stated. Usually our anger (even if we can justify it) brings about plenty of things that hinder our relationships and spiritual growth. i.e., Wednesday night we didn't read together, pray together, relax together or even sleep in the same room because of anger. Our anger literally did not bring about the righteous life God desires. What could have been a great night was completely shut down.
- Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.
- Our world's moral code is all about what works best for you, what you deserve, what you feel and standing up for your wants. tell that person off! get in your one-liner! school them! .... we have to get rid of that mentality and be humble. when we accept the word (scripture AND Jesus) that is planted in us, we can be saved.
saved from self destructive words and actions that scar our families and friends, saved from the temptation to regard ourselves as most important.
Christ in us, can handle it.
the next few verses get pretty intense- i'd encourage you to read them on your own and think about the ramifications of listening to the Word and then going on like you never heard it.
verses 26 & 27 are a doozy.
this was something i really needed to hear, along with the chapter we read in Francis Chan's Crazy Love.
Lots of deep thinking and purposeful action is the result.
I've been feeling a stirring for a while to find more ways to actively witness and serve in the community.
There are some different directions our lives could move and i am totally okay with whatever God has planned.... I'm really excited that this time is turning into a growing, deepening stage for our family.
Instead of moping around yesterday because Joel and i weren't getting along great, i studied and prayed for him.
He had work and worship practice and didn't get home until 10 pm. Could have been a recipe for disaster but instead was a great night where we stayed up til midnight reading, thinking and talking about scripture and ministry.
One of the sweetest nights on record.
I hope this wasn't too heavy or dry for you- i'm not a scholar and usually i save this for my personal journaling and studying but felt like i should share today.
i'll add a picture of our family.... drawn in typical stick figure fashion (by me) as directed by Leland.
i love these people so much and can't wait to find out (next week) if we will have a little gigi or gusgus on our hands :O)
3 comments:
Good thoughts. I love James. Glad you guys have dealt with it and moved on. Though we all have our faults it is a true blessing to be married to a man who knows the truth and will work together with you.
We're reading Crazy Love, too. :)
Very good post Missy! This is something I struggle with when I get mad. I have learned over the years - with Jade anyway - that he needs time to simmer down. So I have to go in a different room and let him sit for however long it takes before a rational conversation can be held. When I finally realized this is how he best operated - it changed us - we hardly ever fight because we just take a break. So many want to hash it out all night & it just doesn't work for us - it makes it worse. So I can do it with him - control my anger - try and listen - I just need to learn how to do it with my kids when I'm having a hard day :) I'm anxious to read more on those verses!
Also - can't wait to hear about a Gigi or a gusgus!
best post ever. :) mostly because it makes me feel like, "thank you! we're not the only ones!" love it.
these verses are the ones I know i'm going to have to repeat to myself my whole life long. Jared and I have tempers with each other and the ridiculous thing is...with no one else! only each other. thank goodness the battle isn't between flesh and blood.
ahhh next week you find out baby's gender!!!! call me or text me...if you guys are on crazy sched i understand but otherwise we should try to see each other!
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