Lent Day 28: March 24

Lenten Reflection for Day 28

Date: March 24, 2012

Author: Susan Van Abs

Bible Passage: Ephesians 4:31–32 (NRSV)

³¹ Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, ³² and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.

Reflection: Starting with Ephesians, Chapter 4, Paul tells us how to live our lives through Christ. If Paul were alive today, he might be seen as a motivational speaker, showing us how to be successful in an often hostile world. Ephesians might be a book destined for the New York Times best seller list. The difference between Paul and a motivational speaker is that he is showing us how we can share the gift of Christ to others in our everyday actions. Ephesians was written a long time ago, and it is amazing how applicable it is for us today.

It is easy to hold on to our bitterness and anger. It is also easy to use our anger towards hurting someone or telling the world how we have been wronged. Paul’s message to us is simple – forgive one another “as God in Christ has forgiven you.” While the message is simple, it is not simple to do. It is much easier to hold on to our anger, to let it simmer, sometimes to the point of being harmful to ourselves and others.

Ongoing anger has physiological effects such as high blood pressure, depression, heart disease, and stroke. Why do we put ourselves through such turmoil and torment when it is unnecessary? We need to let go of the anger and not only think kind thoughts towards one another, but forgive one another and love one another. God does not abandon us, even when we are angry with him and ask “why me?” God loves us no matter what and we need to extend that love to our neighbors. His son was the ultimate gift to us. When we are angry towards others, do a 180 degree turn and do something kind for them or think good thoughts of them.

Prayer: Dear God, Help us to turn our thoughts towards you when we are angry and cannot see the bigger picture of the world we are in. Help us to remember your forgiveness and grace and help us to see Christ in everyone we meet. Amen

Lent Day 17: March 12

Lenten Reflection for Day 17

Date: Monday March 12

Author: Howard Shaffer

Bible Passage: Ephesians 4:25–26 (NRSV)

²⁵ So then, putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to our neighbors, for we are members of one another. ²⁶ Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger,

Reflection:

Saint Paul was gifted by the Holy Spirit to give us many practical ideas to help us through life everyday.

Falsehood is really anything we say, or don’t say, or do or don’t do that misleads others. It violates Christ’s command to treat others as we want them to treat us. Falsehood is also a way of expressing the original sin of Adam and Eve. They broke God’s command, then tried to blame someone else – God and the snake. Falsehood destroys community. It is difficult to admit to God, yourself, your family and neighbors that you have made a mistake, but it is absolutely necessary. Isn’t failure to admit mistakes really a falsehood?

Anger is a normal emotion that arises from fear, but also from a sense of being wronged. We may be wronged directly, or feel that our family or “community” (church, school, country, etc.) have been wronged. The Bible often speaks of God’s anger – with us! Yet He forgives us! We pray for forgiveness in the Lord’s Prayer, and say it is as we forgive others. Jesus emphasized this by saying we MUST forgive others if we expect to be forgiven. Anger is very corrosive, and to remain angry eats away at you. We are human and we will become angry. Saint Paul gives us the time limit for bearing this self-imposed burden. It is the end of the day. Get rid of your anger by forgiving whoever or what ever angered you, and end the day in peace. Be reminded that God has forgiven you through Christ’s death and resurrection.

Prayer:

Dear God, guide me to be truthful in everything, in every way. Help me to contain my anger at others and myself, and to forgive them and myself by the end of this day. Forgive me for my anger. Thank you for forgiving me.