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Mad Mom Makeover series

Once per week during the months of March and April, Rear Release Regroup and MTO (Mom Time Out) is featuring a special guest post dealing with “mom anger” and how to cope with those “blow it” moments!

These dear moms offer words of encouragement, support, and wonderful tips for when that old temper flares!  This will be a valuable resource, so be sure to stay tuned each week – and if you’re not on our email list, you may sign up here to make sure you don’t miss a single post!

I’m excited to introduce Dawn Klinge, blogger at Above the Waves!  Dawn has a knack for sharing great truths from God’s Word while also drawing from practical wisdom of authors past and present.  She is mom to one boy (age 12), and one girl (age 17) and I know you’re going to enjoy her insight on anger today!

Are your passions at war within you?  Do those passions sometimes lead to outbursts of anger that you wish you could take back?  In the Bible, James writes about this problem…

“What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. “ -James 4:1-2 (ESV)

James uses the terminology of your passions being at war.  Those of us who’ve experienced the grace of forgiveness and salvation through Christ still face a battle between our spirit (with it’s Godly desires) and our flesh (our worldly desires)- and we will continue to throughout this life.

We are not left on our own to fight this battle.  We can trust God to continue the good work that he started in us when we accepted Christ as our Lord and Savior.

You do not have, because you do not ask. Have we asked God if what we want is the same as what he wants?  And if we think that, yes, our desire is a godly one, with right motives, have we placed our own expectations around the plan to obtain what we want?

How many times do unmet expectations lead to anger?  I know that the answer, for me, is too many times.  If I want something, and I’ve already asked God about it, then I need to trust him with the rest.

We don’t need to jump off the handle when things don’t go according to our plans.  It’s easier to be calm amidst the frustration of unmet expectations when we’re resting in the knowledge of who God is.

Here are 3 truths about who God is and why we can trust him:

1. God is infinite in wisdom– he knows what he’s doing

“Wisdom is the power to see, and the inclination to choose, the best and highest goal, together with the surest means of attaining it.  Wisdom is, in fact the practical side of moral goodness.  As such, it is found in its fullness only in God.  He alone is naturally and entirely and invariable wise.” –J.I. Packer, Knowing God

2. God is perfect in love– he is the very definition of love

“Calvary is the one, objective, absolute, irrefutable proof of God’s love for us.” –J.I. Packer, Trusting God

3. God is completely sovereign– he is in control

“God sat over the dark nothing and wrote you and me specifically in the story, and He put us in specifically with the sunsets and the rainstorms as though to say, ‘Enjoy your place in My story, the very beauty of it means it’s not about you, and in time that will give you comfort.”  -Donald Miller, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years

 

When we change our expectations and we realize that the Christian life is not about us, but about God glorified in us, sinful anger has a way of taking care of itself.  It just isn’t as much of a problem.

What I’m NOT saying is that we should be passive.  Make a plan and work to carry it out.  But hold that plan loosely, knowing that God is in control and can be trusted to carry it out to completion the way he sees fit.

Passion, rightly directed, is a good thing.  And anger is sometimes justified.  But as Christians who want to bring honor to God, we will do best to heed the wisdom found in God’s Word where it says,

“Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” -James 1:19-20 (ESV)

I don’t want to be quick to anger.  I want to honor God with the way I live.  Trusting God is the way to do this.

Trust God with your desires and passions.  Ask him to guide your heart in a way that is pleasing to him.

Trust God with your plans.  Ask him direct you as you pursue those passions.

Trust God when your expectations aren’t met.  We might think we know how God will carry out his plans through us, but only God sees the entire picture.

The passions that are at war within you need not cause you to sin in anger.   When it feels like anger is getting the best of you, remember that you don’t have to fight this battle alone.  You can trust God and his great plan for your life.

Dawn Klinge is the author of Look To Jesus:  How to Let Go of Worry and Trust God (January, 2016).  She writes about Christian faith regularly at Above the Waves, drawing on her experience as wife and mom to two.  She holds a degree in education from University of Idaho.  A pastor’s kid and a church girl her entire life, she’s still trying to figure out what it looks like to put her trust in Jesus.  Dawn and her husband, Derek, live near Seattle, Washington.  You can also find her on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram

Come join us at MTO!

Photo credit: ©Depositphotos.com/cteconsulting

MTO is a closed Facebook group for moms in the trenches, tired of reacting to daily conflicts or annoyances in family dynamics with anger or frustration.

At MTO you will find a place to share your story and interact with others who have been there too.

You will find support, encouragement, Scripture Pillars, Goals, and a plan of action for attacking those feelings of overwhelm and frustration.

Click the picture or any of the orange links to>>> join MTO today!

We’re waiting for you, mom!

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