Anger - Good or Bad? YES

Have you ever gotten angry over something ridiculous?


I distinctly remember becoming furious with the wind one day last summer. Yes, the wind. As I began the long ride up the hill on my mountain bike, the wind decided he (or she) was going to push against me as hard as he possibly could just to tick me off...or so that's what it felt like as I struggled to pedal up that neverending hill while my quads nearly burned out of my skin. I remember wanting to curse at the wind, and quite honestly, I may have once or twice when he pushed even harder against me. I'm not sure adrenaline is supposed to reach the level it did in my body that day, but I'll probably never forget the anger I felt toward that malicious wind.

Ok...so getting angry at the wind is pretty silly. I know this. What other things, though, have I gotten angry over AND are they worthy of the anger?

This was the challenge presented to me at my Monday night gathering this past week.

So...

What have I been angry (or frustrated) about that is NOT worthy of getting angry about?

Slow drivers
Required meetings
Misplaced or lost items
Cancelled events
Tall people standing in front of me


What have I been angry about that IS worthy of getting angry about?

Sex trafficking
Child abuse
Starvation
Misuse of power

Maybe I can just make one category for these - selfishness at the expense of others.

Some would call this kind of anger, the kind that IS worthy,"righteous anger" because the anger is in response to sin. If we see sin the way God sees it, we will become angry too. The point for us is not to condemn or judge those in the midst of sinful behavior. This kind of anger should never cause us to sin, but it should push us to find a way to help encourage righteous behavior. It should cause us to want to do something to help the situation.

"In your anger do not sin: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry." (Ephesians 4:26).

Humans in Guatemala are starving. Humans in Africa are starving. Humans in many places in our world are starving. I find myself with righteous anger when I think about this situation. I don't know all the reasons why humans are starving to death, but I do know that part of the cause of this hunger is due to sin...the selfish behavior of humans. I know there is enough food for everyone in the world, yet people are still dying of hunger.

God does not call me to deal with this anger by judging those who are not thinking about the poor. God does not call me to condemn those who are stealing food that's being sent to provide for those in need.

The way that I deal with this anger is to donate money to feed the poor. I bought several buckets of food for the Treasures living the garbage dump of Guatemala City. The staff of Potter's House, an organization that reaches out the Treasures, will deliver the food to the families most in need. My hope is that others will recognize one of the righteous ways to deal with this situation, and join me in feeding the poor. My hope is that the Treasures will find God through His provision for them.


So when I cursed at the wind last summer...right response? NO

"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).

Least of These

For 40 hours in June, I will have the opportunity to experience what it feels like to be homeless.

When I was growing up, I lived in the low income housing section of town, but even so, I had a roof over my head. I had 3 nutritious meals a day. I had different clothes to put on each morning, and most importantly, I had people around who loved me. In that small town, I never saw poverty. It existed, but I never saw it.

The first time I experienced poverty was this past winter. I traveled to Guatemala City where there is a garbage dump that over 10,500 people live and work in each day. Thousands of humans spend 14 hours a day in the extreme heat or heavy rain searching through infected rubbish to provide for their families. Their works consists of searching for pieces of recycled materials so that at the end of the day, they can sell their findings for a few pennies. I saw poverty in Guatemala City.

Since I've returned from Guatemala, I have had the opportunity to volunteer at a couple homeless shelters. Each time has been different, and each time I get glimpses of the lives of people who don't have roofs over their heads...who don't get 3 nutritious meals a day...who have to wear the same dirty, stinky clothes day in and day out...who rarely feel love.

But...God is at work through His people!

There's an organization in Guatemala City called Potter's House that reaches out to the people who live and work in the dump. Their vision is that “One day not even one Treasure will scavenge in all of beautiful Guatemala”. With the help of short and long-term missionaries, the staff of Potter's House works hard to build houses for the poor...to feed the hungry...to the clothe the least of these...and most importantly, to love God's treasures.

There is a group of Jesus followers that I gather with on Mondays. Once a month during our gathering, we spend our time feeding the hungry at the homeless shelters...clothing the least of these...and most importantly, spreading the love of Jesus to those who desperately need Him. They have nothing else. No home. Little food. Dirty, stinky clothes. They need love. We give them love.

God is at work through His people! In Guatemala and right here in my backyard.

Jesus says, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' Matthew 25:40

Through loving people, we love God. We love God by loving the least of these.

I don't know that a 40 hour poverty simulation is going to give me an accurate picture of what it's like to be homeless, but it will surely give me a glimpse into what it is like to be one of the least of these.


Is God at work in your backyard?

What's in a nickname?

Have you ever had a nickname? If not, let me know and I'll give you one.

My grandpa used to call me The Man in the Moon. Why? No idea. I'm a girl. I've never been to the moon. I should ask him sometime.

In elementary school my nickname was Einstein. I was kind of a nerd. Ok, I was a nerd. But that nickname was much better than Beached Whale. Kids can be so cruel. I've lost touch with that friend, but I hope she has forgotten her nickname from grade school.

Monkey. I used to climb a lot in college. Super high energy. I like monkeys so I didn't mind that name.

When I think about my current nickname, I smile.

T$ can be translated as T-Money, T-Dollars, T-Quetzales. The irony is that the green stuff that we all wish grew on trees has nothing to do with my nickname. Sure I like having enough money to support myself...to share with others...like Potter's House (There will be plenty of posts about PH in the future so stay tuned)...to buy my favorite songs on iTunes...to vacation in the mountains...but T$ isn't special because of money.

Just under 2 years ago, one of my favorite persons, B, decided that I needed a nickname. T-dog. That stuck for all of 3 days. It just didn't fit. I look nothing like Snoop. How 'bout T$. Perfect.

B was popular. People listened to B. He had a way with words. Soon my boss began calling me T$. Then my close friends. T$ is special because the people that call me T$ are special. Not just anyone calls me T$. You have to know me pretty well to use my nickname...or some variation of it.

One day another one of my favorites, A, wanted to be different so he called me T-Shift4 (figure it out?). He found out pretty quickly that I didn't like that. He resorted to T-Dollars. That's special. What's even more special is almost every time I call him now, he answers with "Dollar dollar bill, yooo." That probably means nothing to you. But it's special to me. He's special to me.

Quetzales is the currency of Guatemala. I recently got back from a missions trip where I built a house for some beautiful people who live in the Guatemala City garbage dump. Yup. There are people in the world that live and work in a garbage dump. I went down with 9 other people to join God in His healing of the world. Antonio was the master construction worker/missionary who showed me how to stucco, use a power drill and build a stove...among other things. Antonio heard my nickname, but wanted to be different just like A wanted to be different. TQ, short for T-Quetzales. TQ is special. Antonio is special for many reasons.

F and D call me $, no T. Just $. D has tried to make T-Party stick because he wants to be different too, but it hasn't yet.

A lot of people call me T, no $. Just T. I got to spend time with one of my favorites today. He calls me T. He has AIDS so sometimes he forgets my full name. T is easy to remember. We ate delicious apple pancakes with our friends and played UNO. It was a glorious day.

As I finish writing, I notice that most of my nicknames were given to me by the male species. Interesting. I don't want to exclude the ladies in my life. They are just as special. I suppose I have a few nicknames from some special women. Just less unique than from the gentlemen.

Gram calls me Babe. She's a SUPER special woman.

Girlfriends call me Hun, Sweetie, Honeybear...ok, not honeybear...just wanted to see if I could get a reaction.

I have a friend who works at Potter's House who recently nicknamed me Bite Size. Her explanation. Think of a mini snickers. It leaves you satisfied, but wanting more.

Nicknames. Special names given by special people.