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Page 1: FatCow Web Hosting - © 2007 by Alan Fensinwaypub.fatcow.com/sins/angerchapter.pdfAlso, a review of the entire Gospel shows that Jesus was almost never angry. Nothing that his distracters

© 2007 by Alan Fensin

Page 2: FatCow Web Hosting - © 2007 by Alan Fensinwaypub.fatcow.com/sins/angerchapter.pdfAlso, a review of the entire Gospel shows that Jesus was almost never angry. Nothing that his distracters

2 Defeat The Seven Deadly Sins

© 2007 by Alan Fensin

Excerpt from Chapter 2

Defeat the 7 Deadly SinsWith Devotional Prayers

Published byBurlington Book DivisionBurlington National Inc.Box 732Metairie, LA [email protected], Canada, England

Copyright © 2007 by Alan FensinAll rights reserved. No part of this book may bereproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted inany form or by any means, electronic, mechanical,photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without priorwritten permission of the publisher.

All images are copyrighted © and used with thepermission of the artist. All rights reserved.

Printed in the United States of America.10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

ISBN 9781577066507

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Chapter 2 Anger

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“Whoever is angry with his brother willbe liable to judgment.” – Matthew 5:22

Anger (also known as wrath) is one of the mostpervasive and most common of the seven sins. This isbecause we are all quite capable of getting angry.

Anger is a feeling of fury, rage, hostility,impatience, bitterness, animosity, resentment,injustice or moral superiority aroused by a real orsupposed wrong. It is a strong feeling ofdispleasure, revenge, or hatred, towards some event,person or group. Angry behavior may includephysical violence, rudeness, or other offensivebehavior.

Anger towards others implies a lack of trust inGod’s plan for our lives. Angry people look for what isright or wrong in a situation and usually feelrighteous as they judge others. It is as if it isJudgment Day, and they are playing God.

Anger often occurs because of a feeling offrustration or outrage over some perceived injustice.One writer called anger ‘the love of justice pervertedto revenge and spite.’

“Cease from anger and forsake wrath.” – Psalm. 37:8

Anger, in itself, is not sinful. Various quotesfrom the Bible tell of the anger or wrath of God. Also,there is a verse of Scripture which states, “Be angryand sin not.” This implies there can be anger whichmay not only be right; it may also be a duty.

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“My dear brothers, let every man be swiftto hear, slow to speak, slow to anger.” – James 1:19

There is a type of positive anger expressed byJesus on various occasions, such as the time heoverturned the tables of the moneychangers anddrove them out of the temple.

The moneychanger incident with Jesus is seenas “holy indignation”, and it suggests a legitimateuse of anger. Jesus chased away the moneychangersand told them, “My house shall be called by allnations the house of prayer, but you have made it aden of thieves.” The key here is that Jesus was notcontrolled by his anger but, instead, he used anger tocontrol the situation. He knew that even a legitimateanger should be mitigated by compassion and mercy.

When Jesus was angry, he did not lose histemper. For most people, the powerful emotion ofanger can quickly escalate into lack of control and aresulting rage. But Jesus never lost control, and hisanger was always a legitimate anger used for alegitimate purpose. He was doing God’s work byremoving the moneychangers so the temple wouldindeed be a house of prayer.

Also, a review of the entire Gospel shows thatJesus was almost never angry. Nothing that hisdistracters did could spark an anger he could notcontrol. Even on the cross, Jesus forgave his killersbecause he said they did not realize what they weredoing. Even in those few cases where he displayed acontrolled anger, it was very brief. This implies thatif someone is rarely angry and it is a brief anger,then it is okay. But if someone is often angry, and it

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is long–lasting, then it is most likely a sin.

“He who is slow to anger is better than themighty, and he who rules his spirit thanhe who takes a city.” – Proverbs 16:32

Anger is our personal responsibility, becausethe motivation for anger originates in our own heads.We often experience anger when there seems to be noother solution to a problem. Usually, an angry personfeels his anger is justified, but most likely it is not“holy indignation”. In various parts of the Gospel,God says to put the anger off and not act upon it.

“But now you yourselves are to put off allthese: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy,and filthy language out of your mouth.” – Colossians 3:8

Jesus preached, “Love our enemies.” His fewinstances of holy indignation suggest the legitimateuse of anger. It is a battle against injustice andunrighteousness, either to prevent it fromhappening, or to engage it and sweep it out ofexistence when it has obtained a foothold in theworld. However, when it is directed against thewrong people or objects, anger becomes a deadly sin.

Also, anger is a deadly sin when it causes us tolose love and our sense of reason. There may be alegitimate, and even an imperative, indignation, butour chief concern in this chapter is with the angerthat exists as a deadly sin.

Anger can also be sinful if it is excessive. Even

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when there is a real cause for it, the outbreak ofanger may not be proportional to the offense. “Letnot the sun go down upon your wrath,” is a precept ofboth the Old Testament and the New Testament.Forgiveness is a remedy for anger.

“For the wrath of man works not therighteousness of God.” – James 1:20

People of my generation were taught to restrainour anger. We were taught that anger was wrong,destructive, and dangerous. However, starting in theearly 1970’s, most self–help books and therapistssuggested people release their inner anger.Unfortunately, anger breeds anger, and this advicehas led to more violence, more unhappiness, andmore isolation from humanity and from God.

There is a story of a fisherman in a smallrowboat during a heavy fog. The “pea soup” fog wasso thick he could not even see two feet in front of hisboat.

Out of the fog, another rowboat came up andcrashed into his boat. The fisherman was very angrywith the person in the other rowboat and startedyelling, “What the heck are you doing! Can't you goslower and be more careful?” But there was noresponse from the other boat, and the fog was sodense that he could not see anything.

”You incompetent! You almost sunk my boat!”the fisherman shouted even louder. But there wasstill dead silence from the other boat.

The fisherman was very angry and he yelledagain and again, but still there was no response.Some time went by and the fog lifted slightly, and

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the fisherman saw that there was no one in the otherboat. It was empty and was merely adrift.

The lesson the fisherman learned was that theperson he raged against didn’t exist. His anger hadbeen directed at a person that did not even exist, andhe felt silly. He also realized that, in his life, most ofhis anger was misplaced.

“Anger is the name of a passion. Apassion of the sensitive appetite is goodin so far as it is regulated by reason,whereas it is evil if it sets the order ofreason aside.” – Thomas Aquinas

Everyone is sometimes affected by anger.However, the people that have the most difficultywith anger are those who perceive the world inopposites. These people tend to see life as good orbad, black or white, with no middle ground, and noshades of gray.

There are two basic types of anger. The first ishot, external anger where a rush of adrenalineincreases the blood pressure, flushes the face, tensesthe muscles and explodes in a verbal or physicaldisplay of anger.

People that experience hot anger have a lot ofissues with their inclination to confront others. Theydislike weakness within themselves or in others.They desire to control personal objects, space andpeople. This control often takes the form of anger,both verbal and, sometimes, physical. They focus onissues of their strength and other people’s weakness.They view life in terms of winning and losing andtend to stand up against others. They are often tough

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and domineering and will fight for what they think isright.

The second type of anger is cold anger wherethe rage is internalized and not outwardly expressed.This anger may be accompanied by critical anddisapproving eyes, a rapid, angry tapping of the foot,a tightly clenched jaw, but no hot angry outbursts.Most lay people know that hot anger is one of theseven deadly sins, but many are unaware that coldanger can also be sinful. However, even when angeris ice–cold, it still burns.

The cold anger people are often perfectionists.These perfectionists excessively dislike incompletionand imperfection in their lives. Instead, they replaceincompletion and imperfection with a desire forthings to be as they believe they should be.

The problem is that things are never correctenough for the perfectionists, so often a tendencyexists to react to life with cold anger. They oftenpossess strong self–discipline and intense feelingsabout their principles and beliefs. Seldom does joy orhappiness exist with this anger. They constantlyexamine everything with the goal of findingsomething out of order. This lack of joy is a symptomof the emptiness and incompletion in their lives.

Anger does not have to result in wrath to be asin. Even when one experiences cold anger, it stillcan lead to eternal damnation. But cold anger isnothing compared to the confrontational white–hotscarring of hot anger.

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“When we hate our enemies, we aregiving them power over us, power overour sleep, our appetites, our bloodpressure, our health, and our happiness.” – Dale Carnegie

A word spoken in anger may mar an entire life.Anger can create tremendous occupational problems.Studies of anger, and its management in business,show that the number one reason employees get firedor passed over for promotion is their inability toresolve workplace conflict and anger. There exists amaterial, as well as a spiritual, reason for resolvingissues with anger.

It is said that the size of a man can be measuredby the size of the things that make him angry. Inother words, when one is upset and angry because ofminor difficulties, it shows that he is an immatureand small man.

In the past, priests taught the Mosaic law,which in Exodus 21:23–25 said, “But if any harmfollows, then you shall give life for life, eye for eye,tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn forburn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.” But ourhuman acts of vengeance are never adequate.Usually the vengeance itself ends up causing us evenmore suffering.

Revenge is self–destructive and contrary to thecommands of our Lord. Jesus did not believe inrevenge. He presented the divine law of love, whichblesses even those that curse him. Jesus knew that itwas not his place to seek revenge. He knew that HisFather, in heaven, would be responsible for that.

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“Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, butrather give place to wrath; for it iswritten, “Vengeance is Mine, I willrepay,” says the Lord.” – Romans 12:19

When raising children, it is important that wedo not use anger against them. This just teachesthem to be angry. The Bible, in Ephesians 6:4, givesinstructions on how to raise children. It says, “Andyou, fathers, do not provoke your children to anger,but bring them up in the training and admonition ofthe Lord.” Anger creates anger, and we mustremember children mimic what they see.

“A mild answer calms wrath, but a harshword stirs up anger.” – Proverbs 15:1

Anger often appears unannounced andunwanted. Your face turns red; your stomach tensesup; and your throat constricts. The question is: whatdo you do about it?

Much of the skill of relating to people can befound in how to manage anger. There are three basicways of dealing with anger. The less preferred way isto vow never to be angry again. This tends to workfor only a short time, after which, it is back to thesame old anger patterns.

The second way is, when angry, usingpsychological methods to avoid doing anything thatwill harm yourself or others. We have all heard theadvice to remember to breathe deeply. Then, there isremembering to count to ten before speaking whenangry. Another method is to physically remove

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yourself from the conflict by walking away andallowing yourself the time and space to cool off.These usually work for a while and any practicewhich allows the first few moments of anger to passwithout an explosion is very useful. Anger usuallydissipates in time, and we can cause that dissipationquicker by refusing to participate in it.

“Anger is only one letter short ofdanger.” – Unknown

The third, and preferred, way of dealing withanger is to avoid becoming angry in the first place.This involves working on the underlining reasons weget angry. This is done through the spiritual methodstaught in the prayers section at the end of thischapter.

“Do not hasten in your spirit to be angry,for anger rests in the bosom of fools.” – Ecclesiastes 7:9

When angry, we concentrate on the object of ouranger, as if we are playing God. Oftentimes ouranger over a situation is not due to the situationitself, but because the situation conflicts with ourideas about what is just and right. The key questionwe need to ask ourselves is, “Is God angry about thesituation or is He angry about our response to thesituation?”

Upon reflection, we almost always find theanswer is that He does not approve an angryresponse. With our anger, we are effectively claiming

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to know more and be more righteous than God. Ourall–powerful God really doesn't need ourself–righteous anger, so instead of anger, a moreproductive, and less angry, solution is needed. Weshould emulate God’s mercy and compassion, insteadof replying with anger.

St. Augustine, writing to a friend, the BishopAuxilius, advises him, “When the winds and waves ofangry passion rush down on your soul, do what thedisciples did in the boat when the tempest descendedon them – call to Christ.”

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Prayers for AngerPrayer 1 for Anger

“Jesus, replace my thoughts of fear andattack with thoughts of love.”

When we are angry and think about attackingothers, we do so from a state of fear. We believe insome threat, become afraid, and attack the object ofour fear. Attack stems from our fear that some forcewill hurt us. We believe that we need to defendourselves against that force.

When we remember our true identity, we knowthere is but one power, and human thoughts ofattack cannot hurt us. Let us behold the One God ineveryone that we encounter. When we go to work, thegrocery store, or the restaurant, let us rememberthat God is in everyone. Whomever we meet, let usrecognize God within them.

Attacking others is really attacking ourselvesbecause we are all one in God; therefore loving othersmeans really loving ourselves. Let us disregard theappearance of fear and attack and greet people withlove. Let us disregard the appearance of humanidentity and greet God within all beings. People willreact in a positive way and reflect back to us theloving energy that we have released.

Matthew 5:43–49 – “You have heard that it wassaid, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your

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enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, blessthose who curse you, do good to those who hate you,and pray for those who spitefully use you andpersecute you, that you may be sons of your Fatherin heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil andon the good, and sends rain on the just and on theunjust. For if you love those who love you, whatreward have you? Do not even the tax collectors dothe same?”

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Prayer 2 for Anger

“God, show me how to belighter and less serious.”

When we take life too seriously, the result isusually annoyance, disappointment or anger whenthings do not go as we desire. This seriousness oftencreates a bitter and unhappy view of life.

It is God’s good pleasure to have us share in thelove, sweetness and lightness that is part of Hiskingdom.

This world, as we see it, with all its seriousillusions, thoughts and desires, is not the kingdom ofwhich Jesus spoke. The world’s illusions imprison usin a world of false perception. Freedom and salvationcome from simply letting go of those illusions andreceiving the kingdom of God.

Romans 15:13 – “Now the God of hope fills youwith all joy and peace in believing, that ye mayabound in hope, through the power of the HolySpirit.”

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Prayer 3 for Anger

“Jesus, let me understand that life isgood and unfolding in miraculous ways.”

The power of God is infinite and totally beyondman’s comprehension, although we do know a tinyportion of God’s will through his words in scripture.

Yet man often imposes difficult and perfect, ifnot impossible, standards upon himself and others. Itis as if we are trying to play God and create animaginary sub–world within God’s kingdom. Thesolution is to remember the omnipotence of God andto have faith in the words of Jesus.

Matthew 6:26 – “Behold the birds of the sky,they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather intobarns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are yenot much better than they? Which of you by takingthought can add one inch to his height? And whytake ye thought for your clothing? Consider the liliesof the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither dothey spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomonin all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.”

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Prayer 4 for Anger

“Jesus, help me understand thatthe world I see is only a verysmall part of Your Reality.”

Each person views the world through his ownperspective, as though each individual wearsdifferent colored, filtered glasses and thereforereports seeing different colored objects.

Unfortunately, we almost never remove ourpersonal filters and, consequently, maintain adistorted viewpoint of Reality. An example of thistheory is seen when we look at a tree and note ourobservation. We might see a large umbrella thatprovides shade from the sun. Other individualsmight see a log to turn into lumber. Still othersmight see a source of beautiful flowers, tasty nuts,leaves to rake, et cetera. Birds may consider the treetheir home, while termites may consider it their food.God’s Reality is all of the above and much more!

Once we see one thing differently, we then havethe ability to begin viewing yet other thingsdifferently as well. We will understand there aredifferent ways to perceive the world. While our fivesenses give us information, we interpret thisinformation in various ways. We give the meaning towhat is there. In the past, we have chosen to focus onthose things that our conditioned mind dictates. Nowwe begin to recognize that the reality we see is only avery small part of God’s Reality.

John 8:23 – “And he said unto them, You arefrom beneath; I am from above: you are of this world;

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I am not of this world.”

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Prayer 5 for Anger

“God, let me see that I am perfectnow just as You created me.”

We sometimes believe that our thoughts oractions do not measure up to our pre–conceived ideasabout successful living. These imaginedimperfections then produce feelings of sin and guiltwithin us.

Our old thoughts of not being good enough, orsomehow lacking, only occur due to our conditioning.In fact, God made us perfect in His image and gaveus the choice to confirm or deny this perfection.Although most of humanity unfortunately denies itsperfection, the truth of our being is always within us.It is only necessary to take off the false blinders ofour old conditioning in order to recognize our kinshipto God.

Once we really learn this week’s prayer, we willbecome free of the world's illusions of ourimperfections. There will be nothing in us that needsfixing. Awareness of our source will free us fromsickness and disease. Knowing our perfect being willfree us from the world’s illusions of lack andlimitations. We were created as part of the perfectGod and, as such, are perfect ourselves.

Matthew 5:48 – “Be ye therefore perfect, even asyour Father which is in heaven is perfect.”

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Prayer 6 for Anger

“Jesus, let me see that people aredoing the best they can for the

awareness level they now have.”

In most cases, the damage we experience at thehands of another is not inflicted out of cruelty orcontempt. Like us, they also are controlled by guiltand blame that brings forth anger.

Belief in guilt and blame are hindrances to ourown spiritual growth. Let us choose to free ourselvesfrom blaming ourselves or others.

When we remember that people are only livingup to their present understanding of Reality, we canforgive their trespasses because they truly don’tknow what they are doing. They are living in ahypnotic dream and are not really responsible for theactions they take.

People can’t properly judge a course of actionbased on partial evidence. If they don't know thetruth of their being, they cannot have the completeevidence. Their judgment may be off, but we mustnot condemn those who are still in the dark. Weshould choose compassion and forgive them as othershave forgiven us.

If we see others committing an error, let usrealize their belief within their hypnotic world is thereal culprit. People can only react according to thelevel of their understanding of the truth.

1 John 4:7 – “Let us love one another: for love isof God; and everyone that loves is born of God, andknows God. He that loves not knows not God; for God

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is love.”

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Prayer 7 for Anger

“Lord, help me to forgive those whodo not yet see the truth.”

Most of humanity does not yet see the truth.They are lost in hypnotic illusions, and thesedistorted viewpoints often cause wrong actions. Wecannot pass judgment on those who don'tunderstand. They act according to their currentlimited understanding of truth. If they knew better,they would do better.

Don't allow the actions of others to affect yourown choice of action. To remain free, we must forgivethose who act without knowledge of the truth.

The law of God is forgiveness compassion anddoing unto others as we would have others do untous. Forgiveness is a powerful tool that frees us fromour anger and guilt. No matter what others appear tobe doing, forgive them.

Zechariah 4:6 – “Not by might, nor by power,but by my Spirit.”

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Prayer 8 for Anger

“Jesus, teach me how to let go ofjudgments and resentments and

accept life just as it is.”

If we tear a sheet of paper, the two torn edgesbecome opposites. Where one edge has a hill, theother has a valley. Many people will look at one edgeand judge it differently than the other. Yet, beforethe paper was torn, both edges were created from thesame sheet of paper and were once united.

We constantly judge events and people. Weconsider things to be good or bad, success or failure,more or less. These are the illusions of the world asseen through a mind that perceives Reality as sets ofopposites. During our childhood, these concepts ofopposites were useful to make sense out of theconfusing stream of information bombarding ourconsciousnesses. However, this view of the world getsin the way of presently understanding spiritualReality.

When we look at another person, let’s not focuson their outward human appearance. Instead, lookbeyond to God within them, and remember their truebeing is God. Today, choose not to form negativejudgments against others.

When we judge others according to theappearance they make, we will not gain freedom, butbecome caught in the false illusions of life. When westop judging others, we free ourselves from illusion.We will see Reality more clearly and understand thetruth of God.

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This is also our key for getting along with otherpeople. Recall the time before we began to studyabout God. Remember the problems we created forourselves and how we reacted to life with fear whenwe didn't know any better. Today most people stilldon't know any better.

Matthew 7:1 – “Do not judge and you will not bejudged. For in the same way that you judge people,you yourself will be judged.”

“And why do you look at the speck of sawdust inyour brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is inyour own eye? Or how can you say to your brother,“Let me take the speck of sawdust out of your eye,”and behold, the log is in your own eye? Youhypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, andthen you will see clearly enough to take the speck outof your brother’s eye.”

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Prayer 9 for Anger

“Heavenly Father, remind methat I am not in a position to

judge myself or others.”

All evil that manifests through people has itsorigin in the universal carnal mind. Once weunderstand this, we can separate the individualperson from the evil.

This universal carnal mind is a belief in a powerseparate and apart from God. In the Spiritualkingdom, there is only One Power that is God. Theonly evil that exists is the impersonal evil that ariseswhen we forget God and believe in the false power ofthe universal carnal mind.

We are hypnotized. Until we awaken, weremain caught up in the errors of worldly beliefs.Once we change our perspective, we can change ourlives.

The only evils and sins are those in our darkcarnal mind. The light of truth illuminates theillusion of evil and sin. We can then clearly see thatit is not someone’s personal sins, but the illusions ofthe universal carnal mind at work. Our need to judgeothers disappears when the light of truth illuminatesus.

Don't personalize evil by believing thatindividuals are evil. We can stop judging otherswhen we understand that there is no personal evil. Ifwe punish others, we stoop to operate on the samelevel of fear and force they are on. Punishingindividuals will not cure the dark carnal mind of the

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world.The only power is that of God. However, when

we believe in other powers, we give them control overus. Only by believing in the power of evil can thesenegative forces control us. Once we withdraw thisbelief, we are free of its effect. God is infinite andall–powerful, and no other power is real.

Matthew 5:38–39 – “You have heard that it wassaid “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” But Isay to you do not resist evil; but whoever strikes youon your right cheek, turn your other cheek to himalso.”

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Prayer 10 for Anger

“Jesus, show me that forgivenesswill bring me closer to You.”

Our reluctance to forgive is an obstacle to ourspiritual growth. We deserve to be free of thelimitations and baggage that come with holdinggrudges. Ask your mind to step back and reviewwithout judgment. Ask God to come forth and teachyou the peace and harmony achieved throughforgiveness.

When we see others as wrong, we judge. As soonas we see others as operating under the perfect lawof God, we also release ourselves from judgment. Wethus free ourselves to operate from the higherspiritual law.

It is true in life that what we sow determineswhat we reap; we receive the same thing that wegive. When we judge others, we invite judgment fromothers. Such an attitude will bring more negativeoccurrences, which will lead to even more judgment.If we sow forgiveness instead, we will reap the peaceof mind which will bring us closer to God. When weforgive others, we are also forgiving ourselves. Whenwe no longer judge others, we no longer judgeourselves.

Matthew 6:14 – “If you forgive men their faultsyour Father in heaven will also forgive you. But ifyou do not forgive men, neither will your Fatherforgive your faults.”

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Prayer 11 for Anger

“God, remind me that You are forever withme, closer than my own hands and feet.”

We don't have to travel to mountaintops or holyplaces to communicate with God. God is alwayswithin us, closer than our hands and feet. When wedon’t feel God within, we are just not alert to Hispresence, but God is still there. It is like radio wavesthat always surround us, but we can't hear thosewaves unless we use a radio to tune in one particularwave and tune out the rest of the signals. We need totune ourselves to God and tune out otherdistractions.

God has incarnated Himself at the center of ourbeing. God has given us individual outwardexpressions in material form. But in our soul, at thevery core of our being, we are part of the infinite God.Our true Self is part of the Kingdom of God.

Luke 17:20 – “And when He was asked by thePharisees when the Kingdom of God would come, Heanswered them and said, “The Kingdom of God doesnot come with observation; nor will they say, Seehere! Or See there! For indeed, the Kingdom of Godis within you.”

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Prayer 12 for Anger

“Jesus, let me use my strength topromote growth and love instead

of intimidation and attack.”

We sometimes feel anger or rage whensomething in life is not going the way we believe itshould. This can lead to us verbally or physicallyabusing others. This intimidation might achieve ourimmediate worldly goals, but it also prevents us froma better understanding of God’s kingdom.

Some people believe that they can't control theiremotions. That is not true. We were given free willand have the choice of the emotions we feel. We haveto start working on our choices before our thoughts ofattack and intimidation take over our consciousness.

If anger is already in our heart, we can quicklylose control of events. If we repeat our prayers, bringJesus into our heart and accept his peace andforgiveness, then we do have choices, and we canrefuse to allow anger and attack to control us.

Ephesians 4:31–32 – “Let all bitterness, wrath,anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away fromyou, with all malice. And be kind to one another,tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God inChrist forgave you.”

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Prayer 13 for Anger

“Jesus, teach me that in mydefenselessness is my freedom.”

Throughout history, people have dedicated theirlives to the cause of fighting evil. But God is the onlypower, and there is truly nothing that needs to beresisted.

What we resist will persist. What we focus ongrows in importance. When we defend ourselves fromfear that we are unsafe, we create conflict. However,our true Self is one with God and cannot be harmed.Our true Self has always existed and will alwaysexist; it is the one and only power, and no otherpowers can be aligned against it. All other powersare just illusionary and are only perceived as realand powerful by those who don't yet understand thetruth of their being.

Our defenselessness is our safety. Carryingguns and building missiles will cause our defeat. Wespend all our time seeking to be defended from thethreats of the illusionary, material world rather thanlearning about the true world of God. This sows theseeds of our destruction. Strong defenses reallyhighlight our weakness because they show that wedon't understand who we really are.

When we fight the appearance of evil, we createan enemy in our mind that is greater than ourselves.When we fight this appearance of evil, we actuallygive it strength that it did not previously have. Weneed not attempt to change the appearance of evilinto good. Instead of fighting, let us look beyond

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appearances to the spiritual plane, where there isonly good.

Matthew 7:12 – “Therefore always treat othersas you would have them treat you. This is theessence of the Law of the prophets.”

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Prayer 14 for Anger

“Heavenly Father, release my fearof being weak or vulnerable.”

True strength does not come from facing downothers or climbing great mountains. This activity isoften a cover–up just to prove to ourselves that weare not weak. True strength comes from having thecourage to surrender to the will of the Lord and toperform his works.

Isaiah 43:2 – “When thou pass through thewaters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers,they shall not overflow thee; when thou walkthrough the fire, thou shall not be burned; neithershall the flame kindle upon thee.”

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Prayer 15 for Anger

“Lord, let me change my perceptionsand choose joy and happiness.”

Sometimes it seems we are controlled by life’sevents. It seems like all we can do is react. Theonslaught of happenings can eventually overwhelmus. It takes courage to realize that we can learn tosee life’s challenges in a different way. Ourmechanical mind tells us one thing, but a small voicedeep within us says that we can indeed see thingsdifferently. It says we are the masters of our destinyand do have a choice.

We have a variety of thought processes withwhich to experience life. We can choose separation,anger, lack and limitation. Or, with God’s help, wecan choose love, harmony, abundance and peace.

Today, when you think of something negative,try to observe it from another viewpoint.

Galatians 5:21 – “Envying, murders, drunks,reveling, and such like, of the which I tell you before,as I have also told you in time past, that they whichdo such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patients,gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.Against such there is no law.”

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Prayer 16 for Anger

“Lord, teach me that there is onlyone God, one power, one law.”

God is the only power and the only law. Thismay seem confusing since each of the variousgovernments is filled with different laws andtraditions. The realized person is not bound by themany man–made laws which are set up for thosewho have yet to recognize their true nature as beingpart of God. We invented these laws ourselves in anattempt at self–protection from the multiple worldlypowers. Once we realize we are not bound by theseman–made laws, they will no longer control us. Wewill then experience a tremendous sense of freedom.

The only laws are the laws of God. All otherlaws come from the human mind. Freedom comesfrom recognizing that we do not need to obey all thebeliefs and rules drilled into us from the firstmoment of our birth. Though they were necessary inour earlier, formative years, these old limitationsnow enslave us. We may no longer reach for ourmother's hand before we cross the street, but thereare still thousands of apparently logical rules thatinterfere with our connection to the one true power.

Matthew 28:18 – “And Jesus said, ‘All power isgiven unto me in heaven and on earth.’”

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Prayer 17 for Anger

“Lord, let Your powerbless and heal me.”

Angry people sometimes do not know they areangry. However, others can easily see their seethinganger and resentment. Instead of an awareness ofGod, the angry person’s attention is focused on whatis in error or needs to be corrected.

God can help us see the beauty and love of thetrue world. All we need to do is ask to know Godmore completely. Have faith that everything we needto know will be revealed.

God will never leave or forsake us. It is notnecessary to live by physical strength or ability. Godis within each of us, and all that God has, we have.This realization brings all that we will ever need. Ifwe put our faith in the power of the infinite God, wewill be blessed and healed. We can then trulyexperience heaven on earth.

Isaiah 26:3 “Thou wilt keep him in perfectpeace, whose mind is stayed on thee.”

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