ManageYourEmotionsBook8.5x5.5_RevJULY.indd

to Nineveh and preached. God then blessed and revival came with 120,000 Ninevites repenting. Oddly enough the Bible states this wonderful response, “Greatly displeased, Jonah and he became angry” (Jonah 4:1). Jonah was a devoted Jew who did not like the idea of God extending His love, acceptance, compassion, and forgiveness to these pagan Gentiles. But rather than get hung up on “why” Jonah was upset, let’s focus on the “whats” that resulted, examining the following four dangers associated with anger. First, anger will steal your joy. One would think that Jonah would have been thrilled over such a mighty movement of God, but instead of saying, “Wow, thank you God, what a blessing,” he expressed woe to God being kind, compassionate, and wanting to spare the Ninevites. He allowed his personal prejudice to nullify what should have been a great celebration. I keep a little clipping in my illustration file that says, “Joy demonstrated in the lives of Christians in every area is the #1 factor that attracts unsaved people to church.” Knowing that, the devil, who “Comes only to steal and kill and destroy,” (John 10:10), is go- ing to do everything in his power to disrupt your walk with Christ. If you’re a Christian, he can’t take that away, since you’re protected by the blood of Jesus and firmly gripped by His nail-scarred hands. He can, however, steal your joy with irritation, frustration, and an- ger as his weapons of choice. Angry believers often do more harm than good. Lost people look at them as if to say, “If that’s an example of what a Christian is, I don’t want any part of it.” I’ve seen many church-goers over the years, plenty of them faithful attenders, some even carrying Bibles the size of the Atlanta phone book, looking as if they just took a big swig of pickle juice. Anger often plays a role in these cases. Note, too, anger will drain your energy. As Scripture says, after his time in Nineveh, “Jonah went out from the city and sat

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