Are we really ready to give Christ everything? Our lives? Our friends? Our careers? Our country? Our social gatherings? Our anger?
I remember one evening with my friends when we decided to go into town. I was in high school and we lived in a little town of 2400 people. So to do anything really we had to drive at least and hour to get to the nearest bigger town. I was a little ticked that night. I was sure a friend of mine was giving up on our Christian morals and going to go to far with his girlfriend. For some reason unknown to me my other friend handed me the keys to their car.
We took off and I was driving fast. One of the things you need to know about our “road to town” is, we had to go around a lake. This meant lots of sharp corners. I was driving fast venting my frustration to my other friends and wishing I could control my friend back home. In my speed I whipped around a corner too fast and started fish tailing. I cranked the wheel of the suburban the other way and then the other and then the other. I think we went back and forth a good 4 or 5 times before we stopped. We sat there wide-eyed unbelieving of what had just happened. Needless to say my anger was gone and I was high just to be alive.
What do we do with our anger? In Luke 14 Jesus tells the story of a banquet. It is a wedding feast and he has prepared everything and invited his important guests to come. But they all start making their excuses, I bought new land, I just got married, I bought new oxen, sorry I just can’t come. Jesus tells us the master of the house gets angry. Now the master of the house is a representation of God. So what does God do when he gets angry? He invites the poor, blind, and lame into the banquet and when the house still isn’t full he invites anyone he can find to come and fill the table.
How does this compare with what we do with our anger? I hit the gas and just about killed a couple of my friends. Jesus tells us here when God gets mad he reaches out to the less fortunate. What a concept. Can we really give God our anger? I think the answer is yes. Anger is a lot of energy and that energy can be used for many, many things.
Jesus then goes further and lays out the cost of discipleship. The cost is everything. Jesus calls us to be willing to leave behind everything to follow him. Our family, our work, our possessions, our social status, and yes our anger.
Imagine the things God could do in our lives if we surrendered everything to God? I don’t think we should fool ourselves into thinking this kind of surrender will bring us prosperity. It will not be easy. This is a cost. We loose our lives so that we might find it. A greater life, a more fulfilled life, a more abundant life but in God’s will and God’s way.
Anger is not fulfilled through revenge or punishment it is transformed into a passionate seeking and serving on those who need it most.
May we give our everything to God today and find it transformed. May even our anger transform the world.
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