Laughter is an important tool in dealing with anger. We know that Abraham and Sarah laughed at the birth of Isaac (Gen 21:1-7). Like a child David danced before the Lord in his underwear (2 Sam 6:14-15). Moses’ life, however, is recorded in sober tones. Even the Psalm he wrote has a melancholy theme (Psalm 90). This is not to say that Moses was without humor in his life. He could not have survived those forty years without it. It seems though that by the end of the forty years humor had been drained from his life. The rigidity that was produced became a breeding ground for resentment to grow.
When life gets to heavy and serious, we need to pull back for a moment and watch old Abraham and Sarah making over their baby Isaac, whose name means laughter, or shake our heads in deligh.jpg)
t as David dances very undignified before the ark of God as it is brought into Jerusalem. Laughing with them helps put our own situations in much better perspective. Laughing at our own foolish moments and indignities gives life back its flavor and zest.
Laughter helps us cope with our responsibilities. Being responsible is a virtue. However, being responsible does not mean that you have to fix every mess, solve every dispute, or make up for all the careless and foolish things others do. This misguided view of responsibility was going to send Moses to an early grave until his father-in-law intervened (Ex 18:13-26).
Listen to an angry person sometime. So much of the anger is a reaction not merely to the hurt another has caused but to the other person’s refusal to be “fixed.” After all, the angry person was only being helpful, only trying to do what was best, only being responsible since no one else was going to be. This too becomes a breeding ground for resentment and bitterness. Angry people need discernment to know what they can change and what they cannot change, what they can control and what is beyond their control. They also need to learn how to trust others.
Moses struggled with this issue of trust. He placed an unbearable burden on himself in settling all the disputes of Israel. God had given him the responsibility of leadership. It never crossed his mind that this responsibility was to be shared. After all no one would do it as well as he did or be as dedicated to his responsibilities. Jethro recognized the danger for his son-in-law. He knew that a tired, burned out leader would become an angry, resentful leader.
Having high standards is a virtue, but angry people make poor standard setters. One effective tool for managing anger is learning to trust others enough to delegate responsibility to them. This requires an acceptance that things won’t get done the way we would do them (They may actually be done better.). The personal benefit is freeing time and energy to work on more important priorities or different projects. The organizational benefit is that more people are better served.
When life gets to heavy and serious, we need to pull back for a moment and watch old Abraham and Sarah making over their baby Isaac, whose name means laughter, or shake our heads in deligh
.jpg)
t as David dances very undignified before the ark of God as it is brought into Jerusalem. Laughing with them helps put our own situations in much better perspective. Laughing at our own foolish moments and indignities gives life back its flavor and zest.Laughter helps us cope with our responsibilities. Being responsible is a virtue. However, being responsible does not mean that you have to fix every mess, solve every dispute, or make up for all the careless and foolish things others do. This misguided view of responsibility was going to send Moses to an early grave until his father-in-law intervened (Ex 18:13-26).
Listen to an angry person sometime. So much of the anger is a reaction not merely to the hurt another has caused but to the other person’s refusal to be “fixed.” After all, the angry person was only being helpful, only trying to do what was best, only being responsible since no one else was going to be. This too becomes a breeding ground for resentment and bitterness. Angry people need discernment to know what they can change and what they cannot change, what they can control and what is beyond their control. They also need to learn how to trust others.
Moses struggled with this issue of trust. He placed an unbearable burden on himself in settling all the disputes of Israel. God had given him the responsibility of leadership. It never crossed his mind that this responsibility was to be shared. After all no one would do it as well as he did or be as dedicated to his responsibilities. Jethro recognized the danger for his son-in-law. He knew that a tired, burned out leader would become an angry, resentful leader.
Having high standards is a virtue, but angry people make poor standard setters. One effective tool for managing anger is learning to trust others enough to delegate responsibility to them. This requires an acceptance that things won’t get done the way we would do them (They may actually be done better.). The personal benefit is freeing time and energy to work on more important priorities or different projects. The organizational benefit is that more people are better served.
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