I pity the fool!

            You never know or completely understand what someone else is going through. Everyone has bad days, everyone lets things get to them, and everyone has issues. It's hard to feel for someone that is angry, sometimes it makes your blood boil but we need to realize that their anger started first with being hurt. It is not excusing their bad behavior but trying to understand what they are going through. Getting angry is not going to change their anger, their attitude, but it will only fuel it more. Like throwing gasoline on the fire.

Be not quick in your spirit to become angry, for anger lodges in the bosom of fools.
                                                                                                                           - Ecclesiastes 7:9

            Ran into this tonight and God really touched my heart, to realize that this person though they were red hot angry and rightly so, they were not very kind to those around them that had nothing to do with the incident they were angry about. I began to ask how would I be in their place? How would I act? How would I feel?

“Anger and bitterness are two noticeable signs of being focused on self and not trusting God’s sovereignty in your life. When you believe that God causes all things to work together for good to those who belong to Him and love Him, you can respond to trials with joy instead of anger or bitterness.” ~ John C. Boger

          Our first reaction to someone who is angry is to be angry back, to lash out and "set them in their place" - for me that would of been me putting them on the floor not nicely years ago along with MANY ugly words. Though that would be my first reaction years ago, God has been really changing that part of me. He has given me empathy, mercy, love and grace where there once was anger, wrath and hate. I want to have understanding of those around me nor do I want to be a fool. I want to reach out to those who are hurting.

“Is all anger sin? No, but some of it is. Even God Himself has righteous anger against sin, injustice, rebellion and pettiness. Anger sometimes serves a useful purpose, so it isn’t necessarily always a sin. Obviously, we’re going to have adverse feelings, or God wouldn’t have needed to provide the fruit of self-control. Just being tempted to do something is not sin. It’s when you don’t resist the temptation, but do it anyway, that it becomes sin.” 
                                                                                                                                  ~ Joyce Meyer

Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly. - Proverbs 14:29

          Wondering what to say and how to say if I knew what to say. I tried to listen intently as I prayed. I continually asked them calmly to come in, sit down and that we would love to talk with them. They declined and walked away.

A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.  - Proverbs 15:1

          We cannot deem our actions on how others act or react. Right is right and wrong is wrong no matter how others are acting. This person will not leave my mind tonight and know that God has put them there for a reason. For them to know the peace, comfort and joy that God has exchanged for my hate, wrath, malice and hurt. He exchanges beauty for ashes (Isaiah 61:3)! Thank You LORD!

         Thinking of them that struggle like I struggled, I pity them, my heart breaks for them. Yeah I know that many people use to pity me too. It made me laugh when I heard in my head Mr. T's voice, "I pity the fool! Don't be a fool. God's got a plan, trust in Him. Give Him your ashes and He'll exchange them for a crown of beauty.