Read: 1 Samuel 19-20
This past year, my children and I studied volcanoes. One of our unit projects required us to build our own volcano from various materials and “explode” it with baking soda and vinegar so that we could watch the “lava” fill up the chamber within the volcano and spew out from the top. As I watched the chamber fill, I realized how much people can be like volcanoes. The pressure of all we have “stuffed” inside and not dealt with can too often lead to “explosions” with far reaching consequences.
Saul was one such volcano. Erupting with unresolved rage towards David, he threw a spear at his very son, Jonathan. And I wonder...Is there anyone in your life who often becomes the “easy target” for your emotions?
Proverbs 29:11
A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control.
Proverbs 15:18
A hot-tempered person stirs up conflict, but the one who is patient calms a quarrel.
Years ago, I would find myself coming home from a long, hard day of work to a houseful of children who had missed their Mama and wanted to be held as close as they could. Everywhere I went, they would follow. Like a large organism with many tentacles, I walked to my closet to remove my shoes and struggled to get through the entry of the kitchen. Who knew in high school that I - the choir girl - would achieve such popularity? The conversation around me as we walked together to put my coat away was continuous. It bounced from person to person and from topic to topic. As they surrounded me, the stress of my day would often bubble over. My tone would be sharper than necessary. My anger would start to boil more quickly. My patience would be almost non-existent. Although my children had nothing to do with why I was stressed, they were often the "easy target" for the release of my emotions. And I knew as I watched myself react out of emotion again and again that I had to make a change. Too many believers are losing their witness because of outbursts of emotion. Marriages, families, and friendships are daily being destroyed by people stuffed so full of unresolved issues they overflow unto easy targets. People of God, hear me. This is not who we are to be. There is a better way.
Romans 12:1-2 says, “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
And here I what I have realized: as we bring our lives to the Lord as “living sacrifices” and lay all that we are on the altar– His fire will refine us and remove from us all that does not belong. I can’t tell you how many times I have had to lay my attitude before the Lord and ask Him to purify me, how many times I have felt the volcano about to erupt and found a quiet room to get real with Jesus and pour out my heart before Him before I exploded. The transformation has always began in the place of surrender and continued with the choice to “renew my mind.”
This happens through the “washing with water by the Word (Ephesians 5:26).” As we open our Bibles and dig into scripture, as we study out the truths of His Word, and as we memorize and meditate on the verses we read – the chamber of heart will fill to overflowing. Yet this time, the outpour will not bring damage. It will bring healing.
· What are some things that have helped you let go of anger, frustration or stress that is bottled up inside? What has helped you heal from hurt caused by others?
· Are you good at “letting go” or do you tend to hold on to things for a long time? If so, why do you think that is?
· Which type of “explosion” is the most common in your life – one that brings damage or one that brings healing?
***Excerpts of this Devotional were taken from Planted Bible Study #1: Relationships.***
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