"I'm Mad!"

The other day our little Emma stood in the kitchen. She wanted a glass of juice. And she wanted it right now. My hands however were already in the dishwater fishing for the nipple to baby Jaxsen's bottle.

I told her she could have juice, but it would be just a minute until I could help her. In one fluid movement her body stood tall, her foot stamped the ground, her arms folded across her little body, her head went into face down position as her ponytail flipped, and her words spoke, "I'm mad!"

This was obviously not the first time her little self had performed this act of asserting herself! As I hid my smile, I began to say, "Don't be mad." But I quickly stopped myself because it's ok to be mad.  It's not the being mad that's the problem.

Ephesians 4:26 “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry,

I had to applaud that fact that at age 3 she could already discern her feelings. Now we just have to teach her what to do with those feelings when they come.

I stooped and told her it was ok to get mad and that sometimes I get mad too. I also told her that its good to tell Jesus we are mad and let him take the mad away before we say or do something that hurts someone else. Of course, I was convicted of a few things that I'd also said and done the last few days in anger, so I had a moment of repentance right their with that sweet little girl. Oh, the lessons we learn from tender moments with our little ones!

Lord,
Our anger comes upon us so quickly. Help us to learn from Emma, to stand firm in our anger, address it head on and then let you deal with it. Teach us to stop before we act, Lord, so that our anger doesn't damage someone else. Oh, Jesus, becoming like you is such a long process. Thank you that you don't ever give up on us and that you are willing to stoop down and talk to us too so that we can learn from our mistakes. You are wonderfully patient with us, and we love you.
Amen