Today, I'm looking at one type of scenario that many of us face each day. Such situations will light our temper like lighting a fire. However, as followers of Jesus Christ we have a capacity to well-manage our temper by God's grace and considering those things that are pure.
For example, imagine rushing in the car to the railway station to catch your scheduled train, but alas, you are stuck in traffic, or worse, there is an abnormally slow driver of the car in front. I for one (confession time), when I come across this kind of situation, I feel quite unhappy and disingenuous.
Last week (Wednesday to be precise0, I was on my way to Gosford to watch a soccer game, which was to start at 7:30pm. I finished work at 5:15pm. I went home to get changed, and then I drove to railway station to catch the 5:40pm train.
I was not that far from the station, and I was being unusually held up by a slow driver in front of me. There were double lines so I could not overtake, I had to follow this car. Due to the rush hour, there were many cars on that road. After awhile, a long queue of cars gathered behind us all. I was looking at the time, there was only 3 minutes before the train was scheduled to depart, and I still needed to take some time to buy the ticket.
Talking to myself (as we do in such situations), if I did not get this train, then I would definitely miss the match. Then, just at that moment, a black car from behind me, overtook all of us, on the wrong side of the road and over double lines.
When the black car was overtaking the car in front of me, the driver of the black car pressed his car-horn several times, showing his temper (and displeasure) against the driver of the vehicle in front. In a sense I gave a silent horary!
However, the driver in front of me did not blow their horn back, and almost immediately turned into a side street on the right hand side of the road. Then I had a chance to see that it was an elder gentleman who was driving the car in front.
After the car in front of me turned into the side street, I pressed my acceleration pedal hard and rushed to the station. No, I did not miss my train even though it was such a rush. When I was sitting on the train on my way to Gosford, I started to ponder at what had happened in that situation.
When the driver of the black car blew their horn, obviously, they were angry about the elderly gentleman driving so slowly. The driver of the black car might well have been in a rush to be somewhere, just like me.
It seemed to me that the driver of the black vehicle that overtook us all and blew their horn, was like swearing to the slow driver. The driver of the black car had clearly lost their temper. Moreover, he/she got onto the wrong side of the road, ignoring the double lines, creating a very dangerous scenario for everyone one else on the road at that time.
In such a circumstance, even though we might have a thousand 'very good' excuses for such conduct, there is still need to manage our temper, not only for our own sake, but for the sake of others. There is a need to control ourselves first, and try to put ourselves in the other person's shoes. Perhaps, a little more understanding of each other, might go a long way to control and manage our temper.
In the Bible, we read where Jesus was angry over the Temple being utilised as a profit making exercise, not only that, more so, corruption of the entire process of genuine worship to God. Clearly, he did not stay angry, but put that to use in a teaching session and in so doing, challenging the wicked centre of the religious' leaders system of the era.
We, as followers of Jesus, might set Jesus own example of control ourselves over those things which we see, in our every day situations, as temper creating. Perhaps, pondering a little more about others in such circumstances, rather than only ourselves. One outcome is that it becomes a little less automatic too become angry.
Oscar Duan is from China, he has an accountancy degree from University of Hertfordshire (UH) International campus in Malaysia, and has undertaken further accountancy studies in Australia for accreditation here. He is married to Heyley.
Oscar Duan's previous articles may be viewed at www.pressserviceinternational.org/oscar-duan.html