The Skeleton at the Feast

"Of the Seven Deadly Sins, anger is possibly the most fun. To lick your wounds, to smack your lips over grievances long past, to roll over your tongue the prospect of bitter confrontations still to come, to savor to the last toothsome morsel both the pain you are given and the pain you are giving back--in many ways it is a feast fit for a king. The chief drawback is that what you are wolfing down is yourself. The skeleton at the feast is you." Frederick Buechner

What a powerful quote! Isn't it so true that when we harbor anger and bitterness or when we refuse to forgive and instead nurse our resentments, large or small, we drink the poison we intend for someone else. How often do we let little tiny irritations or small inconveniences--from being rudely cut off by another car to a lack of consideration by a loved one to some hoped for but unmet expectation--throw us into a cloud of discouragement or frustration? We fuss and fume internally, and eventually the poison we are consuming comes out in our harsh words or ugly attitude or complete ingratitude. Forgive us Lord!

What a difference if we would immediately hand over those disappointments or irritations or even betrayals to the One who willingly and joyfully gave His life for those who disappointed and rejected and betrayed Him. At that moment when we recognize in our thoughts the seeds of bitterness or anger, we need to stop and ask, "Is this thought from You, Lord Jesus?" If it is not (and no poisonous thought would be from Him), then we choose by faith to hand it to Him and ask Him to enable us to forgive and to choose love and joy, not hatred and bitterness.

God's Word urges us over and over again to seek the mind of Christ, to allow Him to take captive our thoughts, to think on that which is good and lovely and pure. 2 Cor.10:5 "We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ." Proverbs 23:7 reminds us that "As a person thinks in his heart, so is he." Or as John Milton wrote: "The mind is its own place and in itself can make a heaven of hell; a hell of heaven."

I can't believe I'm writing about this again, but I guess I am just so convicted by the power of my thoughts and the importance of yielding control of my thoughts (and therefore emotions) to Christ. I've always tended to just give in to feelings and allow my mind to focus upon whatever thoughts happen to flit into it, but clearly, that will NOT lead to godly attitudes, words, or actions.

Rather, we must daily, deliberately choose to submit those thoughts to Christ, to surrender that anger or bitterness (just throw away that poison!), to choose to think about and meditate upon "whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable..."

WE HAVE THE CHOICE! We can choose to be the skeleton at our own feast or we can choose to forgive. We can choose resentment or ingratitude or irritation or fear, or we can choose to "Be joyful always. Pray continually. Give thanks in all circumstances. For this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." (I Thess. 5:16-18) It's a moment by moment decision that the Lord has given each of us. Upon what will we choose to feast? The answer lies in the power of our thoughts and our wills. O might we choose wisely! Might we daily choose the abundant joyful life rather than the terrible self-inflicted death by poison. And to God be the glory.