The Flying Scissors

In junior high school, I was the water-boy for the varsity football team.  It was thrilling for me as a young kid to be around those older guys that I looked up to.  In many ways, I wanted to be like them.

But Wade really made my life miserable.  He was a senior.  The problem was he enjoyed picking on me and giving me a hard time.  I remember one night in particular, he was griping at me pretty much the whole game because he didn't like the taste of the Gatorade I made.  All night long he gave me lip about it.  Needless to say, I was fed up.

That night I was riding with the team on the bus back to our school after we won our game.  Wade was sitting several rows in front of me and continuing to yell at me.  I hit my limit when he told me to get him a pair of scissors from the box.

Now, what I did was wrong.  I am not proud of this.  So I am in no way whatsoever encouraging anyone else to do what I did next...

I picked out a pair of scissors from my box, and threw them at Wade on the bus.  Yep, I did that.  Needless to say, it scared him to death.  Wouldn't you be scared to see flying scissors headed your way?

Now, I must admit, I did make sure it was the dull pair of scissors that had no sharp edges or points.  I just wanted to scare him.  But the truth is, that was still dangerous and wrong of me.

I will say that afterwards, he and I became better friends.  :)

Why do I tell you that story?  I want to make a simple point, and here it is:  It's ok to feel anger, but it's not ok to lose control in the midst of it.

"Be angry and sin not," says James 4:26.  Catch the point?  It's not a sin to feel anger.  But it is a sin when we mishandle our anger and lash out verbally or physically in inappropriate ways.

I'm sorry I threw the scissors at Wade.  That was wrong of me.  I should have handled my anger better.

May God help us all to stay in control of our temper.  And may we find healthy, productive ways to deal with our feelings when we get mad.  It is vital to handle our emotions responsibly if we are to have good relationships with our family and friends.