problem in his own personal life? First, let me say that the Bible gen erally has much to say on this subject. For instance we are told to “Be ye angry and sin not . . .” (Eph. 4:26). It would seem that these passages in dicate that certain types of hostility can be a definite force for good, when di rected against the forces of evil or on behalf of a good cause such as defense of home and country. We have an illustration of hostility properly di rected and without sin when our Lord literally drove the money changers out of the temple. A careful examination of this story reveals that there was good cause for His hostility, that it was properly directed, and that it had the desired result. When situations arise that provoke us and stimulate anger within us, we need first to carefully examine our mo tivation. We need to see clearly why we are offended. Mi>st of the time 'we will find, if we are really honest with ourselves that we have been offended or angered because our pride, or our sense of adequacy has been attacked. Immediately we are on the defensive, we must defend our pride and not al low anything to damage our self image. Many times we attack the person or people who we suppose have offended us. We retaliate with a cutting remark, an outburst of angry words, a bit of gossip to someone else about that per son, or perhaps even physical violence. And, if the situation does not permit oui^ retalliation directly, we just boil inwardly until the next opportunity to unleash our vindictiveness on someone else or some other object. The Scrip ture gives ample indication that such unbridled expression of hostility and anger breaks fellowship with God ant} brings judgment from God. Others of us smile outwardly, but inwardly we repress and suppress our anger without giving any expression whatsoever to it, until emotional or even physical dis orders develop. W. L. Northridge in his book Disor ders of the Emotional and Spritual Life (Epworth Press, London) points out that such repressed hostility “poisons 12
PRAYER (continued) However, if we suppress outward be haviour — particularly, if we keep go ing over and over the stimulating in cident in our imagination, the result will be to maintain the physical state of anger for hours. If the situation is repeated day after day or even year after year, this may get to be a chronic state which results in actual tissue dam age and disease. (Aggression, John Paul Scott, U. of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1958, P. 66) Dr. Leon Saul (Random House N. Y. 1956, The Hostile M ind). Professor of Clinical Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine states that “Hostility can take almost limitless forms. It can range in intensity from a glance or a breath of gossip to vindictiveness, violence, bru tality and murder. It can be conscious or unconscious. “Another has stated THE BETTER GIFT "Once it was the blessing, Now it is the Lord, Once it was the feeling, now it is His Word Once His gifts I wanted, Now the Giver own. Once I sought for healing. Now Himself alone. Once it was my working. His it hence shall be. Once I tried to use Him, Now He uses me." that the tendency toward hostility is an innate independent, instinctual dis position in man and the most powerful obstacle to culture.” Hostility can be hate or simple ang er. In its serious or misdirected forms it is a disease of the personality, trans- mittable from person to person, group to group, and by contact, from parents to children, and even from generation to generation as in the case of certain family or racial groups. Hostility has given rise to dispute with families, broken homes, murder, crimes of all types and on a larger scale to war between nations. But one may ask, since anger or hostility is something which we all experience, what is a believer to do about the
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