I had a teacher at Lafayette High School who would often say to her class of rowdy students, “Chill out!”
A national magazine had an interesting paragraph about the danger of hostility and anger.
The article stated, “Hostility kills. Chronically angry men, studies have found, are three times more likely to develop heart disease, and six times more likely to suffer a heart attack before age 55. Feeling that you’re constantly at war with idiots and villains gets your body stuck in the fight-or-flight gear; a flood of hormones and toxins raises blood pressure, narrows arteries, and eats away at your innards.”
Obviously, we live in a somewhat hostile generation. We see all around us anger, fear, frustration, and condemnation. We are constantly reminded of this on 24-hour news channels. It just can’t be good for us.
In the Old Testament, the psalmist wrote, “Refrain from anger, and turn from wrath; do not fret. It leads only to evil.” (Psalm 37:8)
The writer of Proverbs declared, “A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control.” (Proverbs 29:11)
I pray today that God will remind us once again how badly we need self-control. With the help of Christ, maybe we can learn to “chill out” for our own good, and the good of others.