Watch Out For Angry Friends

REFERENCE: Proverbs 22:24-25 Don´t befriend angry people or associate with hot-tempered people, 25 or you will learn to be like them and endanger your soul.

Observation: It has been said that anger is contagious. The problem with hanging with angry people is that we can become an angry person as well. It is natural to respond to anger with anger. Every thing in us wants to react in kind when we are confronted in an angry way.

There are two situations in which we need to be especially careful about this:

The first is when it comes to marriage. There are so many people contemplating a life commitment to a partner that they know has an anger problem. They attribute it to the stress the other is under, or convince themselves that the person will change after marriage. The sad truth is that, most of the time, the chance comes in the less angry person. They become angry as a result of being married to someone who is angry. Imagine how good (or bad) that is for their children. Before anyone agrees to marry a ragaholic they really ought to forget expecting change (it may happen but it can´t be counted on), and ask if they can live with a partner who is going to act and react in anger.

Secondly is choosing friendships. There are lots of people we can choose to build a relationship with. It is wisest not to do so with someone who will influence us towards having an angry disposition because of their lack of self-control. We should not fall into the trap of believing that we are the only ones who can help them. They need God, not us. We can only point them to Him, love them but keep our distance. Our character is too important to risk it by getting too close to someone who is happy being angry.