Getting Rid of Anger--Part 8

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"The entrance of thy words giveth light (Psalm 119:130)."

Getting Rid of Anger—Part 8

There is always a way to break free.

I experienced two very difficult anger footholds as a result of two individuals:

A longstanding problem with a neighbor whose dog barked constantly.
An individual at church who was determined to get under my skin—and who was quite successful.

Both problems persisted for several years and both problems took years to break free.

I learned from both experiences, both in terms of how to better deal with similar problems in the future as well as how to break free of severe anger footholds.

Contacting these individuals did no good. And it was impossible to reconcile with either individual.

But I did manage to break free.

How?

Two main things.

First: I learned to rely on the power of the Holy Spirit to forgive, rather than relying on my own strength:

I choose to forgive him (her).
"I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." {Philippians 4:13 NASB}

I could not forgive in my own strength. But I could forgive by trusting in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Second: I learned how to not take things personally. Even relying on the power of the Holy Spirit was insufficient, in the second instance, until I learned how to do this.