How can I control my reaction to mean people? (question from a confirmation student)
Finding healthy ways to express our fear, anger, and sadness is an important step in changing how we react when people hurt our feelings. I think Habakkuk was using prayer as a tool to do that; Habakkuk was a prophet during a time when there were Empires conquering the land around Judah. Habakkuk lifted up his anger, fear, and sadness to God in prayer, and God reminded Habakkuk that God is with him. By the end of his prayer, even though all the problems weren’t solved, Habakkuk was rejoicing in God. We can try to stay calm in the moment by taking deep breaths, or focusing our thoughts on something else like doing a math problem or reciting something we’ve memorized. But, sometimes we don’t have time to control our reaction and we just react! God has grace for us either way. —Vicar Sharai