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By Park Sung-ik
Confucius said in the Analects, "Is he not a man of complete virtue, who is not vexed even if men may take no note of him?"
If you manage your anger well while living life, your life will be smooth. But when you are angry, everything gets messed up. When you cannot control the anger in your heart, there are many times when you commit irreparable mistakes.
Anger usually starts small and then explodes. As we know, explosive dynamite can collapse mountains and create caves. So do not wait for your anger to come, but be sure to control it before it happens. This is like putting out a small fire so it does not spread to make a big fire that cannot be extinguished. You need training to control your anger quickly and well.
Also, you get angry when you think that you are the only one who sacrifices and loses. Anger starts when you think you are not rewarded as much for what you have done compared to others. But ask yourself: Have you repaid others as much as you have received? You should be grateful when others wait for you for something that you have not paid in full. This means that there is no need to be angry that you did not receive what you believe you are entitled to.
Not everyone can acknowledge you, and there is no need to be disappointed if that happens. Even if only one person out of 10 believes in you, your life is not a failure. It is sad to see celebrities commit suicide because of malicious comments. Only a fraction of people say bad things. There is no need to be angry that you are not recognized by everyone.
It should not be mistaken that everyone will recognize you just because you serve in the church. The moment you think you are not getting a lot of recognition, unhappiness will step in.
A large crowd of people who saw the miracles performed by Jesus followed him to the Sea of ??Galilee. He miraculously fed over 5,000 people with five loaves and two fish. Again, while the disciples were crossing in a boat, Jesus walked on water. So the Jews at the time had no choice but to like Jesus.
But in the New Testament, in John 6:53-55, Jesus said: "I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you." Hearing these words, the Jews felt uncomfortable and left. After that, only 12 disciples remained with Jesus.
Among the volunteers of the church, there are some who say they face difficulty because the participation rate of other believers is low. Look at the life of Jesus with the support of 12 people in a crowd of 5,000. Jesus said: "If even two or three of you gather in my name, I will be with you."
There is no reason to be angry just because everyone is not like you. Evaluation from others is not everything. If you have your own conviction and confidence, you will not be shaken by others' evaluations. In Luke 9:51-56, when Jesus tried to go to Jerusalem through Samaria, the Samaritans rejected Jesus. James and John said, "Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to consume them?" Jesus rebuked them and turned around and went to another village. Sometimes we do not need to break through head-on. Let us turn around when we are in such a situation, like Jesus. When we fall into narcissism, we run into situations of conflict and anger grows in our hearts.
Park Sung-ik (parksi48@naver.com) is a former teacher at Pungmoon Girls' High School.