Anger and Contentment

"The man being interviewed by CNN was a CEO of a major conglomerate. He works endlessly and thrives on pressure. The interviewer asked, 'What makes you run?' He said, 'I grew up hearing from my father that I would never amount to anything. I've done this to prove the [blankety-blank] wrong.' His anger propelled him to the top and kept him going.

"In his book, Healing Grace, David Seamands said, 'I have yet to counsel a performance-based and perfectionistic Christian who was not at heart an angry person.' I agree. I have met many perfectionists who either do not recognize or admit to being angry. Somewhere in their experience they were taught that the expression of anger was wrong or dangerous. So they swallowed anger--and became performers to overcome it, hoping that they would finally gain the approval they desired so badly."

adapted from: Time Out. Daily Devotions for Workaholics by Gary E. Hurst, Mike Kachura, and Larry D. Sides, February 10