A simple way to keep yourself from being offended.
Do you ever find yourself getting more irritated recently with politicians, pundits, and people in traffic? Maybe it’s just somebody you casually interact with in a service setting where you don’t feel like you were treated the way you should have been.
We see this rampant in our world today. It seems that people are so easily offended. This triggers anger and resentment, and it releases cortisol, the negative stress hormone, into our brains. This makes us more cautious, hyper vigilant, and on edge, but being offended is something we can control. We don’t have to choose to be offended, which is really important.
This is what the apostle Paul talked about in the book of Ephesians chapter 6, and he said,
don’t sin by letting anger control you. Don’t let the sun go down while you’re still angry, for anger gives a foothold to the devil. Eph. 6
If we take on the offense, it creates this wound inside of us that spreads like a cancer throughout our thoughts. This can poison us to the point of being bitter, angry, cynical, and withdrawn. How can we avoid all of this? Well, the first thing is, is not to take up the offense, but if we do. Then, quickly forgive the person who offended you.
You don’t have to say that to them, just in your mind. Just say I forgive you and then look for a way to be grateful. Look for some quality in them, or if you can’t find any good quality in them, think of something that God’s done for you. By doing that, we’re releasing serotonin and dopamine into our brains, and that’s what our brain thrives on. You might say, I’m grateful that that person didn’t cause me to have an accident or God protected me or I wonder what it is about that person serving me that’s caused them to have a bad day and how can I help them this way you change the posture of your mind from being negative to being positive.
I hope this helps you today, and if not, well, no offense.
