My wife scanned this post and pointed out it was a little harsh. I had to agree. She is an example of getting good feedback from primary sources the Lord provides. This blog is a continuation of the “Symptoms” blog with the only difference being one of severity. The last blog might be more medicine cabinet emergency. The items here are more “call the ambulance” level symptoms.

Unforgiveness is wrong. No matter what someone has done to you, unforgiveness only adds pain and suffering. Unforgiveness harms the person who has it, not the person who may deserve punishment. Unforgiveness is a clear signal that something in the heart is broken.

Defensiveness is a clear indication that you have something that you feel the need to protect. Depending on the circumstance, this may be a signal of insecurity or fear in your life. Insecurity and fear are emotions that cry out for healing.

Anger can be one of the most brutal emotions available to humans. The newspapers are full of reports regarding rape, murder, and other horrors performed by people who have given themselves to the extremes of anger. It doesn’t always start at the extreme end. It can begin small with a slight or embarrassment and grow larger, possibly to an extreme. Anger usually portrays itself in harsh language or actions, but can also be expressed through devious manipulation and/or subversive or subtle forms of cruelty.

Bigotry, racism, and factionalism are ways humans put others into good or bad preferential treatment zones. Corrupt politicians have used this natural human tendency to create wars and every other type of division they feel they can use to their own personal advantage. It always tends to end up working both ways because the original victim of this type of treatment will respond in kind. It can injure others by keeping them away from the click of best friends or by demeaning or hurting those considered to be, in any way, less than the friends in the comfort zone. History is replete with examples about how this type of behavior works to deny God and destroy people at every level of society and between countries or cultures. The level of division is the measure of the amount of harm it will cause.

Hatred is always wrong. Disagree – yes; hatred – no. Check out Jesus and the martyrs. They disagreed, stood for what they believed, were not swayed, but did not hate. Hatred is a soul killer, killing the soul of the person hating. Disagreements don’t have to be filled with hatred.

Bitterness is a poison. Bitterness is a destroyer to the already injured person. It fails to ever have any positive effect on anyone, no matter how terrible the cause. It is like the wisteria vine that climbs the pine tree and kills it, leaving the dead top and branches to hang as decorations in the living vine which murdered it.

It is important to be alert to these symptoms because of the harm they cause to us and those around us. You may get a clue from your own thoughts or feelings. You may have to get clues from your friends, family, or the stranger on the street to signal warning for you. I’m sure any reader can come up with a much longer and thoroughly developed list than I’ve given here.

Harm is not what the Lord wants for us because He is the author of life, the victor over death. It is no surprise that the cross is the center of the Christian faith. The cross is the point in time where humanity gathered up all the worst it had to offer and poured it all over Jesus. It is also the point in time when Jesus gave us the gift of heaven through the forgiveness only God could provide by doing what only He could do.

Being a Christian is realizing that we live in a life-long war every day. Our worst and humanity’s worst constantly meet God’s best on the battlefield in our lives. “Jesus saves” is the short phrase that means that He is alive every moment of every day rescuing us from ourselves and the damage of this world. The wisest thing we can do in life is to open our lives to Jesus, let Him show the damages of sin in us and in the world, and cooperate with His plan for healing and redemption. See the signs/symptoms. Accept the truth. Turn to Jesus and get the life that overcomes death.