Are you often annoyed? Recently I found myself discontent with my job, and as I dug deeper, I realized that I was working from a place of annoyance. I started my day anticipating annoyance, I became annoyed, then brought my annoyance home with me.
Annoyance is often swept under the rug as a “little sin”. It’s not in the sin lists in 1 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, and Colossians, so it must not be a big deal, right? Everyone gets annoyed. We’re human. We live in a broken world. It’s part of the deal.
Yet as followers of Jesus, we must submit every part of our hearts to Christ.
To annoy is to disturb or bother a person in a way that displeases, troubles, or slightly irritates (dictionary.com). You know the feeling. We stiffen our shoulders, furrow our brows, and bend our mouths in a frown. Our hearts grumble and groan in irritation, even if we manage to govern our body language.
What do we do when that bubble of annoyance rises in response to the day-to-day issues?
Sin has Roots
With my job, I was annoyed by the disruption of my schedule and the unpredictability that arose out of it. My annoyance was rooted in pride. I want to be in control, I’m not, so I’m annoyed.
With behaviors like annoyance, it’s helpful to examine what the reaction is rooted in and where that particular sin is leading.
Where would my job annoyance lead? I would descend into anger, discontentedness, and harshness towards others as I try to control and order my world according to my desires.
If you are habitually annoyed about something or someone, take a moment to contemplate not just the source, but what sin your annoyance is rooted in and where it’s leading you. Sin always drags you deeper into the darkness. When you allow “small” sins to flourish, your flesh will take it one, two, or three steps further than you ever intended.
Kill your Sin
We must never be content with our pet sins. Christ died for our sins, yet we sometimes we pick and choose which ones we want to crucify and submit to his lordship.
God wants us to walk in righteousness in all things. We won’t be perfect this side of eternity, but this is a battle we must fight as believers. “Be killing sin or it will be killing you” (John Owen).
Let’s be honest. “I’m annoyed” is a more acceptable way of saying “I’m mildly angry”. Anger can be righteous (Scripture tells us that both God and Jesus were angry at times), but our anger is rarely righteous. Our anger is most often rooted in pride and selfishness.
Scripture has a lot to say about anger. Wisdom literature is rife with examples of anger leading to sin and strife (Prov. 14:29, 29:22, Ecc. 7:9).
Paul instructs is in Ephesians:
Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil.
Eph. 4:26-27
Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.
Ephesians 4:31
James also speaks to us about anger:
Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.
James 1:19-20
Annoyance also leads us to grumbling and complaining. Paul says in Phil. 2:14-15:
Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world.
Recalibrate your Response
When annoyance comes (and it will), consider these practical steps:
- Take deep breath to calm your body.
- Think through the sin-root of your annoyance and where it will lead.
- Confess sin (unbelief, pride, selfishness, etc).
- If you follow Jesus, remember God’s promise that you are forgiven in Christ. If you don’t have a relationship with God through Jesus, check this out.
- Choose a scripture to memorize and meditate on to set your mind on Christ instead of yourself.
- Share with accountability partner(s) for prayer and support.
Don’t let sneaky sins trip you and tear you down from the joy-filled, righteous life Christ purchased for you on the cross. Walk in freedom.
Kristi P. Powell 