FROM THE PULPIT: Don't get angry with me ...

There once was a hotel manager who grew weary of griping guests.

They came with lots of complaints. They were exhausted from the journey, hungry for home and weary of strange mattresses. Coffee pots didn't work, neighbors were too loud, faucets dripped, hallways were noisy, rooms were hot, rooms were cold -- it simply never stopped. Some guests were only grumpy; some were irate. A handful were enraged.

One woman was so animated in her fury, the manager became detached from the conversation. He wasn't listening anymore. He was simply watching her. And the woman's angry face and flailing arms made her look a little like ... a monkey.

He tried not to smile, lest he incur more of her verbal tirade, but how could he not? Call it evolution in reverse. Call it an adult temper tantrum. It was so loud and wild, it was actually funny.

"If she could only see herself," the manager thought.

That's when the idea hit him.

The manager bought a large mirror and hung it behind his counter. This allowed every customer to see himself or herself as they brought their complaints to an employee who would never be able to turn two double beds in a non-smoking room into the far sweeter confines of home.

Immediately, he said, all the monkey business stopped. When people saw their own faces when they were angry, they calmed down!

Anger, as it turns out, isn't pretty -- nor is it healthy.

Fail to control your anger and you'll increase your chances of a heart attack, stroke or even an old-fashioned cold many times over. Check it out. The statistics are easy to find.

No wonder the Bible urges us to stay away from people who are chronically angry. See Proverbs 22:24 for that one, and please don't take it out on me. I'm just the messenger. There are also warnings about not letting the sun go down on your anger (Ephesians 4:26) and even the matter of judgment for those who would harbor anger toward another person (Matthew 5:22).

This is troubling, for surveys seem to be telling us that a whole lot of conservative, Bible-believing Christians are angrier than they've ever been.

Political pundits say this is one explanation for the unexpected success of Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders in this year's presidential race. Both of those candidates -- as well as the other front-runners from both major political parties -- are using the anger theme to "Take back our country!"

Racial tensions have flared time and time again in recent years, though we are 153 years beyond the Emancipation Proclamation and 50 years past the worst struggles of the civil rights movement. How long should it take to pull off this "love thy neighbor" thing?

Columnists in this very newspaper write things we disagree with (present company excluded, of course) and we can't wait to fire off a letter to the editor to set things straight.

It's almost like we're looking to be angry.

Starbucks took "Merry Christmas" off their throw-away cups, which made us mad during Christmas. "American Idol" is calling for the final curtain, which surely has infuriated those last 600 fans. Bruce Jenner got himself named woman of the year -- and I can't even put that one into words. Let's just say, if you want to be angry, there are ample opportunities.

Even so, anger is no good. It's not good for you, me or our culture.

Here's the deal: Vote for Trump if you think he's the best candidate. But don't vote for him because you believe you'll be happy if he really does get a fence built on the Mexican border. Trust me. During the past 16 years, I've watched hundreds of miles of fences go up in Israel. If good fences really could make good neighbors, Israelis and Palestinians would be dancing arm-in-arm by now.

Deal with prejudice in places where it's a legitimate problem. At the same time, model genuine friendship with the people all around you and you'll do more for racial harmony in the next four months than a bus load of protestors could do in the next four years -- even if the president-elect is driving that bus.

Someone has a different opinion than you about a current issue? What did you expect? In his divine plan and goodness, God didn't design all of us (present company excepted) to have sharp minds, good looks and a gentle wit.

Let the anger cease.

Try it for a day or two. You'll live longer; you'll have more friends. Maybe it will rub off on people.

Who knows? If you can find an inner calm in a world of angry people, we might just decide to make you the next president!

Andy Cook lives in Peach County and is the founder of Experience Israel Now.

This story was originally published February 12, 2016 at 9:31 PM with the headline "FROM THE PULPIT: Don't get angry with me ... ."