Hulk Smash!

And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. Ephesians 5:2 (ESV)

Bruce Banner is a physicist, brilliant but withdrawn. He was exposed to gamma radiation which, when triggered by emotions, causes him to explode into a giant green muscled monster called The Hulk. While it’s true that The Hulk does save lives, join the Avengers and sometimes spout witty dialog…it’s not a transformation that Dr. Banner really enjoys. He loses control, he smashes things, he rips an awful lot of clothes. He doesn’t form attachments to people because he’s always afraid of ‘hulking out’ on them, he strives hard to maintain emotional stability to the point of removing himself from society. I always thought that The Hulk was pretty cool. His alter ego was unrecognizable from his superhero self (glasses, Superman, really?). He was practically impervious to injury, he’s crazy fast, super strong and is able to not only leap single buildings but leap whole  continents! But none of those are why I liked Hulk. I liked him because when he got angry, everybody was afraid of him. I loved the transition from meek scientist to angry monster. I don’t need someone with a psych degree to point out that this tells you something about me, I’m well aware. I have a temper that may not reach “transform into giant green creature” level, but there are times when it gets pretty close. When I get angry I want people to listen to me, to do what I say and there have been times when I wished that I had the ability to ‘hulk out’ on people. Thankfully comic books aren’t real and those around me are just subjected to non-green Angry Jen. Which isn’t a picnic either. Today my plans for the day were derailed by family obligations and I spent a lot of time very cranky. At one point my attitude even prompted someone to say “oh no, we’ve angered the beast.” I don’t know exactly where my focus was today, but it certainly wasn’t on God. I’m pretty sure that He wouldn’t want me to hulk out on anyone…no matter how deserving my siblings are at times.

This verse is a good reminder for me, especially on days when I struggle with anger and not loving people the way God wants me to love them. It’s not just telling me to love one person or people just when they are good…but to walk in love. The root for ‘walk’ in this case is less like traveling and more like a way to live. To conduct your life in love. That’s a hard thing to conceptualize, to conduct your life in love but the verse helps you out immediately by giving us an example. We are to love as Christ loved us, a love that was selfless and pleasing to God. Okay, despite having an example, that’s still a hard task. It’s easy to love people who are nice to you, or those who do no wrong. It’s easy to love people with selfish or temporary love, but anything more than that and it gets tough. In fact, it’s kind of impossible to do on your own. Thankfully, God knows that and is ready to help us out whenever we ask. I believe that God can not only help me control my anger, but He can help me ‘conduct my life’ in love. A love that isn’t focused on me getting my own way or focused on my pride, but a love that is holy and selfless. A love that comes from and points back to God. I just need to remember to ask God for help with that love before I start to ‘hulk out’.