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Cease from anger and abandon quick reactive words; Do not get upset; it leads only to frustration and causes many difficulties. Psalm 37:8 (OGV)
What is a “Miggy Moment?”
I’m a reactive person. We all react when someone yells at us or gossips about us or takes our Thanksgiving leftovers from the refrigerator. Your reaction to these insults or assaults can be a Miggy Moment.
Some of us externalize and others internalize our Miggies. We should pause and take a deep breath. Too often, we ignore the peace of God and go straight for a Miggy Moment.
During a Miggy Moment we respond with fear, fight, flight, or sarcastic humor. We lose the ability for subtle thought; speaking without thinking; striking out with later regrets.
Learn to identify your Miggy Moments. As the Book of James states, “Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger.” (James 1:19)
I started using the phrase “miggy” after reading about a small part of the brain named the amygdala.
It’s the part of the brain that takes over in emergencies and responds with either a fight or flight response. During an emergency you lose the ability to think and speak rationally. Fine motor control is lost also.
The amygdala takes control, stomps down on the gas pedal, storms out of meetings, strikes with blunt force – anything and everything to get out of the crisis. Fine during the Battle of the Bulge in World War II; not so much when discussing finances with a spouse.
You becoming a raging bull is helpful for a tornado, a prowler, or a housefire. But dangerous and destructive in relationships or when some cuts you off in traffic.
While talking to a police officer about Miggy Moments, he said, “Police officers are trained for Miggies.” He went on to say, “We don’t call it a Miggy Moment, but we know that in dangerous encounters involving a gun, we lose peripheral vision. We only see what is right in front of us. That is why we clear a room by training ourselves to look and point our weapon in differing directions.”
Losing peripheral vision.
Sounds like a Miggy Moment! Getting angry, we do not care who is in the room or what they see us doing. Reacting without perspective or empathy, we just want to make our point!
Some, trained by the Spirit, have perspective. Others allow their Miggies to run amok. Unrestrained Miggy Moments become a Miggy Life – always on edge, always reactive, defensive, and unable to listen.
Physically, a Miggy Moment focuses adrenaline, increases heartbeat, and causes higher blood pressure. A Miggy Lifestyle does it continuously. Revving a car engine. Never changing the oil. No regard for stoplights.
Miggies can kill you.
One: Sense a Miggy Moment onset. Ask others to look at you and say, “Calm down!” My son once had to shout at me, “Dad, calm down, you are too inside your head!”
Two: Pick two Psalms that are anti-Miggy and memorize them. I would suggest Psalm 25 and Psalm 27!
Tomorrow in Interruptions #215, I will describe Miggy businesses, churches, and other organizations.
Do not mess with a Miggy!