Prayer – Lord, please hear me when I cry to You and release me from my troubles. Have mercy on me and help me deal with my anger. You give me an abundance of joy—more than anything or anyone can—even more than I feel when I’ve been successful—like with a good harvest. Share Your joy—that smile that I imagine is on Your face even now. Pour Your peace over us…on me, my family and friends as we sleep within the safety of Your loving arms. Thank you…for love, joy, and peace.
Answer me when I call to you, O God who declares me innocent. Free me from my troubles. Have mercy on me and hear my prayer. How long will you people ruin my reputation? How long will you make groundless accusations? How long will you continue your lies? You can be sure of this: The LORD set apart the godly for himself. The LORD will answer when I call to him. Don't sin by letting anger control you. Think about it overnight and remain silent. Offer sacrifices in the right spirit, and trust the LORD. Many people say, "Who will show us better times?" Let your face smile on us, LORD. You have given me greater joy than those who have abundant harvests of grain and new wine. In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, O LORD, will keep me safe. Psalm 4:1-8
David offers such good advice on dealing with anger in the
passage above.
Don't sin by letting
anger control you. Think about it overnight and remain silent.
Remaining silent is the hard part. Puff! It is so easy to
just let loose and let my tongue try to take control of an angry situation. But
God, through David, is telling us to not give into the temptation of letting
our anger loose…but think about it. When I can get away from an anger inducing
situation and think about it, especially not reacting until the next day, it
just doesn’t seem as volatile, or maybe I should say…I’m not as volatile. I’ve
surprised myself lately by actually loosing my cool over trivial things. Can I
blame it on the anxiety caused by Covid restrictions? No. I am responsible for
my own actions.
Paul agrees with the teaching of “don’t let anger control
you” and expands his view on anger to tell us that we need to deal with the
anger before the day is over…before the sun goes down. His point is that anger gives
the devil a chance to get to you. Take care of business as soon as possible.
Sunset Scooteney Reservoir
Washington State
And "don't sin
by letting anger control you." Don't let the sun go down while you are
still angry, for anger gives a foothold to the devil. Ephesians 4:26-27
So, we must choose…not only who we serve daily, but how we
deal with anger and frustrations that come into our lives, often on a daily
basis. I find that a lot of times anger is instigated by miscommunication…or by
a power struggle that could be solved by clear communication. Anger can be the
result of years of discouragement and unmet expectations. Those pent-up emotions
can explode…and then the devil gets his foothold and sin rears its ugly face.
Even our righteous holy God gets angry when His people are disobedient and turn
away from Him.
If you break the
covenant of the LORD your God by worshiping and serving other gods, his anger
will burn against you, and you will quickly vanish from the good land he has
given you. Joshua 23:16
God set His commandments before His chosen people—so they
knew what was expected, but they just couldn’t find it within themselves to be
humble and obedient. Yet God had provided so much for them anyway…protecting
them and giving them a plan for their future. Jews and Gentiles are both part
of His plan. Although we are not like Joshua leading a group of Israelites into
the Promised Land, or defending that land, like David, God has provided the
same guidance as He gave those Israelites. He gives us choices. How will we
respond? How will you deal with your frustrations and anger?
Our choices on how we react in a hostile situation may
include:
Silence,
as suggested by David.
Get it
out before the day is over, as recommended by Paul.
Don’t hold your anger in, for it will become bitterness…or
rage. Paul goes on to teach the Ephesians, and us, that we need to get rid of
anger…and any evil behavior. Let go of it and forgive. Forgive yourself and
others.
And do not bring
sorrow to God's Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified
you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption.
Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as
all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted,
forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. Ephesians
4:30-32
Be kind. Kind to yourself…so that you can love others, as
Jesus instructed. Love God and love others as yourself.
Verse of Salvation ~ Do not turn your back on me. Do not
reject your servant in anger. You have always been my helper. Don’t leave me now;
don’t abandon me. O God of my salvation. Psalm 27:9
Memory Verse of the Week ~ In the
beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Genesis
1:1
Did you successfully memorize this verse?
© 2022 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All
rights reserved.
All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless
otherwise noted.
New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale
House Foundation.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream,
Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm.
Books by Mickey M.
Hunacek
Available as e-books or paperbacks at Amazon.com
Parenting Day By Day - Daily Devotional for Building Character
Coins in the Bible: New Testament Stories
No comments:
Post a Comment