By Chris WittsSaturday 17 Feb 2024Morning Devotions with Chris WittsDevotionsReading Time: 1 minute
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Transcript:
Yesterday I started talking about anger. I told you the story about Sam. A man who was fairly even tempered who unfortunately got himself into big trouble by punching a bus ticket clerk in the face. He was in a rage and his wife had died. Eight months previously, his daughter was due to have the have her first child, a grandchild for him. He couldn’t get a bus ride when his car died. And so the feelings of anger just overflowed.
Be Slow To Anger – Part 1 — Morning Devotions
Police were called and he spent one night in jail and he deeply regretted what had actually happened. Humiliation.
So his grandson came to the world while he was locked away in jail. Now, this might be an extreme example of what I’m talking about, but nonetheless, it’s an important topic because I’m pretty sure that anger has gotten so many people into big trouble. We need to learn ways to control our anger before it controls us. And I have the book that I mentioned yesterday – keeping your cool when your anger is hot and it’s a very helpful book.
And June Hunt talks about Sam and this predicament that he found himself in.
The feelings around anger
He was angry. Why? Because he was hurt. I mean, outwardly, he seemed to be getting on with life. Handling the death of his wife – it didn’t seem that he was depressed. People said that he seemed to be getting on with life very well. But beneath this facade was the truth that he was lonely and hurting inside. He was supposed to be with his daughter giving birth. So fear was probably there. His car wouldn’t start. He feared that he wouldn’t live up to the promise that he’d made to his wife before she died that he would attend the birth of his first grandchild. So I guess he felt he was going to let the family down. And we can understand those feelings.
And what about feelings of frustration? Why did that car on the Saturday morning have to break down on that particular day? And the bus, he tried to get. It was overbooked. He couldn’t get a seat. Why weren’t things the way they were supposed to? So he became infuriated, and it all boiled over and he lashed out and punched another man.
Now, of course, no one can turn the clock back. This man Sam was very remorseful, but like anger in so many instances that it was done, the damage had already been done. Do you know that word anger can actually be danger if you add just one more letter.
It was the American journalist Ambrose Bias, who said, “Speak when you’re angry and you’ll make the best speech that you’ll ever regret.”
Do you ever feel regret over something that you said in anger? And I think all of us feel that way to one degree or another. But I love what the Bible says on this subject. There are many verses on this theme. Proverbs 29:11 says, “Don’t be a fool and quickly lose your temper. Be sensible and patient.” Proverbs 14:17 says “Fools have quick tempers, and no one likes you if you can’t be trusted” and in Psalm 44 – “in your anger, do not sin. When you’re on your beds, search your hearts and be silent.”
Now these are terrific words. There’s a difference, of course, between sinful anger and legitimate anger, and there’s appropriate anger and inappropriate anger and I think there’s also helpful anger and hurtful anger, and Rick Warren talks about this, too. And he says that anger is not necessarily wrong. It’s not always bad. What makes it different is why did you get angry and what did you do with those feelings?
What am I angry about? Why am I so upset? I think it’s very important to look at this because people that know say that anger is never the root problem. There’s always a reason. There’s a deeper issue, and anger is usually an emotional reaction.
The fact that you’re hurt, just as Sam was, or you’re frustrated or that you fear something. So when you know the real cause of whatever the problem is, it’s easier to control your anger. You can’t eliminate hurt and frustration from your life, and you could say, “Well, I don’t understand. I can’t control it.” But do you know with Jesus Christ as your lord and Saviour? His power can actually help you control that anger because it says in James 1:19 – be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to get angry and that’s the key. Quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry. I think there are three good rules to put into our lives.
Let’s Pray
Lord, we acknowledge we’ve got angry when we shouldn’t have. Show us when it’s right and when it’s a wrong time, Amen.