Day 037 of 90 · Emotions
Anger Does Not Have to Control Me
12–15 minutes
Center · Stillness
Settle in
Put the phone down. Take one slow breath, and say: “God, I am here. Speak, I am listening.”
Read · The passage
Scripture
“Be angry, yet do not sin.” Do not let the sun set upon your anger,
Ephesians 4:26, BSB
Learn · Reflection
Reflection
Feeling angry does not make you a bad person. Emotions come up naturally, especially when something hurts us or seems unfair. What matters is learning what to do with that anger before you act on impulse. God also wants to help you respond with calm, self-control and wisdom in the hard moments.
Jonah was very angry. God had shown mercy to a city he believed deserved punishment, and that left him deeply frustrated.
Instead of speaking honestly about what he was feeling, he let the anger grow inside him. He pulled away, he complained, and he started seeing everything through his frustration.
God could have corrected him harshly. Instead, He chose to teach him, little by little, about what was going on in his heart.
Sometimes anger shows up because we feel injustice, exhaustion, frustration or pain. Feeling angry is not a sin. All of us experience that emotion at some point.
The trouble starts when we let anger control our words, our decisions or the way we treat other people.
God wants to teach us to recognize our emotions without letting them rule our hearts. We can learn to stop, to breathe, to talk honestly and to look for help before we react on impulse.
Anger does not have to decide for you. With God's help, you can also learn to respond with wisdom.
Talk · Conversation
Talk about it
Jonah let his anger grow in silence instead of talking about it. What lights your anger the fastest, and what do you usually do in the first few seconds?
Thank · Gratitude
Give thanks
Today I thank God for teaching me with patience instead of harshness when I am angry, like the time when…
Ask · Prayer
Pray together
God, here is what my anger is about today: … Teach me what to do with it before the sun goes down.
Begin · Application
Carry it into the day
Today, before the day ends, settle one irritation you have been storing up: talk to the person, or hand it to God in prayer.
Scripture quoted from the Berean Standard Bible. Public domain (CC0)