Devotional

When Anger Doesn’t Win

Michael Beck

“Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath” (Ephesians 4:26)

When not held in check, anger accelerates actions. It is neither patient nor longsuffering. It insists that something has to be done. But God knows better than we do what needs to be done. So often, God would have us do nothing but pray. From a place of prayer, He would speak to us, so whatever we do or say is of Him and not of us.

The Holy Spirit would be the ruler of our heart. No strong desire or fiery emotion would dictate what our body does. Are we in tune with His voice? It may be still and small, but it is there. Are we willing to be led by God in all we do or say; or will we be driven down many an unwise path by our own agitated spirit?

Anger will come. It is not a sin to be angry. What we do with our anger is the problem. The world would tell us to “take a breath,” to “count to ten,” to “take it easy,” etc. But anger, untempered by God Himself, is not so easily brushed off. When our heart is overwhelmed we must go to the Rock that is higher than we are. We must be able to hear from Him. He will tell us if action is needed, or we need to let it go. Outside of His hand on our heart, we very quickly and easily get out of control.

Don’t beat yourself up for becoming angry. God Himself gets angry. But He is also slow to wrath. When He acts, He does so in wisdom and righteousness. Our short tempered actions are not wise or right. They always make things worse.

Let God control the levers of your heart. He can still the fiercest storm. Our anger can be brought under His control. It doesn’t have to win.


Michael Beck is a pastor in the Dallas, TX area and the main author on Signpost. Receive a daily devotional he publishes every morning via email.