How To Be Angry Without Regret (Part 2)

3.  DON'T GO TO BED ANGRY.
God isn't just slow to anger, but His anger is short termed.  He gets angry, judges those who sin against Him, and then it's over. He doesn't hold grudges or let his anger linger.  Neither should we.  God's anger lasts a moment, and so should ours.  We should get angry slowly.  We should be and express anger quickly.




4.  DON'T GIVE SATAN AN OPPORTUNITY.
The devil loves to be angry and to provoke anger.  He loves conflict and harm.  He wants us to get angry quickly and to stay angry indefinitely, expressing our anger violently and harmfully. 




When we are quickly, uncontrollably, and unjustly angry, we give Satan an opportunity to express himself through us and with us. 




But when we our anger is slow, controlled and just, God's Spirit will empower our anger to bring justice and peace. 




How can we practice this?




By remembering anger's purpose:  justice. 
To practice justice, we must first practice wanting justice by wanting the truth. 
In other words, we have to put ourselves in a state in which we want to know the facts....all the time.  We don't quickly make up our minds about things or people without hearing all the facts. 
We become people of truth who are committed to perceiving things as they actually are.




Perception creates emotion.  What we perceive affects what we believe, and thus how we feel. 




For example:
You receive a phone call.  You're told that someone you love has been in a fatal accident.
How do you feel?


You receive another phone call moments after the first one.  You're told that your loved one is completely unharmed.
How do you feel?




Within moments, your emotions shift from anxiety and fear to complete peace and relief, based on your perception of the situation.  Based on the truth.




If we become people of truth, we can indirectly control being angry, and all of our other emotions through our truth perception. 




It's up to us.
If you agree, pray with me:


God, help me to see as you see, and to be angry like you are angry.  In Jesus name, amen.


May God help you by His Spirit to be angry without regret.