How To Deal With Anger

NOTE: I wrote this before election night and after the hurricanes. But it is still relevant. God is still dealing with things in our hearts so we can be free and draw closer to Him. 

How to Deal with Anger

I am angry and I’m not alone. In fact, the frustration is so bad that just trying to type “Anger” took me several times because I couldn’t type it out without mistakes. So I beat on… each… letter. But I’m not alone. As I watched this whole debacle play out with FEMA denying hurricane victims resources, supplies, and Starlink receivers, my anxiety hit the roof. Panic set in. And I began to pray in my anger. Several times I could feel the Holy Spirit holding my words back, and only a few words got out. I had taken Benadryl and it dried me out so much that I couldn’t even cry like I wanted to. So, as I laid in bed last night exhausted from my outburst, God spoke to me.

He told me for the second time that I needed to do something about my anger. “ I love you. I love the hurricane victims. I am there. I am taking care of them.” In fact, this morning He spoke to me again about it. “Work on your anger. Don’t pray when you’re angry. It holds you back from what I have for you. I can’t bless you when you’re angry.”

How many of you are so angry with this situation or maybe there’s a storm in your life that has you seeing red. It’s a natural reaction. But when we team anger up with helplessness, frustration, anxiety, it becomes a storm around us and unless we seek the Lord, it will blind us. We will say things we will regret later on. And with politics, that happens way too much.

So how do we deal with anger? How do we pray when we’re angry? Especially when the situation seems hopeless? Or when we know we can’t help the situation get better, how do we deal with all these strong emotions biblically?

“When all hope seems lost, that’s when I will act.” That small voice we call the Holy Spirit spoke that today. I have been seeing examples of this all day. I shared a link to a video earlier in which an older man shared his testimony of how the Lord worked miracles through him. God’s words resonated all through this video. It was amazing. And if we read Zechariah, when it seems there is no hope for Israel, Jesus steps down onto the Mount of Olives and saves His people.  (Zechariah 14:1-4).

This is telling us we need to have the faith to be patient and wait on the Lord. We also need to recognize and remember this lesson. When desperation hits us and we feel hopeless, we need to cry out to the Lord.  It doesn’t end there. We also need to give God our anger. Let go of it. It’s useless to us, especially when ministering to others who feel the same way. And learning patience isn't something that can be done in one day. Sometimes it takes people a lifetime to achieve this. That's why we need the Lord to help us to live out His word.

James 1:19-20 ESV

[19]  Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; [20] for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. 

Ephesians 4:26-27 ESV

[26] Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, [27] and give no opportunity to the devil. 

Romans 12:17-21 ESV

[17] Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. [18] If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. [19] Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” [20] To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” [21] Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

These verses speak volumes. Especially this last one. God said to me I needed to give Him my anger. Vengeance belongs to Him because God is not just a loving Father, but a Righteous Judge. He has to be. This world is too evil and victims cry out for justice every day. This is where the Lord reassures me, “All hope is not lost. I am fighting for you.” 

When you look at this heated political season, the attempts on Trump’s life, and now the government holding back aid from those in North Carolina, it all makes sense. We are in the most heated spiritual war I have ever seen. I’m 53 years old and I have never seen anything like this….EVER! And I know God is fighting for Trump by how hard that man is getting hit by the enemy. 

God’s whole message to me and you is this, “Anger will destroy you. Rest assured. I have the situation.” 

Sometimes in these massive storms, when the ship is moving side to side, being tossed around like an empty box. When the waves come barreling down on us and the ship is about to be sunk down by the pummeling waves…. Maybe, instead of getting angry and yelling out meaningless words, or posting comments against our enemies. Maybe the best course of action is to give the anger over and pray that the Holy Spirit teaches us how to handle these feelings. 

Take comfort in knowing that God is on the throne. That He is aware of the bad situation. That maybe He has already called people to intervene. Or maybe, just maybe, He’s opening the eyes of those who have refused to see the truth for years. And those people are the ones that can do something about it. 

We don’t know the mind of God. And we sure can’t say what He’s going to do. But take that anger and give it to Him so He can fill you with peace and hope and give you a different perspective on the situation. 

And if you have spoken or prayed in anger, repent. Give it over to the Lord. Ask Him to teach you how to manage your anger. Look up Bible verses on it and meditate on them - study them. Give yourself grace and move on. God wants to bless you, not hold this over your head. That’s why He gave us Jesus. All you have to do is ask. Call on the name of Jesus and you will be saved. That’s how much the Lord loves us. How much He loves you. Just ask Him to show you. 

Faith like a mustard seed (Matthew 17:20), that is all we need. And God does the rest. Trust Him. That’s all He asks of us. To trust Him in whatever situation we are in. 

Has God been trying to talk to you? Have you been called or think you’ve been called to accept Jesus? Pray this prayer and let me know. I’d love to pray for you and your family. 

Lord, I have sinned. Forgive me. I need you Lord and I need Jesus in my life. Please come in and renew me. Take this life of mine and clean it up so I can shine for you. So that others around me can see that change is possible and they can have Jesus in their lives. I surrender my anger and pride over to you. I surrender my life to you. Lord, thank you for sending Jesus and for saving me. Let your will be done in my life and others. In Jesus name, amen.

Getting Rid of Distractions

Psalm 135:15-18 ESV‬

[15] " The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of human hands. [16] They have mouths, but do not speak; they have eyes, but do not see; [17] they have ears, but do not hear, nor is there any breath in their mouths. [18] Those who make them become like them, so do all who trust in them."

This passage speaks volumes as to why people refuse to listen to the Word of God and why they walk away when they hear the name of Jesus. They are so into their idols (cell phones, electronics, pornography, music apps, social media, jobs/money, gambling, online games, AI social apps, friends/family, YouTube/online entertainment services, food, drugs, alcohol, etc.), that they deny accepting Jesus into their lives. The desires of the eyes and the pride of life is what their minds and hearts crave. Therefore, they run to it. This is sin nature - they don't know what the other side of life is like so they ignore it thinking there are more ways to heaven and more time on earth.

They also can't see that the path they are walking is leading to destruction, to hellfire.

You see, God created us with a spirit that gets energized from reading His word and spending time with other believers. Studying his word, constant prayer, and seeking to have a character like Christ is what feeds our spirit - brings us back to life with a renewed purpose and plan for our existence (Jeremiah 29:11 ). This is why Christians will die with their faith in Christ because they know the difference between their new lives and their old ones. They can sense the change and would rather die preaching Jesus than die without Him and spend eternity burning in hell for that one mistake. It would be devastating.

This is also why, for over 2000 years, believers have given their lives to Jesus. And the movement has never died out. No matter how many Christians lose their lives, people are being saved and take their place over history. You would think people would take notice that this is a movement from God. But sin nature, together with our desires, blind us to this truth and to the voices out there that have seen heaven and hell and came back to warn the living ( Acts 5:34-40 ). They're out there - just look it up on YouTube.

I got on Tik Tok one day, and spent time watching videos just to see what all the hype was about. I went from one video to another, a constant scrolling and I noticed how mesmerized my eyes were to the screen. I couldn't pry my eyes away. When I did, hours had passed. Hours that could have been spent helping others, helping my husband, or writing for the Lord. Instead, I allowed this app to distract me and waste precious time.

Modern idols dull our minds and corrupt our spirits. We don't sense anything. Its frightening for me to think about. Not how I want to navigate life. I ended up repenting and deleting the app. I am struggling with other idols also that God is revealing to me. It is a struggle, but a good one. Addictions are hard to break, but with Jesus in our lives we know it has to be done. And we can lean on the Lord for help by crying out to Him. If we truly want to be set free, Jesus will carry us through the process. 

If we honor the Lord, the Lord will honor us

I pray this post has hit home with you. What do you struggle with? Do you need prayer? Let me know and I will pray for you. It's a burden God has placed on my heart - to pray for those around me. 

Breaking The Chains That Bind Us

I always begin my day listening to Grace For Purpose Prayers on YouTube. I find they help me focus on the Lord every morning and get me into the Word. The prayer this morning made me think of all the things that are holding me back from my writing - the very thing I want to honor the Lord with.  It really hit me hard and has been a struggle for years to break free from.  (Link to video at end of the post.)

So the questions that hit me were: What sin clings so closely that it has become a hindrance in my life? What has become like a weight over me I can't fight?  This could also be an idol in our lives. Something we hold very dear, or a habit we can't let go of, that goes above what the Lord wants us to be doing instead.

A flood of things hit me. In particular, there are a few games I like to end my day by playing. Sometimes I can lose track of time and hours have gone by and instead of ending my day with my Bible, I end up tired and go straight to bed. Another thing is watching movies or listening to YouTube with my husband instead of studying God's word or journaling my thoughts for a devotional. This has been holding us both back and made us lazy, which has been another struggle I deal with.

But the biggest weight I have will shut me down completely and cause me to shut out everything and everyone if I'm not careful.  It's my husband's attitude toward my writing. My one love in the world is words and crafting them for the Lord. Learning how to take my stories and scripture and bless people in order to draw them closer to the Lord.  

The anger my husband has when I tell him I need to focus on my writing instead of going out with him. Losing his support for my writing has devastated my life. It has made my marriage uncomfortable at times and can paralyze me in my walk with the Lord if I let it.

I love going out with my husband and spending time with him, but when I designate a day to do nothing but write or work on a project, my husband doesn't understand this. And I end up putting off my writing for him and feel like I wasted an opportunity to write.

Have you ever let grief and struggles paralyze you from moving forward with the Lord? It is the most traumatizing place to be.

In Hebrews 12:1, Paul describes our life's path as a race that we must run with endurance to the end. But we all know that we have an enemy who will throw things in our path to stop us from sharing God's word with others. What strikes me is that in order to run our race we must "lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely". Underline that in your Bibles or make a note of it. We need to get rid of everything that doesn't line up with God's word, the idols in our lives, the habits that make us struggle with reading our Bibles, or even praying every day. Why? Because of the great cloud of witnesses, we have around us. People are watching us. Watching how we live, how we treat people, and whether we are living up to what a Christian should be.

When we accept Christ in our lives, we accept getting to know Him and His word by studying it, praying/talking things over with the Lord, putting Him first in our lives in order to help others. This is our task. So how can we do this when we are still struggling with sin in our lives? 

PRAY. Start off by praying for the Holy Spirit to show you the sins that cling too closely and make note of them.  Journal your journey or get a prayer journal to keep track of your requests and answers the Lord gives/shows you. 

REPENT. Repent of these things and give them over to the Lord. Even family members that may have hurt you. Please don't let the pain turn into bitterness. Go to them if you can and forgive them or pray for them. This has helped me so much with forgiving others including my husband.  In praying for them, God changes our hearts and gives us a heart of love towards them instead of pain. I want to stress, you may need counseling services in some situations. Please pray for guidance and wisdom in how to deal with a difficult situation.

Ephesians 4:26 - " Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil."

James 5:16 - "Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person may has great power as it is working."

Mark 11:25 - "And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespass."

2 Chronicles 7:14 - "If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land."

ASK. Ask the Lord to give you the strength to persevere through the withdrawals or temptation to go back to these bad habits and idols. Fill the emptiness with more of God's word and wisdom in your life and other people who won't bring you back down. Fill your life with God's treasure and adventure. 

This takes time, but if you make this a habit and go to the Lord first every day, you will eventually crave more and more of Jesus in your life and less of your old self. Then you will move forward, one day at a time, to the goal of your calling. Don't get impatient either. Having others pray for you is awesome. 

Matthew 18:20 - "For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them."

Share below in the comments what you have struggled with and whether you are healing or are still struggling. What worked for you to help you move on or what is the Lord putting on your heart in order for you to move closer to Him?

CHALLENGE: Write your struggles, what weighs you down, even the lies that the enemy has told you, etc.  Then look up Bible verses to counter them.  Write them down and put them in a place where you can see them and memorize them. Then turn the verses into a prayer you can pray when these things tempt you. 

Lord, thank you for opening our eyes to the things that have been holding us back from you. Forgive us and teach us what we need to do in order to let go of these things and move on. Help us to forgive those who have hurt us and give us a heart of love towards them. Let your love heal the wounds that are causing us to struggle in our walk with you. May you always be Lord of our lives. In Jesus name, Amen.