July 24th, 2023 / Still small voice
Greetings
dear Family, today the Lord wants to speak to us about exercising self - control
when dealing with our anger, to avoid the traps of falling into sin.
Growing up
I had my first real taste of visceral anger, directed at me, when I was about
eight years old. It was Easter time and I was thrilled at the prospect of having
my first and very own Easter basket. Imagining that it would soon be filled with
yummy chocolate treats and candies. Most
of you
know, that my siblings and I were appallingly deprived of sweets and junk food
in general in our youth. This year was going to be the exception....I couldn’t
wait to see what my parents were going to put in our baskets.
We picked
out our grass, dyed Easter eggs and I tricked out my basket to the nines using
a wide variety of colored markers and ribbons. I was so excited Saturday night,
I couldn’t sleep and didn’t even mind the anticipated, extra -long church
service the next morning. Upon waking, I ran
to my
basket and notice it was exactly the way I left it the night before. Hummm, I
was thinking “what is wrong with this picture?” I looked in my sister, Kathy’s
basket, and hers had a pack of grape gum in it. Just then, she was by my side
and told my brother, David, and I not to touch her gum. She emphasized “under
no circumstances” were we to take any of her gum.
Well, that
irritated David and he said when Kathy wasn’t looking, we would each have a
stick of her grape gum. I knew it was wrong, but went along with it, being the
youngest and feeling dejected because of the great lack of sugar in my basket.
Let me tell you, when Kathy found out, I have never seen someone so angry.
Not even to
this day have I seen someone so upset. She was red hot mad and went on and on
and on about it. About then, my Father arrived home, and with him were
chocolate eggs, jelly beans and yellow marsh mellow baby chicks. Boy, did I
feel awful and was filled with remorse. I told Kathy I was sorry, but it didn’t
seem to help, she was still furious. Much later in life, as adults, I
apologized to Kathy again about taking her gum without her permission and she
laughed and said, “Just the other day I was thinking about that Easter and the gum
incident. I can’t believe I got so upset over a stick of gum,” and she
apologized for her attitude and asked for my forgiveness. After saying she was
sorry and removing the seeds of bitterness from her heart, 18 months later
Kathy passed away.
The Bible
tells us not to let the sun go down on our anger, because anger can grow in our
hearts and leave us bitter and resentful. We read in Ephesians 4:26 and 27,
“In your
anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry,
and do not give the devil a foothold.”
Jesus began
speaking,
“If left
unchecked, anger will start to control you and give Satan an open door into
your lives. My dear ones, don’t let anger settle upon you; let go of your
pride, forgive each other, love each other
and help
one another. Begin anew each morning.
“Often
times, My people let anger overwhelm and control you. A heart filled with wrath
can cause suffering and pain.”
That is so
true, I was scarred for life over my sister’s outburst of hateful venom as a youngster,
so
much so,
that I never, ever wanted to see that behavior again for the rest of my life.
As a result, I avoided Kathy growing up and drew closer to my other siblings.
Jesus
continued,
“When you
are truly Mine and belong to Me, you are called to resemble Me. You should not
lie to one
another, but speak truthfully. Do not sin in your anger by using violence,
malice, stealing or taking My name in vain. These behaviors and attitudes have
no place in the lives of My followers. Show compassion toothers, forgive
because you have been forgiven, and imitate Me in everything you do. By the
power of the Holy Spirit, you can put off the deeds of your old self and become
Christ like.
“Sin has an
opportunity to enter into your lives when it becomes uncontrolled anger and you
fail to control it.
Please
precious ones, deal with your anger swiftly, lay down your pride and exercise
self-control over your fleshly emotions. Lasting anger and holding grudges,
leads to negative consequences. When you allow anger to grow in your hearts,
you become bitter, hateful and unforgiving which hinders our relationship, and
those of others.
“When you
dwell on your bitterness for extended periods of time, this gives the devil an
opportunity to tempt you into sin. Satan wants to stir up and amplify your
anger so that you will give way to your feelings, causing you to sin against Me
and cause damage by hurting others. When your temper leads you into sin,
quickly confess your sins, seek forgiveness from Me and anyone you have hurt.
Allow My
Spirit to work within you by practicing and cultivating self - control.
Although this work is Mine, you will produce good fruit by working in union
with the Holy Spirit by listening, yielding to Our guidance and being obedient
by storing My words within your heart.”
And that
was the end of His message.
We have
found that immediately removing ourselves from a situation and praying can help
control our angry feelings. If you are having a conversation with someone and
it becomes heated, walk away, talk to the Lord about how you feel, pray for the
other person and for the grace of brotherly love and self -control. Seeking the
Lord’s help and entrusting the situation to Him is vital if we struggle with
our tempers.
We love
you, dwellers of the Lord’s heart, and thank you for all your heartfelt prayers
and support. We are praying for you and your families, for God’s blessings and
favor to be always upon you.
