Sun. April 28th. 2024.
“Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools.” Eccle. 7:9.
The story is told of a young man who had been cruelly insulted and offended by a former acquaintance. Full of rage and indignation, he decided to go at once and demand an apology. A saintly gentleman laid his hand on his shoulder and said quietly, “let me give you a word of advice. An insult is like mud: it will brush off much better when it is dry! Wait until you both have cooled off, and then the thing can probably be settled quickly. If you go now, you’ll quarrel even more.” The young man heeded the kind suggestion. Before long he found out how wise it had been, for the next day the offending party came and begged for his forgiveness.
What should a follower of Jesus do in response to being offended or treated unfairly by those who deliberately do certain things to hurt you or get at you. We sure have mean men scattered across every place we go in our days. The good news is that the gospel doesn’t make us less human, but more human. As followers of Jesus, we experience the full range of disappointments and emotions common to all image bearers of God. But, by God’s grace, we can learn to steward them rather than live as slaves to them.
Yes! You heard me, we must learn to Steward our emotions. What does it mean to steward your emotions. Our emotions produce a significant amount of energy, and that energy is often applied to destructive ends. So, for example, our anger can tempt us to lash out, to rage at others, to yell, scream, throw things, or even become violent. But, we can learn to respond differently , and better manage it by allowing time or seeking counsel before we respond. Rather than acting selfish and self-righteously. We can actually find true joy when we “overlook an offence”. It may seem impossible at first, when we keep at it, we can achieve it. We should also learn to apologise, and repent when we occasionally fall short of this.
FURTHER READING:
“For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Cor. 12:10.
“For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” Heb. 12:11.
DECLARATION:
Dear Abba Father, thank You for Your mercy and grace that has kept me this far. Lord, You know that without You I can do nothing. Help me to walk in obedience and alignment with Your biblical instructions. Help me cultivate the fruit of the Spirit, especially the fruit of self-control. Grant me continuous prompting to walk worthy of Your words. I defeat every form of disobedience and unfaithfulness in the name of Jesus, amen.
1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN:
Job. 36:1-33.
Job. 37:1-24.
Job. 38:1-41.
Job. 39:1-30.
QUOTE FOR THE DAY:
“One Of The True Secret Of Success Is Learning How To Use Pain And Pleasure Instead Of Letting Pain And Pleasure Use You.”
The Fortress Int’l Church, 2 Floor 10 Coker Road, Opposite Chicken Republic Ilupeju Lagos, Nigeria.
email: info@thefortresschurch.com.
