How to Deal with Your Anger

How to Deal with Your Anger by Rick Warren

If you become angry, do not let your anger lead you into sin, and do not stay angry all day. Don’t give the Devil a chance. Ephesians 4:26-27 (GNT)
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Conflict happens. There’s no avoiding it, and so there’s no avoiding anger in your life.
In fact, ignoring or denying your anger will simply make things worse. When conflict comes up, deal with it head on and quickly. Don’t let it fester. It’s a big mistake to think, “Let’s ignore it and hope it will go away.”
The Bible teaches, in Ephesians 4:26-27 (GNT), “If you become angry, do not let your anger lead you into sin, and do not stay angry all day. Don't give the Devil a chance.”
Some people are surprised by this verse; they ask, “Is it ever right for a Christian to get angry?” Yes.
How do I know it’s all right for a Christian to get angry? Well, let me ask you this: Did Jesus ever get angry? Yes!
Did Jesus ever sin? No. Evidently there are times when anger is appropriate.
In Ephesians, we’re told, “If you become angry, do not let your anger lead you into sin.” This implies there is an anger that leads you into sin, but there’s also an anger that doesn’t lead you into sin. There’s a right way to get angry and there’s a wrong way to get angry.
How do you know the difference?
The wrong kind of anger is anger that is not resolved quickly. It’s becoming angry, and then just staying angry all day and then the next day and the next. The Phillips translation of this Ephesians verse says, “Never go to bed angry.”
That will keep a few of us up sometimes! If you said, “In our marriage, we’ll never go to bed angry,” you might resolve problems a little more quickly.
Anger that is not dealt with turns into resentment and then into bitterness. Bitterness is always sin. Resentment is always sin. Those emotions are always wrong.
The Bible says to deal with anger quickly. Don’t let it hang on. Resolve conflict as quickly as possible.
© 2008 Purpose Driven Life. All rights reserved. Rick Warren is the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., one of America's largest and best-known churches. In addition, Rick is author of the New York Times bestseller The Purpose Driven Life and The Purpose Driven Church, which was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the 20th Century. He is also founder of Pastors.com, a global Internet community for ministers.
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