Anger Resistant

 

 

Prov 19:11

 

11 The discretion of a man makes him slow to anger,

And his glory is to overlook a transgression.

NKJV

Some people are so even-tempered.  They never seem to lose their cool. It takes a whole lot to get them worked up.  I am not one of those people!  It is very easy for me to get irked when a person has blinked that they are turning for 20 miles.  It drives me crazy when my kid is not given a fair chance. It lights my cannon  when others help to make a mess, but leave me with all the clean up. 

Anger is one of the mechanisms that the Lord wired us with to help us to know when we are being mistreated.  It serves as a warning system of sorts.  But it is something that we must tightly control.  This passage indicates that it is highly favorable to be slow to anger.  This is something I have been perfecting for many years.  Trust me- I have come a long way!  But I am not nearly where I want to be.  Typically, when I am angry, I am can feel that way, without sinning.  But I want to go beyond that.  I want to be less prone to feeling the emotion in the first place.

I think the secret to that may be contained in the second part of this verse. Overlooking a transgression short circuits a lot of opportunities to become angry.  When someone cuts you off in traffic, assume that they did not see you.  When someone cuts you off in conversation, believe that they did not intend to be rude.  Extending the benefit of the doubt to others can go a long way.

Truthfully, however, there are times that we know a person meant to mistreat us.  At that those times, if we can just choose to let it go, it is very beneficial.  And probably, it is rewarded by the Lord's pleasure. If you find that you cannot overlook an offense, sometimes the only recourse is to address the issue first-hand. In love, we must confront.

Dear Lord, help me to be the kind of person that is slow to anger.  Give me grace to overlook offence and to flow in the fruits of the Spirit.  In Jesus' Name.  Amen.

Sherri