A thought by Lisa Bevere, from her book, Be Angry, But Don’t Blow It (p.17) Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)
And we must let go, don’t we?
Lisa says, “Perpetuating anger perpetuates sin, which perpetuates unforgiveness, which intensifies the anger response. You no longer are dealing with each infraction of displeasure; you are dealing with an accumulation of many infractions against your person. You are repeatedly scraped by the same offense until it is no longer the site of a single injury but a multiple stab wound.”
She goes on, “Let’s probe deeper into the part of Ephesians 4:26 that says, ‘Do not let the sun go down on your anger.’ There is a very important spiritual and physical principle here. When you go to sleep upset, you wake up upset. When you have not extended mercy the night before, it is hard for you to embrace God’s mercy in the morning (Ps. 59:16).
“In Psalm 4:4, David warned of the danger of inviting anger to sleep with us: ‘In your anger do not sin; when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent’ (Ps. 4:4 NIV).
“This singing warrior, who possessed a heart that pleased God, shared this wisdom that transcends time and culture. From his experiences, he admonished us, ‘In your anger don’t sin; lie down on your beds, search your hearts, and be quiet.’ Notice David’s use of plurals: beds and hearts. Most of us sleep upon only a single bed just as we each possess only one heart. I believe he understood and was addressing the fact that most anger occurs within relationships. This would encompass couples, family members, and friends. Back then it was not uncommon for married couples to sleep in separate beds. This king is telling his subjects to go to their beds, lie down, wind down, and calmly search their hearts, laying them bare before God.”
She continues, “There is an invitation to revere God, to be still and know. Know what? Know Him as God by allowing Him to reveal Himself in the midst of your pain, conflict, or crisis. He wants to be the final word you hear before sleep overtakes you.
“In the quiet stillness say nothing else; don’t have the last word. Don’t justify your position. Be still and allow God to reveal Himself in the silence. It is a time to gain His insight and perspective and lay down all arguments.”
She then says, “Prayer and meditation before God are often much more about what we hear than what we say. My river of loud and angry words will not wash me clean. They merely express my side, my justifications, my frustrations. No, my wild torrent of reasoning is much too muddy and troubled to cleanse; it only stirs up the bottom and deposits additional debris. It is the still and gentle living fountain from the deep that refreshes and removes the guilt and shame.”
And that is such a great truth, isn’t it?
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