Three Things to Avoid When You’re Angry

Current Teaching Series Building My Life on Values That Last

Three Things to Avoid When You're Angry Rick Warren — June 22, 2018 "If you become angry, do not let your anger lead you into sin" (Ephesians 4:26a GNT). We all get angry from time to time. We may handle it differently, but none of us can escape the emotion entirely. But just because we get angry doesn't mean we're sinning. The Bible says, "If you become angry, do not let your anger lead you into sin" (Ephesians 4:26a GNT). Paul tells us in this passage not to let our anger lead us into sin. That means that anger isn't necessarily sin. The truth is, we can deal with our anger in both appropriate and inappropriate ways. Unfortunately, most of us express our anger in ways that get us further from our goals instead of moving us closer to them. For example, here are three things to avoid when you're angry: Don't suppress your anger. Don't store it up inside. When you suppress anger without expressing it in proper ways, it's like taking a soft drink bottle and shaking it up. One day it's going to pop! It'll impact your body eventually. Doctors tell us a number of physical ailments are often brought on by suppressed anger. Don't repress it. When you repress your anger, you simply deny it's there. Deny your anger often enough and you'll be depressed. When I used to do more counseling, I'd hear many people tell me they were depressed, but they were really just angry. They just didn't think that Christians should get angry, so they simply bottled it up inside. Denying anger is a sin. It's called lying. Don't express it in inappropriate ways. We can express anger in a variety of inappropriate ways. We pout, spit sarcasm, manipulate, or do something stupid (get drunk, have affairs, etc.). None of those approaches get us anywhere near the result we're looking for. So what should we do with our anger? Confess it. You don't just admit the anger, but you also admit the cause. You tell God — and whoever you're angry with — that you're frustrated or you feel threatened. The more honest you can be in your relationships, the easier it will be to get to the root causes of your anger. Here's the good news about your anger: You may have grown up in a home where anger was consistently expressed in appropriate ways. Inappropriate anger is learned, but it can be unlearned, too. You can change. You don't have to stay the samePLAY today's audio teaching from Pastor Rick >> Talk About It How did your family deal with anger as you were growing up? Which of the three inappropriate ways to deal with anger do you tend to use? What would your family say you tend to use? What anger are you dealing with now? How does God want you to handle it?

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Series Summary Session 1: Choosing My Standards Session 2: Accepting Responsibiilty Session 3: Developing Trust Session 4: Developing Self-Control Session 5: The Balanced Life Session 6: Showing Respect Session 7: Offering Forgiveness Session 8: Maintaining Moral Purity Session 9: Showing Fairness PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST

Pastor Rick Warren

Enjoy today's Devotional? Listen instantly to the full radio message at Daily Hope Radio. Did someone forward this devotional to you? Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional. This devotional is based on the current Daily Hope radio series at pastorrick.com. Rick Warren has helped people live with hope and on purpose for more than 40 years. He's the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Southern California and author of several books, including The Purpose Driven Church and The Purpose Driven Life, which has been translated into 137 languages and sold more than 50 million copies in all formats. He created the PEACE Plan (plant churches of reconciliation, equip servant leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, educate the next generation), which is used by churches in 196 countries. His radio teaching and daily devotional, Daily Hope, is offered around the world. This devotional © 2018 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission. You can unsubscribe at any time by changing your e-mail preferences. Update your preferences | Unsubscribe