Being calm in the face of anger and thinking about the situation is a great strength you can wield as a child. It’s also a sign that you are maturing into a balanced adult. When a person is saying words that you feel are offensive or carrying out actions that seem to offend you, ask if they are saying the truth. Seeking to know if their words are truthful can help you to understand certain things about yourself.
Giving thoughts to the words or actions of others before reacting or even after doing so helps you look inwards at yourself. You pick out the truths and apply them to your life and start making changes. Don’t look at how they said or did it – yes, it could be harsh, but look at the truth in what they are saying. You should be concerned about how to use the truths in their words and actions to better yourself.
Sometimes you could be the cause of why people do the things they do you. Are you a bully? Do you gossip about your friends? Are you a disloyal friend? Asking yourself such deep questions will lead you to the truth.
Even if you are not the cause of it, still remember to keep your cool and maintain your stand in Christ. There’s nothing to gain by retaliating with a quick outburst. Take a chill pill and let the Spirit of God teach you what to do; He is the Spirit of truth.
Finally, you can always pray to God for the grace to hold back your tongue and think before speaking; and to always speak in line with the truth when you speak.
“Lord, help me control my tongue. Help me be careful about what I say.” Psa. 143:3 ICB
Prayer:
Lord, help me learn from what people say or do to me. Show me where I am the problem. In Jesus’s name, Amen.
Action point: Take your time to listen when next someone angers you with their words or actions. Listen for the truth.
The first thing you want to do when someone says something bad or hurtful to you is to quickly reply. Well, that’s just you being human and everyone feels that way too. You are no exception; no natural self wants to turn the other cheek.
Rather than allowing your natural self to take over, why not just take a moment to calm down. Take some breaths if you remember to and slowly leave the place or just keep quiet. Turn the other cheek.
This doesn’t make you a fool or weak in any way. Rather, it shows maturity and that you have the Spirit of God working in you. Yeah, the fruit of the Spirit is working in you. One of such fruits is the fruit of love.
Out of love for God, you would rather not say something bad back to the person and instead, just walk away or keep quiet. If it’s a physical situation, you don’t retaliate, but rather turn the other cheek like Jesus said to do:
“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I tell you, don’t stand up against an evil person. If someone slaps you on the right cheek, then turn and let him slap the other cheek too. Matthew 5:38 – 39 ICB
Turning the other cheek doesn’t mean you physically do that. It’s just a figure of speech that means you don’t act upon what the person said or did. You choose to obey God than man.
It can be hard to do, especially if there are others there who are goading to hit or speak back at the person. With practice and prayers to God for help, you will learn how to keep your peace; you will learn how to turn the other cheek.
May the Lord bless you with a spirit of love for Him. Amen
Prayer:
Lord, help me to be calm in situations that could get me angry. Teach me how to quickly let go of my anger. Teach me how to turn the other cheek. In Jesus’ name, amen.
I’m sure you have felt angry before. The feeling you have inside your heart when someone or something gets under your skin; that’s anger. You feel all the blood pumping inside your heart, ready to release some very harsh words through your mouth and actions. When it’s a person, you want to say bad words to them or harm them back. If it’s a situation you might likely scream out or yell or hit the wall or something.
Everyone feels anger. It’s a human emotion. Even God that isn’t human feels anger. Jesus felt angry when He saw how the people turned the temple into a market place.
But it was almost time for the Jewish Passover Feast. So Jesus went to Jerusalem. In the Temple he found men selling cattle, sheep, and doves. He saw others sitting at tables, exchanging money. Jesus made a whip out of cords. Then he forced all these men, with the sheep and cattle, to leave the Temple. He turned over the tables and scattered the money of the men who were exchanging it. Then he said to those who were selling pigeons, “Take these things out of here! Don’t make my Father’s house a place for buying and selling!” John 2:13-16 ICB
Anger isn’t necessarily bad on its own. It’s what you do or say when you’re angry that is the major issue with getting angry.
Jesus spoke about anger in the bible. He showed how to not let your anger remain in your heart overnight. If your sibling offends you in the morning and you remain angry at them till the next day, that’s bad. That’s what Jesus was talking about
You will face some situations in life that are beyond your control and get angry because of this. People will do or say stuff that you don’t like to you or someone close to you. That’s just the way life is.
In this series, we will be looking at how you, as a child, can and should handle anger.
I pray that God will give His Holy Spirit to minister to you. in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Prayer:
Lord, help me deal with every spirit of anger in me. Amen.
Another sensible thing to do as you go about achieving your dream is to read up about the people who have done what you want to do.
These people may be famous or not but they have achieved what you want to. When you read and/or study about their lives, what they went through, where they lived, how they did what they did and the rest, you are learning some great lessons from their lives. You see their mistakes, fears, habits, and more. These are great tools for you to use for your own journey of fulfilling your dream.
Reading about them helps you know how to avoid some mistakes they made. That’s the best way to learn and grow. Using their tips and tricks will help to speed up the learning process for you and you will also achieve the same results they did, and your dream will be made manifest.
Look at the story of the prophets Elijah and Elisha in the bible. Elijah was a powerful prophet in the bible. He declared that there wouldn’t be any rain and there wasn’t (1Kings 17:1-2). It was only after he said there would be rain that it rained (1Kings 18:41-46). He was also the one that called down fire from heaven to burn the wet animal sacrifice when he challenged the fake prophets of fake gods to a contest (1 Kings 18:1-40).
Elisha saw all the mighty things Elijah did and asked for a double portion of his anointing and he received it (and it helped him fulfill his own dream). Why? Because he understood the power that Elijah had. Just like when you read up on these people because you know how much they have achieved in their field. You need this kind of power.
May God give you the right people to follow. Amen.
Prayer:
Lord, lead me to men and women whose lives are a mirror of your grace and goodness. May I learn what I need to learn from them to fulfill my dream. Amen.
Action plan:
Read books about great men and women in the field you are pursuing. You can also read up on people who have encountered and overcome great physical, medical, spiritual, and financial challenges. Ordinary people who have overcome so much. Then apply it to your dream.
So you have discovered your passion for something and are acquiring some form of education in that area and have also not quit, what is next on the line? Well, the next thing to do is to start acting out your dreams. Act!
You have learnt some art principles in art school – start to use them in your works. Let them show in your paintings or sculptures or whatever form of art you are creating.
You love to cook? Start using the skills you have learnt at culinary school at home. Cook something at home. Act out your dream.
Do not wait till you graduate or finish your training before you start to practice. Practicing is like having tests and exams at school. It’s to test how much you have learnt or are learning.
When David faced Goliath on the battlefield, it wasn’t his first time on the battlefield. He was already battling lions and bears in the forest while shepherding flocks daily. He already had practiced before the big day. You see? Learn to act.
Goliath was just another bear or lion in the eyes of David. And he believed that if God could successfully allow him to kill lions and bears, who was Goliath that God wouldn’t allow him to defeat, especially since the giant was mocking and teasing the Israelites. (Read 1 Sam. 17:1-51)
Practicing is for measuring how much you have learnt and not to mock or ridicule you. Through practice, you will discover so much about yourself and what you are learning. I yet say again, “Act out your dream.”
One final thought about practicing – it prepares you for battle.
I pray that the Lord will equip you daily as you practice. Amen.
Prayer: Father, help me to continue to practice the skills I have learnt. Help me to act. Help me to discover my strengths and weaknesses in Jesus’ name, amen.
Action plan: Do all your practices. Do all your school assignments, take all tests and exams.
