Anger Causes Mistakes

   “A wise man controls his temper.  He knows that anger causes mistakes.”  Proverbs 14:29 TLB

   The other day, my husband, Joe, got a notice from our phone company saying that they would be increasing our services, and charging us considerably more money every month.  He was fuming, and he said that he was going to call them and complain.  I gave my husband a stern warning, telling him NOT to be angry when he made the call, because we needed God on our side, and we both knew that wouldn’t be the case if we were mistreating people.  And I earnestly prayed that the Lord would intervene on our behalf.

   When Joe called the phone company, he told them that he didn’t want our services increased, because we weren’t even using all of the ones we were already paying for.  The nice representative he spoke with checked our account, and she said that she would be happy to give us a rate reduction, so that our monthly bills would actually be lower than our current charges.  Joe was ecstatic, and he expressed his thanks to the lady.  Then she told Joe an interesting story.  A woman called and asked if her phone plan included international calls.  The phone company representative said that it did, and that she could actually give the woman a rate reduction, without losing any of her services.  Suddenly, the woman flew into a rage, and began yelling at the representative, and then abruptly hung up the phone.  Because of her anger, the woman totally misunderstood what the representative was trying to tell her, and she lost out on paying less money without sacrificing any of her current services. 

   Scripture says, “Those who control their anger have great understanding; those with a hasty temper will make mistakes.” (Proverbs 14:29 NLT)  Because that angry woman refused to control her temper, she didn’t possess the “great understanding” that would enable her to benefit from the offer that was being held out to her, and she made a costly “mistake.”  Her anger literally blinded her to the blessing that was available to her.  And my husband and I learned once again how important it is for us to remain calm and patient with people, so that God’s blessings will flow to us unhindered.

   The Bible says, “Don’t be quick to fly off the handle.  Anger boomerangs.  You can spot a fool by the lumps on his head.” (Ecclesiastes 7:9 MSG)  Anger is costly, and it always comes back to “bite” us in the end.  Let’s be people of patience, so that the Lord can pour out His blessings upon us in full measure!

   Lord, I want to learn to control my temper in every situation, but I can’t do it on my own.  By Your Spirit, anoint and enable me to exercise patience with everyone I come in contact with, especially in my own home.  Remind me that anger can be very costly, and that it can boomerang and do me – as well as others – great harm.  Thank You that as I submit to You and Your leadership continually, I will reap the blessed rewards of a patient spirit!

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