“Be angry, and do not sin. Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still… Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the Lord” (Ps. 4:4-5, NKJV).
Have you ever felt so angry it seemed like your blood was boiling? Did it feel like an unholy moment? Well, I have some good news for you. Anger is a God-given emotion. And He fully intends to equip us with the right tools to process its intensity.
When you inadvertently touch a dangerously hot stove top, your nerves instantly send a warning to your brain. In less than a second, your brain responds with a command. In response, your hand jerks away from that injurious surface.
Anger is like that. God gave it to us as a signal. It immediately warns us that something is wrong. Harm is taking place, and we urgently need to address it. We need to take measures to ensure our own well-being.
Today’s passage from Psalms lays out for us what those measures are. Holy Spirit has given us five practical steps here. Let’s take a good look at each one.
- “Be angry.” Recognize that your feelings are legitimate. God says it’s okay to feel angry. He gave you that emotion. Yes. You have been mistreated.
- “Do not sin.” This is perhaps the most challenging part. Make an urgent decision not to act on your anger. Don’t lash out. Don’t say that juicy word on the tip of your tongue, begging for expression. Don’t push “send” on the angry text message you just typed. Don’t slam the door and storm out of the room. Don’t even sigh loudly and roll your eyes. Bite your tongue if you have to. Whatever it takes, don’t let your anger control you in that critical moment.
- “Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still.” Here Holy Spirit is inviting you to process your feelings with Him. You need to get still with Him so you can do this properly. Stuffing your frustration or trying to ignore it and just “push through” is not the right answer. He wants you to pour out your heart to Him in the quiet place. You legitimately need the opportunity to express your hurt. Tell Him exactly how you feel. Vent to Him. Let it all out, in prayer. Use the eyes of your heart to focus on Him listening intently and receiving the contents of your heart with deep compassion.
- “Offer the sacrifices of righteousness.” In this case, your anger is the sacrifice He is asking for. Give it to Him. Surrender to Him your desire to get back at that individual. Lay on the altar your urge to put them in their place, to make them feel bad for hurting you. Give over to Him that overwhelming urge to convince that person of how wrong they are. Relinquish your cause to the Righteous Judge. Entrust to Him the working out of justice. See yourself letting go of your case, and Him taking it up.
- “Trust in the Lord.” Make a decision to trust Him completely with this situation so close to your heart. He is the way maker. He is the righter of wrongs. He is the softener of hard hearts, the mover of mountains, and the worker of the impossible. You can trust Him. He will do it. It may not be as quickly as you would like, but He will “make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun” (Ps. 37:6, NIV).
Humanly speaking, this godly handling of anger is indeed impossible. But with God, nothing is impossible. Remember, mercy triumphs over judgment. You can overcome evil will good, because good is exceedingly more powerful than evil. In every one of these five steps, cry out for the Holy Spirit’s help and empowering. As you steadfastly invite Him into your painful circumstance, over the long haul, He will work for your good in ways that will flabbergast you!
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Psalm 18:7 talks about God getting angry when we are hurt. Does it help to understand that He gives us permission to feel angry too?
Feeding On Jesus 
Great post. One I needed right now also.
That’s… at least the second time that’s happened. I suspect probably 6 or so total, with the other instances not quite reaching a “crisis” feel to them. 🙂
God is definitely using you and your blog to do good works. Stay humble about it though. 😀
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Aw, praise the Lord! My heart rejoices to know that it was timely and a blessing to you! And amen, may the Lord Jesus ever produce that beautiful fruit of humility in me! 😀 😀
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I really loved how you broke this down Jennifer. It helped me understand better how to process when I feel angry.
Thank you 😊
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Aw you are so welcome, Manu! I’m so very glad it helped you! Sending you tons of love ❤ 🙂
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Such a good reminder…be angry but sin not!
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Thank you, Barb! Grace and peace to you!
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What you have written is truly beautiful Jennifer, thank you for sharing. We definitely all encounter the emotion of anger, I love how God teaches us how to handle anger. It’s definitely an aspect of my life that I find myself working on with God at times. God bless.
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Thank you, too, Michelle! I so appreciate your thoughtful comment. I am so grateful for Jesus’ grace towards us as we walk forward, growing in this way. Much love to you!
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Emotions, certainly including anger, are part of the human makeup. It’s impossible to avoid them. Ah, but to channel the energy!! I’ve been stewing for a couple hours now looking for a more reasoned way to write what I really want to say, without completely losing the emotion of the moment. . . . .
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That really is the challenge, isn’t it my dear brother? Finding the right words for our complex emotions can be so challenging! Grace and peace to you in abundance, Mike 🙂
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Thank you. The GOD timing re what you have written is so appropriate. Thank you Jennifer and thank God for His Word. I felt so ‘pushed around’;( in a medical situation yesterday) that Anger at some aspects may have been justified but your post is gently nurturing my way forward to think clearly and absorb the DIVINE Peace I can now absorb. I can today with His Help, Pray. repent, Praise HIM For WHO He is in the midst of all our living. A valuable post. Again thank you.
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Thank You Jesus! I am so blessed to know it was timely and helpful for you, my sister 🙂 Amen, may His peace surround and fill your soul as you give it all to Him ❤ 🙂
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I realllllly needed this yesterday (when you wrote it). But today is good too. Hopefully I will handle worldly injustices better today than I did yesterday.
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Thank You Father! I am rejoicing that it helped and encouraged you. May His grace and peace be multiplied to you today on your journey in Him 🙂
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Thank you so much. I always thought anger was bad, when growing up and I still so hate the taste of it that I avoid it. Thank you for reminding me that it is a valid emotion, useful and can be dealt with in grace. x
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You are welcome, my dear sister! I am so very blessed that you were blessed! ❤
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I thank God every day (out loud, so I can hear myself) that my emotions don’t get to run my life. I can obey God whether I “feel like it” or not. I find that praying for the person I’m angry with helps. (Remember how Job prayed for his judgmental friends?) I may start out wanting to hurt them, but I can CHOOSE to ask God to bless them – whether it’s softening their heart, bringing them to repentance, or helping me to understand them so I don’t do or say something to them that I shouldn’t. I’ve known the incredible joy that happens when I’m having a pleasant, loving conversation with the person I could not have forgiven in my own strength, but who is now a good friend.
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Annie, that is so, SO good. Powerful, relevant, practical truth that we all so need! Thank you for sharing that. I have had that same experience, and with some of the people that are a part of my close circle now. God is AMAZING, what He can do supernaturally in our hearts as we submit to His ways. (Btw, slow reply because I’ve been traveling)
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No problem, Jennifer. I’m glad you were able to travel. I hope you had a good trip. 🙂
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Thank you, Annie. I’m actually still traveling, will be for the next couple of weeks. Grace and peace!
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Making time for prayer is something I am trying to get better at, and more than just once a day or for a short 5min stretch of time. Jesus took time to himself every day to pray, so how much more necessary is it for us to do so?
I find it easy to get angry at myself when I am not productive or I do something unwise. Instead of making further wise decisions I must turn that anger over to God and pray.
Thank you, as always, for sharing these words of the Holy Spirit.
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Hamish, that is so wise! To recognize the learning moment and turn to God insead of allowing negativity to steal from your day. How wonderful that He is showing you this!
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