Temper | Crosstraining 4.14.15

Proverbs 17:27 & Proverbs 21:23 When I was a kid, I had a bit of a temper. When things didn’t go exactly the way I wanted them, I would throw a temper tantrum. Looking back, I’m sure a lot of it could be attributed to me being a spoiled brat. To this day, my mom, sister, and several other members of my family love to remind me of some of my more epic meltdowns. No matter how old I get, they love to share about the times when I was young and lost my cool. Unfortunately, losing our temper sticks with us long after we’ve calmed down. While many of the tantrums we threw as kids we can look back on and laugh nowadays, when we lose our cool as adults the damage is real and it sticks around just as long. Sometimes things don’t go our way. That’s just a fact of life. People will let us down, even the people we are closest to. Then, sometimes, we just lose our cool for no reason at all. We try to rationalize things when we throw grown up temper tantrums, but, whether we realize it or not, our words and actions in those situations cut our loved ones deep. The scars from words we say in a moment of weakness can last for years. The damage to our relationships can be so deep it can be hard to ever recover. It’s no wonder that God constantly tells us in His Word to watch our mouths. It’s because they can do so much damage. God tells us to be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry. The next time you find yourself about to spout off something in the middle of losing your temper, take a few seconds and ask yourself if this is something you should really be saying. Think about how it will affect the people around you. Think about if it’s worth it. Think about what God would want you to say in that situation. Be slow to speak because the impact of your words can ripple for years to come. // TWO-A-DAYS // GO A LITTLE FARTHER WITH YOUR DAILY DEVOTIONS // Go through these questions with your spouse, kids, or friend, or you can even journal about the answers to these questions:

1. What was the best part of your day?
2. What was the toughest part of your day?
3. Where did you mess up today?
4. Where did you see God today?

Reflect: Do you ever find yourself saying things you don’t mean or that you regret later? Why do you think it’s so easy for us to use hurtful words especially with those we love? Pray: In your prayer time today, start out by talking to God about any time you said something you didn’t mean or regretted later to someone. Ask God for forgiveness for not being wise with your words and for a way to show that person you are sorry. READ THROUGH THE NEW TESTAMENT: Today’s Reading: Matthew 4]]>