Fruit of the Spirit: Self-Control in Times of Anger

This began as a message inspired by the Holy Spirit when I was reading in Numbers, where Moses got angry and struck the rock. The Lord used this story for instruction. I began writing the message as He inspired, but then He took over and began speaking directly. His words I have put in bold print. In the message part, it may say "you" but this is definitely directed at me, and not just "you." As always pray and test the spirits.

Anger can be very costly. Things done in anger or said in anger can be very destructive. Moses lost his chance to walk into the Promised Land because of anger. (Numbers 20:10-12)

True, under the New Covenant, we have redemption of sins through Jesus Christ. Think about it: When you got angry, what curses flew out of your mouth? Did you forgive the offense immediately, or did you hold on to it and keep going over it in your mind?

We all get angry. There are times for righteous anger; but generally speaking, anger is a door for the enemy to enter into your life. This is because in that second or moment that anger floods you, a demon of anger has an opportunity to step in and take over you and the situation.

You must be extremely careful in anger, learn to keep your mouth shut until those hurtful, hateful things you want to say, subside. You need the love of Jesus and the guidance of the Holy Spirit more than ever when you are angry. The Holy Spirit is still that quiet, gentle voice saying, "___." Listen to that voice! A spirit of anger working on the flesh is the one shouting. We have all been there. We have all heard the words shouted in our brains the split second before we spewed them out of our mouths. The key is managing the tongue. (James 3:1-12)

Managing the tongue in anger does not come at that moment of anger, it comes in time spent in the Word of the Lord, in prayer and in worship. Through these things (the Word, prayer and worship) the wisdom, the love and the grace of God flows so that even when you are angry, you can still hear the voice of the Holy Spirit warning you. Flesh and whatever anger spirits will still be shouting (in your head), but you will be much more able to hear and discern the voice of the Holy Spirit.

It is not wrong to get angry in certain situations. The sin is when you open up your mouth and spew out curses. When you fly off the handle. The sin is in the angry actions and hateful words, those who stomp around, throw things, strike out at others or objects. (Moses in Numbers 20:10-11)

We all get angry, even the Lord gets angry. Does He want you to curse those who curse you? What did Jesus have to say about that? He said to love your enemies. He begged His Father to forgive all those who had betrayed Him, tortured Him and put Him on the cross. He is supposed to be our example, correct?

So, even in moments of anger, we are not to lash out and verbally curse or physically react. Take a second or two, even with that angry emotion washing over you, seek the Voice of the Lord. You can mentally ask Him for help even if it's just a cry of, "Jesus!"

You can discuss (if the situation allows) what caused you to get angry, but first, you must forgive. Ask the Lord to take over your emotions, ask Him to help you to calm down. True, when that other person keeps at you, this is hard to do, but you must do this. Curses you let fly out of your mouth are Going to Land On You and that other person. YOU ARE CURSING YOURSELF as well as them! So you must learn to close your mouth before answering back in kind.

"Life and death are in the power of the tongue and that is magnified in your anger. How many times have you said awful things to someone you loved, things you would never have said, normally. In that instant, you gave yourself over to a demon of anger and you let out ITS words, ITS curses, and IT laughed as you did so. Through you allowing that demon to use your mouth to curse, you opened doors to many, many other demons to go to work in that person's life, as well as your own. Even though you may have repented later, and forgiven and made up, those demons have still gotten a chance to work. Now curses have been set in motion to hurt you and that other family. Did something suddenly break? Did you suddenly lose a great amount of money? Did you get sick? Did you get injured? Lose a job, or anything else devastating? You caused that death by your tongue; those evil spirits you allowed to use your mouth.

How to counteract this: First, repent of allowing your mouth to be a vehicle for the enemy to use to kill, steal and destroy. Then, you MUST forgive. Develop an attitude of forgiveness. This is only done through time spent with Me. Worship Me, Praise Me, read My Word, pray. If you spend time with Me and in My Presence, then you will find that when you get angry, you can differentiate the voices: Mine vs. your flesh and the enemy's.

Learn to control your anger, learn to control yourself in anger, now. That's a fruit of the Spirit: Self-control. Self-control is most important in moments of anger.

Times are changing fast. You will see many, many things that will make you angry. Just know, you wrestle not against flesh and blood. The evil you see these people committing is the enemy operating through them. You call them "demoncrats" and yes, the enemy is operating through them, but you must forgive them and pray for their souls. This includes Nancy Pelosi, Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, et al. They are all lost, woefully, woefully lost. They have shut themselves outside My Kingdom, they think to stand against Me. You see what a fearful place they are in? You must pray for them, for My mercy on them. For your Own Soul, pray for them!

I am not telling you what I will do for them. I am telling you, you will reap the curses you spew out of your mouth onto them and anyone else. You must not allow your mouth to be a vehicle for the enemy.

Learn to forgive, immediately, even in the midst of great trials, even when someone else is standing in your face, screaming at you. Forgive them, even as they scream and yell and curse you. If you forgive them, and don't react in kind, the curses will not light on you. My Blood covers you and keeps you safe in those moments. But you CANNOT answer back in kind. You cause My Blood to be of no effect through your own sin. You have just removed the shield of My Blood and invited the enemy to take over. You have traded My Blood for his death and destruction. So be careful!

The very second you feel anger begin to wash over you, call out to Me! Your flesh won't want to, the enemy certainly won't want you to, but that moment when the anger first begins, you have a choice: Me, or the enemy. Who will you choose?

Don't be like Moses. Don't lose your rewards in a moment. Yes, you can lose your rewards! You can also lose your soul, if you die in that moment of anger. If you open up your mouth and use it to spew curses and act in wrath and you suddenly have a heart attack and die, you have just died in your sins. Do you want that? I do not want that for you, My child. Remember what My Son said when he was on Earth? "If you will not forgive others, how can My Father in Heaven forgive you?"

That is what is meant, when I say in those first moments of anger beginning to wash over you, you have a choice. In those first few seconds when your blood pressure is rising, your heart begins to pound, you feel that tingling, all those emotions getting stirred up into turmoil, that is where your choice comes in: to continue to allow the physical feelings (flesh) and then to speak -or shout- back (that's the enemy taking over), or to experience those physical, fleshly feelings and quietly, even in your mind call to Me. You call to Me, I can make those feelings subside. Yes, I know, the pain of what that other person did or said is still there, but this is where you make the choice to forgive.

I Am not saying you can't tell them, "hey, that hurt!" or "I didn't like that!" but when you do that in a spirit of forgiveness, the fruit of self-control grows bigger and I Am able to work in this situation. Yes, I Am all-powerful and I could just take over, but I will not. It is your choice.

It can feel good to give into that anger, that is what the enemy wants, to destroy you. Giving it over to Me can seem contrary, it is certainly contrary to your flesh.

If you stop giving into the flesh (and then to the enemy) and give in to Me, your life will be much more peaceful. Even when the world around you is turned upside down I can give you peace. Even when what you are seeing is so horrific and criminal, I can still give you peace. You can be righteously angry and have My peace at the same time. I will not lead you into sin, I will lead you out of it. I may use you to pass sentence on the one who has done wrong, but when I do that you will have peace in your heart. You will also grieve over that judgement, but your inner peace will not leave you. I have called people to pass Judgement on this nation. But they do not do it out of rage, they do it in My righteous anger, with peace in their hearts and they grieve over the judgement given.

Don't let the enemy fool you into thinking you have been called to do that (pass God's judgement). You will only know it when the prophetic utterance begins and you will grieve like Jeremiah afterward. So don't aspire to that position. It is a heavy one. If you add to My Words in that moment, you will condemn yourself! So don't "hope" to be that person to speak Judgement. There are only certain ones for this job, they have the fruit of self-control.

So in your own life, be careful what you say. Spend time in My Word, in prayer and in worship so you can learn to recognize the cues when the angry feelings begin and when you have the choice to allow anger, or grow the fruit of self-control. Remember what I said, when those angry feelings first start, you have a choice. You may proceed into sin, or proceed into My Grace."

Proverbs 4:23, 26-27; 2:7-8, 10-11; 3:7; 15:1, 4, 18, 23,28; 16:10, 12-13, 24-25, 32; 17:9, 14, 20(b), 27; 18:4, 6-7, 20-21, 23; 21:21,23; 23:12,15; 24:17-18, 19-22, 28-29; 25:21-22; 26:2; 29:20, 22; 30:5

Mark 11:25-26

Matthew 5:43-46; 6:14-15; 7:1-2, 13-14

Ephesians 4:26-27, 29-32; 5:1-2, 8-10, 17

Numbers 20

James 3